COMMUNICATION: AN OVERVIEW

Families, communities, businesses and governments are but few examples of organizations that are seemingly part of our everyday lives. All organizations are created and organized through a communication process and are maintained by people communicating with each other. Organizations and especially businesses are therefore contexts in which communication occurs. In this course we shall focus on communication that occurs in the context of business and before we proceed to discuss the nuances of Business communication it is pertinent to understand Communication per se.

MEANING OF COMMUNICATION
The term communication is freely used by everyone in modern society, including members of the general public, management thinkers, linguists, and others. Despite this wide spread usage, the term cannot be precisely defined. The term communication is derived from the Latin word Communis which means to share, that is sharing of ideas, concepts, feelings and emotions. In simple words Communication can be defined as the process of passing information and understanding from one person to another. Koontz and ODonell defined communication as the transfer of information from one person to another whether or not it elicits confidence OBJECTIVES OF COMMUNICATION Conveying the right message Co-ordination of effort
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 To develop information and understanding among all workers To foster attitude necessary for motivation, co-operation and job satisfaction. To discourage misinformation, ambiguity and rumors. To prepare workers for a change in methods To encourage subordinate participation. To improve labor- management relations To encourage social relations. IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNICATION It was Chester Barnards work The Functions of Executive, which highlighted communication as a force in shaping the organization. He also linked communication with his concept of authority. The authority flows down through the channels of communication. The authority can lose its meaning if the channels of communication are blocked or if the strength of communication is diluted. For authority to function he suggested the following: Channels of communication must be clearly set. Every member should be reached by some channel of communication. The line of communication should be as direct as possible. There should be no blockage in the line of communication. Communicator should be highly skilled. Line of communication should be constantly kept open. Every communication should be authenticated.

OTHER FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO IMPORATANCE OF COMMUNICATION Business has grown in size Complex nature of business activity To liaise with government agencies and departments To liaise with distributors, retailers and individual customers CONCEPT OF PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION Communication is a two way process in which there is an exchange and progression of ideas towards a mutually accepted direction or goal. For this process to materialize, it is essential that the basic elements of communication be identified. These elements are: 1) Sender/Encoder/Speaker 2) Receiver/Decoder/Listener 3) Message 4) Medium 5) Feedback PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION Clarity of thought The communication cycle begins with the generation of an idea in the mind of the transmitter. A great deal of clarity is needed at this stage. The communicator must be clear about three points: 1) What is the objective of communication? 2) What is to be communicated? 3) Which medium will prove to be most suitable for this purpose?

Clarity of expression The receiver learns about the idea in the transmitters mind through the coded message. If encoding is faulty, the message may be misinterpreted. So it is important to be careful while encoding the message. Since most of the messages are transmitted with the help of words, the transmitter should be careful about the meanings and organization of words. Use simple words Use single words for long phrases Use verbs for nouns Avoid double entry Use concrete expressions Prefer active voice as they are easier to comprehend Avoid excessive use of the infinitives Avoid jargon Avoid ambiguity Use short sentences Completeness Conciseness Consideration While communicating readers/listeners sensitivities should be borne in mind. This can be done by: Adopting the your attitude by not emphasizing on We or I. By being gender sensitive By emphasizing positive and pleasant facts. Courtesy Always give correct facts
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 Always send message at the appropriate time PATTERNS OF COMMUNICATION One way or Two way The communication process may flow in a one way direction from sender to receiver only. This may for instance, is the case for such communication sent into the external environment as advertising message and corporate communications. Alternatively, the communication will flow on a two way basis between the parties to the process. Each party will act as sender and receiver, while the process will incorporate some elements of feedback. Downward Communication Downward communication takes place from the top to the bottom of the formal scalar or hierarchical chain of command. Such communication is usually directive, that is, it is based on the issue of instructions to subordinate staff in the lower levels of the hierarchy. Katz and Kahn identified 5 general purposes of top-to-bottom communication. 1) to give specific task directives about job instructions 2) to give information about organizational procedures and practices 3) to provide information about the rationale of the job 4) to tell subordinates about their performance 5) to provide ideological information to facilitate the indoctrination of goals. Upward communication The upward communication often represents control or feedback information showing senior management what has occurred at particular operational levels. Upward communication is used to establish whether or

not management policies and directives have been implemented by subordinate staff. Ester R.Becker, upward communication provides a clear channel for funneling information, opinion and attitudes up through the organization. Lateral communication Lateral communication takes place across the organization between peers, between functions and departments and between subordinates and super ordinates at different levels in the hierarchy. Lateral communication flows are used for information dissemination within the organization and for the processes of organizational coordination and integration. Effective lateral systems of communication are also essential to achieving a flexible or adaptable response to conditions of change and innovation. Focused, Star or Web communication patterns This pattern centers around one person or role. Everybody in the organization communicates directly with the centre of the star or web, rather than with each other. Such communication structures are to be found: In very highly centralized entrepreneurial structures. In structures in which the person at the centre of the web choose to maintain a very high degree of control over the operations of subordinate staff. In structures in which each subordinate staff receives individual instructions which must remain unknown to others. Open or Free for all This communication pattern permits anybody within the organization to communicate with anyone else, irrespective of hierarchical position or

status. Such dynamic communication patterns characterize the open and flexible innovative, organic or adhocratic structures. Oral communication Oral communication can occur in a face-to-face meting of two people or in a managers presentation to a large audience, it can be formal or informal and it can be planned or accidental. Written communication A written communication is put in writing and is generally in the form of instructions, letters, memos, formal reports, rules and regulations etc. It is more effective when it is required to communicate information that requires action in future and where communication is that of general informational nature. Non verbal communication People communicate in many different ways. What a person says can be reinforced (or contradicted) by nonverbal communication, such as facial expressions and body gestures. Nonverbal communication is expected to support the verbal, but it does not always do so. Grapevine The grapevine is the core informal communication network. Via the grapevine people transmit information to each other outside of formal communication channels. Davis identified several types of grapevine configurations. The first is called a single strand grapevine. It represents how one person passes a message on to another, who passes it to another, to another and so on in one long series of communications.

The second configuration is gossip chain. This is where one person tells everyone they meet and each of those people may or may not pass the message on. Third is the cluster chain which represents how one person tells selected others. One or some of those others will then pass on the information, once again to select others. BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION Organizational and Interpersonal barriers. Noise barriers Poor timing Inappropriate channel Inadequate information Physical distractions Organizational structure (leading to information loss) Information overload Network break down Semantic barriers Feedback barriers Cultural barriers Perception Sender credibility Multi-meaning words