‘Think like a wise man but communicate in the

language of the people.’Yeats (1865 – 1939)

Thought for the day:

COMMUNICATION

Target Learning Objective Who? Keywords

• Explain the different means of communication

AllC-BA03

CommunicationChannels of communicationCommunication media

• Show Awareness of the barriers to effective communication

• Understand how the barriers to communication can be overcome.

• Understand methods of internal & external communication

• Understand the need for effective communication

MOSTB

A03

• Comment on the appropriateness of different means of communication

SOMEA

A04

Activity

• Pg 100 – Business in Context

A01: Knowledge

ACTIVITY

• Sit back to back.• One person has an image • One person has pen and paper• Draw an object described only in the

spoken word

‘What did you find hard in this task?’

Defined

• What do you think?• Communication is the process by which

information is exchanged between a group or person and another

Purpose of Communication

• Communication is aiming to exchange of information, ideas, opinions and feelings.

• Communication is said to be effective when it is received and understood in the manner intended by the sender.

What makes communication?• A message: people communicate in order to

pass a message• A Sender: the transmitter – all messages arise

from a source• A medium: transmission – there are many

formal methods that a person can use to transmit information

• A Receiver: Communication only becomes complete when a message is received

• Feedback: the receipt of a message normally creates a response from the recipient.

• Pg 105 diagram

Which is which?

Message/ Sender/ Medium/ Receiver/ Feedback

Why is effective communication important?

• Pg 106

To be effective, it must be….

• Pg 106

Forms of communication

Communication can take a number of forms, including:

• Oral (spoken) pg 106

• Written (Letters, memos, Reportas, Notices, Executive Summaries, Abstracts, Research proposals) pg 107

• Technology pg 109

Remember communication is: - Not always Word!

What are these people communicating to you?

How many different messages can you communicate with these same four words?

‘What are you doing?’

What are you doing? What are you doing?What are you doing? What are you doing?

Who must managers communicate with?

The government

The local community/

Media

Employees/ Shareholder/

Potential Investors

Customers

Suppliers

MANAGER

Financiers

Purpose of communication in Business:

• Communication is essential to the achievement of business objectives.

• This is because the basic purpose of any communication is to influence the actions of others.

• Effective communication is therefore an essential aspect of management

Reasons for communication

• Informing – Presenting facts• Commanding – giving instruction• Negotiating – Presenting a case• Reporting – Presenting findings• Co-ordinating – organising people• Co-operating – involving teamwork• Motivating – influencing attitudes

Need for confidentiality

• Pg 109

Classification of communication: Formality

• Formal and Informal • Formal – Using channels of

communication• Informal– Channels established by the

employees themselves (passes information quickly but usually distorted).

Communication by Formality

• Formal communication = arranged, approved or official

• Informal communication = unofficial, unplanned They help:

• i) satisfy personal needs• ii) counter monotony at work• iii) provide an alternative source of job-related

information

Direction

• Where there is no facility for a reply (feedback), it is called one-way communication

• Feedback built into two-way communication is a feature of a democratic leadership style

Sender

Sender Receiver

Receiver

Feedback

• Sender receives feedback e.g manager discusses an issue with an employee at a meeting.

• This is slower than one way but sender gains more information.

Sender Receiver

Why is the facility for feedback important?

• Feedback ensures message is fully understood

• Feedback enables subordinates to contribute to the process of decision making

Activity

• What factors do you think would effect the choice of communication method?

Pairs ‘thought shower’ Page 105

A01: Knowledge

Selecting an appropriate channel & method

Need to build in a feedback mechanism

Activity

• Exam question exemplar

Page 109

A03: Analysis

Internal communication

• The purpose of most formal communication is to initiate action

• The performance and efficiency of an employee will be influenced by the effectiveness of internal communication.

INTERNAL COMMUNICATION

Head office

One department

Manager

Staff

Branch Manager

Another Department

Staff

Staff

Colleagues, Superiors & subordinates

The importance of internal communications

To achieve business aims, functional areas must support each other, eg

• Operations and sales must agree delivery dates• Finance must know what has been sold

• Sales staff must know credit limits

• Customer service must know about problems and delays

• Human resources must know about training requirements

GOOD COMMUNICATIONS ARE ESSENTIAL

EXTERNAL COMMUNICATION

Business

Staff

Business

Business

Other Businesses

Customers

Shareholders

The community

Customers, suppliers, financial institutions, government agencies

The importance of external communications

External communications are critical to sales, eg• Customer enquiries must be handled promptly• Product/service information must be

accurate/attractive• Customer invoices must be correct• Customer and supplier problems must be

resolved quickly

Communication – Internal/External

Internal Communication

e.g Directors

Managers

Employees

Other businesses

Government

Local Community

Potential Investors

ShareholdersSuppliers

Good communication

• Good Internal communication makes sure everyone within the business is aiming towards the same goal.

• It makes sure people know what they are expected to do and why they are doing it

• It also co-ordinates the activities of different parts of the business.

Activity

• What is a barrier to communication?

Pairs ‘thought shower’

Pg 102A01: Knowledge

A model of communication

A model of communication• Transmission can be affected by noise• Noise is anything that distracts the recipient and causes

either a failure to receive the message or a misinterpretation of the message

• But there are many other barriers…• Here are a few….• Pg 102

Barriers to communication

• Language Problems – Jargon and abbreviations, ambiguity, different languages

• Jargon – A word or phrase which has technical or specialised meaning.

• Atmosphere – e.g relationship

Barriers to communication

• Location – Geographical or people always out of the office.

• Different countries/ different cultures/ time difference

• play

16:36 Wed 01:36 Thu

Barriers to communication

• Length of ‘chain of command’ or distance – word of mouth through a number of people - distorted

Barriers to communication

• Problems with ICT – Information overload, introduction of ICT (training), confidentiality

• & other physical barriers

Barriers to communicationForm of the message – We probably forgotten half of what we hear within a few hours, no more than 10% remains after two or three days.

Sender must make sure it: 1.does not contain too much information2. is not poorly written 3.is not presented too quickly4.written in a way which is understood.•Wrong target for the message – wrong information to wrong person

Think about it!

• What are the consequences of poor communication?

Communication failureCommunication problems result in:•Inefficiency•Failure to achieve organisational goals, and•Employment relations problems•Low morale•Errors – reworking•Loss of competitiveness (low productivity)•Lack of control

Activity

• Ways to overcome barriers

Pg 103A01: Knowledge

Symptoms of poor communication

• Low morale• Errors or re-working• Higher labour turnover• Unwillingness to make decisions and/or accept

responsibility• Loss of cometitiveness (low productivtiy etc)• Lack of control• Conflict and/or aggression• Absenteeism• More production errors or higher ‘scrap rate’• Evidence of lack of control and discipline

Improving communication• Ensuring employees are aware of

communication problems• Using more than one communication net/system• Minimising communication chain linkages• Reducing status differentials e.g open plan

offices or all staff using the same cafeteria• Careful composition of messages, encouraging

simplicity and clarity

Improving communication• Using different media to reinforce the message• Encouraging recognition of cultural and social

differences, prejudices and interdepartmental rivalries

• Using and encouraging upward communication channels e.g appraisal, staff meetings, suggestion boxes, procedures for solving grievances, for feedback.

Why effective communication is essential?

• Because employees need to know what is expected of them and what they should be trying to achieve.

Meeting Objectives

• All businesses work towards achieving objectives.

• These objectives can be met by means of clear plans.

• The implementation of plans involves establishing policies which govern the way things are done in the organisation.

Target Learning Objective Who? Keywords

• Explain the different means of communication

AllC-BA03

CommunicationChannels of communicationCommunication media

• Show Awareness of the barriers to effective communication

• Understand how the barriers to communication can be overcome.

• Understand methods of internal & external communication

• Understand the need for effective communication

MOSTB

A03

• Comment on the appropriateness of different means of communication

SOMEA

A04