Managerial Communication
Tasks, tools and elements of communication
Learning Objectives
With all the various channels of
communication available today within the organizational structure, you have to have a good
understanding of your organizational culture and climate in order to determine what is the best
medium to use at any one time for any specific purpose.
Good communication skills can be used to
manage the conflicts that poor communication can cause or that simply arises because
people have different goals.
Introduction
The more successful the organization, the better its
channels of internal communication; the better able it is to receive, process, and
disseminate information, and ensure a well-managed, smooth, and efficient flow of goods or
services. While it is important that every organization or organization be able to talk to
the outside world—beneficiaries, vendors, investors, the government, general public, and
so on—it can’t do anything meaningful externally unless it has a reliable system
for internal communication.
1. Managerial Communication
If it weren’t for communication, we couldn’t
have organizations, or any sector of activity, or project/programme purpose, for that matter.
The more successful the organization, the better its
channels of internal communication; the better able it is to receive, process, and
disseminate information, and ensure a well-managed, smooth, and efficient flow of goods or
services. While it is important that every organization or organization be able to talk
to the outside world—beneficiaries, vendors, investors, the government, general public,
and so on—it can’t do anything meaningful externally unless it has a reliable
system for internal communication.
Every organization has two forms of internal
communication—formal or official, and informal or unofficial.
Formal or official channels include a mission or vision
statement, policies and procedures, operational rules, in-house newsletters or magazines,
organization bulletin boards, an Intranet site, and the libraries of directives, reports,
memos, faxes, and e-mails that every large organization generates.
Informal or unofficial channels include some of the same
formal channels—such as bulletin boards, faxes, and e-mail—as well as
person-to-person contacts that take place because of the organizational contacts and
friendships we make at work, and can take place away from work and during non-working
hours.
In this module, we will look at some of those channels,
and at how to best use them.
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Bibliography
Feldman, D. (1984). Development and enforcement of group
norms. Academy of Management Review, 9, 47-53
O’Connor, K., Gruenfeld, D., & McGrath, J.
(August, 1993). The experiences and effects of conflict in continuing work groups. Small Group Research, 24, 363-382.
Pacanowsky, M., & O’Donnell-Trujillo, N.
(1982). Communication and organizational cultures. Western
Journal of Speech Communications, 46, 115-130.
Culture – Culture is the shared values,
customs, traditions, rituals, behaviors, and beliefs of a nation, national or ethnic
group, religion, organization, project/programme purpose, or organization.
Conflict – According to Wilmot and Hocker,
conflict is the interaction of interdependent people who perceive incompatible goals and
interference from each other in achieving these goals.
Climate – It is the atmosphere of either
supportiveness or defensiveness that people feel within the organization itself.
Messages – These are words that are
communicated that tell us what our relationships are to the people we communicate with. They also give us hints about where we fit with our
compatriots and in the organizational hierarchy.
Identify and Analyse your Audience
Guidelines for Informative Speaking
Guidelines for Building Effective Persuasive Arguments
Handling Question and Answer Sessions
Written Messages to External Stakeholders