Introduction To Business Communication Week 1 PDF

INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS COMMUNICATION WEEK # 1  Sessional Work: Portfolio a) Mid-Term 20 Marks b) Assignment (Portfolio) 10 Marks c) Presentation 10 Marks  OBJECTIVES WEEK # 1 This lecture will help students:...

INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS COMMUNICATION WEEK # 1  Sessional Work: Portfolio a) Mid-Term 20 Marks b) Assignment (Portfolio) 10 Marks c) Presentation 10 Marks  OBJECTIVES WEEK # 1 This lecture will help students: Develop an understanding of Business and Organizational Communication Realize and analyze the importance of effective communication in an organizational setting Understand the flow of communication in an organization Design the flow of communication for the given situation through class activity Understand the process of communication and functions of various components involved  Think-Pair-Share Think of five words that express what communication looks like? then draw what you think communication looks like. Share your five words and your drawing with the person sitting next to you and notice their responses. What patterns do you observe in the responses? Write a paragraph that addresses at least one observation.  Communication is a series of experience of  What is communication? Natural phenomenon Genetically inbuilt in all forms of life like human beings, animals. An art to express one’s feelings, ideas, and emotions effectively and fruitfully  CLASS ACTIVITY # 1 1. Come up with your own definition of communication. 2. How do you define the term business? What is Communication? Communication may be defined as: giving, receiving or exchanging information, opinions or ideas by writing, speech or visual means, so that the message communicated is completely understood by the recipient(s). What is Communication? It has been derived from a Latin word ‘communis’ which means common Aristotle introduced the systematic study of communication process. He identified three essential elements in a communication system; the speaker, the speech and the audience What is communication? ‘ Communication is the flow of material, information, perception and understanding between various parts and members of an organization’ Conceptualizing Business Communication The business means any activity which is professional, formal, official, and career oriented, and work place related for which communication skills are needed to accomplish the activity. English language skills (all four viz. listening, speaking, reading, and writing) are a pre-requisite to undertake communication skills enhancement.  Areas/Levels of Communication 1. Intrapersonal Communication Communication with oneself To think, reason, analyze and reflect It enhances self-esteem, increasing self awareness, improving problem solving, analyzing abilities, increasing self-control, reducing stress and managing interpersonal conflicts.  Areas/Levels of Communication 2. Interpersonal Communication Communication between two persons To discover, relate, influence, help It helps in increasing effectiveness in one to one communication, developing and maintaining effective relationships, improving conflict resolution abilities.  Areas/Levels of Communication 3. Small Group Communication Communication within a small group of persons To share information, generate ideas, solve problems and help It helps in increasing effectiveness as a group member, improving leadership abilities, using the groups to achieve specific purposes.  Areas/Levels of Communication 4. Organizational Communication Communication within a formal organization To increase productivity, raise morale, inform and persuade It helps in improving efficiency of upward, downward and lateral communication, using communication to improve morale and increase productivity, reducing information overload, structuring networks to increase efficiency.  Areas/Levels of Communication 5. Public Communication Communication of speaker to the audience To inform, persuade, entertain It helps in communicating information more effectively, increasing persuasive ability Developing, organizing, styling, delivering messages with greater effectiveness  Areas/Levels of Communication 6. Mass Communication Communication addressed to an extremely large audience, mediated by audio and video means To entertain, persuade, inform It helps in improving our ability to use the media to greater effectiveness, increasing ability to control the media, avoiding being taken in by advertisements and tabloid journalism.  Communication in Organizational Settings  DIRECTION OF COMMUNICATION Downward Communication that flows from one level to a lower level Upward Communication that flow to a higher level in an organization Lateral/Horizontal Communication that takes place among members of the same level FORMAL ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION CLASS ACTIVITY # 2 CLASS ACTIVITY # 2  Modes/Flow of Communication Communication Flow Formal Informal Channel Channel Lateral/ Upward Downward Diagonal Horizontal Grapevine  Upward Flow of Communication Manager The transmission of Supervisor information from lower levels of an organization to Employee the higher ones.  Manager Downward Flow of Communication The transmission of information from Supervisor higher levels of an organization to the lower ones. Employee  Horizontal Flow of Communication The flow of messages between Manager Manager individuals and groups on the same level of an organization, as opposed to up or down.  Diagonal Flow of Communication The sharing of information among different structural levels within a business setting.   Grapevine Communication Grapevine communication is defined as unstructured and informal network formed on social relationship rather than organizational charts or job descriptions. Watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLEQw2dCsqQ&t=52s  Functions of Communication Control Motivation Emotional expression Information  Communication Has Purpose When people communicate with each other, they have a purpose for doing so. The purpose may be serious or trivial, and they may or may not be aware of it at the time. Here we list five basic purposes for communication 1. We communicate to develop and maintain our sense of self. Through our interactions, we learn who we are, what we are good at, and how people react to how we behave.  Communication Has Purpose 2. We communicate to meet our social needs. Just as we need food, water, and shelter, so too do we need contact with other people. People may converse for hours. 3. We communicate to develop and maintain relationships. Not only do we get to know others through our communication with them but, more importantly, we develop relationships with them— relationships that grow and deepen or stagnate and wither away. For example, when Beth calls Leah to ask whether she’d like to join her for lunch to discuss a project they are working on, her purpose actually may be to resolve a misunderstanding they’ve had because she wants to maintain a positive relationship with Leah.  Communication Has Purpose 4. We communicate to exchange information. Some information we get through observation, some through reading, some through media, and a great deal through direct communication with others, whether face-to-face, via text messaging, or online through e-mail and social networking sites Whether we are trying to decide how warmly to dress or whom to vote for in the next election, all of us have countless exchanges that involve sending and receiving information. 5. We communicate to influence others. It is doubtful that a day goes by in which you don’t engage in behavior such as to persuade your supervisor to alter your schedule.  COMMUNICATION PROCESS It involves the following components COMMUNICATION PROCESS  The Process of Communication Communication refers to the act, by one or more persons, of sending and receiving messages that are distorted by noise, occur within our context, have some effect, and provide some opportunity for feedback. The communication process takes place in a context (physical, cultural, social-psychological, and temporal) and is subjected to interference by noise (physical, psychological, and semantic). The interaction of messages with the encoder-decoder leads to some effect.  The Communication Context All communication takes place in a context that has at least four dimensions: a. The Physical Context: It is the tangible or concrete environment in which communication takes place. The physical context exerts some influence on the content (what to say) and the form (how you say) of your message. b. The Cultural Context: it refers to the communicator’s rules and norms, beliefs and attitude that are transmitted from one generation to the other. c. The Social-Psychological Context: it includes the status relationships among partners, the roles that people play, and the cultural rule of the society in which they are communicating. It also includes the friendliness/ unfriendliness, formality/informality, and seriousness/ humorousness of a situation. d. The Temporal (Time) Context: it includes the time of the day as well as the time in history in which communication takes place.  The Communication Context These four dimensions of context interact with each other. For example, arriving late for an appointment (temporal context) will be interpreted differently in different cultures (cultural context). Sometimes arriving late might lead to change in the social- psychological context; perhaps creating tension and unfriendliness, which in turn may lead to changes in physical context. The hyphenated term source-receiver emphasizes that each person involved in communication is both a source (speaker) and a receiver (listener). You send messages when you speak, write, gesture, or smile. You receive messages in listening, reading, feeling, and so on.  Steps of the Communication Process 1. Sender has an idea: The process of communication begins when the person with whom the message originates— the sender—has an idea. The form of the idea will be influenced by complex factors surrounding the sender. The form of the idea, whether a simple greeting or a complex idea, is shaped by assumptions based on the sender’s experiences.  Steps of the Communication Process 2. Sender encodes idea in message: The next step in the communication process involves encoding. This means converting the idea into words or gestures that will convey meaning. In selecting proper symbols, senders must be alert to the receiver’s communication skills, attitudes, background, experiences, and culture.  Steps of the Communication Process 3. Message travels over channel: This stage is where the message is actually sent and the information is transferred. The technological revolution has brought about a wide range of telecommunication methods. Sender must consider all aspects: speed, cost, quick receipt, printed record, confidentiality, etc., and make an intelligent decision before sending the message. Time and money can be wasted if the wrong medium is chosen.  Steps of the Communication Process 4. Receiver decodes message: Only when the receiver understands the meaning intended by the sender—that is, successfully decodes the message—does communication take place. Such success, however, is difficult to achieve because no two people share the same life experiences and because many barriers can disrupt the process.  Steps of the Communication Process 5. Feedback travels to sender: The verbal and nonverbal responses of the receiver create feedback, a vital part of the communication process. Feedback helps the sender know that the message was received and understood. The best feedback is descriptive rather than evaluative. An evaluative response is judgmental and doesn’t tell the sender whether the receiver actually understood the message.  Types of Communication 1. Oral Communication Oral communication involves using speech to exchange information with others. You usually communicate orally in face-to-face conversations. Meetings, interviews, conferences, speeches, and phone calls are other forms of verbal communication. In business, you communicate verbally to exchange ideas, understand diverse points of view, and solve problems. Oral communication is an efficient way to develop consensus when many people must be consulted. Because verbal skills are among those most valued by employers, developing these skills will help you find jobs, advance your career, and improve your professional performance.  Types of Communication 2. Written Communication All different forms of written communication can be formal or informal. If today, we visit a court of law, you will find that even WhatsApp messages are considered to be legal in nature. In fact, there have been so many cases of celebrities brought under the scanner because of wrong written communications on their social media account. Thus, the above example is further proof that written communication needs to be used safely and effectively. In fact, written communication between friends can be informal but this type of communication between working professionals should always be formal so that any misquoted words are not misused with ill intent.  Types of Communication 3. Technological Communication New electronic technologies are dramatically affecting the way workers communicate. We now exchange information and stay in touch by using e-mail, instant messaging, text messaging, PDAs, fax, voice mail, wireless networking, cell phones, powerful laptop computers, and satellite communications. Through teleconferencing and videoconferencing, we can conduct meetings with associates around the world. There are many many ways that written communications can be used. The number of ways is ever increasing with the penetration of smartphones and the internet. One of the most common forms of written communications used till date is Email. But slowly, written type of communications is becoming more informal with Whatsapp and other online messaging apps being used regularly.  Types of Communication 4. Non-verbal Communication Nonverbal communication is expressed through nonlinguistic means. It is the actions or attributes of humans, including their appearance, use of objects, sound, time, smell, and space, that have socially shared significance and stimulate meaning in others. It includes visual/kinesthetic cues such as facial expressions, eye movements, gestures, and body orientation; vocal/paralinguistic cues such as volume, pitch, rate, and inflection; proxemic cues such as space and distance; olfactory or smell cues; cues provided via appearance; cues sent via color; and time. Our interpersonal effectiveness depends on more than words. Nonverbal messages add to or detract from our words. In effect, we become the message, with our nonverbal cues announcing our state of mind, expectations, and sense of self. Our entire beings chatter incessantly, revealing what we really feel and think. CLASS ACTIVITY # 3  How Audiences Receive Messages For an audience to receive a message, three events need to occur 1. The receiver has to sense the presence of a message 2. Select it from all the other messages 3. Then perceive it as an actual message (as opposed to random, pointless noise) How Audiences Decode Messages Decoding a message to assign meaning to it is a complicated and often highly personal process 1. It is affected by culture, individual experience, learning and thinking styles, hopes, fears and even temporary moods. 2. Audiences tend to extract the meaning they expect to get from a message, not the meaning that you intended 3. Sometimes, audiences recreate their own meaning. How Audiences Respond to Messages Three events need to occur for audiences to respond to a message 1. Recipients have to remember the message long enough to act on it. 2. Recipients have to be able to respond according to your plan 3. Recipients have to be motivated to respond 4. By explaining how audiences will benefit by responding to your messages, you will increase their motivation to respond. How Shared Experience Affects Understanding  How to Get Noticed? Craft your message using the following principles to increase your chances of success 1.Consider audience expectations 2. Ensure ease of use 3. Emphasize familiarity 4. Practice empathy 5. Design for compatibility  Weekly Task 1. Collect at least three definitions of Business Communication and write one-paragraph interpretation analyzing them all. 2. List five ways in which business communication differs from social communication.