Unit 5 CH 14: Promoting Effective

Communication
Imagine you were
not allowed to talk
not able to use sign language
not allowed to write/type a message
not allowed to express how you feel
not able to use your body to express our
feelings
How would you communicate?
Name some of the ways we communicate
Encouraging Effective Communication at
Red Hat
How managers encourage effective communication and collaboration?
• Red hat - Open-source software company, which relies on global communities of
contributors to develop, service and improve software
• CEO- Jim Whitehurst believes as a frontline manager – need to connect f2f with people,
keep lines of communication open and regularly connect with associates – virtually or
electronically
• Being able to effectively communicate thoughts and perspectives is vital and is equally
important as listening to other’s viewpoints
• Encourages employees by listening to, encouraging and supporting them and endeavours
• Red hat believes in communicating the ways employees and management will be
accountable to each other- decisions, performance and apologies is unexpected happens
• Holds same belief for customers, partners and wider open-source community
• Effective communication is a business imperative
 Learning Outcome 1:
Explain why effective communication helps an organisation gain a
competitive advantage
 Communication & Management
Communication- is the sharing of information between two or
more individuals or groups to reach a common understanding.
- Although driven by technology, it involves individuals and
groups
- There needs common understanding
 Communication
• Even with advances in I.T that are available to managers.
Ineffective communication continues to take place in
organisations
• Ineffective communication is detrimental for the organisation,
managers, employees and customers. Which can result in poor
performance, poor service, strained interpersonal relationships
and dissatisfied customers
• For an organisation to be effective and gain competitive
advantage, managers at all levels need to be good
communicators- communication is a managerial responsibility
 Communication
• Effective communication is important for gaining a competitive
advantage
• Increasing efficiency Managers use new technologies that improve
process, they need to communicate these changes to employees
• Improving quality depends on effective communication-
communicating the meaning and importance of quality, or subordinates
communicating quality problems to ensure improvement
• Good communication helps improve responsiveness to customers
• Innovation is only possible through effective communication-e.g the
cross functional teams make it happen and they need to communicate
well across the organisation
Agree or Disagree?
• What are some of the
benefits of effective
communication?
§ Builds trusts
§ Encourages accountability,
honesty and respect
 #TheoryCheck
• DigiGlobal increased its responsiveness to customers by encouraging
its sales representatives to talk freely with their managers about the
changing customer needs. Which of the following is most likely to be
the factor that helped DigiGlobal achieve this?

A. low information richness

B. high perceptual bias
C. good communication
C- Good communication can help increase responsiveness to
customers.
 Learning Outcome 2:
Describe the communication process, and explain the role of perception
in communication
The Communication Process
The Communication Process

Sender- Person/ group wishes to share information with another person/ group

Encoding- is when the sender translates the message into a language/words/ symbols

Receiver- message is transmitted through a medium to a receiver, which is the person/ group the message is intended for

Medium- Any pathway through which the message is transmitted to the receiver (email/ call/ face to face/ memo etc)

Decoding- Is when the receiver gets the message, interprets and makes sense of the message

Noise- anything that hampers any stage of the communication process

 #TheoryCheck
A(n) _____ is the pathway through which an encoded message is
transmitted to a receiver.

A. encoder
B. medium
C. transmission
B- A medium is simply the pathway, such as a phone call, a letter, a
memo, or face-to-face communication in a meeting, through which an
encoded message is transmitted to a receiver.
 #TheoryCheck
True/False

The feedback phase of a communication process is initiated by a

receiver who then becomes the sender.

TRUE
• The feedback phase is initiated by the receiver (who becomes a
sender).
 #TheoryCheck
In the transmission phase of the communication process, Clive is translating the
message into symbols or language. Clive is the ____ and the translation process is
called _____

A. sender; decoding.
B. sender; encoding.
C. receiver; decoding.

B- Starting the transmission phase, the sender, the person or group wishing to
share information with some other person or group, decides on the message, what
information to communicate. Then the sender translates the message into symbols
or language, a process called encoding; often messages are encoded into words.
 Perception and Communication
Perception plays a central role in communication and affects the
transmission and feedback
• Perception is the process through which people select, organise, and
interpret something to give meaning and order to the world around them-
it is subjective and influenced by knowledge, upbringing, values and
attitudes.
• When receivers and senders communicate, they do so based on subjective
perceptions
• Biases are systematic tendencies to use information about others in ways
that result in inaccurate perceptions, lead to unfair treatment and lead to
ineffective communication- this includes unconscious bias
• Stereotypes are simplified and often inaccurate beliefs about a group of
people- this can interfere with coding and encoding
Perception and Communication
 Perception and Communication
Perception – “Brand perception is the sum of a consumer's feelings, experiences,
and thoughts about a product or service. It's what people believe a brand
represents, rather than what a brand says it represents.” –
Brand surveys to get peoples’ views

Biases – “Ski resorts reporting on snowfall: Ski resorts are biased in how they spin
snowfall reporting. They consistently report higher snowfall than official forecasts
because they have a supply-driven interest in doing so (Raymond & Taylor, 2021).
Racial, gender or ageism bias

Stereotypes- Gender stereotypes- often based on traditional gender roles- stir

problems in the workplace
 #TheoryCheck
Which of the following is true about perceptions?

A. Perceptions are not influenced by people's attitudes and moods.

B. Perceptions of senders and receivers play no role in the encoding
and decoding of messages.
C. Perceptions, if accurate, can contribute to effective communication.

C- Perceptions, if accurate, can contribute to effective communication.

 Ineffective Communication
Dangers of ineffective communication
 Learning Outcome 3:
Define information richness, and describe the information richness of
communication media available to managers
 Information Richness and Communication
Media
Information richness is the
amount of information a
communication medium can
carry and the extent to which
the medium enables the
sender and receiver to reach a
common understanding
 Information Richness and Communication
Media
The three factors that a manager needs to consider when choosing a
medium of communication are;
• Information richness- which medium will be most effective carrying
and communicating for common understanding
• Time- Is valuable, so managers need a time saving mechanisms when
communicating e.g UPS moved to video conferences over face- to
face - meetings
• Electronic trail – Known as “the paper trail”, written documentation
to prove that the message was sent & received e.g putting something
in writing- a warning
 Information Richness and Communication
Media
1. Face to Face communication
Richest information transmitted and
advantage of interpreting verbal &
non-verbal signs e.g puzzled look
2. Spoken communication
electronically transmitted
Telephone communication- can
convey extensive message and hear
the tone
 Information Richness and Communication
Media
3. Personally addressed written
communication
Includes memo’s, emails and letters
addressed to someone, increases likelihood
of reading and receiving immediate
feedback
4. Impersonal written communication
Lowest richness, great for reaching many.
Need to be clearly communicated,
appropriate language
e.g company newsletters- to communicate
rules/ polies etc
An alternative?
Information Richness and Face-to-Face
Communication
Information Richness and Electronically
Spoken Communication
 Information Richness and Electronically
Spoken Communication
• Allows collaboration across different geographies
• Can hear tone of voice accompanying the message
• Quick feedback
• Disadvantage exists with one-way electronically spoken
communication i.e. voicemail
Information Richness and Written
Communication

Why are emails the most preferred

way of business communication in the
current business environments?
Information Richness and Written
Communication
Example
Information Richness and Written
Communication
Example
Information Richness and Written
Communication
Example
 Information Richness and Written
Communication
Example
Email Netiquette
üHave a clear subject line- Your subject line must match the message
üUse a professional salutation- Dear, Good day, Hello,
üDon't assume the recipient knows who you are or what you are
talking about- first time contact introduce yourself and subject of
discussion
üDon't "e-mail angry”- written language and spoken language differ
üAvoid using shortcuts – to real words, emoticons, jargon, or slang
Source: Inc.com & Entrepreneur.com
 Information Richness and Written
Communication
Example
Email Netiquette
ü Be careful with confidential information- remember paper trail and easy
transmission of emails in and outside of the organisation
üSend or copy others only on a need to know basis. Before you click Reply
All or put names on the Cc or Bcc lines, ask yourself if all the recipients
need the information in your message.
üAlways include a signature- create one
üDo reply to emails-
üProofread your message- its easy to make common mistakes
ü Know your audience- client, supplier, colleague & levels of authority
Source: Inc.com & Entrepreneur.com
 Learning Outcome 4:
Describe the communication networks that exist in groups and teams
 Communication Networks in Groups and
Teams
• Communication networks are pathways along which information
flows in groups and teams and throughout an organisation
• Includes not only the formal communication pathways summarised in
an organisation chart but also informal communication pathways

• Vertical communication refers to up and down communication in the

corporate hierarchy

• Horizontal communication is communication among employees at

the same level in the hierarchy sideways
Communication Networks in Groups and
Teams
Match each type of group/team to
the correct communication
network
1. Airbus 321 assembly line
group of workers
2. Eskom task team
1.
2. 3. DHL delivery drivers
4. Graphic design team and the
marketing executive at an
advertising agency

3. 4.
Communication Networks in Groups and
Teams
DHL delivery drivers
• information flows to and from one central member of
the group and group members do not need to
communicate with one another
• often found in command groups with pooled task
interdependence. ( Dispatcher- transportation)
• not used in teams because there are low interactions
among members
• can accomplish its goals by directing all communication
to and from the central member
Eskom task team
• group members communicate with others who are
similar to them in experiences, areas of expertise or
background
• often found in groups that are not teams
Communication Networks in Groups and
Teams
Airbus 321 team working in an assembly line
• members communicate with one another in a
predetermined sequence with high task
interdependence
• not found in teams because of the limited amount of
interaction among group members.

Graphic design team and the marketing executive at

an advertising agency
• characterised by high levels of communication
• reciprocal task interdependence requires that
information flows in all directions.
 Learning Outcome 5:
Explain how advances in technology have given managers new options
for managing communication
Information Technology and Communication
Information Technology and Communication
Information Technology and Communication
 Information Technology and Communication
Mobile Applications

• Most companies are creating Apps to communicate with their

employees and also their clients
 Information Technology and Communication
Social Media
• Social media platforms also present opportunities for internally restricted
communication
• Explain instances when social media groups can lead to unfavourable
communication.
• What should a manager consider before introducing any medium of
communication?
• An enterprise version of WhatsApp
- With employees’ keen on using simple chat apps at work,
would it make sense for Facebook to launch an
enterprise-friendly version of WhatsApp?
 Information Technology and Communication
Intranets

• Intranets are an internal company’s network that enable the sharing

of company-specific information
• Directories, manuals, inventory figures, product specifications,
information about customers, biographies of top managers, annual
reports
• The advantage of Intranets is that they are protected from unwanted
intrusions, by hackers or by competitors
 Learning Outcome 5:
Describe important communication skills that managers need as senders and as
receivers of messages and why it is important to understand differences in linguistic
styles
 Seven Communication Skills for Managers as
Senders of Messages

1. Send messages that are clear and complete.

2. Encode messages in symbols the receiver understands.
3. Select a medium that is appropriate for the message.
4. Select a medium that the receiver monitors.
5. Avoid filtering and information distortion.
6. Ensure that a feedback mechanism is built into messages.
7. Provide accurate information to ensure that misleading rumors are
not spread
 Communication Skills for Managers as
Receivers

• Pay attention.

• Be a good listener.

• Be empathetic.
Cross Cultural Communication
 Cross Cultural Communication
• Cross-cultural differences can lead to mis understandings
• Context- Geographic regions have different cultural/ nuanced needs
• Japan (Asia) vs USA (West)
• Slower communication with pauses vs Quick, straight to the point
• Collectivist vs Individualistic
• Exercise silence vs Tend to want to fill in the gaps
• Gender differences
• Linguistic styles