The Manager's Role in the Communication - Essay Example

Strategic Marketing Communications Internal Communication and Implementation Strategy Starting off it is imperative that one understands what communication basically means and what kinds of processes are there in an organizational environment. Communication is the basic tool through which we get messages across to other people so that they can have a clear idea of the perspectives that we hold, in an organizational environment it is all the more important because as managers, communication is perhaps the only tool one could use to direct subordinates and get the message to the higher authorities. (Smith & Mounter, 2005) The Management of Relationships within the Organisation The managers role in the communication is one of an initiator, disseminator and also of a moderator who filters the information that is really required by the organization. From the organizational perspective there are basically three ways communication is processed, bottom-up, top-bottom and horizontal. Bottom up processing is one where the lower levels of management communicate with the higher level of management and this is where ideas might be floated up and also problems and concerns about various factors within the organization are communicated to the higher levels so that they can take action and solve the problems, the more efficient this process, the more loyal the employees are to the company because if they feel that they are being heard by the upper management they feel that they are a part of the organization as well because they have a role to play in the betterment of the organization and that is why their problems are being heard and solved. This kind of communication can be encouraged in many ways, for example having the same lunch or refreshment areas for all the levels of employees so that they can communicate in an environment with out being intimidated by the rank of the person that they wish to communicate with, the top management should be seen by the lower levels of the employee ranks because that helps them to identify with individuals and the organization on the whole. Top down processing is where the top levels of management communicate with their subordinates with respect to the job instructions and other types of policy implementation, this kind of processing is very important because the dynamics of the organization depend on such type of a communications policy, generally it has been seen that companies that have a effective top down communication strategy have been able to reap much more employee loyalty and productivity rather than those companies that have a poor strategy in top down processing of communication, this is because companies that are better at this kind of communication can implement change effectively and frequently because they can communicate the though process behind the change process to the lower levels of employees and the employees feel and believe that the company has their betterment in mind when it feels the need to change any of the processes. This kind of communication process can be implemented by having a good telecommunication technology in place because people need to be told simultaneously of the policy changes that are being implemented and it is more faster than normal modes of communication. (Kotelnikov, 2005) (Monmouth, 2006) Managing Partnerships The horizontal communication process takes place between employees at the same levels, or managers at the same level, for example the marketing manager of an organization speaking to the financial manager and discussing the marketing budget. This kind of communication is very important because this is where bottlenecks can be created or avoided and projects can be given a boost, for strengthening this kind of process infrequent communication and communication in a work free environment or a casual environment can be encouraged. At this level partnerships and cross functional teams are created that help each other to achieve the organization's goal more effectively and efficiently. (Kotelnikov, 2005) (Carrel, 2005) Communicating the Corporate Identity to Stakeholders The corporate identity of an organization can be most effectively communicated through its mission statement and the business vision for example the mission statement of the HSBC is to be the local bank of the world, which communicates quite effectively to all the stake holders that it will be pursuing a policy of expanding into the world market and its services would be available the world over which is basically a growth strategy, the business vision is a much more detailed version of the mission statement and explains to the stake holders what the mission statement is and how the company can and will devise a strategy to achieve its objectives. The business vision and mission statement also serves as a guide line for the employees of the company because they know what the aims and objectives of the organization would be in the coming years and what would exactly be required of them. (Smith & Taylor, 2004) Organisational Design and Control System As per regards to the control systems in an organization the policies should be clearly defined and no one should be above these policies, every one should be made to follow the control systems and the top management should lead the way so as to the lower levels of management can follow and a culture of trust can develop inside the organization. It should be made clear that any one violating these controls would be held accountable and this policy should be implemented no matter who the culprit is. These are the relevant approaches that can be taken to ensure that partnerships are long lasting and that trust is developed within different companies and the same approaches can be used very effectively to have loyal employees within the company so that the company can flourish with time. (Communications: New Ways to Build and Integrate) 2. External Communications Strategy External communications is used by a company with respect to various issues and in today's dynamic environment, external communications is perhaps the most important tool that an organization has because from marketing campaigns to PR management to crisis management to advertising a firm uses its external communications strategy. Planning a Communication Campaign Communication is necessary in all situations and without substantial communication floating around, no organization can truly succeed. Therefore, organizations need to plan to keep the communication afloat with all members of the organization. In times of a crisis a sound external communications strategy is what could be the difference between a successful company and an unsuccessful one, for example Pepsi came out with a campaign where the CEO had to give the public his personal guarantee that Pepsi is clear of all pesticides because a research in India had found Pepsi to be using pesticides in its production process. (Smith & Taylor, 2004) How to Select and Manage a Marketing Agency An organization can either develop the marketing campaigns in-house or outsource it to professional marketing agencies. Bigger organizations usually outsource their marketing campaigns so that they can focus on their core activities and not worry about other functions. Even these companies have an internal marketing department that help select, coordinate, develop and execute a marketing campaign. Marketing agencies such as Denso, Saatchi and Saatchi, JWT are some the most popular marketing agencies in the world and hence they charge higher for their services. Employing their services for smaller companies may not be feasible and they may be better off using the services of local companies. (Baker, 2003) (Smith & Taylor, 2004) How to Develop an Integrated Marketing Communications Mix In today's world of growing competition, an integrated marketing communications mix (e-marketing, the Internet, publicity and PR, advertising sponsorship) is one of the most important factors that can make or break the situation and can work wonders that nothing else can. E-marketing, a comparatively newer concept is a very useful tool considering the growing use of internet on a daily basis. More and more users log on each day increasing the size of the potential market. PR, personal relations, is a more customized and personalized kind of marketing on a personal level rather than a large scale. In such a marketing strategy, the prime target is the selected audience like the higher-ups of an organization or top-level managers etc. (Baker, 2003) (Wilson & Gilligan, 2005) How to Use Communication to Build Relationships An organization comes into contact with various stakeholders when conducting business. There are suppliers to content with, customers to listen to, competitors to beat, media to promote through and societies to be responsible towards. With all these stakeholders lurking around the organization, it is vital for the organization to have a communication plan in place that caters to each of these stakeholders individually. As mentioned before, the organization needs to play all the roles so that it can become successful in the face of intense competition. (Smith & Taylor, 2004) Managing the Corporate Identity Externally Apart from this all, the ATL (Above The Line) activities in the marketing and advertising campaign of a company is also of great importance. It is vital in positioning of the brand and also makes it easy to create a large scale impact, necessary for the success of most of the brands. BTL (Below The Line) activities are also becoming, in fact, they have already become, much more important to promote a brand than what they used to be because of their integrated impact, coverage of even the minute aspects of the product and the ever-growing competition etc. Some organizations famous for their BTL activities would be P&G (Procter & Gamble) and Unilever etc. (Smith & Taylor, 2004) Customer Relationships Marketing The external communications strategy is a very important part of the overall marketing strategy for a successful and flourishing product, especially in today's world where competition is increasing on such a fast pace day by day and it is difficult for company's to make a big and stand-out impression of their product and more over manage it, than ever before. But it should always be kept in mind that no matter what kind of the competition there is, no matter what the situation and no matter what the product, a properly integrated external marketing communications mix is something that can take you ashore. (Baker, 2003) 3. Implementation and Control Once the communications plans have been made (be it internal or external communications) it's appropriate implementation and then its proper control and maintenance is of huge importance. Where proper implementation and control can work wonders, like wise, improper implementation and control can lead the plan to collapse. Controlling Strategic Communication Plans As mentioned before, communication is the heart of all business functions. However the communication needs to be directed towards achieving the organizational goals rather than spreading false or misleading information. When getting the work done, communication should be kept under control so that miscommunication does not occur. There is a lot at stake for the organization, and even a slight glitch in the communication plan can prove disastrous. (Wilson & Gilligan, 2005) How to Maintain and Enforce Control The management must keep a constant check on the communication going on inside the organisation and outside. Some communication cannot be checked however with the used of technology, phone calls can be recorder, email/chats can be viewed, documents can be stored etc. Enforcing these controlling steps is also essential to maintain the validity of the organization's goals. It is possible that the process of implementation of the strategy in a particular situation, place and time is very successful but the same strategy in a different situation, place and time is a huge fiasco. Therefore, preplanning and testing of the implementation is also very important. (Communications: New Ways to Build and Integrate) Evaluating and Review Strategic Performance Furthermore, the maintenance and control holds a lot of importance as well and it helps in enhancing the strategies regarding the product, as well as the product itself. In addition to this, post implementation and control evaluation is also significant, which can help in understanding the current performance and the congruence or the difference between its current performance and expected performance as well. The post implementation and control evaluation also helps in formulation of strategies in future, regarding the same product or any other related product. (Wilson & Gilligan, 2005) Bench Marking Bench marking is done to help with the implementation process by creating certain goals that need to be achieved before the organization can go another level. The actual activity of the organization is compared with the bench mark and the analysis is done to see whether the organizational performance is below or above the required performance. Then reasons for under or over performance are created and the good practices are followed for future endeavours while under performances are curbed and eventually eradicated from the work environment. (Communications: New Ways to Build and Integrate) Appendix The organization chosen is The Gleneagles Hotel in Scotland. The aim of the hotel is to provide a refreshingly relaxed environment for the guests from all over the world. The hotel is one of the leading golf and spa luxury hotels in Scotland. The stake holders are the tourists, golf players, customers, the suppliers, the employees and the society. Works Cited Andr Carrel (2005). Horizontal Communication. Retrieved on March 3, 2008 from http://cityofdawson.com/download/Horizontal_Communication.pdf Communications: New Ways to Build and Integrate. Kogan Page. Lyn Smith and Pamela Mounter (2005). Effective Internal Communication. Kogan Page Michael John Baker (2003). The Marketing Book. Butterworth-Heinemann. Monmouth College (2006). Barriers to Vertical Communication. Retrieved on March 3, 2008 from http://department.monm.edu/cata/McGaan/Classes/CATA333/O-BARRIE.htm Paul Russell Smith, Jonathan Taylor (2004). Marketing Communications: An Integrated Approach. Kogan Page. Richard M. S. Wilson, Colin Gilligan (2005). Strategic Marketing Management: Planning, Implementation and Control. Butterworth-Heinemann. Vadim Kotelnikov, (2005). Motivating & Communicating. Retrieved on March 3, 2008 from http://www.1000ventures.com/business_guide/mgmt_motivating_comg.html Read More