Internal Communications in Hospital - Essay Example

Communication Assignment College February 16, 2008 INTRODUCTION The paper starts with the basic definition of communication. Then the objectives, purpose, importance and different types of communication are discussed. The types of formal and informal communication have been discussed along with their advantages and disadvantages. In this essay, the various current approaches to internal communication are discussed. Then the organizations internal communication system is analyzed towards attaining competitive advantage. This is followed by an evaluation of the effectiveness of the system by using Lee's framework as the base for evaluation. Then finally the areas of improvement in the system are discussed. Finally the paper is concluded by developing a costing implementation plan. COMMUNICATION Definition: "Communication is something so simple difficult that we can never put it in simple words," says T.S.Mathews Peter Little defines communication as follows: "Communication is the process by which information is transmitted between individuals and/or organization so that an understanding response results" W.H. Newman and C.F. Summer Jr. - "Communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions, or emotions by two or more persons." COMMUNICATION CYCLE: OBJECTIVES OF COMMUNICATION: Information Advice Order Suggestion Persuasion Education Warning Raising Morale Motivation IMPORTACE OF COMMUNICATION It involves the interaction of the people working at different level. Proper communication among the employees is necessary for achieving the goals of the organization. When communication stops the organization comes to an end. PURPOSES OF COMMUNICATION In recruitment process Communication is an inevitable element. The recruits are taking care of the company's organization structure, its policies and practices. To make people aware of company's supervisor, its rules and regulations Communication is necessary Communication helps to perform functions of employees effectively. Employees should be sincere in their job (i.e. Employees must show real affection to the organization in which they are working that will finally lead to its great success) For E.g.:- If a Soldier really knows why is in his nation's army and why he have to follow certain rules/procedures with the citizens so it is easier to develop love towards nation as commitment to his nation. In order to make the subordinates know about their contribution to the enterprise activity Communication is unavoidable. By this the employees are motivated and will get some idea about what their supervisors and the organization are expecting from them. Communication is needed to teach employees about personal safety on the job. This is essential to reduce accidents, to lower compensation and legal costs and to decrease recruitment and training cost for replacement. Elite groups and the wider public have acquired about its goals, activities and accomplishments by the amount of support which an enterprise receives from its social environment. Communication helps the manager in his decision process. There is a spate of varied information produced in an enterprise. The manager must make a choice of useful and essential information which should reach him. Co-ordination is achieved through communication. Co-ordination is needed among its component parts on the basis of division of labors and specialization. Many interdependent activities are performed in different departments of an organization. This interdependence is not tolerated in the absence of communication. Communication promotes co-operation and industrial peace. Because of lack of communication most of the disputes in an enterprise takes place. CURRENT APPROACHES TO INTERNAL COMMUNICATION: Formal channels Intranets Intranet is the popular approach to internal communication. E-Mail Newsletter Periodic Presentations By The Boss Open House or Town Hall Sessions and even Good old Team Briefings or Staff Magazines, Notices and Posters. All can form part of the mix of internal communications. What about the famous internal memo or memorandum to give it the official title. It is a short brief message to another member of the same organization. Typically such memos today are sent by e-mail. FORMAL COMMUNICATION: In much of the organization the communication is formal. Communication is acting as channel between the superior and the subordinates. The communication flows in four directions 1. Downward 2. Upward 3. Horizontal 4. External Downward communication: It flows in the direction of the superior to subordinate. These communications are medium through which the superior. The superior directs the efforts of his subordinates and defines the goals of the organization and the sub-group. The superior tells the subordinates what is expected of them and administers reward and punishment. There can be several media of downward communication such as written orders, posters, company periodical and handbook. Upward communication: Communication which flows from the subordinate to superior will come under this category. These communications generally act as feedback. They enable the management to know how the downward communication is understood and carried out. Horizontal communication: These are known as lateral or cross-wise communications. They refer to the communication between the subordinates on the same level of the organization. Lateral communication avoids the much slower procedure of directing communications through a common superior. External communication: These are the communications with the external agencies. Like current and potential customers, government agencies, departments, trade unions. FORMS OF COMMUNICATION: There are three forms of communication 1. Oral communication. 2. Written communication. 3. Non-verbal communication. Oral communication: In the oral communication the information is given directly, either face to face or through telephone or intercom. Generally this form is used in meetings, lectures, interviews, conference. Merits: 1. Is the money and time saving device. 2. As there is an element of personal touch, it is more effective. 3. It provides greater flexibility. Demerits: 1. It's not useful where the parties are very far from each other. 2. It's not suitable for lengthy communication. 3. There is no permanent record of the communication. Written communication: Written communication is always in black and white can take the form of a report, statement, circular, note, manual. Merits: 1. It's suitable for lengthy communication. 2. It can be kept as a permanent record. 3. Written communication serves as a solid base for taking action against a subordinate who disobeys it. Demerits: 1. There is a greater chance of communication misunderstood. 2. There is no scope for face to face communication. 3. Its difficulty to maintain the secrecy of the matter that communicated. Non-verbal communication: All of us constantly send clues about our feeling-not by what we say but what we do. This is called as nonverbal communication. Much non-verbal communication is expressed through the body the facial expression, posture, gesture, etc. INFORMAL COMMUNICATION: Grapevine: Apart from formal channels of communication there operates in every organization an informal channel of communication called grapevine. Grapevine is primarily a channel of horizontal communication. It can flow vertically or diagonally. Types of Grapevine: Single Strand: Communication flows like a chain. Gossip: One person tells everybody else Probability (Random): Information may move from anybody to anybody. Cluster: Moves through selected group Importance Emotional relief Harmony and cohesiveness in the organization Supplement to other channels A fast channel Provides feedback Demerits Distortion of information May transmit incomplete information Travels with destructive swiftness To use effectively: The Manager should Keep an eye on rumor managers Use it primarily for feedback Contradict rumors promptly Involve the workers in decision making process. Circuit approaches - Communications are achieved with positive relationships and job satisfaction of employees through understanding and discussion. It assumes that communicating is grounded in mutual understanding. Problems arise because of the myopic view that understanding will lead to agreement and that this understanding should be the sole goal of communications. Dance approach - Communications are achieved through an intricate combination of the practice, understanding, and intuition. It believes that the communication involves the coordination of meanings, the understanding of common rules, and the recognition of patterns between two or more people. INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS PLAN AND STRATEGY After analyzing the different forms of communication, a mixture of meetings and intranet can be used for effective internal communication. The important information can be conveyed to the respective head of the departments be convening a meeting. The information about the meeting like notice, agenda, minutes etc. can be conveyed through Intranet. For example: If a meeting has to take place on 12th April, then the computer administrator can use the intranet and circulate the notice and agenda of the meeting to all the head of the departments and get their acknowledgment. Than as per scheduled, the meeting can be convened and the information can be shared. After the meeting, the respective head of departments can convey the message to their department workers orally. A copy of the minutes of the meeting can be uploaded in the intranet so that all employees can have an idea about the meeting and the information. This strategy can be implemented by adopting the following guidelines: Whether planning your internal or external communications efforts, it helps a great deal to develop a communications plan, either informally or formally. For example, consider: 1. What key messages do you want to convey 2. To what key stakeholders do you want to convey the key messages (e.g., consider clients, funders, community leaders, service providers, etc.) 3. What's the best approach to reach each key stakeholder, including who/how should the message be conveyed 4. How will you know if you're reaching these stakeholders or not Measuring Internal Communication Messages Adding Standard Deviations Converting Discrete Data to Continuous Understanding Difference between Proportion and Number Sampling Roll Goods during a Production Run Formulating internal communication strategy, the following factors should be taken care of: The purpose should be clear. The timing and medium are important. Language must be used carefully. The tools of communication should be effective. When people are vulnerable, their tolerance for ambiguity decreases Communication has to be supported by action. SPECIFIC AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT IN INTERNAL COMMUNICATION: Problems with bad internal communication system Short-term impact Spread of misinformation. Erosion of employee trust and confidence. Conflicts between employees and management. Misinformed employees can make wrong decisions. Internal brand image suffers. Long-term impact Dissatisfaction among employees leads to higher attrition. Lack of coherent and shared vision. Low employee morale results in lower productivity. Impact on company's stocks. Organization's external brand value suffers. Conclusion Internal communication is considered a vital tool for binding an organization, enhancing employee morale, promoting transparency and reducing attrition. Ironically, while everybody understands and talks about the significance of internal communication, very few are able to manage it efficiently. Both the long-term and short-term fallout of ineffective internal communication can be damaging for an organization. It can start from the spread of rumors to disillusionment among employees to a gradual destruction of the company's brand image. Worse, it may also lead to the slow death of the organization. It is well-known that the root cause of most internal problems being faced by a company often stems from ineffective communication. "Industry standards like P-CMM in Level 2 include communication as one of the key process areas. In high-context cultures like India, the delivery of the message is as important as the message itself. It is therefore necessary to identify the best possible methods to reach your message to the target audience-in this case, your employees," explains Sunder Rajan, general manager-HR, Infinite Computer Solutions. According to Rajan, the IT sector faces unique issues peculiar to the nature of the industry. With employees of most IT services companies spread across geographies onsite, offshore and onshore, internal communication is a challenge. "However, because most IT employees are technology-savvy, the use of technology can largely address this issue. Intranets, e-mail, e-newsletters and video conferencing are some tools that can be used effectively to drive an internal communication program," he states. The following are the business benefits of installing an internal communications system: Internal communication system provides information and encourages sharing by driving and supporting the organization's short-term and long-term goals and objectives. It ensures that these initiatives are implemented and followed at a local level. It ensures that knowledge-sharing and communication processes are part of the daily workflow across all functions of the business. It helps drive ownership and shared engagement. COSTING PLAN S.No Method Timeline Cost 1 Meeting 12th April 2008 $225 Planning 6th April 2008 $50 Organizing 7th April 2008 $50 Notice Print 8th April 2008 $75 Agenda 9th April 2008 $50 2 Intranet 10th April 2008 $50 Message formulation 10th April 2008 $20 Message Circulation 10th April 2008 $10 Message Posting (Minutes) 12th April 2008 $20 3 Electricity - $50 4 Computer Maintenance - $50 5 Staff Working Hours 3 days $300 Total $675.00 REFERENCES: Steffen MRKLE, FG Computer Graphics & Computer Assisted Medicine, Technical University Berlin, FR 3-3, Franklinstr. 28/29, D-10587 Berlin, Germany, "Virtual Reality for the Virtual Hospital - A 3-D User Interface for Integrated Access to Medical Information" Special Correspondent, 5 December 1964, "Internal Communications in Hospital, British Medical Journal" P.C.Tripathi, P.N Reddy "PRINCIPLES OF MANAGEMENT", Third Edition, the McGraw-Hill companies. Dr.C.B.Guptha, "BUSINESS MANAGEMENT", 5th Edition, Sultan Chand & Sons. Harold Koontz, Heninz weitirich, "ESSENTIALS OF MARKETING", 5th Edition, the McGraw-Hill companies. Heninz weitirich, "MANAGEMENT", 11th Edition, the McGraw-Hill companies. St. Vincent's Clinics Communication Strategy - Internal http://www.futureu.com/ http://www.processdata.com/PortalCOMPLETE/Main.aspxtid=84 Read More