Main Stages of Company Growth - Essay Example

Running head: SWC Company growth - SWC Communication is one of the core elements of business in general and international business in particular. Sending and receiving information at the appropriate times is an important factor which determines the success of an organization. Communication channels have been developed a lot because of the huge developments in science and technology. But still, some organizations fail to understand and utilize the advantages of such advanced communication facilities and often fell in deep troubles. This paper briefly explains the importance of communication channels for effective internal and external communications. Introduction Globalization and liberalization has come as a blessing to the business world especially for those who were interested in international business. But it is not easy for an organization to operate in another country which is socially, culturally, linguistically, politically and legally different from their native country. Only those organizations which are successful in formulating and implementing custom made strategies for each country or community they are operating would be successful in meeting their business goals. Even for the same product or service the company needs to adopt different business strategies at different market places and communication channels have a major role to play in implementing these strategies. All the activities in and outside an organization depends on a specific tool: information which the organization used to motivate, guide, or organize their workforce. Irrespective of the nature of the organizational functions, in order to execute the works smoothly, the organization must listen, read, speak and write to its employees in order to give and take information needed for the successful execution of the business. Communication is the only tool which help an organization in the to and fro movement of information between the organization and the employees. Selection of appropriate communication channel at appropriate time is essential for an organization in order to strengthen their growth, professional staff, and to compete in the global marketplace Communication Channels Communication Channel is the medium used to convey information from a sender to a receiver. Basically there are three communication channels for an organization: formal, informal, and unofficial. ‘The communication within the formal organizational structure that transmits goals, policies, procedures, and directions are formal whereas the communication outside the formal organizational structure that fills the organizational gaps, maintains the linkages, and handles the one-time situations are informal. Unofficial communication channel is the interpersonal communication within (or among) the social structure of the organization that serves as the vehicle for casual interpersonal exchanges, and transmittal of unofficial communications’ (Communicating within the Organization, n.d) Formal communication either in the written or oral form, normally follows a pattern either from the manager to the employees or from the employees to the manager. Most of the information in such communication process will be assertive in nature. So the recipients forced to take actions based on it. In other words, there is no scope for relationship building while using a formal communication channel. On the other hand, informal communication and unofficial communication, most of the times happen in a friendly atmosphere and hence the recipients may not experience any difficulty in receiving such information and taking actions based on it. In other words the scope for relationship building is more while using informal and unofficial communication channels. Relationship building is widely accepted as the core of every business activity in the current world of business and SWC must concentrate in developing informal and unofficial communication channels more in order to effectively compete in the international market. For example, IT, HR, customer services and sales; all need effective communication strategies both internally and externally and in the current business world, instead of going for the traditional and formal business communication means, it is necessary to develop informal and unofficial communication channels to strengthen the bond between the organization and the stakeholders. Formal communication channels must be used only when it becomes essential. Virtual management teams Virtual management team is a geographically dispersed team of professionals who work across time, space, and organizational boundaries. Such teams use mainly the web based communication technologies and also they complement each other to achieve the interdependent performance goals. These virtual management team members are accountable for the outcomes of their performances on a team basis. ‘In short, Virtual Management is about managing people at a distance using technology. It can produce travel cost reductions of up to 50% with huge gains in team productivity and morale. It is a high risk strategy unless corporations are committed, and requires investment in technology as well as in team training. It means maintaining close working relationships with colleagues in many locations, without the need for as many meetings as traditionally needed’ (Virtual Management, n.d) SWC should consider the selection of highly creative and aggressive staff while they formulate their virtual management teams for operating in a multi cultural environment. The members of the team should not face any difficulty in their communications and hence all the team members should have the awareness of an international language like English. Creativity, aggressiveness and ability to communicate in an international language like English are the major criteria which should be observed while formulating virtual management teams. Most of the communication between the virtual management team members would occur using computer assisted medium of communications. So in my opinion, a videoconferencing would be the ideal choice for the initial meeting between the team members in order to have a good mutual awareness between team members. Instant chats and e-mails can be used effectively along with telephonic conversations. But periodical videoconferencing assisted meeting or virtual meetings would be better for analyzing the progress of their project. Because of the diversity in culture, each member may have different characteristics which can be summarized using LESCANT model of cultural variables defined by former professor of Eastern Michigan University, David A. Victor. These variables are Language, Environment, Social organization, Contexting, Authority, Nonverbal behavior, and Temporal conception. (Victor, 2009) These seven factors can affect the communication between the team members and the SWC; human resources department must give proper training to the team members in order to overcome the communication barriers mentioned above. From a communication point of view virtual management team have advantages and disadvantages. The main advantage of virtual management team is the utilization of distant talents in an effective manner. These team members can be educated using internet related communication technologies which are less expensive compared to other methods of direct training. The major disadvantage of virtual management team is the problems which can occur because of the social and cultural differences of the team. For example, the importance of time might be conceived differently by the different team members. Some of them may give more importance to the time factor while others may not be so particular about it which can cause unnecessary delays in their functioning. Conclusions If information is the blood, communication channel is the vein for the to and fro movement of information for an organization. Communication channels can be formal, informal and unofficial as well. Since relationship building is accepted as the core of every business functions at present informal and unofficial communication channels are more relevant at present. Virtual management teams are part of international organizations which performs using computer assisted media of communications. References 1. Communicating within the Organization, (n.d), Retrieved on 17 October 2009 from http://www.bizmove.com/skills/m8m.htm 2. Virtual Management, (n.d), Retrieved on 17 October 2009 from http://www.globalchange.com/vmanagement.htm 3. Victor David A. (2009) Cross-Cultural/International Communication Retrieved on 17 October 2009 from http://www.enotes.com/biz-encyclopedia/cross-cultural-international-communication 4. Read More