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What is Communication?
Importance of Effective Communication Communication Process Non Verbal Communication
Positive Feedback
Active Listening Barriers to Effective Communication Recommendations on How to Improve Communication References
Communication is an exchange of feelings, ideas, and information, whether by speaking, writing, signals, or behaviors.
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The exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, signals, writing, or behavior. The art and technique of using words effectively to impart information or ideas.
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Communication is more than information! Communication is more than merely keeping the employees updated as to what may be going on in your organization or in the company at large. To do that, all you need is an e-mail message and a computer.
Real communication is far more than a few words strung together and delivered to your employees.
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Whos accountable?
Everyone in the organization is accountable for the effectiveness of their own communication. This especially applies to those who manage others.
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Boss
Employee
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NO
That's because communication does not involve just words, but it also is related to behavior, and unless one is dead, one always "behaves". Even staying still is a behavior. Silence communicates. Our bodies communicate non-verbally. So, so long as there is life there is communication, even if the person is intentionally trying to cease all communication.
Why do we communicate?
We communicate with ourselves and other people to fill current inner tensions, or needs.
The six current needs we each try to fill are...
to feel respected by Self and others; and... to give or get credible information; and/or ... to cause or prevent inner and/or interpersonal change - including changing or maintaining the emotional distance between us and others; and/or... to vent - i.e. to feel deeply understood and accepted (vs. to get "fixed"); and/or... to create excitement (reduce numbness or boredom); and/or... to avoid something uncomfortable, like silence or a confrontation
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Effective communication is an essential component of organizational success at all levels. Numerous employee surveys have found that many problems in any organization can be traced back to one primary cause: poor communication.
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When there is poor communication in an organization, there can be any number of negative outcomes, including errors, productivity declines, distrust, lower morale, confusion, absenteeism, and general dissatisfaction.
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Employees seek and deserve a boss who is open, accessible, and responsive
By having frequent direct contact with your employees, listening to what they say, and having honest two-way communication with them, you are far more likely to be the boss they deserve, respect, and trust. And you are far more likely to identify issues before they become problems, and solve problems before they become crises.
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Noise
Sender
Start with a meaning/ message to send Encode (verbal and nonverbal) Send message Interact with feedback
message
Communication Channels
Report/Phone/ Meeting/Computer
Receiver
Receive message Decode and Convert to Meaning Respond
Feedback
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Receiver. The receiver Sender. The sender decodes the incoming encodes the message, message, or expression. e.g. the idea of "piece Fields of Response. In the process, the relevance of ait and thus He "translates" code of furniture to sit on."becomes obvious: The codes of the sender andthe output receives receiver must Thus he gives have at least a certain set in common in order to make expression to the communication work. That frame of reference is the sum of content. experiences in the form of each person's knowledge, beliefs and values. Our frame of reference is also greatly influenced by the culture to which we belong. On the basis of that body of personal knowledge, each member of the audience decodes the message. As members of the audience differ, so will their interpretations of what they hear.
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Feedback: The response that receiver sends to the sender. It shows if the message has been received and understood as intended to be.
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Communication Types
Intrapersonal Communication: It is the thinking that precedes the communication or the communication with self. It includes the internal voice, retrieval and storage of information, and problem solving. Interpersonal Communication: It happens when two people or more communicate in an informal way to exchange information or build relationships. Public Communication: In group communication, the message is sent from one person (speaker) to a group of people (listeners). This type is called lectures. Mass Media Communication: It happens through electronic means such as radio, TV, Internet and books. (little or no feedback or interaction) Intercultural Communication: Culture is the collection of values, habits and verbal & nonverbal coding that a group of people have in common. This communication happens when one person or more communicates with another from different culture.
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Communication Characteristics
Continuous process.
Complete system. Interactive, timely and everchanging. Mostly irreversible. Intentional or unintentional. Multi-directional.
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Communication Misconceptions
Communication will solve all problems: It may
result in creating new problems.
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A "majority" of the meaning we attribute to 55% words comes not from the words 38% Face and themselves, but from nonverbal factors such body: voice dynamics: non-verbal tone as gestures, facial expressions, tone, body + inflection + communication or volume + accent face and body language, etc. + non-word
sounds; and...
language.
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Visual
This often called body language and includes facial expression, eye movement, posture, and gestures. The face is the biggest part of this. All of us "read" people's faces for ways to interpret what they say and feel.
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Visual
Of course we can easily misread these cues especially when communicating across cultures where gestures can mean something very different in another culture. For example, in American culture agreement might be indicated by the head going up and down whereas in India, a side-to-side head movement might mean the same thing.
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Visual
We also look to posture to provide cues about the communicator; posture can indicate self-confidence, aggressiveness, fear, guilt, or anxiety. Similarly, we look at gestures such as how we hold our hands, or a handshake. Many gestures are culture bound and susceptible to misinterpretation
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Tactile (Physical)
This involves the use of touch to impart meaning as in a handshake, a pat on the back or an arm around the shoulder.
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Vocal
The meaning of words can be altered significantly by changing the intonation of one's voice. Think of how many ways you can say "no
you could express mild doubt, terror, amazement, anger among other emotions. Vocal meanings vary across cultures.
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Example
You are doing a good job
say it it in a way that indicates that the say in a way that clearly indicates that employee is doing a rather average job. the employee is doing a great job.
Physical Space
For most of us, someone standing very close to us makes us uncomfortable. We feel our "space" has been invaded. People seek to extend their territory in many ways to attain power and intimacy. We tend to mark our territory either with permanent walls, or in a classroom with our coat, pen, paper, etc. We like to protect and control our territory.
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Physical Space
The "intimate zone" is about two feet. This zone is reserved for our closest friends.
The "personal zone" from about 2-4 feet usually is reserved for family and friends.
The social zone (4-12 feet) is where most business transactions take place. The "public zone" (over 12 feet) is used for lectures.
Intimate Zone Personal Zone Social Zone
Public Zone
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Physical Space
At the risk of stereotyping, we will generalize and state that Americans and Northern Europeans typify the non-contact group with small amounts of touching and relatively large spaces between them during transactions. Arabs and Latin normally stand closer together and do a lot of touching during communication.
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Image
We use "things" to communicate. This can involve expensive things, neat or messy things, photographs, plants, etc. We use clothing and other dimensions of physical appearance to communicate our values and expectations.
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The use of gestures, movements, material things and space can clarify or confuse the meaning of verbal communication.
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Skillful communicators understand the importance of nonverbal communication and use it to increase their effectiveness, as well as use it to understand more clearly what someone else is really saying.
A word of warning: Nonverbal cues can differ dramatically from culture to culture.
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"I don't know how to turn his performance around; he never used to have these attendance problems and his work used to be so good; I don't know why this is happening and what to do."
This supervisor is struggling with one of the most important yet trickiest and most difficult management tasks: providing constructive and useful feedback to others.
Effective feedback is absolutely essential to organizational effectiveness; people must know where they are and where to go next in terms of expectations and goals-yours, their own, and the organization.
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Lack of constructive feedback is like sending people out on a dangerous hike without a compass. This is especially true in today's fast changing and demanding workplace
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How to do it?
Maintain a high degree of feedback throughout the communication process. Feedback is a constant barometer to let you know if the message you are sending is the same one that your employees are receiving.
To get feedback, It is far more effective to ask open-ended questions, such as, How would you approach this? or What questions do you have?
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How to do it?
positive question-and-answer approach
helps create an atmosphere in which asking questions is entirely acceptable. In addition, your behavior demonstrates some productive feedback techniques, and this can help your employees learn and apply them.
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Good communication is a two-way street, a process of give and take between individuals.
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Miscommunication happens!
In any communication at least some of the "meaning" lost in simple transmission of a message from the sender to the receiver.
In many situations a lot of the true message is lost and the message that is heard is often far different than the one intended.
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Miscommunication happens!
The key point is that everything you do during the communication process is sending a message to your employees.
As a result, there are countless opportunities for miscommunication and confusion, particularly as the messages go through your employees filter mechanisms.
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Types of Barriers
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Interpersonal barriers
Perception and perceptual selection processes Semantics (language) Channel selection Inconsistent verbal and nonverbal communication.
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Interpersonal Barriers
Perception
Communication depends on our perception, or how we perceive people, their motives, and intentions. We consciously and unconsciously choose from streams of sensory data, we concentrate on some bits, and we ignore others. We call this process "perceptual selection". Perceptual selection affects what we hear and how we hear it, and whether and how we are willing to respond (Buchanan and Huczynski, 1997).
Perceptual Biases: People attend to stimuli in the environment in very different ways. We each have shortcuts that we use to organize data. Invariably, these shortcuts introduce some biases into communication. Some of these shortcuts include stereotyping, projection, and self-fulfilling prophecies. Stereotyping is one of the most common. This is when we assume that the other person has certain characteristics based on the group to which they belong without validating that they in fact have these characteristics.
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Interpersonal Barriers
Perception
Interpersonal Relationships: How barrier? How to minimize this we perceive communication is affected by the past experience with improve our Perception is also affected by the the individual. self-awareness of our own organizational relationship two people have. For values, beliefs, and attitudes and how they example, communication from a superior may be affect our perception; and also improve our perceived differently than that from a subordinate or understanding of, and sensitivity to, others. peer
Examples include recommendations to avoid Assumptions-eg. assuming others listening skills. stereotyping and to improve see situation same as you, has same feelings as you affects the While this advice helps minimize the barrier, communication. it is primarily sender-focused; i.e. it is the Receiver distortion: selective hearing, ignoring nonsupplier of information who is to be more verbal cues. aware and empathic.
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Interpersonal Barriers
Semantics/ Language:
Semantics isminimize this meaning of How to the study of the barrier? words or other symbols. Typically, we view pay careful attention to the choice of semantics as a barrier to effective words and language so thatbecause communication in organizations confusion or offence isused imprecisely, inaccurately, words can be avoided. or may mean different things to different people.
The choice of words or language in which a sender encodes a message will influence the quality of communication.
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Interpersonal Barriers
Channel Selection
WhenHow to minimize this barrier? improving communication in organizations, attention is rightfully given to To date, research has shown that matching how to send the message, or the selection of characteristics of the message (how clear vs a channel (oral or written media). Selecting a ambiguous, how rational vs emotional, and channel that does not fit the message can how routine vs non-routine) to the channel lead to a breakdown in communication. can improve the effectiveness of For example, weA complicated message communication. know that emotional or complex messages are a "rich" channel, such should be sent through usually most effectively communicated face-to-face. and as a face-to-face meeting (e.g. Lengel Daft, 1988).
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Interpersonal Barriers
Inconsistent verbal and non-verbal communication
We often find in organizations that How to minimize this barrier? inconsistent verbal and non-verbal Minimize any inconsistencies between words communicationspeaking, to a communication and manner of can lead facial expressions, and posture. breakdown. Inconsistency confuses a receiver who tries to figure out the "true" message of the sender and then relies heavily on the non-verbal actions to decode meaning.
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Organizational Barriers
Physical distractions Information overload Time pressure Technical and in-group language Status differences Task and organization structure requirements Absence of formal communication channels
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Organizational Barriers
Physical distractions
How to minimize this barrier? Physical distractions in organizations include advise supervisors to minimize these distractions whenever possible. interruptions, noise, and equipment breakdowns. The reality of organizational life is that at best we can try to minimize distractions instead of eliminating them altogether.
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Organizational Barriers
Information overload
Information overload this be a byHow to minimize can barrier? product the amount volume of Reduce of the sheer of information that information and data that managers requires processing or to develop deal with on a daily basis. cope with time-management skills to A large part of a manager's job higher amounts. is informationprocessing (Mintzberg, 1973). One offcited study has estimated that managers spend up to 80 per cent of every day communicating (Luthans and Larsen, 1986).
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Organizational Barriers
Time pressure
How to minimize this barrier? Time pressure is another barrier to communication that is ever-present in Recommend sensitivity to organizational time periods. Select organizations. We have advised the best time when you communicate managers to recognize that the timing important messages. of a message can affect whether the message influences the receiver in the way intended.
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Organizational Barriers
Technical and in-group language
Technical and in-group language is How to minimize this barrier? another barrier to communication in have prescribed recognizing and organizations, particularly when minimizing specialist vocabularies organizational subunits are highly whenever possible. differentiated or when organizational Simplify terms and consider the members are highly professionalized. technical level when communicating. Technical and professional vocabularies make it hard for one individual or group to communicate with another.
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Organizational Barriers
Status differences
Status differences can be barrier? How to minimize this large or small in an organization. Large status Advocate minimizing status differences differences are thought to contribute with the responsibility on the higher to problems with communication. status person to reduce the distance (Hunt, 1985).
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Organizational Barriers
Task and organization structure requirements Task andto minimize this barrier? How organization structure requirements can provide barriers to effective Use structural The tasks such as communication. devices people perform will affect who talks to whom, the urgency multifunctional teams, task forces, or and speed of messages, and what integratingpeople need to share. As a direct information supervisors, or decentralize decision making and access to consequence of hierarchy, we can find filtering (intentionally authority is aligned information so thator unintentionally leaving out parts of a with responsibility. message), distortion (to serve individual goals), and refusal to communicate (either because of oversight or deliberately not sharing information) (Hunt, 1980).
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Organizational Barriers
Absence of formal communication channels When there is an absence of formal How to minimize this barrier? communication channels, it is difficult to Develop many ways to improve upward get information from employee to manager, from communication (e.g. suggestion systems, manager to reports, attitude surveys), performanceemployee, from subunit to subunit, and from customer to supplier. downward communication (e.g., videos, In organizations we need channels to and newsletters, briefings and meetings)transmit information about performance, goals and horizontal communication (e.g. electronic goal achievement, procedures and practices, networks and intranets, and quality circles). and to foster coordination and problem solving across the organizational boundaries.
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Internal Noise
These are the internal noise going on in your own head that can distract you and distort what you are saying and hearing including your expectations, biases, wandering mind, or attention focused on other matters.
How to overcome?
When you are communicating with your employees, the best approach is to give them your undivided attention.
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Internal Noise
They are also the internal noise of the people with whom you are communicating (can be detected by their questions, their distracted appearance, or their off-target comments.) How to overcome?
When this occurs, run a reality check to find out what the blockages may be. The best way to do this is to ask a few questions based on what you are observing, such as, Have I missed something?. By focusing the question on your own actions, you make it much easier for your employee to answer honestly. Depending upon what you learn from your positive questioning approach, you can then adjust your comments to increase the likelihood of having real twoway communication.
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A Fact
Communication skills and effectiveness can be improved
The following Slides show some recommendations on
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This is merely one-way communication of the most limited form, because matters of intonation, volume, pace, and inflection are missing.
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Why?
Because e-mail is one-dimensional and lacks so many of the elements present in face-to-face communication, there is a tremendous potential for conflict and confusion. The main reason is that neither the sender nor the receiver picks up sufficient cues to really know what the other is trying to say. As a result, even the most basic e-mail communication has the potential to quickly escalate into a war of words.
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When your employees ask you to intervene electronically to resolve a misunderstanding, do not do it.
Rather, pick up the phone to discuss the situation, or, preferably, set up a face-to-face meeting. Its rather amazing that many of these meetings actually involve people who work just down the hall from each other.
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Dont Be Defensive
A major source of problem in communication is defensiveness. Effective communicators are aware that defensiveness is a typical response in a work situation especially when negative information or criticism is involved. Be aware that defensiveness is common, particularly with subordinates when you are dealing with a problem. Try to make adjustments to compensate for the likely defensiveness.
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Effective communication requires awareness and a committed, cooperative effort among all people involved, so it is not always possible at the moment - unless all people voluntarily contribute these.
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Some subjects should not be matters of public discussion in the workplace. These include an employee's work performance, your feelings about company policy and difficulties you have with your boss.
It's also important to keep confidential any personal problems employees bring to you and anything anyone tells you in confidence. The only exception to this practice would be when keeping quiet involves breaking the law or company policy.
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Open communication
Ensure that one of your key values is open communication. Unless told otherwise, supervisors are authorized to communicate. Management credibility and trust should only come with a demonstrated track record of truthful, open communication. Communication about significant happenings needs to be thoroughly planned. Being too busy is not an acceptable excuse for inadequate or ineffective communication. Care should be taken to decide what requires formal communication and by whom, and what can be communicated informally. Significant information should show who has authorized its release and be released in all locations at the same time.
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Effective team leaders should regularly communicate with team members on a formal and informal basis, and actively seek feedback from their teams on the effectiveness of communication with them.
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References