CHAPTER I

COMMUNICATION-AN OVERVIEW

Learning Objectives

After reading this chapter, the student should be able to

 Understand the relationship between the development of
communication and civilization
 Define communication
 Recognize the importance of Communication in personal life and
in Business

1.1 Historical Development of Communication

Activity 1.1
 What is the difference between developed countries and Less Developed Countries
in the level of development in communication?
 What are the reasons for the gap between the existing level of development of
Ethiopia with the Axumite civilization?
 What do you think is the relationship between communication and development?

Communication is perhaps as old as the human civilization. Its origin can be traced to
the growth of the human society. In the primitive stage of human society, people
satisfied their wants, which were limited to the basic needs for food, clothing & shelter
and by their own individual efforts. At that time life was isolated and there was little
communication. But while people hunted for food, they too were hunted by other wild
animals. They lived in constant danger. The common need for protection and security
led to group life. Then communication was evolved in the form of sounds, indications,
signals, and expressions. As group life developed, and human wants continued to
increase, forms of communication also developed. Gradually, with the increase in
population, emergence of division of labor and specialization, and birth of exchange
economy human beings had to be in constant communication.

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At some stage, the signs and symbols created language. With the growth of business-
industry and commerce, ways of expressing ideas in languages developed. Gradually
people were able to shape their attitudes, norms, values, culture, religion, etc through
communication. Science entered the field and new forms of oral, written and audio visual
communication developed. Thus the development of communication is inseparable from
the development of human civilization.

In the present day world of mass production, involving organizations with large number
of personnel with their social and cultural diversifications, and complex industrial
operations and influences, communication is of vital need at every step in industrial and
commercial activities.

1.2 What is Communication?

The term communication is derived from the Latin work “Communis”, which means
common. Literally, to communicate means to tell, show, spread and inform.

Activity 1.2.
Define communication and state its objectives

As communication is a much more complex factor in our present world, not surprisingly,
the problem of defining it as a subject of study has also become increasingly difficult.

For our purposes, however, we can define communication as:

The process by which people attempt to share meaning (ideas, feeling,
thought, experience, knowledge, skill, etc) for some purpose through
the transmission of symbolic messages.

Our working definition of communication calls attention to the following five essential
points.

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1. Communication is a process
Communication refers to a series of activities to be accomplished in a sequence; it
does not refer to incidental events and transactions among people.
2. Communication is purposeful
When senders - receivers communicate the sender originally should have an objective to
be checked at the end of the communication process. Communication is not just the
transfer of messages but purposeful transfer of messages between senders and receivers.
Thus it does not refer to incidental transactions between people
3. Communication involves people
Communication shows the degree of understanding among senders-receivers and how
they relate to each other. Therefore, it refers to communication among people only
and the exchange of interpersonal behaviors among them.
4. Communication involves shared meaning
This suggests that in order for people to communicate, they must agree on the definitions
of the terms and symbols they are using. The symbols used by the sender should be
similarly interpreted by the receiver in order to ensure equal or similar understanding
between them.
5. Communication is symbolic
In communication symbols such as, letters, numbers, words, gestures, sound, etc can only
represent or approximate the ideas they are meant to communicate. In other words
symbols are not perfect representations of our ideas. Thus we have to take care in
selecting symbols that best approximate the sender’s ideas.

Communication is vital to human existence. It is how we pass on to others our thoughts

and feelings, tell them what we want them to do, ask them to help us, share with them our
knowledge and experience. Without communication we would each live as if alone in
the world.

1.3. Importance of Communication

The ability to communicate with others is an essential attribute of human life and we are
all of us grappling with communication tasks most of the time we are awake. Only when

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we are alone and also not reading or writing or listening, we stop receiving messages
from the world of people outside ourselves, stop trying to send out messages to the fellow
human beings around us. Communication plays, then, a vital part in our personal daily
lives.

Furthermore, communication has been characterized as the “life-blood” of an

organization. Every organization depends for its daily functioning on an intricate
communication network, which has grown up during the years and has proved itself
indispensable. “No person is an Island”; today more than ever all the people of the world
rely upon another for products, services, ideas, etc.

The above two paragraphs show that the importance of communication be viewed from
two angles: individual angle and organizational angle.

The Importance of Communication at individual level

Man conflicts with himself, with his environment and with his fellow creatures. He is
capable of emotions, ideas and reasoning. He must learn the art of adjusting to himself,
to his work, and to his associates even as that self, that work, and those associates change.
A person must learn and practice the art of human relations, an art that enhances the
individual person and the society of which he is a member.

Activity 1.3
 What major events of success do you recall in your personal life
because of good communication?
 What major events of failure do you recall in your personal life
because of failure in communication?

Like all other people, you are a complex system of thoughts and feelings, of ideas and
emotions. Although similar to other human beings, you are a unique person. Yet you
must live and work with others. You are a human being not an island. Multiply this
complicated being you by the millions of other complicated and unique people on this
earth. Add the unpredictable influences of society and nature. Recognize that today a

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persons economically, is not an island; s/he cannot isolate herself/himself from her/his
fellow men. You will then discover that at the core of human relations is modern man’s
obligation to fulfill himself with in the requirements of nature and society.

Even though all people including you are emotional-rational beings, still you are unique
from others in that you have geared your career to successful business management.
Therefore you have assumed the obligation of striving, ethically and efficiently, to use
thoughts and feelings ideas and emotions, actions and reactions in leading your life and
conducting your work.

To be specific communication serves the following three purposes in personal or

individual life.

Job Success
The two dimensions of management most often cited as the keys to individual and
organizational success are technical ability and understanding of people. Effective
communication skills to listen, speak, and write complement these two dimensions.
Therefore enhance ones job success, a person learn the art of human relations to
effectively communicate her/his ideas, experiences, thoughts, skills and feelings.

Personal Satisfaction
Mastery on a certain area goes beyond vocational success or promotion, i.e. personal
satisfaction. Thus communication skill can be a source of personal satisfaction,
particularly in the areas of art such as writing, painting, etc.

Meeting Social and Ethical obligations

A person may be in conflict with him/herself, with other people, and/or with the
community at large. With the help of communication people continue adjusting profitably
to themselves, to other people, to the environment in which they live and work. It is a
means of winning respect and confidence from other people or from the community at
large.

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As you attempt to fulfill yourself in business and in the private aspect of your life, your
brain enables you to identify, classify, relate and solve issues. But in responding to your
environment, you generate both emotions and ideas. You feel as well as think. Through
such experiences you continue adjusting profitably to yourself to other people, to the
environment in which you and they live, cooperate and compete. In brief, effective
communication is a key to success in personal life and in business career.

Importance of Communication at Organization level

Planning Organizing Staffing Directing Controlling

Communication

External Environment
Customers
Suppliers
Government
Community
Others

As a student or an employee, whatever you academic classification or job title may be,
you participate in the coordination of resources and objectives. In doing so you
participate in management, the continuing process of achieving order efficiently through
intelligent decisions that govern an organization. Simultaneously, you participate in

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communication, the reciprocal process of sharing information through symbols,
principally words. Communication is essential to sound management; your success as a
manager- a person who is in charge of coordinating the human and non-human resources
of an organization- greatly depends upon your ability to communicate effectively.

Activity 1.4
 Do you or your colleagues know the mission, vision, , strategies, policies,
three-year plan etc of your organization? What do you think will be the
consequence in the existing performance of your organization?

Communication is essential to each of the five basic functions of management. In order

to plan, organize, staff, direct and control, managers must be able to communicate with
other persons- and communicate well. Information from others helps formulate plans;
information provided to others defines job assignments and helps organize work;
information on standards, progress and personal factors fulfills the directing function;
while information in the form of written and oral progress reports is a fundamental
element in controlling. Communication is a linking process that enables each of the basic
functions of management to be carried. Effective communication is therefore the “life
blood” of every organization.

We already have made the claim that communication is vital to the very existence of an
organization. To understand the validity of that claim, one must understand the role
communication plays in an organization’s life. The following figure tries to illustrate
specific elements of that role.

Role of communication in an organization

Productivity
Directives Employees Quality
Communication Perceptions Employees Quantity
Motivation
And Job Personnel
Ability Performance Related costs
Attitudes
Resources Nonpersonnel
related costs

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To the right of the figure are the elements comprising an organization’s productivity: the
quality of the work done in the organization, the quantity of the work done, the personnel
related costs involved in getting the work done (such as turnover or absenteeism among
employees), and the nonpersonnel related costs of getting work done (such as wasted
materials, scrap, and so on). Naturally, organizations want to improve productivity by
maximizing the quality and quantity of work completed and minimizing the personnel
and nonpersonnel costs involved in work performance.

Just to the left is the primary factor that determines productivity in organizations the
employee’s job performance. What employees do in the workplace determines how
much work gets done and how well it is done, how costly their own behaviors are and to
a large extent, how much is spent on materials and equipment.

At the far left are the four major factors that ultimately shape an employee’s
performance.
1. The employee’s motivation to do the job.
2. The directions the employee receives concerning what to do and how to do it.
3. The ability of the employee to do the job.
4. The resources with which the employee is provided to do the job.
What must occur then, is the translation of these four factors into employee job
performance. The key elements translating motivation, direction, ability and resources
into job performance are in the middle of the figure: perceptions and attitudes. In short
what employees do at work id determined largely by how they perceive the work
environment and how they feel about work.

Often employees misunderstand instructions given to them, and errors in their job
performance are the predictable result. Just as often, the organization fails to
communicate expectations clearly to employees. Those employees in turn perform as
they think the organization wants them to relying on their perceptions (or just plain luck)
to guide their efforts. Finally, employees have attitudes toward all elements of their work
lives their jobs, their working conditions, their supervisors their coworkers, their

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promotional opportunities their pay and benefits, and so on. Those attitudes influence
their willingness to work effectively and their commitment to the organization’s goals
and objectives. For example, employees who feel they are not being paid a competitive
wage may not work very hard and employees who actively dislike their immediate
supervisors may even do things destructive to the company, such as sabotaging
equipment or stealing supplies. Employees’ job performances therefore stem directly
from their attitudes and perceptions.

Where do those attitudes and perceptions come from? Communication, in the form of the
things employees hear from management, supervisors and their coworkers, the things
employees hear about their organization from outside sources, the written and oral
guidelines with which employees are provided; the instructions that employees receive.
All this and more comprises the communication in which employees participate every
day. By shaping employee’s attitudes and perceptions communication serves to convert
external communication from the work environment into internal thoughts and feelings
that in turn, control, employee’s behaviors.
1.4. Characteristics of Communication
As articulated by Gerald Miller, communication has three basic characteristics:
dynamism, uniqueness and transactional nature.
Dynamism
Every communication event stems from a series of past events and triggers a series of
new ones. Communication is affected by prior attitudes, planned thoughts and people to
whom the message is addressed. It is thus a dynamic phenomenon without beginning,
without end, continually responding, and continually changing.

Uniqueness
Evolving naturally from the notion of dynamism is the concept of uniqueness. No two
communication events are a like because of the change in the sender, the audience,
delivery, time situation etc.

Transactional Nature
Communication scholars Wenberg and Wilmot mentioned that in communication all
persons are engaged in sending (encoding) and receiving (decoding) messages
simultaneously. Each person is affecting the other. Each communication transaction
involves reciprocal exchanges of feelings, meanings, ideas and responses.

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 CHAPTER II
THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION

Learning objectives

After learning this chapter the student should be able to:

 Understand the process of communication and its major elements
 Identify the major barriers that he/she may face in day to day personal
and organizational communication so that the student would try to
minimize them
 List the advantages and disadvantages of oral and written
communication
 Identify the major channels of Nonverbal communication

Communication is a process that involves steps or sequences of activities to be followed

in the exchange of messages between senders and receivers. The diagram on next page
shows all the major elements of the communication process.

2.1. Elements of the Communication Process

PEOPLE (Senders - Receivers)
Communicators or elements are the primary elements in the communication process in an
organization. They can be managers, non-managers, departments, or the organization
itself. Managers communicate with other managers, subordinates, supervisors, client’s
customers, and parties outside the organization. When we say communication involves
people, it involves the exchange of interpersonal characteristics such as perceptions, their
speaking and listening skills, their nonverbal behaviors, etc. Communication is thus an
interpersonal process. People or senders-receivers make communication two way.

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 FEEDBACK

RECEIVER
SENDER
CHANNEL
Thought Encoding (Medium) Receiving Decoding
to transmit Understanding (or Action)
(Informer persuade) the
message

NOISE

Communications within the organization are important means for coordinating the work
of separate departments. And more and more organizations communicate with
employees, unions, the public, and government. Each of these communicators has a
message, an idea, or information to transmit to some one or some group.

Encoding
Within the communicator, an encoding process must take place that translates the
communicator’s ideas into a systematic set of symbols expressing the communicator’s
purpose. The major form of encoding is language. For example, accounting information,
sales reports, and computer data are translated into a message. The function of encoding
is to provide a form in which ideas and purposes can be expressed as a message.

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Message
The result of the encoding is the message-either verbal or nonverbal. Message is a
meaningful idea that people want to share with others. It is an encoded idea with some
purpose. Managers have numerous purposes for communicating, such as to have others
understand their ideas, to understand the ideas of others to gain acceptance of ideas, and
to produce action.

The message, then, is what the individual hopes to communicate, and the exact form that
the message takes depends to a great extent on the medium used to carry it. Decisions
relating to the two are inseparable. An ideal message is that is understood by the receiver
as intended by the sender.

Channel

Activity 2.1
 What are the factors to be considered in choosing between
oral and written medium of communication?
 Do you think the condition of the receiver affects the choice
of a channel? How?

The channel is a path, route or medium through which a message is transmitted.

Organizations provide information for their members by a variety of channels, including
face-to-face communication, telephone, group meetings, computers, memos, policy
statements, reward systems, production schedules, sales forecasts, and videotapes.

Less obvious, however, are unintended messages that can be sent by silence or inaction of
a particular issue, as well as decisions about which goals and objectives are not to be
pursued and which methods are not to be utilized. The choice between oral and written
communication channels may be determined by:
 Background of the audience such as education, sex, age, experience, etc.
 Availability and cost of the channel
 Nature of the message such as confidentiality, length, etc.

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Nonverbal communication, communication that doesn’t use words, is a part of everyday
life. A friendly smile, a worried expression, the seating arrangements at a committee
meting, the size and location of an office, the reception area, furniture all are nonverbal
communicators. They indicate a person’s power, status, position or friendliness. The
interpretation of nonverbal cues is important however; nonverbal cues are as easily
misinterpreted as verb al messages (words).

Body language is fascinating nonverbal communication open body positions include

leaning forward wit uncrossed arms and legs. Closed, or defensive, body positions
include leaning back with arms and legs crossed. Open positions are assumed to suggest
acceptance and openness to what is being discussed. Closed positions suggest that people
are physically or psychologically uncomfortable.

Decoding
For the process of communication to be completed, the message must be decoded by the
receiver. Decoding is the technical term for the thought processes of the receiver. Thus,
it involves interpretation. Receivers interpret(decode) the message in light of their own
previous experiences and frames of reference. The closer the decoded message is to the
intent of the communication, the more effective is the communication. In a business
organization, if the message that the chief executive receives from the marketing research
department includes technical terms known only to marketing researchers, no
communication exists. In fact, an often cited complaint in organizations that employ staff
specialists is that they frequently cannot communicate. Each staff group (e.g
accountants, personnel, and marketing research) has a unique language and symbols that
persons outside the group cannot decode.

Feedback
Activity 2.1
 Can one way communication exist in organizational
life
 How do you encourage feedback

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One-way communication processes do not allow receiver-to-communicator feedback.
Two-way communication processes provide for such feedback. It is desirable to make
provision for feedback in the communication process. It decreases the potential for
distortion between the intended message and the received message. A feedback loop
provides a channel for receiver response, enabling the communicator to determine
whether the message has been received and has produced the intended response. For the
manager, communication feedback may come in many ways.

In face-to-face situations direct feedback is possible through verbal exchanges as well

as through such subtle, means as facial expressions that indicate discontent or
misunderstanding. In addition, communication break downs may be indicated by
indirect means, such as declines in productivity, poor quality of production increased
absenteeism or turnover, and conflict or a lack of coordination between units.

Effective Use of Feedback

For effective use of feedback the following guidelines are vital.

Guidelines in receiving feedback

1. Tell people you want feedback. When people feel that their opinions and observations
may be used against them or that your feelings may be easily hurt, they withhold
feedback. Therefore, let them know that you consider feedback (including personal
opinions, questions, and disagreement) not only useful but also necessary.

2. Identify the areas in which you want feedback. If you want personal feedback, you
might say, “I am trying to improve my speaking and am interested in how many times I
said ‘okay’ in today’s meeting.” If you want only feedback pertaining to the
organization, then specify the topics in which you are most interested.

3. If you are a manager, set aside time for regularly scheduled feedback sessions. Such
sessions show employees that you value feedback and tend to make it easier for them to
ask questions and express opinions.

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4. Use silence to encourage feedback. Too many people ask a question wait two or three
seconds, and then begin talking again. It takes more than two or three seconds for most
people to organize and verbalize their responses. If you remain silent for at least a full
ten seconds, you will probably get more response.

5. Watch for nonverbal responses- because none verbal symbols may comply or
contradict with nonverbal symbols.

6. Ask questions. Do not assume that you understand the meaning of the feedback you
receive from others. When in doubt, ask for clarification.
7. Use statements that encourage feedback. People usually adjust their feedback by
monitoring the listener’s verbal and nonverbal reactions. If you want a person’s honest
opinion, you must encourage it by purposely saying such things as “Really?”
“Interesting.” “So, you feel that . . . “

8. Reward feedback. If you are a manager, you can reward feedback by complimenting
the person, preferably in front of his or her colleagues. Some companies have a “Best-
Idea-of-the-month” contest and put the winners’ names on a placard or give them a
company pen with their names engraved on them. As an employee, you can sincerely
thank people for their comments and perhaps write them a thank-you note.

Guidelines in sending feedback

In sending feedback make sure your own feedback to others:
 Is directed to ward behavior rather than toward the person. Often, someone
who is angry criticizes the person rather than the behavior that caused the anger.
Telling a secretary “You are a poor excuse for a secretary” is an attack on the
secretary rather than on the offensive behavior and causes a defensive, emotional
response. Your feedback is much more likely to be received positively if you
mention the action or behavior that is unacceptable and focus on what can be done
to avoid it in the future.

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 Is descriptive instead of evaluative. Descriptive feedback is tactfully honest and
objective, whereas evaluative feedback is judgmental and accusatory. Evaluative
feedback: “Where is your sales report? You know it is due on my desk no later
than 9:00 each morning. You’re obviously not reliable anymore.” Descriptive
feedback: “When you don’t turn your sales reports in on time, I’m unable to
complete the departmental sales report on time. This makes me look bad and the
department look bad. You’ve been late twice this month. Is there something I
can do to help you get those reports in on time?” Evaluative, judgmental words
cause defensiveness and hurt feelings; words that simply describe the situation in
a nonjudgmental way are more likely to result in cooperation.

 Involves sharing ideas instead of giving advice: It is not always sensible to give
advice to other people. If your advice does not work, you will be blamed. One of
the best ways to improve a relationship is by openly sharing opinions and ideas.
Suppose a manager who is having trouble with some employees comes to you and
asks, “What am I doing wrong?” Instead of giving advice, share a personal
experience with the manager. For example, you might describe a similar problem
you had and how you handled it. It is then up to the manager to decide what to
do.

 Includes only as much information as the person can handle at one time.
Suppose during a performance appraisal you give an employee a list of twenty
items that need improvement. Is this type of feedback beneficial? You may feel
better now that you have “dumped” your feelings, but how can anyone improve
on twenty things at the same time? When giving feedback, include only two or
three suggestions at a time-a number the person can reasonably handle.

 Is immediate and well time. Immediate feedback is obviously more valuable than
delayed feedback. After a foul-up shipping, instead of waiting for two weeks to
discuss the problem with the responsible employee, discuss the error immediately
or at least within a day or two. Immediate feedback allows the person to correct

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 actions or behaviors while they are still fresh in mind. But feedback should also
be well timed, and sometimes this means that it can’t be immediate. If you point
out an employee’s mistakes in front of a group of con-workers, such feedback is
likely to be resented. And if you confront an employee anxious to get home after
quitting time, your suggestions may be received absent mindedly. This type of
feedback should be given in a private, relaxed atmosphere. Unfortunately, many
people tend to give feedback in anger and don’t stop to consider the
consequences.

Noise
In the framework of communications noise is any interfering factor that, if present, can
distort the intended message. Noise can be present in any element. i.e. the sender,
channel or receiver. Noises are of two types: Psychological noise and Physical noise.
Physical noise is unwanted sound created in the external environment or in transmission.
On the other hand psychological noise is created in the mind of senders-receivers. It
generally refers to absentmindedness that may be caused by pain, hunger, headache, and
other factors that preoccupy human mind.

2.2. Barriers to Communication

Any factor that impedes the exchange of information between a sender and a receiver is a
barrier to communication.

It is not possible that every time an order, instruction, guideline, direction programme,
information, etc transmitted by the superior is properly understood and assimilated by
those for whom it is intended. Similarly suggestions, reports, advices recommendations,
complaints etc transmitted by the subordinates to their superiors may be misunderstood or
misinterpreted. In any case, the purpose of the communication is defeated.
Activity 2.2
 If you have ever misunderstand other people what do you think were the
major causes?
 If people have ever misunderstand you what do you think were the main
causes

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The process of communication is not always smooth. Many obstacles or hindrances
obstruct it. These are referred to as barriers to communication. It refers to these factors
which cause disturbance either in the mind of the communicator (sender) or the
communicatee (receiver) or in the process which will create distortion of the message
leading to lack of response ignoring or misunderstanding.

Such barriers are extremely common in everyday life, and they appear in an almost
unlimited variety of forms. The following are some of the most common barriers to
effective communication.

1. Differing perceptions
Perception is the process by an individual receives information from the environment
through the use of his sense organs and interpret them. One of the most common sources
of communication barriers is individual variation. People who have different
backgrounds of knowledge, experience, and other demographic characteristics often
perceive the same phenomenon from different perspectives.

Suppose that a new supervisor compliments an assembly line worker for his or her
efficiency and high- quality work. The supervisor genuinely appreciates the worker’s
efforts and at the same time wants to encourage the other employees to emulate his or her
example. Others on the assembly line however, may regard the worker’s being singled
out for praise as a sign that he or she has been ‘buttering up to boss” they may react by
teasing or being openly hostile. The event is the same but individual’s perspectives on it
differ radically. The environment in which it occurs influences the way a communication
is perceived. Events that are considered appropriate in some circumstances are
inappropriate in others.

2. Language Differences & poor Expressions

Language differences are often closely related to differences in individual perceptions.
For a message to be properly communicated, the words used must mean the same thing to
the sender and the receiver. The same symbolic meaning must be shared. Suppose that

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different departments of a company receive a memo stating that a new product is to be
developed in “a short time”. To people in research and development “a short time” might
mean two or three years. To people in the finance department on the other hand, it might
be three to six months, whereas the sales department might think of it as a few weeks.
Since may different meanings can be assigned to some words, great care must be taken to
ensure that the receiver gets the message that the sender intended.

Further barriers to communication may result from the use of poorly chosen words,
omissions, lack of coherence, poor organization of ideas, unnecessary jargon and so on.
Communication in the international environment becomes even more difficult because of
different languages, cultures. Etc.

3. Loss by Transmission and poor Retention

In a series of transmissions from one person to the next, the message becomes less and
less accurate when a communication is being conveyed from the higher management
level to the lower level step by step. Much of it is likely to be lost in transit. Most of the
times this problem arise in oral communication. At every successive step some of the
message will drop until it reaches the last person when it will be only a part of the
original message, which might be meaningless.

This problem may arise in case of written communication as well. At every level the
superior will interpret the message in his own way and present it accordingly. Hence the
original message is likely to be destroyed. Further the meaning will change if some
words are dropped, changed or misspelt. On the other hand managers may be main causes
for loss of information in organizational communication. Consciously or unconsciously,
information may be lost or distorted in downward and upward communications.

Loss of information in upward communication

In upward communication may be lost or distorted because of mobility aspiration.
Mobility aspiration is the desire of subordinates for upward movement or promotion. It

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is likely that subordinates manipulate upward messages in a way it facilitates their future
promotion. Thus mobility aspiration adversely affects the accuracy of upward messages.

Loss of information in downward communication

Generally replicating a message is difficult; there are neither perfect senders nor
receivers. In addition to this middle level managers may intentionally withhold
information for several reasons.
a) Tyrannical managers – are those who do not have confidence in their
subordinates. Because responsibility is ultimate such managers may withhold
key information in their drawers in order to make their subordinates
completely dependent in making decisions or taking actions. This is designed
to prevent subordinates from making important decisions.
b) Insecure managers – are managers who do not have selfconfidence. Such
managers try to hide some key information from their subordinates to prevent
their subordinates from making decisions that affect the superior’s position.
Less confident managers may fear that if they release all information the
subordinates may make more sound decisions and thereby threat the
superior’s position.

Some superiors may also withhold information from lack of awareness about the
relevance of the information to their subordinates
Poor retention of information is another serious problem. Most of the times there are
problems in handling and retrieving information, particularly when records management
is manual. Poor records and filing system are often major causes for loss of information
in organizational communication. This makes the necessity for repetition of the message
and the use of several channels rather obvious. Consequently, companies often use more
than one channel to communicate the same message.

4. Poor Listening and Pre-mature Evaluation

There are many talkers but few listeners. Listening demands full attention and self-
discipline. It also means avoiding pre-mature evaluation of what the other person has to

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say. A common tendency is to judge to approve or disapprove what is being said rather
than trying to understand the speaker’s frame of reference. Yet listening without making
hasty judgments can make the whole organization more effective and more efficient.
Sympathetic listening can result in better labor- management relations and greater
understanding among managers. In short, listening with empathy can reduce some of the
daily frustrations in organized life and result in better communication.

5. Emotionality
Emotional reactions- anger, love, defensiveness, hate, jealousy, fear, embarrassment-
influence how we understand other’s messages and how we influence others with our
own messages. If for example, we are in an atmosphere where we feel threatened with
loss of power or prestige we may lose the ability to gauge the meanings of the messages
we receive and will respond defensively or aggressively.

6. Inconsistent verbal and Nonverbal Communication

We think of language as the primary medium of communication, but the messages we
send and receive are strongly influenced by such nonverbal factors as body movements,
clothing, our posture, gestures, facial expression, eye movements, and body contact.
Even when our message is as simple as “Good morning”, we can covey different intents
by our nonverbal communication. A busy manager who does not want to be disturbed
might respond to a subordinate’s greeting without looking up from his or her work for
example.

7. Noise, Distance and Time

Noise is any factor that disturbs, confuses or otherwise interferes with communication.
Little communication occurs in totally noise-free environments of course. Noise is a big
menace to communication; it creates a great barrier to communication. It is a very
common experience that noise proves a big hindering factor if two persons are talking. If
some how the noise is not controlled it may not be possible for the communicators to
listen anything or make out the sense.

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Distance acts as barriers in the process of communication. If the two parties are far from
each other there will be difficulty in communication. Telephone solves this difficult in
many cases. But bad weather, technical defects, breakdown etc may render the telephone
useless.

The effectiveness of our communication may be reduced if our timing is not right. First,
we must consider the time of the day. Our attempts at communication must be made at
the appropriate hour of the day. A telephone call will not normally be welcome at 5
o’clock in the morning and very few of us welcome a string of requests or enquiries on
matters of high importance, the minute we arrive at our office. Second, the time of
convenience is important. In other words, we should not endeavor to communicate with
another person if he is pre-occupied with other matters: we will receive less than proper
attention. For instance if the company secretary is concentrating on arranging the agenda
for a particularly important management meeting, he is not likely to pay much attention
to a request for authority to buy a new office equipment. The request could quite well
wait for a more propitious moment. Therefore, to be effective, we must communicate at
the appropriate time both by the clock and by opportunity.

8. The Medium and Method of Communication

A disregard of the medium of communication and the method used often create
conditions that lead to a lack of expected response or to a less than perfect understanding.
In all cases the medium of the communication and the method must be appropriate to the
case in hand. Generally speaking great care is required in this direction. Most people are
very sensitive about how certain subjects are approached and to ignore their sensitivity
will often result in faulty communication.

Matters of routine nature such as the opening and closing times of the canteen may well
be appropriately conveyed by a notice on a notice board. At other times a discrete
personal word is called for instance where a staff member has started habitually to arrive
late in the morning. A bold statement on a notice board about lateness would be most
inappropriate.

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A more complicated situation, such as an alteration in working conditions requires even
more care in the choice of medium and method. Personal consultations with
representatives of those affected are imperative to prevent misunderstanding and to gain
the cooperation of those concerned. In brief for effective communication, the medium
and method used to carry the communication must be appropriate to the circumstances.

9. Distrust/Lack of Credibility of the Source

Credibility refers to the confidence, faith or thrust that the receiver has on the actions
and/or words of the sender. The credibility of a message is to a large extent, a function of
the credibility of the sender in the mind of the receiver. A sender’s credibility is, in turn
determined by a variety of factors. In some cases, the fact that a message comes from a
manager will enhance its credibility, but it can also have the opposite effect. In
negotiations between labour and management, for example labour often regards the
claims of managers with some suspicion. In this situation, as in others, the perceived
character or honesty of the sender is important.

Distrust can be the result of inconsistent behaviors by the superior, or it can be due to
experiences in which the subordinate was punished for honestly reporting unfavorable,
but true, information to the boss. In any case, the loss of confidence in the superior will
drop the effect of the communication. What is needed is a climate of trust, which
facilitates open and honest communication.

The above being the most common barriers to effective communication there are many
others. For instance closely related to perception is the influence of attitude, which is the
predisposition to act or not, to act in a certain way, it is a mental position regarding a fact
or state, clearly. If we have made up our minds, we cannot objectively listen to what is
said. Differences in status and power between the sender and the receiver still affect
communication.

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In brief, often our efforts to communicate are quite successful but at other times we fail
dismally. Many factors are at work that have a bearing on our success or failure some of
which we can control and some of which are outside our control.

Other barriers may include:

 Information overload
 Unclarified assumptions
 Position awareness, etc.

2.3. Verbal and Nonverbal Communication

Ideas and feelings can be shared only if they are represented by symbols. Symbols are
things that stand for something else.
1. Verbal symbols – refer to the words in our language.
2. Nonverbal symbols – are anything we communicate without using words, figures, or
letters. This may include various tools such as facial expressions, gestures, body
mevements, etc.

2.3.1. Verbal Communication

Written and oral communication media have favorable and unfavorable characteristics.
Consequently, they are often used together so that the favorable qualities of each can
complement the other. The question as to which medium of communication to use
depends on the communication the message to be transmitted, the
audience(communicate) and the situation.

Written Medium (Communication)

As the name implies it is the communication which is produced in black and white. A
written communication is conveyed through a letter, reports, circulars, memoranda,
notices, etc. It is a very common form of communication in most organizations and is
suitable for many situations.

Advantages

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i. It provides records for future references and can serve as a legal document.
ii. It provides enough time for serious thinking and as a result the message can be
prepared carefully.
iii. It is useful when the message to be transmitted is lengthy and the receivers are
large in number and located at a distance from the sender.
iv. It can promote uniformity in policy and procedures.

Disadvantages
i. Written messages may create mountains of paper
ii. As compared to oral communication it is more time and money consuming.
iii. There is less flexibility. Once the message has been sent it will be difficult to
withdraw. Frequent amendments and changes in written communication leads
to loss of trust and prestige.
iv. It will be difficult to keep a matter confidential if it is considered necessary
v. It may not provide an immediate feedback, consequently, it may take a long time to
know whether or not a message has been received and properly understood.

Oral Medium (Communication)

In this medium of communication the two parties in communication exchange their ideas
or the message with the help of words of mouth. The message-instruction order,
directive, etc, is conveyed through spoken words. This method can be observed in a
number of forms of communication such as conferences, committee meetings, interviews,
telephone conversations, face-to-face talks etc.

Advantages
i. It provides for speedy interchange with immediate feedback. People can ask
questions and clarify points at the spot and in face-to-face communication the effect
can be noted.

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ii. In most cases, it economical both in terms of time and money.
iii. It brings people together, eliminates the gap between the communicator and the
communicate; facilitates free discussion and promotes the chance of better
understanding. Furthermore, it may give a subordinate a feeling of importance.
iv. It can be supported by non-verbal symbols.

Disadvantages
i. It does not provide any proof. There is nothing on record. One can forget
completely or partially what had been said.
ii. It does not provide for serious thinking as decisions are to be taken immediately.
iii. It is not appropriate if there is a distance between the communicator and the
communicate.
iv. It is not suitable if the message to be communicated is quite lengthy.
In brief, before employing a certain medium of communication, one must weight
its advantages and disadvantages and select the one that best suits the overall
situation under which the communication takes place.

2.3.2 Nonverbal Communication

We communicate in many different ways. What we say can be reinforced or contradicted
by nonverbal communication, such as facial expressions and body gestures. Nonverbal
symbols are expected to support the verbal. But it is not always so. For example, an
autocratic manager who pounds a first on the table while announcing that from now on
participate management will be practiced certainly creates a credibility gap. Similarly,
managers who state that they have an open-door policy, but then have a secretary
carefully screen people who want to see the boss create incongruence between what they
say and the way they behave. Clearly, nonverbal communication may support or
contradict verbal communication, giving rise to the saying that actions often speak louder
than words.

Nonverbal communication is any message (information) the sender communicates

without using words. This type of communication, sometimes referred to as body

26
language, is an important part of the communication process. It takes place through body
language (body movement) such as gesture, eye contact, facial expression, and voice
intonations as well as physical appearance. A meaning is attached to these nonverbal
symbols. The meaning of nonverbal communication is in the observer, who both reads
specific signals and interprets them in the context of the particular situation.

Channels of nonverbal communication

1. Facial expressions and eye behavior
The face is the primary site for the expression of emotion, revealing both the type and the
intensity of a person’s feelings. A person’s eyes are especially effective as a tool of
communication. They can be used to indicate attention and interest, to influence others, to
regulate interaction and to establish dominance. Although the eyes and the face are
usually reliable sources of meaning, people sometimes manipulate their expressions to
simulate an emotion they do not feel or to mask their true feelings.

2. Gestures and Postures

By moving their bodies people can express both specific and general messages.
Many gestures, a wave of the hand, for example, have a specific and intentional
meaning such as “hello” or goodbye.” The other types of body movement are
unintentional and express general messages. These unconscious signals reveal
whether a person feels confident or nervous, friendly or hostile, assertive or passive,
powerful or powerless.

3. Vocal characteristic/tones
The tone and volume of your voice, your accent and speaking pace say a lot about
who you are, your relationship with the audience and the emotions underlying your
words.

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4. Personal/physical/ appearance
The physical appearance and personal style contribute to our identity. People
respond to use on the basis of our physical attractiveness. Because we see ourselves
as others see us. When people think we are capable and attractive, we feel good
about ourselves and this affects our behavior, which in turn affects other people’s
perceptions of us. Our grooming, clothing and our style modify our appearance.

5. Use of time and space

This involves showing respect by being on time. Space also serves as a symbol of status
and determines how comfortable people feel talking each other. Nonverbal
communication serves important functions with respect to the verbal message; it can
complement it, regulate it, substitute for it, or accent it.

It is important for the receiver to understand the real message conveyed by the nonverbal
communication. Although verbal and nonverbal communication work together best
when they are complementary, nonverbal communication may take the place of or even
contradict formal communication or is misleading. One should look for nonverbal
symbols as well as listen to the literal meaning of a sender’s words; he should particularly
be aware of contradictions of the messages. For instance, a boss may say that he/she is
free to talk to him about a grievance but he may see nonverbal signals that suggest that
this is not the time to discuss the subject. Regardless of what is being said, an individual
who frequently glances at his/her wristwatch is giving the message that he/she would
prefer to terminate the conversation. These contradictions suggest one saying that
“actions speak louder-and more accurately-than words.

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 CHAPTER III
COMMUNICATION IN ORGANIZATIONS
3.1. Functions and Channels
As we have seen communication, both oral and written is a predominant form of
organizational behavior. People in today’s organizations spend a great deal of time
communicating; the higher they go in the organizational hierarchy, the more time
communication consumes. However, as Peter Drucker points out, all is not well; “We
have more attempts at communications today . . . yet communications has proven as
elusive as the unicorn. The noise level has gone up so fast that no one can really listen
anymore to all that babble about communications. But there is clearly less and less
communicating. The communications gap within institutions and between groups in
society has been widening steadily to the point where it threatens to become an
unbridgeable gulf of total misunderstanding.” In short, while people in organizations
today spend a lot of time engaged in communication-related activity, they are not very
successful in communicating.

Generally, we have found five basic causes of communication failure.

1. Communication in most organizations is activity-oriented, not results-oriented.

Activity 3.1
 In sending reports or messages do you ever realize
the objective of the message and its contribution to
organizational performance?

When consulting with hospitals for example, it is our practice to ask the hospital
administrator to show us the hospital’s employee handbook. Then we ask him or her,
“Do you feel this is a good employee handbook? Typically, their answer will be “yes”
followed by such reasons as: It has won national awards for design and layout; it costs us
a lot of money to produce; my picture is on the inside cover; consultants helped us to
develop it, and so on. When we then ask, “But does it do what is it supposed to do?” We
typically receive a puzzled look and a long silence in response. Communication is a tool

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designed to produce some effect upon its receiver. Too many organizations, however,
view communication as something that “ought to be done” losing sight of the impact their
communications should have.

2. Communication often is one-way

Management frequently assumes that, as long as they are sending messages regularly to
the rest of the organization, they are communicating. They therefore engage exclusively
in “downward” communication, receiving little or no feedback from lower levels of the
organizations as a result they often do not know if their downward messages were
received, understood, believed, or approved of by employees, and they cannot adjust
future messages to employees needs or characteristics. In order to be effective,
communication in organizations must flow not only downward, but upward and laterally
as well.

1. The impact of communication is not measured.

Activity 3.2
 Many meetings are conducted; many trainings are offered; but their
impact is not usually measured in terms of their contribution to
organizational performance. Why?

This problem is related to the preceding one. In many organizations, management

receives information feedback. However, no systematic attempt is made to measure the
impact of communication in terms of the objectives or results the communication was
supposed to achieve. If , for example, the employee handbook is designed to inform
employees about company benefit programs, actual measures should be taken to
determine how much information employees get and retain about benefit plans by reading
that handbook. In effect, management must clearly define the results they want their
communication systems to achieve, and then regularly measure the extent to which those
results have been produced.

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2. Communications are not responsive to employee needs.
When defining the objectives of their communication systems, management should first
ask employees what information they want or need. Then they can tailor downward
messages to meet those needs. Rarely, for example, do companies ask new employees
what information they would like to receive in the new employee orientation meetings;
rather, they assume that the information they are providing is exactly what the employees
need. When we have interviewed incoming employees about their concerns and desires,
we find an entire body of information is needed that company orientation programs do
not provide.

3. The people who implement communication systems lack the necessary

communication skills.

Activity 3.3
 Have you ever taken training on meeting management and /or
interviewing? What do you thing is the impact of taking or not
taking such communication systems in achieving your objectives?

Department meetings cannot be effective if the department heads conducting them lack
meeting leadership skills. Employment interviews do not select the best available
candidates if the interviewers are unskilled. Communication systems and opportunities
are not enough; the people who use those systems must have skills as communicators. As
the preceding discussion indicates, communication in organizations has tow basic
elements; communication systems (the meetings, publications, conversations and so on in
which messages are transmitted), and communication skills of the people participating in
those communication systems.

The Japanese Approach to Management in Relation to Communication

Today, American managers invest much time and money studying Japanese approaches
to management because of the fine quality of Japanese products and the general
productivity of their organizations. Some differences in philosophies of management are

31
deeply rooted in culture and are difficult to change . Even so, it is still possible to
examine Japanese management and discover several interesting principles.
Extensive studies of Japanese organizations have demonstrated that Japanese managers
stress the following.

1. Bottom _up Initiative.

Since Japanese managers are not bound by Western traditions of authority, they believe
that change and initiative within an organization should come from those closest to the
problem. So they elicit change from below .Japanese top managers are not isolated .
They often work in large open offices, typically surrounded by their subordinates. They
see their task as creating an atmosphere in which subordinates are motivated to seek
better solutions.

2. Top management as facilitator.

Japanese managers do not set objectives and issue edicts. When a subordinate brings in a
proposal, his manager neither accepts nor rejects it. Rather, he tactfully, politely asks
questions, makes suggestions, and provides encouragement. This process is repeated as
the proposal moves upward through the hierarchy

3. Middle Management as Impetus for and shaper of Solutions.

In the Japanese system, junior (middle) managers are initiators who perceive problems
and formulate tentative solutions in coordination with others-not function specialists who
carry out their boss’s directives. Because so much emphasis is placed on coordination
and integration, solutions to problems evolve more slowly, but they are known and
understood by all those who have been a part of the solution generation process.
Horizontal communication is stressed as essential to the coordination of problem-solving
efforts.

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4. Consensus as a way of Making Decisions.
The Japanese are less inclined to think in terms of absolutes, that is, solution (which is
right) vs. the alternatives (which are wrong). Rather, they recognize a range of
alternatives, several of which might work and all of which possess advantages and
disadvantages. When a group makes a decision, all members become committed to the
chosen solution. From a Japanese perspective, that commitment, and the ensuing
dedication toward working to make the solution successful, is probably more important
than the objective quality of the decision. The Japanese have an interesting concept of
consensus. Those who consent to a decision are not necessarily endorsing it. Rather,
consent means that each person is satisfied that his point of view has been fairly heard
and although he may not wholly agree that the decision is the best one, he is willing to go
along with it and even support is.

4. Concern for Employees’ personal Well –Being.

Japanese management has a kind of paternalistic attitude toward their employees.
traditionally, Japanese organizations have offered their workers housing, extensive
recreational facilities, and lifetime employment. The Japanese believe that it is
impossible to divorce a worker’s personal and professional lives. Good mangers express
concern for workers as persons with homes and families as well as for the quality of the
products the workers produce. Managers typically work alongside their subordinates,
counsel them regarding their personal lives, and encourage much peer interaction.

Interestingly, principles that are considered by many to be advantages of the Japanese

system can also be viewed as problems, at least from an American perspective. There is
a fine line between encouraging consensus and forcing it. When groups place too much
emphasis on being agreeable and conforming to organizational expectations, poor-quality
decision making is a likely outcome. Moreover, the Japanese notion of taking care of
employees can extend into an extreme form of paternalism with which few well educated
Americans would be comfortable. It is appropriate to protect children or others who
cannot think for or look after theme selves. But professionals hardly fall into these
categories. Most Americans would prefer an organizational system that makes it possible

33
for them to function as mature, intelligent human beings, responsible for their own
security and well-being.

Finally, some authors have suggested that Japanese-style management as adapted to

American organizations is little more than a tool for even greater management control.
An employee who has a life commitment to a particular organization, for instance,
becomes vulnerable. Since he does not perceive viable options, he is more likely to
tolerate existing work conditions, even if he finds them unpleasant. The employee is also
encouraged to become a generalist rather than a specialist. Thus, her expertise in a
particular area is rarely sufficiently developed so that the organization actually grows to
depend on her as an irreplaceable employee. Instead, substitutes are readily found.
Moreover should an employee who has worked in this kind of organizational
environment decide to abandon his commitment to this organization after a few years of
working as a generalist, he would be poorly equipped to move into other American
organizations since he would be competing with specialists.

The body of research on Japanese organizations continues to grow. Very recent research
suggests that one cannot generalize across Japanese workers, that male and females,
young and old, differ in their decision-making style and management preference. One
study reported that Japanese workers were more passive than commonly thought,
preferring to be persuaded of the value of a decision by their supervisor than to make the
decision themselves. However, a different study found that Japanese managers place a
far greater emphasis on corporate participation and cooperation than their American
counterparts. Thus a consistent and coherent view of Japanese organizations does not ye
exist.

As with the other approaches to management we have examined, the Japanese approach
is interesting. In reminding us of the value of the individual, the need for participative
decision making, and the potential of facilitative management, it has been extremely
useful. It is not a panacea, however. Because of extreme differences between the

34
Japanese and the American cultures, some Japanese management practices are simply
poorly suited to American organization.

Communication Functions
With in each organizational setting, communication performs a variety of functions. One
function that occupies a central role within all organizational systems is information
exchange.

Information Exchange
In the broad sense, any organization that does not exchange information with its
environment will die. The organization both effects change in its environment and
responds to change in order to survive. Such changes would not be possible without the
possession of considerable information on which to base intelligent behavior. Thus, the
exchange of information serves the basic function of organizational maintenance.
As members of organizations, we must possess adequate information to function
productivity on a daily basis. We must also exchange sufficient information so that our
goals are somehow integrated and coordinated with those of others in the organization.
Obviously, the separate rules and tasks of any organization do not exist in a vacuum.
Rather, we must accomplish each task in coordination with other individuals, groups, and
departments. In one of the texts on organizational communication, Haney presents a
tragic case involving the mismanagement of information exchanged in a hospital. In this
case a deceased patient who was not immediately removed from his room was visited by
his wife who, upon finding her husband dead, collapsed and died of a heart attack herself.

This tragedy occurred because rotting nurses in charge of the situation did not exchange
clear messages and failed to notify appropriate authorities the minute they knew their
patient had died. Although most instances of information exchange do not result in such
tragic outcomes, the smooth, timely, and undistorted flow of information remains an
important goal of all organizations.

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Idea and attitude imposition
Information exchange and idea imposition are not distinct. When a supervisor tells us
how to replace the paper in the copying machine, how to fill out grant request forms, or
how to deal with a disciplinary problem on the surface he or she is informing us about
how to perform our jobs. But such information clearly does more than inform. It also
persuades that the procedure in question is not only acceptable but often preferred or even
required.

From the time we enter an organization, we are bombarded with ideas, information, and
attitudes whose purpose is to effect some change in us. Whenever we join an
organization, we immediately encounter some of the more common forms of idea and
attitude imposition. We may be told succinctly and directly how to function in our daily
jobs and how those jobs fit into the overall organizational plan. At a more subtle level,
our initiation may involve a strategic indoctrination aimed at encouraging us to conform
to the values, standards, and needs of the organization. Schein refers to this latter
process as “organizational socialization.”

Although some socialization is probably inevitable and in some sense beneficial. Schein
maintains that what organizations really need are creative people who accept crucial
organizational values, but who are richly diversified in other significant respects. Most
healthy companies are filled with professionals who are united in their dedication to the
organization’s goals of high-quality products, employee satisfaction, and productivity.
Even so their ideas about what precisely constitutes quality, how to keep workers happy,
and how to achieve maximum productivity are probably quite different. Although
organizations can command a great of conformity, only through a process of mutual
organizational and individual influence is innovation and growth likely to occur in the
long run.

Evaluation
A third major communication function is evaluation. When we evaluate, we process,
interpret, and judge. Each of us is evaluated before entering the organization through

36
applications and employment interview, and the notion of evaluation is really inherent in
the organization’s hierarchy. Supervisors evaluate their subordinates just as higher
executive judge lower level supervisors. Worker evaluation sheets, memos,
organizational progress reports, interviews, and personal and small group conferences are
a few examples of common organizational evaluation procedures.

Soliciting Feedback
A fourth function of communication is solicit feedback. Historically, several factors have
impeded feedback in organizations. Generally some employees simply are not interested
in communicating to management or participating in decision making; others are afraid to
communicate (fearing reprisals from a management or ostracism by their peers); still
others are unaware that management expects them to communicate; and some simply
believe that management has no interest in their thoughts and concerns or that
management will not respond to them.

Taken together, the communication functions we have outlined influence the

effectiveness and efficiency of the organization. The amount, clarity, and
appropriateness of information exchanged, the ability of the organization to socialize and
influence its members, the impact of evaluations, and the success of attempts to solicit
feedback all determine the characteristics, and ultimately the success, of a particular
organization. In the next section, we will review some of the channels that organizations
use to achieve these functions.

3.2. Formal Communication

Communication in organizations takes two forms: “formal” and Informal”. Formal
communication is that which follows prescribed channels of communication throughout
the organization-typically the chain of command. It follows the official channels of
communication prescribed in the organization structure. Informal communication
generally is considered to be any interaction that does not follow official channels of
communication.

37
Formal communication is the official patterns of communication that are designed,
approved, and recognized by the management of the organization. It is an integral part of
the organization structure. Organizational chart can be regarded as anatomical drawing
of the official channels (paths) through which official messages travel. Formal
communication is thus the official chains that determine the flow and direction of official
messages among individuals or divisions in an organization. Formal channels of
communication provide for the structured flow of primarily vertical communication
(upward and downward) and secondarily crosswise (horizontal and diagonal)
communication.

3.2.1. Downward Communication

Activity 3.4
 Clearly state the mission, vision, goals, objectives, strategies,
policies, and three year plans of your organization.
 If you do not know them how can you really contribute to the
achievement of the objectives of the organization.
Messages flowing upper from organizational levels to lower organizational levels
constitute downward communication. Downward communication has three main
objectives.

i) To provide directives to subordinates.

Through downward communication, organizations;
- assign goals and explain the reason for assignment
- direct the activities of employees
- instruct them in proper behaviors and work methods
- persuade them to adopt certain attitudes and ideas
- evaluate their performance on the job
- solicit upward communication, and
- provide entertainment

ii) to indoctrinate company objectives, strategies, programs, policies and procedures.

38
iii) Appraise subordinates’ performance/performance feedback
Performance of subordinates must be evaluated continuously or periodically. The
performance result must also be communicated to the subordinates so as to help them
know whether they are meeting their goals or not. Positive evaluations contribute in
raising the morale of workers and thereby increase their productivity. Carefully
communicated low evaluations also help the subordinates to overcome their shortcomings
and take corrective measures.

The most commonly used downward communication methods are the following:
i) Employee hand books- used to provide basic information about the organization,
pay policies, benefit programs, work rules, and working facilities.
ii) Job descriptions and work procedures-used to inform an individual what is
expected of him and his work unit form the organization.
iii) News letters- are periodical publication about the news of the organization and
other related activities.
iv) Letters and memoranda
v) Employment interview-used to promote good relations with prospective
employee.
vi) Performance appraisals- conducted as a private meeting between a superior and
his subordinate.
vii) Disciplinary interviews- conducted by managers and superiors when employees
violate the rules and regulations of the organization.
viii) Departmental or unit meetings- often called by supervisors used to discuss with
subordinate about
- Current events in the company
- Future plans of the company
- Progress reports, (evaluation reports)
ix) New employee orientation programs-used to give employees detailed information
about their jobs and the environment at which they will work. This helps

39
 employees to feel welcome in the organization and learn about matters that
directly affect them; and adopt to the new environment and become effective.

Limitations of Downward Communication.

i) Communication often is not received
Employees often do not read the announcements, or they ignore the bulletins that are
posted and overlook the posters that announce current events. Supervisors and managers
choose not to conduct departmental meetings, or neglect to conduct the disciplinary or
appraisal interviews that are their responsibility.

ii) Communication occurs too frequently and after a time employees become saturated
an simply stop paying attention.

iii) Distortion or filtering

The sheer number of people involved makes it likely that:
- facts will be distorted
- details will be filtered out
- the meaning of the message will be changed

iv) Built in resistance

Downward communication is characterized by some degree of authoritarianism.
Subordinators are expected to receive the message at its face value, i.e without
questioning the validity, reliability and appropriateness of the message.

Ways of Improving Downward Communication

- The message must be clearly understood by the subordinate
- The employee has to believe the order or instruction is consistent with the
organization goal.
- The subordinate must be able to comply with the order mentally and
physically. Orders and instructions have to be reasonable enough to
reflect the capacity of the subordinate with due regard to time.

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3.2.2. Upward Communication
Upward communication constitutes the flow of information from subordinates to
supervisors. It involves information about
- subordinates performance
- feedback on organization a policies and practices
- Problem solving suggestions opinions, complaints etc.

Importance
i) Providing feedback
Managerial function is incomplete without feedback.
Managers ascertain whether:
- the policies are being followed
- the rules are being strictly respected
- the directives are properly carried out by means of feedback.

ii) outlet for pent-up emotions

Upward communication provides employees with the opportunity to channel their
problems, complains, and grievances to superiors. This reduces frustration and enables
employees develop positive attitude.

iii) Providing constructive suggestions

Every member of an organization has a capacity to contribute ideas or suggestions that
can promote the welfare of the organization. Every employee is endowed with some
creative capacity and wise managers utilize the creative capacity of their subordinates.
When subordinates constructive suggestions are accepted and implemented, they feel
encouraged and motivated because they believe are participating in decision making.
This also enables them to identify themselves with the management and the organization.

iv) Easier introduction of new schemes

Effective upward communication minimizes resistance to changes and makes them exert
extra efforts to make the new schemes successful.

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v) Greater harmony between superiors and subordinates

Methods of Upward Communication

The most common methods of upward communication are the following:
i) Employee opinion surveys
These are written questionnaires asking employees to report about their attitudes and
feelings toward all elements of their working lives. Responses are anonymous and
employees are free to express their attitudes without fear of reprisal.

ii) Letters and reports.

iii) Suggestion and complaints boxes- often effective at the beginning and their novelty
quickly wears off.

iv) Open door policies

This allows employees to stop by any manager’s office with concern, suggestion, or
complaint whenever they feel the need. Practically, however, many managers may not
have either time or willingness to listen to the ideas of subordinates and other lower level
people. Moreover, entering managers’ offices is often intimidating.

v) Open floor policies/management by walking.

This is an upward communication method through which management members walk
around work areas talking informally with employees individually or in-group. This
methods is more effective because employees are likely to say what is in their minds
when they are at work.
vi) Departmental meetings- employees are freer to report, discuss and evaluate all
elements of their work lives than using written reports.

42
vii) Social gatherings
Social gathering creates favorable atmosphere for informal upward communication
through employees throw away their timidity and fear and feel free to talk to superiors
about organizational and personal problems.

Limitations of Upward Communication

i) Upward communication is subject to substantial distortion
Employees are reluctant to communicate negative information to superiors. Subordinates
make every attempt to send messages that please management and this leads to
exaggerated information.

ii) By passing some organizational levels.

When subordinates by pass their immediate superiors, the possible result can be:
- hostility between a subordinate and his/her immediate superior
- information overload to top management resulting in distrust for lack of
response
- violation of the chain of command

iii) Many superiors discourage upward communication because of Negligence,

lack of confidence, or because they claim to be busy.

3.2.3. Horizontal Communication

Horizontal or lateral communication is communication between people or work units at
the same level of organizational hierarchy. It is designed to save time and facilitate
control. Strict adherence to the chain of command might result in the following
problems.
- By the time the communication process in complete through the
scalar chain, the information may be useless.
- The communication must pass through various levels
aggravating screening and distortion.

43
 - The communications will unnecessarily costly in terms of time
and money.

3.2.4. Diagonal Communication

Diagonal communication takes place between work units or people at different levels of
organizational hierarchy but without having direct reporting relationship. It is designed
to support the vertical and horizontal communication systems.

Conclusion
The vertical, horizontal, and diagonal communication constitute the internal
communication. Effective internal communication helps in decreasing absenteeism,
grievance, turnover; and increasing job satisfaction, belongingness, productivity, and
profit.

In general effective internal communication integrates and puts into action the
management functions. It is needed to:
- Establish and disseminate goals and develop plans for their
accomplishment.
- Organize human and non-human resources in most efficient and
effective way.
- Select, develop, and appraise organizational members.
- Lead, motivate, and create a conducive climate at which employees are
made to contribute to organizational goals.
- Evaluate performance and take proper measures to remedy deviations
from plans.

3.3. The Informal Communication (Grapevine)

People talk about job related or unrelated information. They talk about promotions,
salary increment, demotions, administrative policies and decisions. They also talk about
local and international affairs. They talk such situations in the form of rumors, gossips,
daily friendly chat etc. This all travel through informal networks that often develop

44
through incidents of spatial arrangement, similarity of personalities or compatibilities of
personal skills. Informal communication is thus, ones, aspect of organizational
communication that is not designed and recognized by management.

Since every communication cannot be programmed, grapevine is created and exists out of
the will of management. It arises out of the need for social interaction between people in
the organization. Of course what they share at an informal level will affect their ability to
communicate about their jobs and their attitude towards their work and the organization.

Most employees are involved in several networks at the same time, some grow from
political ties, other from technical interests and still others from social preferences.
Grapevine is thus made up of several information networks that overlap and interest at a
number of points-that is some well informed individuals are likely to belong to more than
one informal networks. It shows admirable disregard for rank and authority. The
situations that employees may informally discuss in the form of rumors and gossips may
distort the accuracy of the information and may even go against the interest of the
organization, but managers cannot avoid it because it is not created by management.

45
Four Informal Communication configurations

 Single strand A B C D

 Gossip - a person with the information passes it to every other individual in the chain
A

E
B
F C D

 Random - Probability chain - each person passes on information at random, without

particular regard for who the receiver is. And the receivers use the same approach in
their communication efforts.
D
C E

B F

A G
I H

 Cluster chain - information is passed on selectively: the individual deliberately tells

some people and does not tell others. Some of those getting the information pass it on
to others while the remainder does not. The result is that handful of people often
account for all of the information that is passed along this information chain.
A

B D
C
E F

G M

H L
I J K

46
Importance of the grapevine
i) It is used by employees as a safety value
Employees use the grapevine as a way of expressing their confined emotions use
releasing their anxieties. When people feel powerless to direct their destinies, the
grapevine is a way o letting our their confined emotions thereby reducing
frustration.
ii) The grapevine promotes organizational solidarity and cohesion.
People have inborn interest to interact and they satisfy their needs for friendliness.
Love and acceptance by their peers.
iii) Provides feedback to management
It enables managers to know the real responses of employees towards a policy or
other parts of the organization from the grapevine leaders informally than formal
reports from supervisors.

The most negative attribute of the grapevine, however, is that it serves as a network for
rumors that cannot be supported by facts. Rumors can travel like wild fire across the
boundary of an organization thereby spoiling the public image of the organization.
Besides often transmits incomplete information resulting in possible misunderstanding,
confusion and wrong action.

Ways of effectively utilizing the grapevine

Grapevine is a natural and enviable result of people working together in groups. It cannot
be avoided because the more one tries to block the more force it will have. Therefore the
following are some of the ways through which the grapevine can be utilized effectively
for organizational purposes.
- Managers should admit its existence and try to feed the leaders or the
grapevine accurate information for fast dissemination and minimize rumors
that adversely affect the organizations productivity and public image.
- The grapevine should be used to diagnose the feelings and attitudes of
employees so that management policies, styles and other practices would be
adjusted profitably according to the common interest.

47
 - Encouraging informal organizations to build team work wand mutual
understanding so that false rumors can be prevented before they prove to be
harmful and disastrous.

Summary
According to professor Keith Davis who has studies the grapevine for more than twenty
years, management should accept the grapevine as inevitable fact organizational life. He
points out that:
“ If properly guided it can help build teamwork, company loyalty, and the kind of
motivation that makes people want to do their best. It may weld the group together more
effectively than company policy and other formal tools of the organization.” It is,
therefore, vital that managers be in touch with informal networks, participate in them,
learn form the, and use them tactfully to disseminate information.

External Communication
An organization is greatly affected by its external environment. Therefore, in order to
exist, any organization has to adjust its activities in accordance with external influences.
Communications to persons outside the company-customers, inquirers, suppliers and the
public- can have a far-reaching effect on the reputation and ultimate success of the
organization. The right letter, telephone call, or personal conversation can win back a
disgruntled customer, create a desire for a firm’s product or service, can negotiate a
profitable sale, help an inquirer who is a potential customers, and in general create
goodwill.

Reputable organizations are also seriously concerned about enhancing their public image
through various communications. Among these communications are public speeches by
there executives, tactful replies to comments and criticisms form consumer groups, free
informative pamphlets, interviews with news media. All these forms of communication
are transmitted with a greater emphasis on truthfulness.

48
Thus employees who communicate effectively can contribute in a variety of ways to the
lifeblood of their organization. Successful messages.
- eliminate unnecessary additional correspondence.
- save time and expense
- build favorable impressions.
- enhance goodwill, and
- help increase company profits.
Therefore, in brief, effective internal communication integrates and facilitates the
managerial functions at all levels; and effective external communication relates and
integrates an enterprise successfully to its external environment.

3.4. ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND COMMUNICATION CLIMATE

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

 Discuss the nature of organizational culture and how it is formed and
Perpetuated.
 Explain how culture can be a liability to an organization.
 Explain how organizational is created culture maintained.
 Explain the factors that create a positive communication climate.
 Explain how communication climate influences an organization's culture.

Meaning and Nature of Organizational Culture

Organizational culture is a dynamic system of shared meaning among/held by members

that distinguish an organization from other organizations. This includes beliefs,
philosophies, experiences, habits, expectations, norms and behaviors that give an
organization its distinctive character. More importantly, the organizational culture
defines what is important to the organization, they way decisions are made, the methods
of communication, the degree of structure, the freedom to function independently, how
people should behave, how they should interact with each other. These shared beliefs,
values, and norms help employees develop a sense of group identity enabling them to be
valuable contributors to organizational effectiveness.

Organizational culture is the social glue that binds members of the organization together.
An organization’s culture may be strong or weak, depending on variables such as
cohesiveness, value, consensus, and individual management to collective goals. Contrary

49
to what one might suspect, a strong culture is not necessarily a good thing. The nature of
the cultures central values is more important than its strength. For example, a strong but
change-resistant culture may be worse, from the stand - point of profitability and
competitiveness, than a weak but innovative culture. Thus when evaluating an
organization’s culture we need to consider the strategic appropriateness of its central
values as well as its strength.

Positive organizational cultures are due in great part to a healthy communication climate,
which is a function of the degree to which people believe they are valued. This sense of
being valued is enhanced by the following six management practices (Adler, Ronald B.:
1986)

Job autonomy
The employees’ freedom to manage themselves without having continually to report to
higher management contributes to their motivation and thereby their communication.

Achievement rewards
Accomplishments of employees should be acknowledged and rewarded. The best systems
should make it possible for all employees to gain rewards through financial remuneration,
symbolic tokens, and public recognition.

Emotional support
Management should show its genuine concern for the well being of employees by
seeking out and responding to their concern. For example, companies, which make some
attempt to talk with workers, have fewer strikes.

Opportunities for growth

The company should give workers the chance to develop their skills. It should encourage
education and training by giving employees time off and perhaps even paying some
tuition for courses, and give employees a chance to try out what they have learned.

Risk tolerance
Management should allow employees to experiment and innovate without fear of
punishment.

Conflict tolerance
The company should recognize that disagreement is not necessarily a sign of disloyalty.
It should encourage an open exchange of ideas and listen to constructive disagreements
without threatening reprisals.

When evaluating an organization, a prospective employee is to make sure that the culture
is comfortable and positive. Good salary and working conditions are not enough to
guarantee job satisfaction if the company’s culture does not suit the employee. Firsthand
observation and informal contacts with current employees are good ways to analyze an
organization’s culture. The most essential ingredient in organizational cultures is the
quality of communication between members. Organizational culture is important in

50
maintaining good communication climate in an organization. On the other hand, positive
communication climate is determined by they degree to which people believe they are
valued. When individuals feel respected by those they work with, positive climate results.

CHAPTER FOUR

THE ROLE OF COMMUNICATION IN MANAGING CONFLICT

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

 Explain conflict and state why it could create problems or opportunities for an
organization.
 State and explain the sources of conflicts.
 Discuss the outcomes of conflicts.
 Explain the difference between constructive (functional) conflicts and destructive
(dysfunctional) conflicts.
 Explain conflict management.
 Explain the strategies in conflict management.
 Explain the conflict management techniques.
 Discuss the conflict resolution strategies.
 Discuss the role of communication in conflict management.

4.1. Nature and Type of Conflicts

Conflict in organizations is inevitable as far as people work together. It can be defined as

any situation in which incompatible goals, attitudes, emotions or behaviors lead to
disagreement or opposition between two or more organizational members or groups. That
is, conflict occurs because people do not always agree on goals, issues, perception, and
because people inevitably compete. Conflicts can be functional or dysfunctional.
Functional conflict is healthy & constructive disagreement between two or more people,
whereas, dysfunctional conflict is unhealthy & destructive disagreement between two or
more people.

Activity 1

1.1 Define conflict.

1.2 Explain why conflict could create problems or opportunities for an organization.

i) Interpersonal Conflict
Interpersonal Conflict occurs between two individuals or between an individual and a
group. Example:

51
 Two managers competing for the same promotion.
 Two parties striving for possession of some resource available to only one party.

ii) Intra-group Conflict

Intra-group Conflict consists the conflicts that occur between group members. There can
be conditions where individuals within groups find themselves in conflict with groups in
organizations. For instance an individual may violate group norms.

iii) Inter-group conflict

Inter-group conflict occurs between two or more groups in an organization - work groups,
social groups, etc. Example: line and staff conflict or a conflict between working teams.

4.2. Causes of Conflict

The following are some of the common contributors to organizational conflict:

i) Competition for limited recourses

The resources of an organization are finite; as a result there are times group or individuals
in an organization compete for these scarce resources. Example:
 Employees compete for promotions.
 Departments compete for budget allocations.

ii) Functional conflicts

These conflicts arise when organizational subgroups have overlapping functions.

iii) Workflow problems: In this case, conflict can occur:

 When there is task interdependence – when members must share common inputs,
interact in the process of executing their work or receive outcomes determined partly
by their mutual performance. (E.g., one person cannot complete his/her assignment
until others have completed their work).
 When inadequate interaction occurs between employees who must work
cooperatively.

iv) Conflict between formal & informal organizations

A conflict between the informal and formal organizations can occur when norms and
practices of the informal organization may run against the policies, procedures and rules
of the formal organization

v) Communication problem
Communication problem develops when individuals or groups do not have the same
information or do not have adequate information or because of the frequent use of
technical jargons. It also occurs due to the lack of opportunity, ability or motivation to
communicate effectively.

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 vi) Differences in values, attitudes and perceptions
The value systems and perceptions of each individual differ from those of others. These
differences may lead to conflict. For instance, an employee may place a high value on
time with family; whereas, a manager may request overtime or late hours, not
understanding the employee's need for family time.

vii) Overlapping or unclear job boundaries

viii) Unclear authority structure (jurisdictional ambiguity)
ix) Unreasonable or unclear policies, procedures or rules
x) Unresolved or suppressed conflicts.
xi) Differences in feelings, emotions, motives, interests, etc.
xii) Goal incompatibility

4.3. Conflict Management Techniques

Activity 2

2.1 State and explain the sources of conflict.

2.2 Describe the outcomes of conflict.
2.3 Define conflict management.

Conflicts occur when people disagree, and disagreements are common in every
organization. These disagreements (conflicts) have constrictive and destructive outcomes.
As a result, managers can adopt the stimulating and resolving techniques in managing
conflicts. Therefore conflict management refers to interventions that alter the level and
form of conflict in ways that maximize its benefits and minimize or prevent its
dysfunctional consequences. The skill of conflict management is to apply the right
technique and strategy for the situation. Conflict management skills are key to
management success and communication.

 Conflict Stimulation Techniques

At times, a manager may wish to increase the level of conflict and competition in work
situation. For example, a conflict between supervisor and his subordinates may improve
an organization because the resistance of the subordinates may be to improve
unreasonable or dysfunctional behavior. Encouraging competition by offering bonuses,
incentive pay and citation of outstanding performance may lead to produce conflict as
group struggle to outdo each other.

 Conflict Resolution Techniques

When conflicts have negative contribution the situation calls for resolution.
The following strategies are applied to resolve these conflicts:

53
i) Withdrawal /avoidance
This strategy calls for a party to withdraw or ignore the conflict. Avoiding is a
deliberate decision to take no action on conflict o to stay out of conflict
situation. It may be the best response to conflict in the following situations:
 When conflicts are trivial.
 When potential losses from an open conflict resolution outweigh possible gains.
 When there is no insufficient time to work through the issue adequately.
The drawback of this strategy is that the confrontation is usually only delayed or
transferred to another issue. It often breeds resentment.

ii) Smoothing
In this strategy an obliging person neglects his/her own concern to satisfy the concern of
the other party. This strategy involves playing down differences while emphasizing
commonalties. Its primary strength is that it encourages cooperation. It may be the best
response when:
 The issue is minor.
 The damage to the relationship would harm both parties.
 A temporary reduction in conflict is needed to give time for additional research or
information.
 Tempers are too hot for productive decision.
However, this strategy is a temporary solution to the problem.

iii) Compromise
In the case of compromise, each party is required to give up something of value in order
to get another thing. Each party moves to find a middle ground. There is no clear winner
or loser, rather there is a willingness to share the object of the conflict and accept a
solution that provides incomplete satisfaction for both parties' concerns. The main
advantage of compromise is that it allows a solution to major conflicts. It may be the best
response to conflict when:
 Both parties stand to gain.
 Time is short.
 A temporary solution is needed for a complex problem.
 The parties in the conflict are equals.
The drawbacks of this strategy are that everyone loses something and the best solution is
probably not reached.

iv) Collaboration

54
Collaboration is trying to find a mutually beneficial solution for both parties through,
problem solving. This strategy promotes mutual problem solving by both conflicting
parties. It is a situation where each conflicting party desires to satisfy fully the concerns
of all parties. Its important feature is information sharing so that both parties can identify
common ground and potential solution that satisfies both of them. It is especially useful
in handling conflict when:
 Members are trained in problem solving.
 The parties have common goals that need the cooperation of all to be achieved.
 The conflict arises from misunderstanding or communication breakdown.
It is best when parties do not have perfectly opposing interests and when they have
enough trust and openness to share information. It is usually desirable because thee is
usually some opportunity for mutual gin if the parties search for creative solution.

v) Confrontation
In the confrontation strategy, the conflicting parties are forced to verbalize their positions
and disagreements. The objective is to identify a reason to favor one solution or another
and thus resolve the conflict. With skilled leadership and willingness to accept the
associated stress by all sides, a rational solution can frequently be found.

vi) Arbitration
Arbitration is a conflict resolution strategy where a neutral third party acts as judge and
issues a binding decision affecting parties in the negotiation process. However, the
authority of the arbitrator may also vary according o the rules set by the negotiators. For
instance the arbitrator might be limited to choosing one of the last offers or suggesting an
agreement point that is non-binding or free to choose and make any judgment he/she
wishes. When opposing parties agree to submit their case to the decision of a third party
they may agree to accept the decision of the arbitrator as final or to make it appealable.
On the other hand, arbitration can be voluntary (requested) or compulsory (forced on the
parties by law or contract). Arbitration always results in a settlement of the case/dispute/
problem.

vii) Negotiation
Negotiation occurs when two or more parties – either individuals or groups – discuss
specific proposals in order to find out a mutually acceptable agreement. It is a common
way of settling conflicts in business. For example, organizations use it to solve internal
disputes (between labor and management or between units competing for scarce
resources such as money or personnel) and external conflicts (deals with suppliers or
customers).

55
 Negotiation goals and outcomes
Any negotiation has two goals: substance and relationship. Substance goals are concerned
with outcomes relative to the content of the issue at hand, such as the monetary amount
of a wage agreement in collective bargaining situation. Relationship goals are concerned
with maintaining positive working relationships and any constituencies they may
represent are able to work with one another once the process is concluded. An example is
the ability of union members and management representatives to work together
effectively after contract dispute has been settled. Unfortunately, much negotiation results
in a sacrifice of relationships, as parties become preoccupied with substance goals and
self-interests. In contrast, effective negotiation occurs when substance issues are resolved
and working relationships are maintained or even improved. Thus, effective negotiation
should:
 Offer a quality agreement that is wise and truly satisfactory to all sides.
 Be no more time consuming or costly than absolutely necessary.
 Be harmonious and fostering rather than inhibiting good interpersonal relations.

Negotiation can be approached in the three ways having different outcomes:

Win - Lose approach
Win -Lose approach assumes that only one can reach its goals and that any victory by
that party will be matched by the other's loss. It is the situation where one party's gin is
the other party's loss. Negotiations over the price of goods and services are clear
examples. Information about the other party is perhaps the most powerful asset a
negotiator can possess in win-lose negotiations. For example, imagine how much
stronger your position would be when negotiating a salary with a potential employer if
you knew the answers to such key questions as
 What is the financial condition of the company?
 How much is management to paying people in equivalent positions?
 Who else are they considering for the position?
 What salary would these people be willing to pay?
 How much does management want you to get?

Before and during a negotiation session, the negotiator should do everything possible to
collect adequate information. After assessing all possible sources of information, the
negotiator can ask his/her opponent for information. Sometimes the win-lose approach
can be destructive. For example, working groups often set themselves up for win-lose
outcomes by following the principle of majority rules. If 51 percent of the group votes for
a proposal, then 49 percent are losers-hardly a prescription for future harmony.

56
Lose - Lose approach.
Nobody seeks a lose - lose outcome. However, there is a situation when both parties
leave a negotiation unsatisfied. This occurs most frequently when both parties try to win
at each other's expense. For instance an employee who wants to spend more time with her
child may be requested for seven-hour day work. If the employee refuses the seven-hour
day work request, either she will quit or be fired as a result of her nonnegotiable demand.
In this case both the employer and the employee suffers: the employee loses the job; the
employer loses a talented worker and the employee's career and the job suffers.

Lose-lose outcomes occur on large issues as well: unreasonable union demand can drive
employers into bankruptcy, and employers can destroy their workers effectiveness by
taking advantage of them. Compromise is an alternative solution for lose-lose problem.
Compromise is the best obtainable outcome. For instances if two managers each need a
full-time secretary but budget restrictions make this impossible, they may have to
compromise by sharing one secretary. While compromises may be necessary, by
definition the outcome is that both parties lose at least some of what they were seeking.
Buyers for instance, may pay more than they can afford, while sellers receive less than
they need compromises are not the best kind of outcome.

Win -Win approach

Win -Win approach assumes that the solution has to satisfy the need of all parties. It is
the belief that the parties will find mutually beneficial solution to conflict. Most
importantly, it sees beyond the conflicting means of both parties (My way versus your
way) and focuses on satisfying the ends each seeking.

Problem solving approach is the key to finding win-win solutions to seek ways to satisfy
the needs of both parties. Win - win outcomes are possible when conflicting parties' goals
are compatible. The win - win approach is most successful when it follows the following
steps.
 Identify the needs of both parties then try to find out what satisfies them.
 Try to discover what makes the other party unwilling to meet your request. Try to
find an answer that eliminates this objection.
 Identify personal relational needs and task related needs. Common personal needs
include the desire to be understood by the other party, to be treated with respect and
have one's needs acknowledged as important.
 Brainstorm a list of possible solution. Try to develop a number of solutions that all
parties need.
 Evaluate the alternative solutions.
 Implement the solution.
 Follow up on the solution.

viii) Mediating Conflict

The mediator is a person who participates in resolving a conflict between the two
principal parties by helping them reach a mutually acceptable agreement. It is a neutral
third party that facilitates a negotiated solution by using reasoning and persuasion,
suggesting alternatives, etc. The role of the mediator is different from that of an

57
arbitrator, who decides the conflict issues itself and imposes his/her decision upon the
principal parties. The success of mediation depends on the motivation of the conflicting
parties to negotiate and resolve their conflict, the conflict intensity (mediation is effective
under moderate levels of conflict) and the perception of the mediator (the mediator must
be perceived as neutral and noncoercive).

 Conclusion

Managers should take the view that conflicts are inevitable as far as people work in-
groups in organizations having different interests and objectives. These conflicts may
have positive or negative outcome. Thus, the problem is not the existence of conflicts but
their management. In this regard, communication plays a grate role. Although
communication is not the source of all conflicts, problems in this process retard
collaboration and stimulate misunderstanding. The various communication barriers block
the proper exchange of information. On the other hand, effective communication avoids,
if not, minimizes these communication barriers and misunderstanding. Effective
communication creates common understanding, good human relations and cooperation,
which in turn minimize conflicts.

Activity 3

3.1 When is it important to use conflict stimulation technique as a conflict

management strategy?
3.2 List and explain the conflict resolution strategies
3.3 What is the role of communication in conflict management? Give examples.
3.4 Asses and list the types of conflicts that occur in your organization or
community and suggest whether they must be stimulated or resolved. What
stimulation techniques do you recommend for those to be stimulated? What
about for each conflict to be resolved?

Checklist

Put a tick mark () in the boxes if you understand each of the following concepts/points,
otherwise put an x mark and read the chapter again.
Conflict 
Interpersonal conflict 
Intra-group conflict 
Inter-group conflict 
Competition for limited resources 
Functional conflict 
Dysfunctional conflict 
Workflow problems in communication 
Communication problems 

58
Difference of values, attitudes and perception as causes of conflict 
Overlapping job boundaries 
Jurisdictional ambiguity 
Conflict management 
Conflict stimulation 
Conflict resolution 
Withdrawal conflict resolution strategy 
Avoidance 
Smoothing 
Compromise 
Collaboration 
Arbitration 
Negotiation 
Mediation 

59
 CHAPTER FIVE
BUSINESS COMMUNICATION PRINCIPLES

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

 Explain the seven principles that contribute to effective business writing.

 Describe the difference between completeness and conciseness.
 Understand what considerations you should make to write a complete and concise
business message.
 State the factors that make a written business message to be considerate.
 Explain the considerations made to ensure courtesy in business writing.
 Explain the planning process in business writing.

The application of business communication principles helps to communicate effectively

through letters, memorandums, reports, speeches, telephones, face-to-face conversation,
etc. The commonly used principles in business communication are discussed in this topic.

5.1. Principle of Completeness

Your business letter is “ complete” when it contains all facts the reader needed for the
reaction you desire. To achieve both the specific purpose of the message and goodwill,
examine your messages to make sure that you have covered everything you intended to
cover and that you provided sufficient detail for your reader/receiver to know what you
expect of him/her. Complete letter also minimizes the possible cost of additional letter.
To make your message complete, make sure the reader/receiver knows who is to do what
as well as where, when and why he/she is to do it. Furthermore to ensure completeness:
 Answer all questions asked by the reader/receiver.
 Answer anticipated questions the reader may have but forgot to ask.
 Provide all the information necessary for the reader/receiver to make a logical
decision.
 Explicitly ask the reader/receiver to perform an action required, as may be
necessary.
 Make the subject content sufficiently clear to accomplish the business objective
and
 Make the feeling suitable to accomplish the human objective.

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Activity 1

1.1 When do we say a business letter is complete?

1.2 How does a complete letter minimize the possible cost of additional letter?

5.2. Principle of Conciseness

Conciseness is one of the most important principles of effective business writing because
a wordy message requires more time and money to type and read. Conciseness is writing
a message in the minimum possible words without sacrificing completeness and courtesy.
Conciseness involves eliminating unnecessary words. This means economy in writing
saves time and money. The following are suggestions that could help to achieve
conciseness.

i) Omit unnecessary and longer expressions – Example: Use thank you” instead of "I
want to tank you", May 4” instead of ”from this coming Saturday'', etc.

ii) Avoid unnecessary repetition and wordy statements – Avoid unnecessary repetition
even though it is sometimes necessary for emphasis.
Here are some ways to eliminate unnecessary repetition.
 Use a short name after you have mentioned the longer one once. For example,
instead of the Guna Trading company, “use the company”
 Use pronouns rather than repeating long names. For instance, instead of using “the
Ethiopian Insurance Company" again and again, uses “it.”

Omit unnecessary articles, relative pronouns prepositions, and conjunctions Example:

Article:
the evidence we have Evidence we have

Relative pronoun:
He said that he agreed. He said he agreed.

Prepositional phrase:
Date of the policy Policy date

Conjunction:
and colon or period

Wordy Concise
During the year of 1993 during 1993
For the reason that since, because

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Wordy sentence
There is no question that the increased use of advertising benefited the company.

Revised
Unquestionably, the increased advertising benefited the company.

iii) Include only relevant facts with courtesy – Include only those ideas that develop the
purpose of the message. The extent of the length of a message depends on the job it is expected
to perform effectively. The major causes of irrelevancy include:
 Failure to stick to the purpose of the message.
 Including information obvious to the reader.
 Using big words to make an impression.
 Beating around the bush - failure to come to the point.
 Being excessively polite, etc.

Activity 2

2.1 Do you think that completeness and conciseness are contradictory? Why?
2.2 Define conciseness.
2.3 Why is economy in writing important?
2.4 State any three ways used to write a concise business letter.

5.3. Principle of Concreteness

Writing concretely means being specific, definite, and vivid rather than vague and general. The
following guidelines help you write concretely.

i) Use specific facts and figures – To make your message concrete, use exact facts and figures
rather than general words. Example:

Vague, general, indefinite. Concrete and convincing

Our product has won several (Name) product has won first prize
prizes. in four national contests within the
past three years.
Please send your check for the please send your check for $500
full amount soon. on or before June 5.

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Often vague, general words may have different meanings to the sender and the receiver. The list
that follows give words, which can lead to uncertainty, misunderstanding, or confusion.

A few more short

High most slow
Large nice small
Low quick soon
Many several tall

Using plenty of examples, prefixed by phrases like “for instance,” “for example,” “such as,” also
helps make your writing concrete as well as clear.

ii) Put action in your verbs – Strong verbs can activate other words and help made your sentences
definite. To write strong sentences:
 Use active rather than passive verbs, and
 Put action in your verbs instead of in nouns and infinitives.

Example:
“The board of directors decided” is more explicit than “A decision has been made.”
The passive requires more words and thus, slows both the writing and reading. For instance:
“Figures show” is more concise than “It is shown by figures.

Action must also be put in verbs, not in nouns and infinitives. Notice the following examples:

Action hiding in a Noun Action in the verb

The function of this office is the This office collects accounts
Collection of accounts and the and compiles statements.
Compilation of statements.

Action hiding in Infinitive Action in the verb

The duty of a stenographer is A stenographer checks and

to check all incoming mail and records all incoming mail.
to record it.

Activity 3

3.1 Explain concreteness.

3.2 Make the following statement concrete.
"I will the cost of the training in the near future."

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5.4. Principle of Clarity
Clarity is the transfer of the writer’s thoughts to a reader without misunderstanding. It is the single
most important factor in communication. A misunderstood message is worse than no message at
all. A message that is not clear to a reader cannot possibly communicate the writer’s intentions.
Thus, clarity is the writer’s first responsibility. The first and most important task of the writer is to
be understood. That is, the writer wants to have his/her reader interpret the message with the same
meaning as intended. The following are some specific ways that help to make business writing
clear.

i) Choose short and simple words rather than long and complicated words –Generally, short,
familiar and everyday words communicate more effectively than longer and less known words.
Therefore, use short and familiar words if your reader is to understand your message. Example:

Complicated word simple word

Interrogate ask
Subsequent to after
Give consideration to consider
Under date of on
As of this writing now

In addition, when you select words you should make sure that the words you have selected would
mean the same thing to your audience as they do to you. Words have both denotations (dictionary
meaning) and connotations (associated, personal meanings). The words inexpensive and cheap can
denote the same thing. But their connotations are different. For most people, inexpensive simply
means low in cost while cheap means poorly made or a poor value.

ii) Avoid ambiguous and equivocal words – Ambiguous words have more than one meaning and
equivocal words

Whenever possible, avoid technical jargons when you talk or write to a person who is not familiar
with such words. If you must use technical words, define them briefly and clearly, other wise you
will confuse, embarrass, or irritate your reader, and perhaps be forced to explain later.
Example:

Technical jargon Expressions familiar to layperson

Annual premium annual payment
Assessed valuation value of property for tax purpose
Charge to your principal increase the balance of your loan
Maturity date final payment date

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Per diem daily

Sentence: Days of grace under this policy expire May 15, 1980

Revised: The extra 30 - days allowed you to pay your premium without interest end May 15, 1980

iii) Use concrete and specific words rather than general and abstract words – Specific
language enables the reader to visualize the action of your letter and it creates believability.
Always give exact facts, figures, details, explanations and examples. For example, instead of soon
use March 15, 2002.

iv) Use short and simple sentences – Sentence structure is also an important consideration in
achieving clarity. The easiest sentences to read and to understand are short, simple sentences using
active voice in the past, present, or future tense and making an explicit statement. While it is true
that to avoid monotony, sentence length should be varied; short sentences are easier to read and are
therefore usually clearer than long sentences. Use short sentences for your main ideas, and place
supporting information in the longer sentences. Beyond proper length, sentences seem to grow
weaker with added word.

v) Your message must be definite and straight for ward – State your message explicitly rather
than implicitly. Using specific and concrete words will help you make explicit statements.
Example:
Implicit: It will be to your advantage to order now
Explicit: By ordering now, you will receive two issues absolutely free.

vi) Construct effective sentences and paragraphs – Clear writing depends on logical structure.
A clear message requires a definite beginning, middle and end. In addition to the logical structure,
the writer also needs to provide the reader with a unified message that moves clearly from point to
point.

A unified message has continuity of thought. Unity and structure requires planning. You should
group related ideas together and then arrange the groups into a logical sentence. Eliminate ideas
that do not pertain to either your subject content or your feeling content. So that your reader will
always know where your message has been and where it is going as you move from idea to idea,
provide your reader with a clear, specific reference to the preceding idea or anticipate your next
idea with an explicit statement of direction. As a result your statement (writing) should aim for
unity and coherence.

In a sentence, unity means having one idea and other ideas closely related to it. For instance, The
manager of the firm-X is Abraha and Alemu won a gold medal in the marathon, game. These two
ideas do not relate; the second idea is irrelevant to the first ideas

Sentences and paragraphs should have logical sequence showing the reader the relationship
between them. The use of linking words is important in this case. The principal ways of
establishing the unity, coherence and transition required for clarity are given as follows:

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vii) Include visual Aids, when desirable
Visual aids- such as headings, tabulations, itemizations, pictures, and charts are definite aids to
clarity and easy reading.

Activity 4

4.1 Define clarity.

4.2 List and describe the specific mechanisms used to ensure clarity in business writing.

5.5. Principle of Correctness

Presenting a message correctly helps you to avoid the risk of miscommunication. Mistakes cause
misunderstanding and they can destruct the recipients from concentrating on the intended message.
Besides, errors can affect the credibility of the sender and the message. As a principle of effective
writing the broad term correctness refers to:
 Correct figures, accurate statements, facts and explicit identification of assumptions
and opinions. It is obvious that without correct figures and statements, accurate communication is
impossible.
 Correct spelling, grammar, mechanics, and language usage. Misspelled words, faulty
punctuation, and awkward constructions will be barriers to communication. Your ability to use
language correctly and to write a message free from superficial errors is a nonverbal message that
tells your readers that you are an intelligent, careful person who cares enough about them to pay
attention to the details of your message. Because your letters, memos, and reports provide a
lasting record of your abilities to think, write and communicate about business matters, you should
take the time to ensure correctness since communication errors will undermine your business
effectiveness. Thus, as a writer of a business letter, you should apply the following guidelines in
your communication.

i) Use correct level of language, spelling, and grammar and mechanics.

 Use short, well-known, and conversational words.

Spelling - misspelled words are the single most common error in business letters.

Punctuation - Review the rules for using commas, semicolons, and quotation marks.
 Use colon before a list of items, Example: Use the first five English alphabets: A,
B, C, D, and E.
 Use commas to separate items in a series. Use quotation-
 Example. For direct quotations when said, “I will go to USA”

Subject - verb agreement. Subjects and verbs must agree in number and in person.
Example: The manager (singular) is (singular) quite young.

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Pronoun - antecedent agreement – Pronouns and their antecedents must agree in person, number
and gender.
Example: Abraham (singular, masculine, third person) is pushing his (singular, masculine, third
person) product.

Tense progression. Use the simple tenses (past, present, and future) whenever possible. Make
sure that the verbs used for each event accurately depict the time appropriate for that event.

Parallel construction – Like ideas should be expressed in like grammatical structures. Pay
particular attention to series, lists, appositives, and ideas proceeded by correlative conjunctions
(either--- or, neither--- nor, not only--- but also). Example:
 He should either quit his job or learn to operate the machine.
 Neither his supervisor nor his assistant filed the paper.
 The manager prepared not only the reports but also the tapes.

Correct placement of modifiers – Place modifiers close to the word or idea that requires the
modifier. Example:
Dangling: by working hard, the report will be finished soon.
Correct: by working hard, I will finish the report soon.
Misplaced: I know a man who sells filing cabinet named smith.
Correct: I know a man named smith who sells filling cabinets.
Finally, you remember to proofread, when correspondence has your nonce on it,
it represents the best work you are able to do. If your secretary can’t type a decent letter or memo,
that is still your responsibility, and your business associates will judge you rather than your
secretary, by the material you sign.

ii) Ensure that the facts, figures and words used are accurate:
One erroneous digit can make a difference of thousands of money. Even small errors of a few
cents can be annoying to customers and undermine goodwill. To be sure of the accuracy of your
facts, you should verify all statements before writing and again before you sign approve the
message. You also need to be up-to-date on laws that affect your organization.

Guessing or assuming that you are right can be costly. Just because a certain fact was true about a
customer last year- or even last month- does not assure it is true now. You should also realize that,
like most things in life, language is alive and ever changing. This is to say that language is in a
continuous development. New words emerge; old words die. The change in words may result
confusion in usage:

Activity 5

5.1 When do we say a business letter is correct?

5.2 List and describe the guidelines used to make a business letter correct?

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5.6. Principle of Consideration
The relationship between of the message, the sender and the receiver profoundly affects
communication effectiveness. Consideration means that preparing a message with the recipient in
mind. This includes trying to put oneself in his/her place. It involves visualizing and evaluating
the recipient's situation, the desires, problems, circumstances, emotions and probable reactions to
one's request so as to adjust the message from the recipient's point of view. This includes taking
into account the language and tone of your message. This thoughtful of consideration is also
called “you - attitude,” empathy, the human touch, and understanding of human nature. To
achieve consideration, it is necessary to apply the following.

i) Focus on “you” instead of “I” and “we”

Readers are usually more concerned about themselves than about the writer or the company they
represent. They are more likely to read the writer's message when they see their name and the
pronoun “you” rather than “I, We, Us.”

Usually it is desirable to get the reader into the first paragraph. If psychologically desirable, begin
with “you” or “your,” and keep your reader in the message (tactfully) until you finish. The
opposite of the you –attitude is the we-attitude, in which the writer views every matter from his/her
own (or organization’s) standpoint rather than from the reader’s.

We – attitude You - attitude

I want to send my Congratulations to you on
Congratulations……. Your …

Study the following example:

We – attitude: May I take this opportunity to express my thanks for the

account you recently opened with our store. We are
pleased to furnish a wide variety of products for the home
or individual
You – attitude: Thank you for the account you recently opened at
DASHEN’S. Serving you with your needs for clothing and
a home furnishing is a pleasure.

As the foregoing example illustrates, a letter is likely to have better you – attitude when it contains
more “you’s” than “I’s.” However, in two kinds of situations it is advisable not to use “you.”
 When the reader has made a mistake:
Don't say You failed to enclose your check in the envelope.
Say The envelope we received did not have your check in it.
 When the reader has expressed an opinion different from your own.
Don't say You are entirely wrong in your attitude.
Say The proposed plan has three aspects which are extremely important
and which we need to explain now.

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ii) Shows interest in the reader
Whenever possible and true, show how readers will benefit from whatever the message asks or
announces. They will be more likely to react favorably and do what you suggest if you show that
benefits be worth the effort and cost.

For instance, reader-benefits are desirable in job applications, favor requests, and announcements
to your customers, prospective buyers, stockholders and employees.

If your company provides employee benefits such as, health insurance and various retirement
plans-management should make every effort to assure that all employees understand and
appreciate those benefits. To inform employees effectively, management can use such media as
memos, employee manuals, bulletins reports, etc.

iii) Emphasize on pleasant & positive facts

Here, reader is required to accent the positive. This means
 Stressing what can be done instead of what can not be done and
 Focusing on ideas your reader can view favorably.

The reader wants to know what the writer can do for him/her. For most people negative words like
no, won’t, cannot, never, impossible trigger unpleasant emotional reactions. By making clear what
you can or will do, you (by implication) often make clear what you cannot do, without using a
single negative word. Example:

Negative-Unpleasant Positive-Pleasant
It is impossible to open an As soon as your signature card
account for you today. reaches us, we will gladly
open an account.
When a customer closes an account, try to begin your follow-up letter to the former customer with
a favorable positive paragraph. A negative opening emphasizes ideas you would rather not have
the reader think about. Consider the following example.

iv) Be honest
To be truly considerate, apply integrity - high moral standards, personal honor, truthfulness,
sincerity-to your messages. Integrity is always indispensable. Without it business
communications would prove worthless and our confidence in people would be shattered.

Since you are an agent of your company, always remember that your messages help build the
company’s image. And to make this image one of integrity requires consistently fair treatment of
customers and to be honest and sincere for them. For example, though the following sentence
sounds “you” centered, the manager who wrote it was not honest or insincere. His action is stated
in parentheses.
“Your request will be given our careful attention, and we assure you our objective is to be fair.”

(This writer merely threw the case into a file folder, and told his secretary that he/she had no
intention of working on it or assigning anyone else to do so, he hoped that after a long wait the
customer would forget.)

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Consideration involves the golden rule - showing to others that the same fairness and honesty we
expect for ourselves. Remember both your own integrity and that of your company are revealed in
the business message you write.

Activity 6

6.1 Define consideration

6.2 When do we say a written business letter is considerate?
6.3 List any three means of achieving consideration.
6.4 Why is the |you attitude so important?

5.7. Principle of Courtesy

Courteous message helps to strengthen present business friendship, as well as make new friends.
Courtesy stems from sincere you-attitude. It is not merely politeness with mechanical insertions of
“pleases” and “thank-yous”. To be courteous, the communicator should follow the following
suggestions regarding tone and promptness of messages.

i) Be sincerely Tactful, Thoughtful, and Appreciative

A truly courteous person sincerely likes people, is thoughtful of their feelings, and tries honestly to
help them. The courteous communicator tries to make messages tactful and shows thoughtful
appreciation in special messages as well as in every day communication.

Tactless Tactful.
Your letter is not clear at all: If I understand your letter
I can’t understand it. correctly…..
Apparently you have already As mentioned in my May 15
forgotten what I wrote you letter (or memo) to you ,
two weeks ago. (continue with the facts)…

Words that convey cordial and courteous messages in congratulations and appreciation (to persons
both inside and outside the organization) help build goodwill. Much money is spent on advertising
to attract new customers and to keep desirable old customers. While advertising may bring buyers
into the front door of your firm, discourteous letters can drive customers out the back door.
Remember, since customers indirectly help pay your salary; you should let them know you
appreciate their orders, payments and inquiries.

ii) Omit Expressions that Irritate, Hurt, or Belittle

The thought-full business writer should avoid expressions that might offend the reader. Therefore,
in order to keep your letter courteous you have to avoid:
 Irritating expressions such as “contrary to your inference” I do not agree with you”

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 Belittling statements - Talking undermining a reader is another form of discourtesy
that can have a profoundly unfavorable effect.

iii) Grant and apologize Good-naturedly

Whenever you have occasion to comply with a customer’s request, begin your letter with the best
news first and inject a courteous, ungrudging tone. Notice the difference in tone of the following
two paragraphs

Grudging
Your request causes a great deal of extra paper work to change monthly payments. However, in
compliance with your request, we…

Good-natured
As you requested, we will reduce the monthly interest and principal payments called for in your
note to….

If a request has caused you extra work, you may tactfully tell the customer somewhere in the letter
- but not the first paragraph.

Occasionally you may get a “nasty” letter from a customer, who is wrong in his/her accusations. A
courteous reply can lead not only to an apology from the customer but also future staunch loyalty
as a boaster for your organization.

iv) Answer your mail promptly

For courtesy as well as better results one should answer a business inquiry promptly. If you need
time to gather information, or have a stack of other urgent work, before you can answer a request,
send a short note like the following:
I will gladly send you the information you need. It may take a few days to assemble the facts.
You will hear from me by….

5.8. Planning in Communication

Your careful planning of the message is most important for effective communication since your
goal is to gain desired reaction or action from the recipient. Thus, think and plan before you
communicate. This means, to determine what points to include in your message, and to
determine how to arrange those points for greatest effectiveness. You need to analyze the
communication context by asking yourself: what is the purpose of the message? What is the
reader’s point of view? And what is necessary to achieve the principles of effective
communication? Planning in communication requires applying the following steps:

i) Understand the purpose of the message

Determine the receiver of your message and what you want to achieve. Your first step is to
determine what you want to achieve out of the message. Every message has two categories of
purposes or objectives.

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Business objective - establishes the subject content. Your business objective is to obtain the
information that will help your dealer help you. Example: informing your reader that you are
offering a new product or service or persuading him/her to purchase the new product or service
or informing him/her the delay of the shipment. You may also inquire the availability of
sufficient goods.

Human objective - establishes the feeling content. Your human objective is to establish
empathy with the reader so that a spirit of cooperation will prevail. This part of purpose is
important to build goodwill. Thus, be sure to keep, both your business purpose (specific) and
human purpose (general), in mind as you plan every message.

ii) Visualize your reader

Understand your reader and your reader’s point of view. Your reader can be a business or
professional person, superior, colleague or subordinate; man or woman; young, middle aged, or
elderly new or longtime customer; and so on. The different people with whom you are
communicating will not have the same point of view. Visualizing that there is an individual
difference adjust your message accordingly. Write your message with the individual reader in
mind

iii) Choose the ideas that the message is to include

Identifying the purpose and the ideas that the purpose is to include is helpful to avoid irrelevant
ideas and overall wordiness. The ideas you will include in the writing depend upon the type of
message you are considering.

iv) Get all the facts to support your ideas

Once you have determined the ideas, you must ensure that you have the necessary figures, facts
and quotations to support these ides. Be sure you know your company policy, procedures and
product details if this message requires them.

v) Organize your ideas/thoughts

Before you write your message, outline your ideas in a sequence/logical order so that the flow
of ideas can be smooth.

vi) Write, revise, and proofread

Write and revise your message carefully. No matter your writing is routine short communication
or complex long communication you must read your draft objectively, from the viewpoint of
your reader. Make sure that your message meets all principles of effective business writing.
Finally after your message is typewritten (handwritten) it needs careful proofreading.
Proofreading is essential to correct any possible error; so that your message will reflect favorably
on you and your business.

Activity 7
7.1 How do we ensure courtesy in business writing? Why is it important?
7.2 Explain planning in business writing.

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Summary
All business writing situations can be analyzed according to the foregoing method. And as
infinitely varied as the possibilities are, all business messages should answer the same general
questions and contain the same basic elements. Cheek every message you write for answer to
the following questions:
 Is the message structured to emphasize its main purpose?
 What is its business purpose?
 What is its human purpose?
 Does the message have secondary purpose?
 Does the message take the reader’s point of view into account?
 What does the reader already know?
 What does the reader want to know?
 What is the reader hoping to hear?
 Does the message contain enough information to be clear?
 Does the message maintain a courteous tone throughout?
 Is it concise?
 Is it grammatically, mechanically, and factually correct?
 Does it express confidence in the reader and the message without being
overconfident?
 Does it have a pleasant, conversational tone?
 Does the message specify how the reader will benefit out of it

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