Management tenth edition

Stephen P. Robbins Mary Coulter

Chapter
Managers
14 and
Communications
Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–1
 What Is Communication?
• Communication
 The transfer and understanding of meaning.
 Transfer means the message was received in a form that can
be interpreted by the receiver.
 Understanding the message is not the same as the receiver
agreeing with the message.
 Interpersonal Communication
 Communication between two or more people
 Organizational Communication
 All the patterns, network, and systems of communications
within an organization

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–2

 Four Functions of
Communication

Control
Control Motivation
Motivation

Functions
Functionsof
of
Communication
Communication

Emotional
Emotional
Information
Information Expression
Expression

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–3

 Functions of Communication
• Control
 Formal and informal communications act to control
individuals’ behaviors in organizations.
• Motivation
 Communications clarify for employees what is to
done, how well they have done it, and what can be
done to improve performance.

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–4

 Functions of Communication
(cont’d)
• Emotional Expression
 Social interaction in the form of work group
communications provides a way for employees to
express themselves.
• Information
 Individuals and work groups need information to
make decisions or to do their work.

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 Exhibit 14–1 The Interpersonal Communication
Process

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 Interpersonal Communication
• Message
 Source: sender’s intended meaning
• Encoding
 The message converted to symbolic form
• Channel
 The medium through which the message travels
• Decoding
 The receiver’s retranslation of the message
• Noise
 Disturbances that interfere with communications

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–7

 Distortions in Communications
• Message Encoding
 The effect of the skills, attitudes, and knowledge of
the sender on the process of encoding the message
 The social-cultural system of the sender
• The Message
 Symbols used to convey the message’s meaning
 The content of the message itself
 The choice of message format
 Noise interfering with the message

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–8

 Distortions in Communications
(cont’d)
• The Channel
 The sender’s choice of the appropriate channel or
multiple channels for conveying the message
• Receiver
 The effect of skills, attitudes, and knowledge of the
receiver on the process of decoding the message
 The social-cultural system of the receiver
• Feedback Loop
 Communication channel distortions affecting the
return message from receiver to sender
Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–9
 Interpersonal Communication
Methods
• Face-to-face • Hotlines
• Telephone • E-mail
• Group meetings • Computer conferencing
• Formal presentations • Voice mail
• Memos • Teleconferences
• Traditional Mail • Videoconferences
• Fax machines
• Employee publications
• Bulletin boards
• Audio- and videotapes
Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–10
 Evaluating Communication
Methods
• Feedback • Time-space constraint
• Complexity capacity • Cost
• Breadth potential • Interpersonal warmth
• Confidentiality • Formality
• Encoding ease • Scanability
• Decoding ease • Time consumption

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–11

 Interpersonal Communication
(cont’d)
• Nonverbal Communication
 Communication that is transmitted without words.
 Sounds with specific meanings or warnings
 Images that control or encourage behaviors
 Situational behaviors that convey meanings
 Clothing and physical surroundings that imply status
 Body language: gestures, facial expressions, and
other body movements that convey meaning.
 Verbal intonation: emphasis that a speaker gives to
certain words or phrases that conveys meaning.
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 Interpersonal Communication
Barriers
Filtering
National
Culture Emotions

Language Interpersonal Information

Communication Overload

Defensiveness

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 Barriers to Effective
Interpersonal Communication
• Filtering
 The deliberate manipulation of information to make it
appear more favorable to the receiver.
• Emotions
 Disregarding rational and objective thinking
processes and substituting emotional judgments
when interpreting messages.
• Information Overload
 Being confronted with a quantity of information that
exceeds an individual’s capacity to process it.

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–14

Barriers to Effective
Interpersonal Communication
(cont’d)
• Defensiveness
 When threatened, reacting in a way that reduces the
ability to achieve mutual understanding.
• Language
 The different meanings of and specialized ways
(jargon) in which senders use words can cause
receivers to misinterpret their messages.
• National Culture
 Culture influences the form, formality, openness,
patterns, and use of information in communications.
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 Overcoming the Barriers to
Effective Interpersonal
Communications

• Use Feedback
• Simplify Language
• Listen Actively
• Constrain Emotions
• Watch Nonverbal Cues

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 Types of Organizational
Communication
• Formal Communication
 Communication that follows the official chain of
command or is part of the communication required to
do one’s job.
• Informal Communication
 Communication that is not defined by the
organization’s structural hierarchy.
 Permits employees to satisfy their need for social interaction.
 Can improve an organization’s performance by creating
faster and more effective channels of communication.

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–17

 Communication Flows

nal
ago
Di
U D
p o
w Lateral w
a n
w
r a
d r
d

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 Direction of Communication
Flow
• Downward
 Communications that flow from managers to
employees to inform, direct, coordinate, and evaluate
employees.
• Upward
 Communications that flow from employees up to
managers to keep them aware of employee needs
and how things can be improved to create a climate
of trust and respect.

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–19

 Direction of Communication
Flow (cont’d)
• Lateral (Horizontal) Communication
 Communication that takes place among employees
on the same level in the organization to save time and
facilitate coordination.
• Diagonal Communication
 Communication that cuts across both work areas and
organizational levels in the interest of efficiency and
speed.

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–20

 Types of Organizational
Communication Networks
• Chain Network
 Communication flows according to the formal chain of
command, both upward and downward.
• Wheel Network
 All communication flows in and out through the group
leader (hub) to others in the group.
• All-Channel Network
 Communications flow freely among all members of
the work team.

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 Exhibit 14–4 Three Common Organizational
Communication Networks and How They
Rate on Effectiveness Criteria

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 The Grapevine
• An informal organizational communication
network that is active in almost every
organization.
 Provides a channel for issues not suitable for formal
communication channels.
 The impact of information passed along the grapevine
can be countered by open and honest communication
with employees.

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 Understanding Information
Technology
• Benefits of Information Technology (IT)
 Increased ability to monitor individual and team
performance
 Better decision making based on more complete
information
 More collaboration and
sharing of information
 Greater accessibility
to coworkers

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 Information Technology (cont’d)
• Networked Computer • E-mail
Systems • Instant messaging (IM)
 Linking individual
• Blogs
computers to create an
organizational network for • Wikis
communication and • Voicemail
information sharing.
• Fax machines
• Electronic Data Exchange
(EDI)
• Teleconferencing
• Videoconferencing
• Web conferencing

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–25

 Information Technology (cont’d)
• Types of Network Systems
 Intranet
 An internal network that uses Internet
technology and is accessible only to
employees.
 Extranet
 An internal network that uses Internet
technology and allows authorized users
inside the organization to communicate
with certain outsiders such as customers
and vendors.
 Wireless (WIFI) capabilities

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–26

 How IT Affects Organization
• Removes the constraints of time and distance
 Allows widely dispersed employees to work together.
• Provides for the sharing of information
 Increases effectiveness and efficiency.
• Integrates decision making and work
 Provides more complete information and participation
for better decisions.
• Creates problems of constant accessibility to
employees
 Blurs the line between work and personal lives.

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–27

 Current Communication Issues
• Managing Communication in an Internet World
 Legal and security issues
 Inappropriate use of company e-mail and instant messaging
 Loss of confidential and proprietary information due to
inadvertent or deliberate dissemination or to hackers.
 Lack of personal interaction
 Being connected is not the same as face-to-face contact.
 Difficulties occur in achieving understanding and
collaboration in virtual environments.

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–28

 Current Communication Issues
(cont’d)
• Managing the Organization’s Knowledge
Resources
 Build online information databases that employees
can access.
 Create “communities of practice” for groups of people
who share a concern, share expertise, and interact
with each other.

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–29

 Communication and Customer
Service
• Communicating Effectively with Customers
 Recognize the three components of the customer
service delivery process:
 The customer
 The service organization
 The service provider

 Develop a strong service culture focused on the

personalization of service to each customer.
 Listen and respond to the customer.
 Provide access to needed service information.

Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 14–30

 “Politically Correct”
Communication
• Do not use words or phrases that stereotype,
intimidate, or offend individuals based on their
differences.
• However, choose words carefully to maintain as
much clarity as possible in communications.

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