Importance of Communication for Managerial Success - Essay Example

Business Communication Business Communication Importance of communication for managerial success Communication enhances productivity within an organization owing to its ability to convey management expectations to workers and foster better understanding of goals, directives and requirements. Managers need communication to become productive because the concept allows clarification and minimization of confusion in the organization. In addition to enhanced productivity, managers also require communication in order to build strong relationships with employees. Employees who enjoy effective communication with their superiors tend to trust them more and have a high degree of loyalty to the firm. Even if companies disregard the efficiency benefits of communication, they still have to engage in it in order to avoid legal culpability. The country’s legal system has codified a series of workplace actions that are unacceptable, so if management fails to convey their intentions correctly, they may fall prey to legal suits. Some cases of sexual discrimination, racial and cultural tolerance are actually products of poor communication between employees and management (McLean & Lewis, 2010). Managers and employees are representatives of their organization, so how they communicate determines their company’s image and reputation. Managers ought to choose their words wisely because what they say can have a negative impact on the corporation, as this is the only route through which the public interacts with them. A case in point is an organization that has just been found guilty of selling deficient goods; the way managers handle this crisis can reflect positively or negatively on the organization. Effective communication practices are crucial in conducting public relations campaigns or mitigating a risk that has already occurred within the business. Finally, in this global environment, people from all cultures and corners of the world are working together; effective intercultural communication is thus a vital part of business. Successful managers must be aware of issues concerning timeliness, assertiveness, respect for authority and the degree of collectiveness in various cultures. Therefore, effective managers require communication in order to embrace diversity either within their borders or when working with members from international environments. Process, purpose, and barriers of business communication The process of business communication begins with creation of the message by the sender; this may be an employee, manager, client, supplier or external partner. The sender should have a firm grasp of what he or she would like to say and then effectively select the medium through which he will send the message. Thereafter, a person ought to transmit the message through some sort either of medium or orally, depending on the chosen approach. Thirdly, the process of business communication involves reception of the message, which is largely the responsibility of the receiver. Here, the receiver can either access it by hand, electronically or listen carefully to the words of the sender. Thereafter, the receiver ought to translate or interpret the message by focusing on the content of the information; sometimes, this may involve decoding the information into manageable pieces or simply paraphrasing it in their head. Finally, the receiver should respond to the communication by making his or her own version of communication; proper communication highly depends on a two-way exchange. The purpose of communication is difficult to summarize as it has several applications; the first of which is to achieve organizational objectives. Communication allows for information exchange between either employees and superiors, employees and the external environment or managers and the external environment. Business communication also enhances efficiency by furnishing employees with the right information needed to get their work done and empowering them to respond to situations. Communication also allows managers to direct their subordinates as they can convey executive orders or even give directions in the institution. It also makes employees conscious about their responsibilities and duties especially if most of the workers tend to do project or team work. Managers need business communication in order to persuade their employees or clients; the former need to buy into the organizational objectives while the latter need to buy actual goods or services. Barriers to effective communication may be organizational, individual, language-related or be the product of certain misnomers (Bovee, Thill & Schatzman, 2005). Organizational barriers refer to negative organizational climate, the absence of policies for communication and too much bureaucracy within the company. Individual barriers involve personality differences, fear, stereotyping or failure to pay attention while language barriers are those accidental or planned differences in language or semantic abilities. Other barriers include having an information overload, too much noise, power differences between communicators, change inertia as well as defective expression. Principles of managing the information communication network in organizations Information communication networks refer to those unpredictable ways in which people convey messages to one another through the grapevine, and this depends on closeness to the sender as well as the reliability of the person giving the information. Managers have the opportunity to make use of information communication networks through various ways including understanding employee sentiment. Owing to structural differences in an organization, it may not always be possible for managers to know what their employees think about certain things, so it makes sense for them to use informal networks in order to tap into their sentiments. Managers must also realize that they have little control over informal networks and when left to become the main source of information, then communication will be distorted, loyalty will be undermined and productivity will go down. In order to minimize these grapevine activities, managers need to work on formal networks by strengthening and making them reliable. Rumors persist only if formal networks tend to leave out important information, convey messages ambiguously or when a crisis has arisen and people are detached from actual goings on. During high-stress situations or organizational crises, managers ought to control grapevine messages by responding to their subordinates’ anxieties; they ought to exhibit a high degree of sensitivity. Furthermore, managers can always foster a spirit of open and honest communication with their employees such that they are always knowledgeable even when good news is anticipated. It may sometimes be necessary for organizations to be proactive about information by always having bulletins, meetings as well as newsletters as this eliminates gaps that are filled by rumors and other informal communication routes. Finally, managers may handle the issue by appointing gatekeepers who should always be on the lookout for things that others need or are saying among each other (Thomas, 2009). Influence of non-verbal communication Non-verbal communication is paramount in the management environment because it can be used to control the amount and manner of communication. People use it in order to create impressions and build certain perceptions of themselves; a case in point is a job interview. Non-verbal communication may be useful to identify those applicants who are most suitable for the position through the way they dress, sit, smile or use other facial expressions. Ability and skill may not always be the only parameter to assess applicant suitability; other alternatives are necessary in order to countercheck an interviewee’s claims. Alternatively, non-verbal communication is a mechanism for establishing intimacy and trust among two or more parties in contact with each other. A typical illustration of this is when sales representatives are making a pitch to certain clients; they need to know how to make the right amount of eye contact and use of voice when doing this. It is unlikely that people will purchase a product from someone who persistently avoids eye contact, is shaky and speaks with an extremely low tone. Non-verbal communication also has a profound influence on the power dynamics within an organization, as it is the means with which status is illustrated (Adair, 2003). The way individuals seat, pose, talk and express themselves is a direct indication of the perceptions they have about power. For instance, if a manager chooses to sit behind a heavy desk when talking to team members, this demonstrates that the two categories of people do not have the same status. People watch out for certain cues in non-verbal communication in order to know when it is time to listen or talk, so this is also critical. Overall, it may be stated that non-verbal communication complements one’s words by adding credibility to what they said. It can also regulate things said by showing when it is appropriate for another person to take turns or not, and when they need to listen. It strengthens and builds relationships through conveying the actual feelings of the person sending the message and the people receiving it. Benefits and problems associated with electronic communication Electronic communication is beneficial because it is speedy, so it allows transmission of information to occur in a matter of seconds or instantaneously when video conferencing, Skype or chatting is used. The mode of communication is not limited by geographical boundaries; it is therefore possible to convey information to a person that is in a different part of the globe. One may also argue that companies can save a lot of money when they use electronic communication in comparison to letters or snail mail. Perhaps one of the most impressive aspects of this form of communication is its ability to allow for instant feedback; sometimes a crisis may have occurred or an emergency may be underway. Managers require a method of communication that can give them immediate response in order to deal with their daily situations (Kaul, 2013). The biggest problem with electronic communication is its impersonal nature as many claim that nothing can substitute the intimacy and personal nature of face-to-face communication. Electronic communication is usually inexpensive during use but may be costly when setting up as the infrastructure needed for such a medium may be high. This cost of setting up sometimes places certain groups at a disadvantage, as they may not be able to afford those initial costs. It is for this reason that some places of the world are marginalized in terms of technology; many of them even rely on richer countries to fund communication initiatives. Certain risks may also emanate from the process such as identity theft and information distortion; it is relatively easy to compromise data integrity in electronic formats than in other traditional ones. Finally, electronic communication allows for vast volumes of data to be transmitted and this can be overwhelming to recipients who may not have the time to read everything. Sometimes discerning the right or wrong information can also be a challenge. References Adair, J. (2003). Effective communication. NY: Pan Mcmillan Bovee, C., Thill, J. & Schatzman, B. (2005). Business communication today. NJ: Pearson. Kaul, A. (2013). Business communication. Chicago: PHI. McLean, J. & Lewis, R. D. (2010). Communicating across cultures. The British Journal of Administrative Management, 30. Thomas, G. (2009). The central role of communication in developing trust and its effect on employee involvement. Journal of Business Communication, 46(3), 287–310. Read More