Chapter 11 PINOY AND ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION

The transmission of information and understanding through the use of common symbols
is termed as communication. Communication is the exchange of information between people. It
occurs when one son understands the meaning of a message sent by another perm, and he
responds to it. Two forms of information are sent and received in communications: facts and
feelings. Facts are pieces of information mat can be objectively measured or described. Examples
are the cost at a computer, the daily defect rate in a manufacturing plant, and the sill of the
deductible payment of the company-sponsored health insurance policy. Feelings are employees'
emotional responses to the decision made or action taken by managers or other employees.
Organizations need to design communication channels that allow employees to communicate
facts and feelings about specific aspects of their jobs.
PINOY in the organizational environment speak different dialects but the most prevalent
is the use of either Filipino or English. Business communications are written in the English
Language and it is use both in government and the private sector. In schools the use of English is
encouraged but Filipino or the native dialect is at time used to put emphasis and better
understanding of the students.
I. The Communication Process
Communication, a continuous process, is the exchange of information and
meaning between people. It occurs when one person understands and responds to the
meaning of a message sent by someone. The communication process includes five main
components: the information source, the signal, the transmission, the destination or
receiver and the noise. Communication starts with a sender who has the message to the
receiver.

The sender must encode message and select a communication channel that will
deliver it to the receiver. In communicating facts, the message may be encoded with the
words, numbers or digital symbols, in communicating feelings it may be encoded as body
language or tone of voice.

Communications that provide feedback are called two-way communications

because they allow the sender and receiver to interact with each other. Communications
that provide no opportunity for feedback are one-way. Noise means barriers to effective
communication. Potential barriers include: ambiguous, muddled messages, semantics,
physical barriers, loss of transmission, failure to communicate, competition barriers,
cultural, linguistic and diversity barriers and inattentiveness.
II. Mediums or Channels of Communication
The medium used to transmit a message or the channel by which a message
travels to reach the receiver should match the message sent in order to be understood
by the receiver so that more meaningful communication takes place. To identify the ideal
medium or channel of communication for sending messages, one must first determine
the information richness and symbolic meaning of messages.

Information richness refers to the volume and variety of information that can be
transmitted. Routine communication uses less information-rich channel compared to
non-routine communication which requires more clarification and detail. Email and fax
messages are considered relatively information rich. On the other hand, letters, radio,
television, newspapers, magazines, bulletins and newsletters tend to be low in
information richness.
 Symbolic meaning is attached to a message when choosing and communication
medium over another. For instance, a face to {ace meeting signals that an issue is more
sensitive, important or urgent which requires feedback and interaction.

1. Face-to-face meetings and video conferences have the highest information-

carrying capacity since the sender can use verbal and nonverbal communications
cues, and the receiver can provide instant feedback.
2. Written communication is more appropriate for describing details, especially
technical reports. Although traditional written communication had been
considered a slow method of communication, now with the development of
electronic mail (e-mail) and other computer-aided communication (internet, web
pages, instant messages, etc.) written communication through these channels has
dramatically improved efficiency.
3. Telephone calls are more convenient but lack nonverbal information.
4. Letters or memos are time consuming, yet they are good channels to use when
one is unable to meet face-to-face.
5. Email has become a major communication medium because it is able to transmit
information to a large group of employees, reduce time and cost of delivery
messages and is readily available through wireless and hand-held technology.
Using e-mail enables messages to be rapidly created, changed, saved and sent to
many individuals at the same time and can provide clear and concrete instructions
rather than abstract words. However, there are also several negative aspects of e-
mail.
Access to too much information is the most common disadvantage, as well as the
possibility of receiving computer Viruses through e-mail messages. Another problem with
e-mail is its effectiveness to communicate emotion and tones of messages are easily
misinterpreted, causing misunderstanding between sender and receiver. Thus, when a
wrong channel of communication is used, this creates a waste of time and leads to more
misunderstandings. Choosing an appropriate channel of communication involves
understanding symbolic meanings and the information richness of messages.
Feedback
Feedback is essential to communication because it allows participants in the
communication process to determine whether messages have been exchanged and understood
as they were intended. Feedback is the receiver response to a message in which the receiver then
becomes the sender. The receiver encodes a response and transmits it back to the original
sender. This new message is decoded and interpreted. Individuals who communicate face-to-
face have the greatest opportunity for feedback especially if there are no barriers that affect or
limit the communication process. When feedback does not take place or one does not allot time
for feedback to occur, then negative feedback can result.
 To be a more effective communicator, ample opportunities must be given for feedback
to develop. There are several sources of Feedbacks:
1. Feedback is obtained and received from oneself, from others.
2. Feedback can be used to make improvements, enhance operations and perform more
effectively.
3. Feedback can include surveys and questionnaires such as employee questionnaires or
patient satisfaction surveys or audio or videos of focused group activity.
To communicate effectively, feedback is used to help individuals and groups as a strategy
to achieve organizational goals. For a manager, feedback is especially important to gain employee
participation and agreement, and provide control and corrective action when necessary. For
instance, when communicating with a supervisor, a department level manager looks for feedback
to determine whether his/her communication was received positively or negatively. By asking
him/herself, he/she can determine whether the meeting was successful by the types of
feedbacks mat occurred.
For example, I manager realizes that he has gained support from her superior when he
noted that the superior was smiling and nodding throughout the meeting. These are signs of
approval end agreement. On the other hand, if the manager notices that the superior is
constantly frowning and crossing his arms, then then: feedback mechanism indicate
disagreement and the manager needs to change or adjust his communication to achieve the
result he wishes.
III. Nonverbal Communication
Nonverbal communication is the non-spoken aspects of communication, such as
a person’s manner of speaking, facial expressions, or body posture, that express meaning
to others. The nonverbal aspects of communication can especially complicate the task of
communicating internationally. Nonverbal communication is communication that is sent
without the use of the written or spoken word. This type of communication is quite
powerful because people can communicate without speaking through the use of facial
expression, body posture, tone of voice, use of space and touching. Occulesics are facial
expressions and eye contact that people use to communicate. Kinesics is the study of
bodies through posture, gesture, head movements and similar actions. Use of reaction to
facial expressions and body movement vary from culture to culture.

IV. Barriers to Effective Communication and Ways to Remove These Barriers

Another major factor that affects the communication process is barriers to
communication First, noise is anything that interferes with the transmission and
understanding of the message. Noise is considered a form of communication barrier.

Four types of barriers are personal (internal), physical or environment

(external), process and semantic.
1. Personal barriers occur within the individual sender and receiver when his/her
thoughts are distracted from the communication process.

There are many different kinds of personal barriers:

 Personal barriers are established from one's own frame of reference,
beliefs, values or biases. These are based on our backgrounds and
experiences which affect the way we process and interpret information.
How we perceive ourselves and others can distort or enable
communication. In addition, we tend to be influenced by jealousy and we
judge the information. Again, these judgments that we form about others
are based on our frame of reference. Our natural tendency is to evaluate
the source of information to determine whether we can trust the source
and / or the information.

 Personal barriers are whether we actually engaged in listening and

understanding so we can receive messages from sender’s point of view,
rather than our own and achieve the sender’s frame of reference and
relate to what he/she is talking about. Listening with understanding
enhances more effective communication.

2. Environmental or external barrier which comes from the environment and keeps
messages from being heard or understood.
a. Competition for attention and time between senders and receivers.
Specifically due to lack of time, inadequate attention may be
devoted to communication and causes messages to be incorrectly
decoded. Although the receiver hears the message, the message may not
be accurately interpreted.

b. Managerial Philosophy
Managerial attitudes or philosophy can enhance or prevent
effective communication from taking place. Some managers create
communication blockages especially in large bureaucratic organizations in
which managers insists on following the formal chain of command and
hierarchy, thus limiting the flow of communication. On the other hand,
other managers show great deal of attention, concern and time for
employees. This type of managerial philosophy encourages employee.

c. Multiple levels of hierarchy

Organization’s multiple levels of hierarchy can cause message
distortion. When multiple links exist in the communication chain,
 information can be filtered, dropped, or added and emphasis can be
rearranged as it is retransmitted.

Power or status relationships can distort transmission of message.

For instance, managers who exhibit coercive power rather than the
constructive feedback to control, direct and reprimand subordinates will
cause inhibited communication. Subordinates who fear supervisors can
also be shown in physical settings such as in office space or location. For
example, in a manager’s office for meeting, the subordinate interprets this
as a formal situation especially if the manager typically conducts meetings
in informal settings, such as stopping by the subordinate’s area, the
subordinate feels more at ease and communication tends to be more
open.

3. Process barriers can occur at any point during the communication process. Each
element in the communication process is essential for successful and effective
communication to take place. However, potential process barriers can also occur.
Each element: the sender, receiver, encoding, the message, medium used,
decoding and feedback can distort the transfer of information and can cause
misinterpretation of the meaning. As an example, the sender can provide
inaccurate information due to lack of time or misuse if specific terminology
because he is a new employee.

A barrier can occur when a supervisor tells a subordinate to call a patient

to change her scheduled appointment. Instead, the subordinate sent an email
which the patient never received. The process barrier can create a breakdown in
communication at each step of the communication process, an individual should
carefully consider these elements to reduce these process barriers when
communicating.

4. Semantic barriers are caused by an individual’s emotional reactions to words.

Semantics is the study of words. These barriers most commonly occur when
encoding and decoding messages. Barriers interfere with transmitting and
receiving messages. For instance, the use of jargon and acronyms may be different
in different professions. In health care, the use of specific terminology unfamiliar
to the receiver or complex messages distorts the message. Furthermore, the use
of profanity or politically incorrect terminology is offensive causing negative
reactions. Communication between individuals who use different terminology is
meaningless because these individuals attribute different meanings to the same
words. When a message is both complex and contains terminology unfamiliar to
the receiver, it is very likely that a misunderstanding will occur.
V. Improving PINOY Communication in Organizations
PINOY working with supervisors and managers, employee relations
representatives can facilitate effective communications by developing and maintaining
three types of programs: information, dissemination, employee feedback, and employee
assistance.
1. Information Dissemination Programs
Information dissemination involves making information available
to decision makers, wherever they are located. The employee handbook is
probably the most important source of information the HR department
can provide and sets the tone for the company’s overall employee
relations philosophy.

There are many other forms of written communication besides the

handbook that can be used to alert employees to important information.
These include memos and newsletters.
 the employee handbook
 written communications: memos, financial statements,
newsletters and bulletin boards
 audiovisual communications

2. Electronic Communications
New technologies have made it possible to disseminate
information that goes beyond the printed word. Visual images and audio
information are powerful communication tools. A recent technological
advance like teleconferencing, allows people with busy schedules to
participate in meetings even when they are a great distance from the
conference location (or each other). Advances in electronic
communications (voice mail or e-mail) have made interactive
communications between sender and receiver possible even when they
are separated by physical distance and busy schedules.

3. Formal meetings are opportunities for face-to-face communications

between two or more employees and are guided by a specific agenda.
Formal meetings facilitate dialogue and promote the nurturing of personal
relationships, particularly among employees who may not interact
frequently because they are separated by organizational or geographic
barriers.
 retreats
 informal communication
 4. Employee Feedback Programs
To provide upward communication channels between employees
and management, many organizations offer employee feedback programs.
These programs are designed to improve management-employee
relations by giving employees a voice in decision making and policy
formulations and lay making sure that they receive due process on any
complaints they lodge against managers. The most common employee
feedback programs are employee feedback programs are employee
attitude surveys, appeals, procedures and employee assistance programs.
 employee attitude surveys
 appeal procedures

5. Employee Assistance Programs

EAPs help employee cope with personal problems that are
interfering with their job performance. These problems may include
alcohol or drug use, domestic violence, elder case, AIDS and other
diseases, eating disorders and compulsive gambling. Confidentiality is an
important component of these programs.
Ways to engage in more effective communication
The first step to engage in more effective communication is managerial awareness of the
four types of barriers which can affect the communication process. By consciously recognizing
these barriers, then the manager can reduce the negative effects and seek ways to improve
communication.

 Be fully engaged in listening and not just hearing the message. Listening is the key to
communication and it is the process of actively decoding and interpreting verbal
messages. Listening requires cognitive attention and information processing.

Five dominant listening styles: appreciative, empathetic, comprehensive,

discerning and evaluative.

1. Appreciative listeners listen with a relaxed manner. This type of listener

listens for pleasure, entertainment and inspiration and tunes out speakers
who do not provide these in their communications.
2. Empathetic listeners focus on emotions and body language presented by
the speaker and media.
3. Comprehensive listeners organize thoughts and actions of the speaker and
then integrate this information by emphasizing on relationships among the
communication.
 4. Discerning listeners determine the main points of the communication.
They prefer to take notes to underline the main points of discussion and
prefer logical communications.
5. Evaluative listeners listen analytically and continually formulate arguments
and challenges to what is communicated. They accept or reject messages
based on their personal beliefs and ask a lot of questions.
Being skilled at listening improves the communication process. An effective
communicator must be aware of the type of listener and receiver is, so that he/she can gear the
communication and message specifically for that type of listener.
A PINOY manager who is aware of these five different listening styles can improve his/her
communication process by first understanding that he/she should target messages with these
different listeners in mind and then convey meaningful messages to capture their attention.

 PINOY must tailor messages, provide information and formulate main ideas in ways that
enable all listeners to fully understand the meaning of messages. By realizing that others
are listening from varying kinds of information in a message, a message can improve the
communication process.
 PINOY must pay close attention to how she / he frames the message, clarifies information
through repetition and dedicate adequate time to the communication process by having
ample opportunities for questions and responses. Another way to encourage constructive
communications is to “put you in another person’s shoes”. Being an empathetic listener
and sharing empathy increase understanding.
 Conscious efforts must be made to understand the receiver’s frame of reference,
understanding where others come from and recognize that their belief and values may
be different from one’s own cultures, background and experiences.
 PINOY Managers can overcome communication barriers by using a variety of innovative
ways to improve communication. Porter (1985) recommends several techniques {or more
effective communication. For instance, he believes in the use of diagonal communication
flows rather than standard upward and downward communication flows, management
processes that are cross organizational instead of typical functional and department
matrices and redesign work and task of employees by implementing job training and
rotation. Each of these methods should be emphasized by the organizations to produce
more valuable communication transactions between and among employees and
management.
Other important components of effective communication include:

 Know yourself, your frame of reference, your own background and experiences and
understanding what you are attempting to communicate to others and why and how
communication will be received meaningfully.
  Let the receiver know what you are trying to communicate. If the message is complex,
then explain the terminology, context and purpose of the communication.
 Select an appropriate medium for your message to enhance transmission, importance
and understanding of your communication.
 Know others and where they come from. Understand how others learn and know their
differences in their frame of reference, backgrounds and experiences that affect their
ability to comprehend messages.
An additional method for PINOY to test their effectiveness in communication is to
measure their effectiveness index. An index of communication effectiveness is a percentage
derived from the number of responses (feedback) of messages received divided by the total
number of communications sent. A low percentage indicates less effective communication
whereas a higher percentage shows more effective communication.
To improve this score, a manager should keep track of the number of communications
he/she sent and note the reactions to his/her communications, whether they are positive,
negative or non-existent. Thus, it is important that before one communicates, a more skilled
communicator should consider they key elements of communication. If one receives positive
feedback, then one should evaluate that communication to determine what has been done
correctly for future communications.
However, if feedback indicates negative or lack of response from the receiver, then one
needs to explore what has been done incorrectly and how adjustments should be made for future
considerations. Exercising one’s communications skills with consistent and constant practice, one
can learn to be a more effective communicator.
VI. The Formal and Informal Communication
a. Formal communication networks - These are networks that are designated
by the organizational structure, charts or other official documents.
b. Informal communications - Informal communication flows outside of the
firm’s chain of command.
How Excellent Companies Foster Informal Communications
The following techniques have been found to encourage informal communication:
a. Emphasizing informality.
b. Maintaining an extraordinary level of communication intensity.
c. Giving communication the physical support.
Management by Wandering around
The communication skill here is not in the wandering around the office, but in the
interpersonal communication skills you can bring to bear when you’re speaking with the
employees. These skills include paying attention, making yourself clear, listening actively and
listening sympathetically.
VII. Levels of Communication
a. Upward Communication
Upward communication from subordinates to superiors provides
management with valuable insight into how organizations functioning and
provides superiors with feedback whether subordinates understand orders and
instructions. It gives employees an opportunity to vent their feelings.

Upward communication can be encouraged by social gatherings, union

publications, regular meetings, performance appraisal meetings, grievances,
attitude surveys, a suggestion system and open door policy, indirect measures and
e-mail.

Formal comprehensive programs and upward appraisals also encourage

upward communication. When communicating with a supervisor, avoid phrases
that may inadvertently signal a lack of responsibility on your part. Avoid
counterproductive body language and non-verbal mannerisms.

b. Downward Communication
Downward Communication is transmitted from superior subordinate on
subjects like corporate vision and mission, what job consists of, performance
evaluation, job instruction and organizational policies and practices. This format
can help build commitment by keeping employees informed about what the
organization plans to do.

Some firms install open-book management programs that manage without

concealment and motivate all employees to focus on helping the business grow
profitably and increasing the return on human capital. Open-book management
fosters trust and commitment among employees by treating them more like
partners. When communicating with subordinates, remember that fairness and
the appearance of fairness are key. Make sure your body language comes across
as open and receptive.

c. Horizontal Communication
Horizontal communications are messages between departments or people
in the same department. Managers use individuals or committees to bridge
departments and improve the flow of communication between them by using
liaison personnel, committees and tasks forces and independent integrators.
VIII. Communication and HRM
HRM depends upon the effective communications systems in the organization for
its success because all its functions like staffing, compensating, performance appraisal,
training and development, etc. require communication system for their executions basics
purposes that are served through communication system which keeps employees
informed using it as a tool to bring about positive change and to influence culture. Bulletin
board, newsletter and gossip are different sources that are used to disseminate
information in the organizations.

Employees are provided with the Employee Handbook which serves many
purposes like:
1. It helps employees learn about company at their own pace.
2. It provides references regarding policies, rules and benefits.
3. It ensures HRM policies will be consistently applied.
4. It creates sense of security and commitment for employees.
5. It provides information to recruit.
6. It may be interpreted as implied contract.
7. It should be updated continually but the important thing is that these purposes
can be achieved only if the employee handbook mainly includes the information
both about the employee and employer. For employee, it provides information
regarding the job description and for employer it provides information about the
rules and regulations of the organization and different compensation benefits, etc.
related information to the employees.

IX. Communication Methods

Inside the organization Employee Handbook, bulletin board, company newsletter.
Company-wide meetings, digital media etc. are used as source or method to
communicate while for the offsite employees, facsimile machine, e-mails and internet
phone are used as a tools for communication of information.

Definition of Terms:
 Communication: Exchange of information between people; it occurs when one
person understands the meaning of a message sent by another person and
responds to it.
 Noise: All factors that interfere with and distort communication
 Encoding: Process by which sender puts a message in a certain format to send to
the receiver
 Feedback: Information about some behaviour and its effects
 Decoding: Process by which the receiver translates the sender’s message into an
understandable form.