WHAT IS COMMUNICATION?

Communication may be defined as exchange of of facts , ideas ,

opinions or emotions between two or more persons to create common
ground of understanding.

Definition
According to KEITH DAVIS Communication is the process of passing
information
and understanding from one person to another.

NATURE OF COMMUNICATION
TWO OR MORE PERSONS
CONTINUOS PROCESS
TWO WAY PROCESS

PERVASIVE FUNCTION
CIRCULAR PROCESS

STEPS IN THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION

THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS

C O M M U N I C AT I O N I S T H E R E AL W O R K O F L E AD E R S H I P - N I T I N
NOHRIA

STEPS IN THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION

SENDER
MESSAGE
ENCODING

CHANNEL
RECEIVER
DECODING
FEEDBACK

CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION
(ON THE BASIS OF RELATIONSHIP)
FORMAL COMMUNICATION
UPWARD
DOWNWARD

HORIZONTAL
DIAGONAL
INFORMAL COMMUNICATION

METHODS OF COMMUNICATION
(ON THE BASIS OF EXPRESSION)
WRITTEN COMMUNICATION
Written communication means transmission of message through written words.

EXAMPLES
Letters, circulars, memos, notices, bulletins, reports, manuals, etc.

MERITS

Ensures uniformity

Message can be transmitted to large number of persons at one time.

Permanent record

Ideal for lengthy messages

DEMERITS

Time consuming

Lacks personal touch

Difficult in maintaining secrecy
Misinterpretation

ORAL COMMUNICATION
Oral or verbal communication means conveying of messages through
spoken words.

EXAMPLE
Face to face talks, interviews, lectures, group meetings, loud speaker
announcements, telephone conversations, etc.

MERITS
Economical

Faster and saves time

Flexible
Immediate response and feedback

DEMERITS
Less reliable
Greater chances of distortion
No permanent record
Language problems

GESTURAL OR NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

Gestural communication refers to communication through body
language.

EXAMPLE
Facial expressions, movement of hands, movement of lips, movement
of head, twinkling of eyes, mere silence, etc.

MERITS
Useful for differently abled people
Convey emotions into thoughts

DEMERITS
Misunderstanding
Slow

DIFFERENT GESTURES

FORMAL COMMUNICATION
Formal communication refers to the flow of information along the lines
of authority deliberately and consciously established by the
management in the organization structure. It takes place from one
position to another in the formal organization.

EXAMPLE
The marketing manager of a company may send a revised price list to
branch managers.

INFORMAL COMMUNICATION

BRANCHES IN FORMAL COMMUNCATION

VERTICAL COMMUNICATION
Upward Communication
Downward Communication

Upward Communication
Downward communication means transmission of messages from
a higher authority(Superior) to a lower authority(Subordinate).

MERITS
Provides necessary feedback
Provides suggestions for improving plans and policies
Provides opportunities for employees to express their problems and
grievances

COMPARISON

DEMERITS
Hesitation of employees to communicate upward unless the managers
keep their doors open.
Employees are afraid of being criticized

Distortion of message

HORIZONTAL OR LATERAL COMMUNICATION

The transmission of information between people at the same level of
authority is called horizontal communication.

MERITS

Facilitates cooperation and communication between various departments.

Helpful for resolving interrelated problems of two or more departments.
Enables managers to exchange information without referring all matters to
higher authorities.

DEMERITS
Person at same level of authority may be reluctant to initiative
communication.
Intergroup rivalry is a source of potential conflict.

DIAGONAL COMMUNICATION
Diagonal communication refers to the transmission of information
between people who are neither in the same department nor on the
same level.

MERITS
Helps to speed up flow of information.
It is very much required when line managers delegate functional
authority to line or staff units.

DEMERITS
Diagonal communication can create confusion and conflict as it is
contrary to the principle of unity of command.

EXAMPLE OF DIAGONAL COMMUNICATION

BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION

OVERCOMING BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION

7 CS OF COMMUNICATION