INTRODUCTION

Communication is the thread that holds people together in their everyday lives. Whether in
social or business interaction. Communication binds together the actions of
individuals or organizations to desired objectives. Communication is a process of transferring
information from one entity to another.
Communication is commonly defined as "the imparting or interchange of thoughts, opinions, or
information by speech, writing, or signs". Communication can be perceived as a two-way
process in which there is an exchange and progression of thoughts, feelings or ideas towards a
mutually.
According to Newman and summer, “communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or
emotions by two or more persons.”
According to Peter Little, “communication is process by whichinformation is transmitted
between individuals/organization so that understanding response results is giving, receiving or
exchange of information, opinions, or ideas by writing speech or visualmeans or anycombination
of the three so that the material communicated is completely understood by everyone
concerned.”

Importance of communication
Communication can be described as the life blood of the business. No business can develop in
the absence of effective external and internal communication. Communication is a vital tool of
management. One of the major functions of an office is communication. This involves receiving,
recording, processing of information and communicating the information two various functions
of the organizations.
Importance of communication can be discussed under two points of view.
I. Internal communication
II. External communication.

A) Importance of internal communication

Internal communication refers to exchange of information or message between persons of
same organization, e.g. between employer and employee.
i) Better understanding between employer and employees:- If complaints of employees are
forwarded to employer on time and in the right way it will minimize the chances of
misunderstanding.
ii) Greater efficiency: The sound communication system enables the management to instruct the
supervisions and subordinates on changes of policy - this results to the increase in efficiency of
workers.
iii) Effective co-ordination: Effective communication leads to effective co-ordination of
employees e.g if demand increase the marketing department will inform the production
department to increase its production.
iv) Proper communication can prevent possible losses: If there is a machine breakdown or
shortage the management can be informed quickly to take timely action to avoid any possible
losses.

B) External communication.
This refers to exchange of information between an organization and other organizations or
persons outside the organization.
The following facts indicate the importance of external communication.

i) Good reputation: Effective communication with customers and either business

enables company establish good reputation this increases prestige of that company.
ii) Improvement in public relations: When a company communicates with general public
to keep them informed of its activities more people become interested to deal with
that company.
iii) Better business prospects: When there is good communication, its easier for companies
to attract more customers.
iv) Choice of customers: When companies has access to information about their
customers” preference, such information will help them provide goods and services according to
the choice of customers.
v) Government department: Businesses that deals with licensing authorities, foreign trade
offices, custom authorities, banks and other financial institutions, requires good communication
when negotiating.
vi) Job requirements:Most jobs require communication skills such as personnel public relations,
marketing, editing, research, advocates, etc. Executives are expected to make speeches they are
expected to give interviews to media. All these require communication skill.

OBJECTIVES OF COMMUNICATION
i) To inform: One of most important objectives of communication is passing and receiving
information about of particular fact of circumstance. An organization can inform consumers
about its products, availability of credit, availability of raw materials, or about government
rules and regulations. It can also communicate to inform staff about the latest development
in the field of science and technology. Within the organization you can inform employees
about job assignments, or inform them of general information on policies and activities of
organization.
ii) To advice: Information is factual and objective, advice on the other hand involve personal
opinions. It is subjective and neutral. When advice is given to person he /she may use it or decide
not to use it. An advice is aimed at influencing the opinion or behaviour of another person.
Advice flows downwards or horizontally, e.g. from a doctor to patient and not vice versa.
iii) To order: An order is an authoritative communication; it is a directive to somebody
(subordinate) to do something to modify or not to do something. Orders flow from top to bottom.
iv) To suggested (make suggestion): A suggestion is different from other forms of
communication. In other forms it flows from superiors to subordinates but, a Suggestion may
flow from subordinate to superior. A suggestion is mild or subtle and it moves in all
directions.
v) To persuade: This is communication aimed at influencing the attitudes, feelings or beliefs of
others.
vi) To Educate: Education is a conscious process of communication. It involves teaching and
learning, its main purpose is to widen knowledge and improve skills.
vii) To warn someone: If employees don’t abide by the rules of the organization they will be
warned.
viii) Raise the morale: Morale-stands for mental health. It’s a powerful factor representing the
sum of many qualities such as courage, fortitude, resolution and confidence.
ix) To motivate: Motivation is very close to rising of miracle. It means to energize and
activate a person and challenge his or her behaviour towards the attainment of desired goals.

QUALITIES OF COMMUNICATION
THE SIX C’s OF COMMUNICATION
1. CLARITY: This is divided into
(a) Clarity of thought, This is important when the idea is being generated in the mind of the
sender. At this stage, three points should be checked upon.
-what is the objective of the communication? E.g. to warn, educate, congratulate
-What is to be communicated? E.g. a song, play, poem etc.
-Which medium is appropriate for the purpose of communication? E.g. Letters,
photographic, interviews. Etc.
b) Clarity of Expression, the following tips should be considered:
i. Avoid jargon: Jargon is a special language of trade, certain profession or field of study e.g.
medicine, business and only understood and used by people from such fields. It therefore creates
a scenario of difficult understanding to those who are not from that field. Example: in law, the
phrase “Jurisdiction of the court of appeal”. This could only beunderstood by those in the field of
law a doctor may not understand such a term.
ii. Avoid ambiguity:An ambiguous message is one that contains words that have more than one
meanings. This may encourage misinterpretation of the words. Example:- The word dispense
could mean both (i) To prepare medicine (ii) To dismiss someone
iii.Use short sentences
Short sentences are easier to comprehend for they are not complex and do not demand greater
concentration as is the case for long ones.
iv.Use of simple words: Simple words tend to be more effective for they are easily understood
and are interpreted correctly.
v. Use of concrete expression: Concrete expressions create visual images that are easy to register
and remember. This can be achieved by avoiding being too general or vague in your
expressions.Example: you can say, ‘that dress is expensive for it costs #150, 000/ ‘instead of
plainly saying ‘that dress is expensive’.
2. CONCISENESS
It is important for your message to be straight to the point by not loading the message with
irrelevant and unnecessary details.Be as brief as possible but not at the expense of clarity,
correctness or courtesy. If a reader feels that he/she is wasting his/her time on your message e.g.
letter, he may opt to disregard it.

3. CONSIDERATION
In your message, you should always show consideration for the reader or listener. This can
be done in the following ways.
(a) Impact integrity to your message, ethical principles of sincerity and fair treatment should be
observed.
(b)Emphasize positive and pleasant statement, in case where one has to send a message of regret,
use positive and pleasant words. Example of negative expression – “We are sorry to inform you
that you have not been admitted to this school”. Positive expression – “Thank you
for your application for a course in Micro- finance; you are however advised that the
commencement date is July next year….
(c) Adopt the “You” attitude, Avoid ‘I’ and ‘we’ in you message. The “you” attitude is highly
recommend for it shows greater respect and consideration for the recipient.Example of ‘I’
attitude: “I am happy that you considered my application”. Example of ‘You’ attitude: “Thank
you for your quick response to my letter”

4. COURTESY
This calls for a considerate and friendly attitude towards the other the receiver. The following
points may assist in promoting courtesy:
(a)Answer the letters promptly or respond to the message promptly
(b)Omit negative expressions such as “we regret” instead use friendly statements
such as “we shall see to it that…”
(c)Apologize sincerely for an omission and thank generously for any favour done.
Example of an apology: – We sincerely apologize for not dispatching your goods
on time”.
5. COMPLETENESS
Complete presentation of facts and details is necessary in any business communication.
Incomplete communication leads to ineffectiveness of the action to be taken, irrelevancy,
misinterpretation and misunderstanding of the message. This is because it leaves a number of
questions unanswered. Example: When replying to an enquiry from a customer wishing to buy a
car, one must include all relevant facts about the car such as the model, colour, price mode of
payment and other specifications.The message should be well organized in such a way that the
reader/listener is not in doubt about the details contained in it.
Tips for communication completeness
(a) While answering a letter, include all relevant details and answer all
questions if any.
(b) Check on the “5w’s questions to why? What? Where? Who?
When?

6. CORRECTINESS
This simply means: giving correct facts/statements/arguments etc. Sending the message at the
correct time. Send the message in the correct style/medium/channel.

BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION
Some common barriers are:
1. wrong choice of medium:
Unsuitable media may act as a barrier to effective communication example an apology will
be effective if communicated face to face rather than in writing.

2. Physical barriers
These may due to inadequate staff, faulty procedures, in accuracy in processing and
delivery of communication. Physical barriers include:
i) Noise, e.g. passing traffic may disrupt a session; poor handwriting may affect
the understanding of a letter.
 ii) time and distance, people in different shifts may not communicate because of time.
Distance may affect face to face communication when a lecturer is addressing a large
group of students.
3. Semantic barrier
Semantic refers to the meaning of language. The same word may be interpreted differently by
different people because of mental attitude and understanding. Semantic barriers include:
i) Interpretation of words. The receiver of the message may not assign the same
meaning to that purported by the sender. This may be a barrier to communication
example;” what is he value of this ring?” This can be interpreted as the monetary
value, the importance or the implication.
ii) Bypassed instructions. This will happen if the sender and receiver of the message
attribute different meanings to the same word use different words for the same
meaning.Example a manager said to anew office assistant” go and burn this. The
manager simply wanted another copy of the letter, the office assistant went on to
burn the letter, to the dismay of the manager.
iii) Denotation and connotation: Words have connotative and denotative
meaning.Denotative meaning is the literal meaning of the word such as book, chair
etc.
Connotative meanings arouse qualitative judgments and personal reactions. Words like honesty,
noble, competent and sincere. Some words may have favourable connotation and unfavourable
connotation such as the word cheap it may mean low in price or low in quality.

4. Different comprehension of reality. These barriers include;

i) Abstracting: This is the process of focusing attention on some details and omitting others. This
is a barrier because a detail that may appear important to one person may be taken as being
trivial by the reader.
ii)Slanting: It means giving a particular bias or slant to a reality. Slanting is similar to
allness, in allness we only know a part and are ignorant of the rest but we think that we
the whole.
iii)Inferring: Inferences are drawn from observations and assumptions. If we drop a letter at the
post office we assume that will be delivered on time.Inferences are not facts. Wrong inference is
a barrier to communication.

5. Socio-psychological barriers : This may be due to some social or psychological problems.

Such as:
i)Attitudes and opinions: If information agrees with our opinions and attitudes we tend to receive
it favourably if we disagree with it we to tend react unfavourably to it.
ii)Emotions: Emotional state of mind plays an important role in the act of communication. If the
sender is perplexed or worried, excited afraid nervous his thinking will be blurred and he will not
be able to organize the message properly. His state of mind will be reflected in the message.

Communication process
Communication is a process whereby information is enclosed in a package and is discrete and
imparted by sender to a receiver via a channel/medium. The receiver then decodes the message
and gives the sender a feedback. Communication requires that all parties have an area of
communicative commonality. There are auditory means, such as speaking, singing and
sometimes tone of voice, and nonverbal, physical means, such as body language, sign language,
paralanguage, touch, eye contact, by using writing. Communication is thus a process by which
we assign and convey meaning in an attempt to create shared understanding. This process
requires a vast repertoire of skills in intrapersonal and interpersonal processing, listening,
observing, speaking, questioning, analyzing, and evaluating. It is through communication that
collaboration and cooperation occur. There are also many common barriers to successful
communication, two of which are message overload (when a person receives too many messages
at the same time), and message complexity.
THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION & MISCOMMUNICATION
Communication is a process of sending and receiving verbal and nonverbal messages.
Communication is considered effective when it achieves the desired reaction or response from
the receiver. Communication is a two-way process of exchanging ideas or information. The
process of communication has six components: sender/encoder, message, medium,
receiver/decoder, and feedbacks.
Context
Every message, whether oral or written, begins with context. Context is a broad field that
includes country, culture, organization, and external and internal stimuli. Internal stimuli have
effect on how you translate ideas into a message. Your attitudes, opinions, emotions, past
experiences, likes and dislikes, education, job status and confidence in your communication
skills, all influences the way you communicate your ideas, especially important is your ability to
analyze your receiver’s culture, viewpoint, needs ,skills, status, metal ability, experience and
expectation. You must consider all these aspects of context in order to communicate a message
effectively.
Sender / Encoder
While sending a message, you are the “encoder”, the writer or speaker, depending on whether
your message is written or oral, you choose symbols—words, graphic, pictures—that express
your message so that the receiver(s) will understand and react as you desire. You decide which
symbols best convey your message and which message channel will be the most effective among
the oral and written media (letter, memo, telephone, etc)
Message
The message is the main idea that you wish to communicate; it is of both verbal (written or
spoken) symbols and nonverbal (unspoken) symbols. First decide exactly what your message is.
Also consider the receiver of your message. You must also consider your context and your
receiver’s as well. How your receiver will interpret your message and how it may affect your
relationship.

Medium/Channel
It means the way to be used to send your message. You can choose electronic mail, the printed
word or sound etc. The choice of medium is affected by the relationship between the sender and
the receiver. The urgency of a message can also be a factor in whether to use the written or
spoken medium. You may also consider factors such as importance, number of receivers, costs
and amount of information; you must also consider which medium is preferred in the receiver’s
culture. Based on research, the following are some of the characteristics found in oral and written
communication.
Oral Communication
• The oral communication brings back immediate feedback
• It has a conversational nature with shorter words and sentences
• It stresses on interpersonal relations
• This medium needs less technical details
• Its sentence structures are simple
Written Communication
• This medium is more formal with focus on contents
• It can convey any amount of technical information
• It is best for permanent record
• This medium uses longer words and longer sentences. It brings delayed feedback.
Internal communication consists of sending messages inside your organization. External
communication consists of sending messages outside your organization.
For internal communication, written media may be:
• memos, reports, bulletins, job descriptions,
• posters, notes, employee manuals,
• electronic bulletin boards, even internal faxes.
Oral communication may take the form of
• staff meeting reports, face to face discussions,
• presentations, audio tapes, telephone chats,
• teleconferences, or videotapes
External written communication media may be:
• letters, reports, telegrams, cablegrams,
• mailgrams, faxes, telexes, postcards, contracts,
• ads, brochures, catalogs, news releases etc.
Orally it may be
• face to face discussions, telephone,
• or presentations in solo or panel situations.
Receiver / Decoder
The receiver / decoder of your message is your reader or listener. He may be influenced by the
context and by the external and internal stimuli. The receiver like sender receives messages
through the eyes and ears but is also influenced by nonverbal factors such as physical
environment, physical appearance, body movements, voice quality, touch, taste, and smell.
All factors of a message are filtered through the receiver’s view and experience in the work.
Therefore, miscommunication can occur when personal biases and individual values cause the
receiver to misinterpret the sender’s internal message.
Feedback
Feedback can be oral or written; it can also be an action, such as receiving the mail or an item
you ordered. Sometimes silence is used as feedback, though it is not very useful. Senders need
feedback in order to determine the success or failure of the communication.

Communication modeling
Communications Skills – The Importance of Removing Barriers Problems with communication
can pop-up at every stage of the communication process (which consists of the sender, encoding,
the channel, decoding, the receiver, feedback and the context – see the diagram below). At each
stage, there is the potential for misunderstanding and confusion.

Two Models of Communication

Researchers have observed that when communication takes place, the source and the receiver
may send messages at the same time, often overlapping. You, as the speaker, will often play both
roles, as source and receiver. You’ll focus on the communication and the reception of your
messages to the audience. The audience will respond in the form of feedback that will give you
important clues. While there are many models of communication, here we will focus on two that
offer perspectives and lessons for business communicators.
Rather than looking at the source sending a message and someone receiving it as two distinct
acts, researchers often view communication as a transactional process, with actions often
happening at the same time. The distinction between source and receiver is blurred in
conversational turn-taking, for example, where both participants play both roles simultaneously.
Transactional Model of Communication

Researchers have also examined the idea that we all construct our own interpretations of the
message. As the State Department quote at the beginning of this chapter indicates, what I said
and what you heard may be different. In the constructivist model, we focus on the negotiated
meaning, or common ground, when trying to describe communication (Pearce &Cronen, 1980),
Imagine that you are visiting Atlanta, Georgia, and go to a restaurant for dinner. When asked if
you want a “Coke,” you may reply, “sure.” The waiter may then ask you again, “what kind?” and
you may reply, “Coke is fine.” The waiter then may ask a third time, “what kind of soft drink
would you like?” The misunderstanding in this example is that in Atlanta, the home of the Coca-
Cola Company, most soft drinks are generically referred to as “Coke.” When you order a soft
drink, you need to specify what type, even if you wish to order a beverage that is not a cola or
not even made by the Coca-Cola Company. To someone from other regions of the United States,
the words “pop,” “soda pop,” or “soda” may be the familiar way to refer to a soft drink; not
necessarily the brand “Coke.” In this example, both you and the waiter understand the word
“Coke,” but you each understand it to mean something different. In order to communicate, you
must each realize what the term means to the other person, and establish common ground, in
order to fully understand the request and provide an answer.

Because we carry the multiple meanings of words, gestures, and ideas within us, we can use a
dictionary to guide us, but we will still need to negotiate meaning.

Tips for Effective Communication

Note that any communication processes whereby there is no action and reaction between
thesender and receiver is ineffective. The receiver must be able to respond to the message being
sent by the sender. These are some of the tips for effective communication:
 Be honest while communicating. Dishonesty will somewhere show up along a line.
 Take interest in the people you are communicating with. Remember that people are more
attracted towards those who have interest in them, and pay more attention to what they
say.
 Think before you speak or put pen to paper: what message are you trying to convey?
What outcome do you want to elicit?
 Be direct and not aggressive. Lots of flannelling around can make the people lose interest
and miss a vital point.
 Don't use jargons, acronyms and technical expressions, unless you are sure that your
listeners do understand.
  Do not fall into the trap of using long words just because they are written down. Take
time. Whether in the speech or in paper, rushing will make you seem nervous,
unconfident and downright scared.
.
Types of communication
There are three major parts in human face to face communication which are body language,
voice tonality, and words. According to the research:
55% of impact is determined by body language—postures, gestures, and eye contact,
38% by the tone of voice, and
7% by the content or the words used in the communication process.
Although the exact percentage of influence may differ from variables such as the listener and the
speaker, communication as a whole strives for the same goal and thus, in some cases, can be
universal. System of signals, such as voice sounds, intonations or pitch, gestures or written
symbols which communicate thoughts or feelings. If a language is about communicating with
signals, voice, sounds, gestures, or written symbols, can animal communications be considered
as a language? Animals do not have a written form of a language, but use a language to
communicate with each another. In that sense, an animal communication can be considered as a
separate language. Three forms of communication are:

Verbal Communication
Non-Verbal Communication, and
Visual communication

Verbal or Dialogue communication: A dialogue is a reciprocal conversation between two or

more entities. The etymological origins of the word do not necessarily convey the way in which
people have come to use the word, with some confusion between the prefix and the prefix
leading to the assumption that a dialogue is necessarily between only two parties. The basis of
communication is the interaction between people. Verbal communication is one way for people
to communicate face-to-face. Some of the key components of verbal communication are sound,
writing, speaking, and language.
Sound at birth, most people have vocal cords, which produce sounds. As a child grows it learns
how to form these sounds into words. Some words may be imitative of natural sounds, but others
may come from expressions of emotion, such as laughter or crying. Words alone have no
meaning. Only people can put meaning into words. As meaning is assigned to words, language
develops, which leads to the development of speaking. The actual origin of language is subject to
considerable speculation. Some theorists believe it is an outgrowth of group activities such as
working together or dancing. Others believe that language developed from basic sounds and
gestures.
Speaking and writing: Effective verbal communication involves the use of both speech and
writing to transmit a message. While oral communication is more effective in reaching a focused
target audience, as it involves interaction and additional non-verbal cues to augment the speech,
written communication is necessary for reaching a large number of scattered recipients.
Depending on the situation and the requirements, people use both the spoken as well as written
channels for communication. Through speaking we try to eliminate misunderstanding, but
sometimes this is a very hard thing to do. Just as we assume that our messages are clearly
received, so we assume that because something is important to us, it is important to others.
Non-verbal communication
Non-verbal communication is the process of communicating through sending and receiving
wordless messages. Such messages can be communicated through gesture, body language or
posture; facial expression and eye contact, object communication such as clothing, hairstyles or
even architecture, or symbols and infographics, as well as through an aggregate of the above,
such as behavioral communication. Nonverbal communication plays a key role in every person's
day to day life, from employment to romantic engagements.
Types of nonverbal communication and body language
There are many different types of nonverbal communication. Together, the following
nonverbal signals and cues communicate your interest and investment in others.
i. Facial Expressions
ii. Body Movements and Posture
iii. Gestures
iv. Eye Contact
v. Touch
 vi. Space
vii. Voice, etc
.
Visual communication: Visual communication as the name suggests is communication through
visual aid. It is the conveyance of ideas and information in forms that can be read or looked
upon. Primarily associated with two dimensional images, it includes: signs, typography, drawing,
graphic design, illustration, colour and electronic resources. It solely relies on vision. It is a form
of communication with visual effect. It explores the idea that a visual message with text has a
greater power to inform, educate or persuade a person. It is communication by presenting
information through visual form. The evaluation of a good visual design is based on measuring
comprehension by the audience, not on aesthetic or artistic preference. There are no universally
agreed-upon principles of beauty and ugliness. There exists a variety of ways to present
information visually, like gestures, body languages, video and TV. Here, focus is on the
presentation of text, pictures, diagrams, photos, et cetera, integrated on a computer display. The
term visual presentation is used to refer to the actual presentation of information. Recent research
in the field has focused on web design and graphically oriented usability (Dulek, 1993). Graphic
designers use methods of visual communication in their professional practice.

Business Communication
Business Communication is the process of exchanging messages or information between two or
more parties for the purpose of promoting business growth. Businesses today are heavily
dependent on information to meet organisational needs. Effective communication plays a key
role in fulfilling these needs and contributes significantly to organisational success. Despite its
importance, business communication has not grown, as it should. Realising this, both industry
and academic sectors have begun training employees and students on business communication
and its relevance. It has become all the more evident that business communication is vital for
effective functioning of business units.

The Importance of Business Communication

Effective business communication is crucial for the success of individuals as well as
organisations. Good communication skills help individuals to effectively interact with others in
an organisation. These skills are important for career development as they boost confidence;
ensure clarity of thought and information flow. Good communication is a prerequisite for good
managers. It is essential for organisations too. An organisation is benefited by the internal and
external information gathered and passed on by employees. The management can use such
information to gain an edge in business.
.
The Process of Business Communication.
Business Communication also goes through a process, involving the following phases.
• Sender
• Message
• Channel
• Receiver
• Feedback

Channels of communication
A breakdown in the communication channel leads to an inefficient flow of information.
Employees are unaware of what the company expects of them. They are uninformed of what is
going on in the company. This will cause them to become suspicious of motives and any changes
in the company. Also without effective communication, employees become department minded
rather than company minded, and this affects their decision making and productivity in the
workplace. Eventually, this harms the overall organizational objectives as well. Hence, in order
for an organization to be run effectively, a good manager should be able to communicate to
his/heremployees what is expected of them, make sure they are fully aware of company policies
and any upcoming changes. Therefore, an effective communication channel should be
implemented by managers to optimize worker productivity to ensure the smooth running of the
organization. The two major channels of communication are the Formal and informal channel

Formal Channels of Communication

The messages which are circulating on regulated, preset channels, of an organization are creating
the formal communication. The formal communication can consist of verbal messages,
nonverbal messages, written, under the shape of letters, telephone messages, radio messages,
printed, internal notes. Even some gestures can consist in formal communication. The messages
are transmitted by the authorized ones: on official channels, these arrive to the ones who need to
react, to people or machines which need to know the content of these messages. The formal
communication network is formed out of formal channels, created by setting a formal system of
responsibilities according to the hierarchical structure of the organization. The perfect network is
the one which contains communication channel from bottom up, downwards and horizontally.
The number of communication channels available to a manager has increased. Video
conferencing, mobile technology, electronic bulletin boards and fax machines are some of the
new possibilities. As organizations grow in size, managers cannot rely on face-to-face
communication alone to get their message across. A challenge the managers face today is to
determine what type of communication channel should they opt for in order to carryout effective
communication. In order to make a manager's task easier, the types of communication channels
are grouped into three main groups:
formal,
informal and
unofficial.
A formal communication channel transmits information such as the goals, policies and
procedures of an organization. Messages in this type of communication channel follow a chain of
command. This means information flows from a manager to his subordinates and they in turn
pass on the information to the next level of staff ( Hargie, O.D.W., Dickson, D., and Tourish, D.
1999) An example of a formal communication channel is a company's newsletter, which gives
employees as well as the clients a clear idea of a company's goals and vision. It also includes the
transfer of information with regard to memoranda, reports, directions, and scheduled meetings in
the chain of command. A business plan, customer satisfaction survey, annual reports, employer's
manual, review meetings are all formal communication channels.

Informal Channels of Communication

Informal communication arises out of all those channels that fall outside the formal channels and
it is also known as grapevine. It is established around the societal affiliation of members of the
organization. Informal communication does not follow authority lines as in the case of formal
communication. Informal communication takes place due to the individual needs of the members
of an organization and subsists in every organization. Normally, such communication is oral and
may besimple glance, sign or silence. It often works in group of people, i.e. when one person has
some information of interest; he passes it on to his informal group and so on. An organization
can make efficient use of informal channels to fortify the formal channels of communication. It
acts as a valuable purpose in expressing certain information that cannot be channeled via the
official channels. It satisfies the people desires to identify what is happening in the organization
and offers an opportunity to express dreads, worries and complaints. Informal communication
also facilitates to ameliorate managerial decisions as more people are involved in the process of
decision- making. In spite of on many advantages, informal communication has certain
disadvantages. Informal communication contains facts, deceptions, rumors and unclear data.

Grapevine
Grapevine is an informal channel of business communication. It is called so because it stretches
throughout the organization in all directions irrespective of the authority levels. Man as we know
is a social animal. Despite existence of formal channels in an organization, the informal channels
tend to develop when he interacts with other people in organization. It exists more at lower levels
of organization. Grapevine generally develops due to various reasons. One of them is that when
an organization is facing recession, the employees sense uncertainty( Mohan, T., McGregor, H.,
Saunders, S. and Archee, R., 1997). Also, at times employees do not have self-confidence due to
which they form unions. Sometimes the managers show preferential treatment and favor some
employees giving a segregated feeling to other employees. Thus, when employees sense a need
to exchange their views, they go for grapevine network as they cannot use the formal channel of
communication in that case. Generally during breaks in cafeteria, the subordinates talk about
their superior’s attitude and behavior and exchange views with their peers. They discuss rumors
about promotion and transfer of other employees. Thus, grapevine spreads like fire and it is not
easy to trace the cause of such communication at times.
Advantages of Grapevine
Grapevine channels carry information rapidly. As soon as an employee gets to know some
confidential information, he becomes inquisitive and passes the details then to his closest friend
who in turn passes it to other. Thus, it spreads hastily.
The managers get to know the reactions of their subordinates on their policies. Thus, the
feedback obtained is quick compared to formal channel of communication.
The grapevine creates a sense of unity among the employees who share and discuss their views
with each other. Thus, grapevine helps in developing group cohesiveness.
The grapevine serves as an emotional supportive value.
The grapevine is a supplement in those cases where formal communication does not work

Disadvantages of Grapevine
The grapevine carries partial information at times as it is more based on rumors. Thus, it does not
clearly depict the complete state of affairs.
The grapevine is not trustworthy always as it does not follow official path of communication and
is spread more by gossips and unconfirmed report.
The productivity of employees may be hampered as they spend more time talking rather than
working. The grapevine leads to making hostility against the executives.
The grapevine may hamper the goodwill of the organization as it may carry false negative
information about the high level people of the organization.
A smart manager should take care of all the disadvantages of the grapevine and try to minimize
them. At the same time, he should make best possible use of advantages of grapevine.

As a business manager, In choosing your channel of communication there are certain factors you
must consider. These include:-
i. Channel Credibility:It is the expertness and trustworthiness of a channel as received
by the receivers. Channelcredibility is directly linked to communicator and audience
characteristics.
ii. Channel Feedback:This refers to the opportunity a channel provides for the receiver
to respond immediately and to affect thesource of the message in communication
 process. Face is face communication tends to facilitiesfeedback, while mass
communication tends to restrict it.
iii. Channel Involvement (Participation):This is the effort required by all senses in order
to receive information from a communication channel. Face to face communication
offers the greatest possibility for involvement.
iv. Channel Availability:This is the frequency and extent to which a channel may be used
to reach a given audience. In somegeographic areas, some channels may not be
available such as television or print media in highly illiterate areas.
v. Channel Multiplicative Power:The channel ability to cover areas with speed and
timeliness. The mass media can multiply a message andmake it available to large
numbers of people while face to face communication is low in this dimension.
vi. Channel Permanency (ability to preserve a message): The ability of a communication
channel over time to carry the message. Print media have this dimension but radio
does not.
vii. Channel Complementary: This is the channel ability to supplement the
communicative work of another channel. Both mass media and interpersonal channels
have proven to be high on this dimension. The sender selects the channels for sending
the information. It is the link that connects the sender and the receiver

Communication Flow in the Organization

In an organization, communication flows in 5 main directions in an organization, communication
can be made from supervisor to subordinate, from subordinate to supervisor and also between
two supervisors at the same level. Communication can be done orally or in writing or even
through gestures. Communication may be made through formal or informal channels. Thus the
various types of communication are as follows:

Upward Communication: Upward communication moves from the subordinates to the superiors
and continues up to the organizational hierarchy. When employees make any request, appeal
report, suggest or communicate ideas to the superior, the flow of communication is upward (from
bottom to top). Upward communication is primarily non directive and is usually found in
participative and democratic organizational environments. It encourages employees to participate
actively in the operations of their department. They get encouraged and their sense of
responsibility increases when they are heard by their superiors about problems affecting the jobs.
Typical means ofupward communication, besides chain of command are suggestion system,
appeal and grievanceprocedures, complaint systems, counseling sessions, joint setting of
objectives, the grapevine, open door policy, questionnaire and interviews. It provides feedback
on how well theorganization is functioning. The subordinates use upward communication to
convey theirproblems and performances to their superiors.

Downward Communication: Downward communication flows from the manager or people at the
upper levels to those at thelower levels in the organization hierarchy. When communication is
made from superiors’ downthe hierarchy, it is called downward communication. For instance,
when superiors issue ordersand instructions to subordinates, it is known as downward
communication. Communication ofwork assignments, notices, requests for performance etc.
through bulletins, boards, memos, reports, speeches meetings etc are all forms of downward
communication. Information is oftenlost or distorted as it comes down the chain of command.
This communication flow is used by the managers to transmit work-related information to
theemployees at lower levels.

Horizontal communication: This is the lateral exchange of information among people on the
same organizational level orauthority, such communication facilitates coordination of activities
that are interdependent. Forinstance, production manager may communicate the production plan
to the sales manager. Whencommunication is not made between people who are neither in the
same department nor at thesame level of organizational hierarchy, it is called diagonal
communication. Communication thattakes place at the same levels of hierarchy in an
organization is called lateral communication, i.e., communication between peers, between
managers at same levels or between any horizontallyequivalent organizational members. It can
be used for resolving conflicts of a department with other departments or conflicts within
adepartment

Diagonal Communication or crosswise communication: Communication that takes placebetween

a manager and employees of other workgroups is called diagonal communication. Itgenerally
does not appear on organizational chart. For instance - To design a training modulea training
manager interacts with operations personnel to enquire about the way theyperform their task.

Characteristics of Business Communication

Good business communication always uses standard grammar and has certain features. Good
business communication:
Avoids the use of slang
Uses complete sentences
Uses clear language. In speaking, unclear language usually confuses the audience. In writing,
unclear language is usually characterized by poor grammar, spelling and composition.
Avoids prejudice. Good business communication uses neutral terms, such as chair or
chairperson instead of chairman or chairwoman.
Avoids assumptions and accusations. That is, the communication approaches all problems
systematically and diplomatically: For example, a good business communication might
say, “Unfortunately we do not have a refund policy’’ instead of “We refuse to refund
your money for the item you yourself have obviously broken.’
Be concise. That is, good business communication should always be straight to the point.
Be polite and considerate
In addition, always try to be courteous and helpful whenever possible

Barriers to Business Communication

In order for effective business communication to place, there must be a mutual understanding
between the sender and the receiver, it follows, therefore, that every effort he made to eliminate
or at least reduce any factors that can reduce effectiveness of the business communication.
Managers can begin by being aware of the factors that might disrupt business communication
and how to deal with them.
Barriers to business communication arc factors that can impair effectiveness of
business transactions in an organization. they prevent, block or interrupt mutual understanding.
Some barriers arise from interpersonal (person-to-person) business communications. Other
factors are unique to organizational structures. These factors can also impair the quality of
business communication because of the nature of organizations. Such factors vary from
organization to organization. However, some of the factors, as the ones listed below, are
common to many organizations:
• Filtering
• Span of control
• The rank in organization
• Change in manager
• Manager’s interpretation information overload

Filtering: This situation occurs when a sender purposely manipulates information to make it
seem more favorably by the receiver. For example, when an employee tells his or her boss what
he or she thinks the boss wants to hear the employee is filtering information. The number of
levels in an organization’s structure usually influences filtering. The more vertical levels of the
organization’s hierarchy, the more opportunities there are for filtering. The screening
of’ information flows either upwards and downwards, intentionally, or accidentally, can
cause a barrier.

Span of control: The number of people a manger supervises can cause a barrier through limited
business communication. The fewer the number supervised, the more effective the business
communication and accurate the information flow, and vice versa. The number of employees
supervised, thus, influences the level of business communication control.

The rank in organization: A natural inhibition of business communication can result,

for example, when a managing director asks a receptionist to be open and honest about how the
company is operating- In this case, communication barrier may arise from an anxiety and a sense
of intimidation on the part of the junior employee.

Change in manager: When managers change positions, management style also changes.
Consequently, a change in style and philosophy in business communication is most likely to
occur. A manager may choose to be actively involved in all business communication, screen and
hold information tightly, prefer face-to-face business communication, etc.
Manager’s interpretation: Managers may be influenced by selective interpretation of events,
depending on their positions in the organization. The perspective of a manager, whether as a
resource distributor or resource recipient, can influence a manger’s perception of
that is happening and what is communicated, to whom it is communicated, and
when it is communicated
Information overload: Individuals have a finite capacity for processing data. When
the information we have to work with exceeds our processing capacity, the result is information
overload. The employees in general and managers in particular, often get overwhelmed with
information. Advanced communication technologies such as e-mails, cell phones, faxes,
meetings, and the need to keep current in one’s field, the potential for today’s managers and
professionals to suffer from information is high. When individuals have more information than
they can sort out and use, they tend to select, ignore, pass over or forget information. They may
also put off any further processing until the overload situation is over. In any case, the
consequence is lost information and less effective communication

Barriers to Interpersonal Business Communication

Several barriers exist between the sender and receiver that may make business communication
ineffective. Some of such barriers to interpersonal or face-to-face communication are
listed
below:
• Hearing what we expect to hear
• Ignoring information that conflicts with what we know
• Evaluating the source Differing perceptions• Multiple meaning of words
• Conflicting symbols
• Language
• Listening
• Stereotype
• Lack of feedback
• Emotional response
These types of barriers can make it difficult for mutual understanding to exist between the sender
and the receiver in a business transaction.
Written Communication
Business communication is both written as well as oral. But written communication is very
important aspect of business communication. When exchange of opinion is in written form,
rather than by spoken words it is written communication. It is important to fix accountability and
responsibility of people in organization. This requires much of paper work as it becomes the
permanent means of communication. It helps in building goodwill of an organization.
 The decisions of the management concerned with objectives policies, programs,
procedures, budgets etc. are normally expressed in writing.
 Written communication is recommended when evidence of events and proceedings are
requiring to be kept for future references & when many persons are to be contacted at the
same time.
 Every place of written communication requires use of human memory, imaginative
power. Ability to observe and think & mastery over language.
 When writing message, it would be wise to adopt the K.I.S.S. principle which means
“kept it short and simple.” To make the earning clear so that it accomplishes the desired
purpose

Written Communication in Business- Its Concepts:

To imagine life without water or social life without oral communication is impossible. Similarly,
to think of a business or an organization without written communication is impossible. Various
reasons have been put forth for it.
1. In an organization there are too many people to have face-to-face communication.
2. The people may be spread across wide geographical distance and may sometimes not be
connected by telephone.
3. People have to function within defines limits of authority and responsibility. Absence of
writing communication makes determination o responsibility a difficult task.
4. It is an essential part of the responsibility of an executive on an organization to, communicate
on paper. Written communication is thus an essential part of an organizational life.
5. It is not that fax, telex; telephones have in any affected the importance of letters. They have
only changed the mode of transmission. Thus for all these reasons the concept of written
communication continues to flow even at present

Types of Written Communication:- Reports, Magazines, Circulars, Manuals, Memoranda,

Newspapers, Agreements, pictures, diagrams, graph, order, rules and Regulations Book,
Manuals, notice Boards, Telegram, Tele Printers, Telex. Etc.

Importance of Written Communication

1. Important for any organization or individual for giving or seeking information.
2. The success or failure an organization depends to a large extent on its correspondence.
3. It helps to achieve clarity in the policies & procedures to be followed in an organization.
4. Information’s are clearly transmitted to the receiver, thus making communication effective.
5. It helps in the proper functioning as the instructions messages are clear.
6. It helps the customers to form a strong impression about the company if the letters are
efficiently drafted.
7. It is a strong linking device between the organization and its customers.
8. A steady progress is surely based on effective written business communication. Thus we can
sum up by saying that written business communication plays an essential &effective role in the
growth & progress of an organization.

Advantages of Written Communication: -

i. It helps to provide ready records, reference etc.
ii. It helps to build legal defenses.
iii. Promotes uniformity in policy and procedure.
iv. Gives access to a large audience through mass mailings.
v. Written communication is accurate and unambiguous.
vi. Communication when done in writing provides a sense of security for the lower staff
specially.
 vii. It gives sufficient time to think over and reply on a concerned subject.
viii. Helps in clear guidelines which are easily followed.
ix. Permanent & well maintained records & reference can lead to growth.
x. Evidence of proof against anything.

Disadvantages of Written Communication: -

1. It becomes difficult to maintain piles of records and can be easily destroyed if notproperly
handed.
2. It proves to be ineffective in the hands of those people who are poor in expressions
butotherwise good in their job.
3. Immediate feedback is not obtained in the written communication as in the case of face to
face communication.
4. It is a costly process. It involves large amount of stationary and people.
5. Immediate clarification, interjection is not possible in written communication.
6. It brings unnecessary forma tone in relations because there is no personal touch.
7. There is no secrecy.
8. Loss of man-hours in dictation, records maintaining, dispatching etc

Writing Process
Writing process is a pedagogical term that appears in the research of Janet Emig whopublished
The Composing Processes of Twelfth Graders in 1971. The term marks a shiftfrom examining
the products of writing to the composing process of writers. This focus onprocess encourages
composition students to see writing as an ongoing, recursive processfrom conception of the idea
through publication. It asserts that all writing serves apurpose, and that writing passes through
some or all of several clear steps. It was part ofthe general whole language approach.

Generally, the writing process is seen as consisting of five steps. They are:
Prewriting: planning, research, outlining, diagramming, storyboardingor clustering (for a
technique similar to clustering, see mind mapping)
Draft: initial composition in prose form
Revision: review, modification and organization (by the writer)
Editing: proofreading for clarity, conventions, style (preferably by another writer)
Submittal: sharing the writing: possibly through performance, printing, or distribution of written
material.

These steps are not necessarily performed in any given order. For example, the skills used in the
prewriting process can be applied any time by writers seeking ideas throughout the process. It is
not necessary to go through each step for every writing project attempted. The steps make up a
recursive process. The instructional theory behind the model is similar to new product
development and life cycle theory, adapted to written works. By breaking the writing cycle into
discrete stages and focusing on strategies at each stage, it is hoped that writers will develop an
appreciation for the process of seeing an idea through to successful completion in a logical way.
Rather than presenting written works as acts of genius that emerge fully formed, they are shown
as the result of several distinct and learnable skills. Prewriting is the first step of the writing
process, followed by drafting, revision, editing and publishing and is crucial to the success of any
writing task, yet in writing instruction; it seldom receives the attention it deserves.

WRITING A FORMAL BUSINESS LETTER

The art of writing a letter takes practice, knowledge about proper form and the ability to put into
words the thoughts and feelings which are associated with the letter. Learning to write a letter
can be difficult, as there are multiple types of letters which can written (Whitney, 2008). To
avoid the time that it may take to learn to write each one of these letters, if you are able to learn
to write a basic letter that will help you to create letters for a variety of occasions. “A good letter
can pacify an angry customer as much as bad one can anger a friendly one. It may sell a new
product or spoil the sales of an established one.” Making and/or soliciting enquiries; placing
orders for goods; acknowledge and executing orders; granting or applying for credit; sending
statements of accounts to debtors; requesting for settlement of accounts; complaining about delay
or mistake in supply of goods, making adjustments for customers’ grievances; canvassing for the
first new lines of goods or ideas; and a lot of such matters require communication. We need to
write a business letter to maintain contacts with the external world including other businessmen,
customers and government departments.
Reasons for writing business letters
i. To provide a convenient and inexpensive means of communication without personal
contact.
ii. To give or seek information.
iii. To furnish evidence if transactions entered into.
iv. To provide a record for future reference.

Functions of a Business Letter: -

i. Widen Contracts: since it can reach anywhere, it is used to widen the area of
operations.
ii. Sharing information: it is used for sharing all big and small information’s to the
related organization.
iii. Evidence of Contracts: it is used as a legal document.
iv. Record and Reference: a business letter serves as a record for future reference.
v. Building Goodwill: in customer – company relationship, holding present customers
and capturing newones, reviving inactive accounts and inviting customers to buy one
more and varied products.
vi. Lasting Impression: it leaves a more durable impression on the reciever’s mind than
an oral message.
Parts of a Business Letter
a. Addresses:
-Your Address The return address should be written in the top right-hand corner of
the letter.
-The Address of the person you are writing to The inside address should be written on
the left, starting below your address.
b. Date: Different people put the date on different sides of the page. You can write this
on the right or the left on the line after the address you are writing to. Write the month
as a word.
c. Salutation or greeting:
- Dear Sir or Madam, if you do not know the name of the person you are writing to,
use this. It is always advisable to try to find out a name.
 -Dear Mr. Qawwy, if you know the name, use the title (Mr, Mrs, Miss or Ms, Dr, etc.)
and the surname only. If you are writing to a woman and do not know if she uses Mrs
or Miss, you can use Ms, which is for married and single women.
d. Ending a letter:
-Yours Faithfully If you do not know the name of the person, end the letter this
way.
-Yours Sincerely If you know the name of the person, end the letter this way.
-Your Signature Sign your name, then print it underneath the signature. If you
think the person you are writing to might not know whether you are male of
female, put your title in brackets after your name. The example letter below
shows you a general layout for a formal letter.

Contents of a Formal Letter

First paragraph: The first paragraph should be short and state the purpose of the letter- to make
an enquiry, complain, request something, etc. This can address any issues that are outstanding
and is used to set the tone for the entire rest of the letter. In this first paragraph, the summary of
the letter can be found and the intentions which will be displayed through the rest of the letter
should be outlined. From the first paragraph of the letter, the introductory paragraph, the
individual should be able to note the tone of the letter.
The Body: The body of the letter will expand upon the introductory paragraph and the individual
can extend their thoughts and feelings further when it comes to the letter. The body of the letter
can be anywhere from multiple pages for personal letters, to one page or two pages for most
business letters and other types of proposals. The paragraph or paragraphs in the middle of the
letter should contain the relevant information behind the writing of the letter. Most letters in
English are not very long, so keep the information to the essentials and concentrate on organizing
it in a clear and logical manner rather than expanding too much.
The Closing: In the closing of the letter, the individual will close the letter and finish any
thoughts that have been mentioned. The closing of the letter comes in various forms from yours
truly, for those individuals that are familiar with one another, to a traditional sincerely which is a
versatile closing that can be used in a variety of letters detailing many situations The last
paragraph of a formal letter should state what action you expect the recipient to take- to refund,
send you information, etc.