Best Practices in Business

CommunicationBY GREG PFEIFFER

https://businessfirstfamily.com/best-business-communication-courses-for-managers/

Four Components To Effective Business Communication

▶Professionalism Within the Workplace

▶Effective and Ethical Business Communication

▶Positive and Negative Messages

▶Electronic Messages and Digital Media

www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-photography

Professionalism Within the Workplace

▶Business leaders set the tone for professionalism (DuPont, 2009)

▶Effective communication involves both speaking and listening (McIntosh, Lueke, & American Management, 2008)▶Listening is often overlooked

▶Difference between hearing and critical listening▶Active listening to employees and customers (McIntosh, Lueke, & American Management, 2008)▶Promotes inclusiveness / gives individuals a voice

▶Saves time and decreases tension

▶Increases trust and credibility with senior leaders

▶Builds rapport http://www.businessreviewusa.com/leadership

Professionalism Within the Workplace

▶Leaders who embrace diversity promote professional environment (Phillips, 2014)

▶Allows for innovation through multiple ideas and perspectives

▶Effective leaders recognize conflict through team development (Guffey & Loewy, 2015)▶Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing

▶Business leaders able to coach through challenges of each stage (Cross & Rieley)

▶Better decision making and problem solving through team development once reaching performing stage (Phillips, 2014)▶Avoids “groupthink” (Guffey & Loewy, 2015)

https://sararickover.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/mp910220897.jpg

Effective and Ethical Business Communication

▶Promoting ethical behavior starts at the top▶Organizations should have clear position statement on ethical

behavior (McClellan, 2011)▶Policies and guidelines are a best practice to help discourage

unethical acts▶Code of Ethics (Ivanis, 2012)

▶Effective leaders encourage open communication from employees to discuss lessons learned from ethical dilemmas (McClellan, 2011)▶Research shows unethical behavior can spread through an

organization (Zuber, 2015)

www.coffschamber.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/3841ccb.jpg

Effective and Ethical Business Communication

▶Decision Making Process for Ethical Dilemmas ▶Identify problem (recognize potential ethical dilemma)

▶Gather information▶Evaluate at least two solutions (weigh ethical implications)▶Make most ethical decision▶Implement solution▶Control solution to ensure no deviance from ethics

(Zuber, 2015)

https://blog.optimizely.com/2012/10/29/testing-theory

Positive and Negative Messages

▶Positive Messages▶Straightforward requests, replies and goodwill

▶Negative Messages▶Refusals or bad news

▶Consideration to the appropriate communication channel

▶Decide direct or indirect approach for negative messages

(Guffey & Loewy, 2015)

https://www.google.com/search?biw=1600&bih=1115&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=communication+process

Positive and Negative Messages

▶Incorporating practices that include templates and processes to customers help organizations standardize how they communicate (Sant, 2012)

▶Ensures appropriate level of formality matches the significance of message being communicated (Sant, 2012)

▶Businesses that standardize these communications will help reduce adverse reactions (Sussman & Sproull, 1999)

Electronic Messaging and Digital Media

▶Benefits to electronic messages and tools (Guffey & Loewy, 2015)▶Saves time

▶Global Reach

▶Reduces cost

▶Potential Pitfalls (Katz, 2015)▶Security Risks

▶Decreased Productivity

▶Lowered interpersonal skills

▶Unauthorized disclosure of sensitive informationhttp://faridausingtechnologytoimprovebu.blogspot.com/

Electronic Messaging and Digital Media

▶Social Media and Business Advantages (Smith, 2015)▶Allows for wide range of customer feedback

▶Widespread marketing

▶Low cost

▶Ability to connect direct with any customer

▶Social Media and Business Disadvantages (Griffen, 2014)▶Feedback viewable to public – risk wide range of negative publicity from feedback

▶Labor-intensive to manage

▶Trolling

▶Costs associated with manpower to manage

http://consultmegroup.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/SocMedia-600ps.jpg

http://marketingland.com/report-two-thirds-digital-media-time-now-mobile-apps-50-percent-190359

Electronic Messaging and Digital Media

▶Electronic Messaging and Social Media disadvantages can be significantly reduced by business leaders with clear and concise policy and protocols as a best practice

▶Provides uniformity and guidance to workforce

▶Allows for those not in compliance to be held accountable to a standard

REFERENCESRunning head: BEST PRACTICES IN BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

Cross, R. & Rieley, J.B.. (1999). Team learning: Best practices and tools for an elusive concept.

Naitonal Productivity Review, 18(3), 9-18.

Dupont, M. K. (2009). Business ettiquette & professionalism: Conduct yourself with confidence.

Axzo Press.

Grensing-Pophal, L. (2014). Be careful with BYOD. Credit Union Management, 37(10), 18-21.

Griffen, J. (2014). Social media risk management: why it matters and what you need to know.

Governance Directions, 66(7), 417-419.

Guffey & Loewy. (2015). Business communication: Process and product (8th ed). Cengage

Learning

Ivanis, M. (2012). Business ethics - Moral resonsibility of the modern company. Conference

Proceedings: International Conference of the Faculty of Economics Sarajevo (ICES),

507-525.

Katz, L.M.. (2015). The case for face time. HR Magazine, 60(7), 68.

McClellan, M. (2011). Ethical dilemma. Smart Business Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky, 7(8), 18.

McIntosh, P, Lueke, R. & American Management. (2008). Interpersonal communication skills in

the workplace. AMA Self-Study.

Phillips, K. W. (2014). How diversity works. Scientific American, 311(4), 43.

Sant, T. (2012). Persuasive business proposals: Writing to win more customers, clients, and

contracts. AMACOM.

Smilansky, O. (2016). What to learn from Wells Fargo's mistakes. CRM Magazine, 20(12), 16.

Smith, G. (2015). Comcast tries to repair its customer service. Bloomberg, 44(26), 32-33.

Sussman, S.W. & Soull, L. (1999). Straight talk: Delivering bad news through electronic

communication. Information Systems Research, 10(2), 150-166.