Business Communication

MBA 1007

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Definition

• Communication is any behavior, verbal or nonverbal, that is perceived by another. Knowledge, feelings or thoughts are enclosed and sent from at least one person and received and decoded by another. Meaning is given to this message as the receiver interprets the message. A connection is made between the people communicating.

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Ch.1- Apply communication principles in workplace

• Forms of Communication: Each of the channels of communication requires effective skills suited to the form of communication used to send the message. Communication is classified into three forms:1. Verbal communication, either spoken or written

2. Nonverbal

3. Graphic.

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Terms and Ideas

• Communication Purposes

• Communication Process

• Communication Context

• Genres of Communication

• Communication Barriers

• Communication Ethics

Purposes for Business Communication

• Provide factual information

• Inform readers about or provide information

• Clarify and condense information

• State precise responsibilities

• Persuade and make recommendations

Usage of Business Communication Channels

• Listening 45%

• Reading 16%

• Speaking 30%

• Writing 9%

The Communication Process

• Sender has an idea

• Sender encodes the idea

• Sender transmits the message

• Receiver gets the message

• Receiver decodes the message

• Receiver sends feedback

Kinneavy’s Triangle

Communication Context

• Purpose

• Audience

• Medium

• Genre/Conventions

• Technologies

Types of Communication

• Nonverbal

– Less structured, harder to classify

– More spontaneous, less control

• Verbal

– More structured, easier to study

– Conscious purpose, more control

Genres of Communication

• Written Communication

• Oral Communication

• Mixed Communication

Written Communication

• Letters• Memos• Email• Reports/White Papers• Web sites• Promotional Materials• Other written documents

Oral Communication

• Meetings

• Conference calls

• Phone calls

• Presentations

• Video or audio recordings

• Other forms of oral communication

Mixed Communication

• Web sites

• PowerPoint presentations (spoken and written communication)

• Performance reviews

Internal Communication

• Official structure

– Formal chain of command

– Up, down, across formal power lines

• The grapevine

– Informal networking

– Unofficial lines of power

External Communication

• Formal contacts

– Marketing

– Public relations

• Informal contacts

– Employees

– Managers

Communication Ethics

• Recognize ethical choices

• Make ethical choices

• Motivate ethical choices

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Ch.1- Apply communication principles in workplace

• Types of communication: A person working in an organization uses four different types of communication.1. Intrapersonal communication

2. Interpersonal communication

3. Public communication

4. Mass communication

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Ch.1- Ch.1- Apply communication principles in workplace

The communication process takes place in various situations for different reasons, with the potential for many interpretations. It has seven main elements:1. Sender2. Message3. Receiver4. Feedback5. Channel6. Context or setting 7. Noise or interference• Perception influences communication . It

is the way people understand or give meaning to their environment.

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Ch.1- Apply communication principles in workplace

Causes of communication barriers: Effective communication often passes unnoticed, while poor commuication is obvious. The compete message and its meaning are distorted and interrupted. ◦ Inappropriate choice of word◦ Inappropriate channel◦ Receiver inattention◦ Lack of courtesy by the sender or the receiver◦ Nonverbal communication that does not support the words◦ Different cultural backgrounds◦ Poor layout and presentation◦ Inappropriate timing◦ İnadequate feedback

These barriers interrupt the flow of communication and lead to confusion and misunderstandings.

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Ch.1- Apply communication principles in workplace

Communication within the workplace: For business decisions to be effective and relevant, timely and appropriate information has to be obtained and communicated throughout the organization.

The successful organization is the one that has effective communication both within the organization and with other companies and clients. In fact, information flow is crucial to any organization and the better the flow the more successful the company or organization.

Being an effective communicator means being honest with yourself and others; it meanshaving the ability to say what you want or feel, but not at the expense of others. It is not about getting your own way and winning every time. Nor is it a means to manipulate and manage other people so that you achieve your aim while appearing to be considering others. An effective communicatior avoids a series of quick-fix tricks or techniques.

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Ch.1- Apply communication principles in workplace

Communication is one of the most important skills in the workplace. Effective communication establishes a connection between two or more people and leads to understanding. It allows individuals to be more effective at work and in their relationship with others.

As well as allowing individuals to interact to satisfy their own needs and to develop their personal, social and work relationships, effective communication also enables leaders and managers to control work procedures motivate others and balance the needs and goals of individuals and the organization.

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Ch.1- Apply communication principles in workplace

Nonverbal communication consists of that part of a message that is not encoded in words. The nonverbal part of the message tends to be less conscious and reveals the sender’s feelings, likings and preferences more spontaneously and honestly than the verbal part.

There are four types of nonverbal messages:◦Personal (to the individual)◦Common to a group of people or culture◦Universal (to humankind) ◦Unrelated to the message (random)

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Ch.1- Apply communication principles in workplace

• Analysing nonverbal communication: People communicate nonverbally with the body movement and with personal relationship behaviors. This nonverbal communication modifies, changes or complements the verbal communication. Nonverbal communication always exists in a context, or framework. The context often determines the meaning of the nonverbal behavior.

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Ch.1- Apply communication principles in workplace

• We can classify nonverbal communication into seven main areas:1. Body movement or kinesics

2. Physical characteristics

3. Touching behavior

4. Vocal qualities, or paralanguage

5. Use of space, or proximity

6. Artefacts (e.g. Parfume, clothes, lipstick, glasses and hairpieces project the style or mood of the wearer.)

7. Environment

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Writing Business Letters • At work we write letters for many different reasons to

initiate a business contact, to reply to someone, to give directions, to make requests. Some are written to persuade a potential customer to buy something, or to encourage a customer to pay an overdue account.

• The four main types of business letters are;

1.Good news letters

2.Bad news letters

3.Neutral letters

4.Persuasive letters

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Ch.15- Writing Business Letters • Layout of a business letter: The layout of the letter

provides the frame for the body of your letter.

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Essential Parts Optional Parts

Writer’s name and address Subject line

Date Attention line

Inside (intended reader’s ) address

Reference initials

Greeting Enclosure

Body of the letter File number

Complimentary close Sender’s telephone extensions

Writer’s signature and job title or designation

Sender’s e-mail or website details

Ch.15- Writing Business Letters • Types of layout

1. Full block layout

2. Full block layout with centered letterhead

3. Modified block layout

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Ch.15- Writing Business Letters • Planning the business letter

1. Decide on the purpose of the letter

2. Decide what you want to say

3. Note down all the ideas in point form

4. Order these ideas into a sequence appropriate to the type of letter

5. Write the first draft, using plain English

6. Read the letter to ensure that you have achieved your purpose

7. Rewrite if necessary

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Ch.15- Writing Business Letters – Writing good news or neutral letters: Direct

order of information

1. An inquiry

2. A request

3. An acknowledgement

4. A letter of introduction to someone

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Ch.15- Writing Business Letters • Writing bad news letters: Indirect order of

information1. An order refusal

2. A credit refusal

3. An adjustment refusal

4. Refusing an invitation or request

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Ch.15- Writing Business Letters • Persuasive letters: to collect someting

(money, cooperation etc.)1. The remainder

2. The strong remainder

3. Inquiry

4. Urgency

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