Organizational Communication Worksheet

Michal Baldachin
COM/520 Version 1
19-Apr-2015
Debra Lynch

Organizational Communication Worksheet

COM/520 Version 1

University of Phoenix Material

Organizational Communication Worksheet

Part A
Answer the following questions. Each response must be written as an academic paragraph of at
least 150 words. Be clear and concise and explain your answers. Use APA format to cite any
sources.
Why is effective communication important within an organization?
Effective communication is not only important, it is essential for an organization. Information
that must be shared, should be shared effectively. Thill, explains (Thill, J. and Bov, C., 2013,
p. 4) Effective communication strengthens the connections between a company and all of its
stakeholders.
Effective communication helps businesses in many ways:
Solis (as cited in Thill, 2013, p. 4) provides a list of these:

Closer ties with important communities in the marketplace

Opportunities to influence conversations, perceptions and trends
Increased productivity and faster problem solving
Better financial results and bigger return for investors
Earlier warning of potential problems, from rising business costs to critical safety
issues
Stronger decision making based on timely, reliable information
Clearer and more persuasive marketing messages
Greater employee engagement with their work, leading to higher employee
satisfaction and lower employee turnover

The larger an organization, the more complicated the relationships between the various job
positions in the organization and the greater the number of potential communications there
are. With increased numbers and complexity, the potential for ineffective communication also
increases. Kolin (as cited in Thill, p. 8) describes that in a formal communication network,
information can flow in three directions. These are:
Downward: from executives to employees
Upward: from employees to executives
Horizontal: from employees to employees between departments
Depending on the size of the organization, thats a lot of potential communication. There is
also the informal communication network within any organization. (Thill, p. 8) When the
formal communication network is incomplete or fails to provide enough information, the
informal communication network can take over, causing rumors to take precedence over fact.
What are some characteristics of effective business communication?

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Organizational Communication Worksheet

COM/520 Version 1

Effective business communication achieves its intended result. It is not open to interpretation
or easily misconstrued. Thill describes how to make communication efforts, practical, factual,
concise, clear and persuasive. (Thill, p. 4)
The five characteristics described by Thill are (Thill, p. 4):

Provide practical information.

Tell the recipients why they need to know the information being shared. Tell them
whats in it for them.

Give facts rather than vague impressions

Details and information should be clear, convincing, accurate, and ethical. (Thill, p.
4)

Present information in a concise, efficient manner

Longer does not mean better. Longer messages may decrease the possibility that the
message will be read and interpreted as intended.

Clarify expectations and responsibilities

Make sure your expectation from the message recipient is clear

Offer compelling, persuasive arguments and recommendations

Show the reader how they will benefit from the communciation

I venture to say that any communication can be improved upon to become more effective.
Making sure the communication can be described by these characteristics will help ensure
that this is so.
Describe what is meant by using an audience-centered approach in organizational
communications. Why is this important?
An audience-centered approach involves understanding and respecting the members of
your audience and making every effort to get your message across in a way that is
meaningful to them. (Thill, p. 9)
To me, this means that by focusing on the audience, an organizational communication will be
more likely to achieve its goals. For a large international company, this may involve providing
a translation of the communication into the native language of the audience. This can help
ensure that an important message is understood clearly. It is also more than that. It involves
using words that are not easily open to interpretation or ambiguous in any way. Every type of
message can benefit from editing. Sometimes it takes another persons opinion to help a
message clearly communicate its intent. A restructuring of a sentence or changing from the
passive to the active voice can go a long way towards ensuring that messages are
interpreted as they were intended to be.
What is the communication process model, and what impact does social media have on this
model?
The communication process model includes an outline of eight steps towards successful
communication. As described by Thill (Thill, p. 13), these are:
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Organizational Communication Worksheet

COM/520 Version 1

1. The sender has an idea.

This is the essence of the communication or in other words, the point that the
sender is trying to make.
2. The sender encodes the idea as a message
The sender must put idea into a container. The idea needs to be expressed in
some kind of format, such as words or images.
3. The sender produces the message in a transmittable medium
The medium is the form the message takes... so that it can be transmitted. It
can take on an oral, written, visual or electronic form. (Thill, 11)
4. The sender transmits the message through a channel
The channel is the system used to deliver the message. Examples of channels
can be face-to-face conversation, the Internet, another company, a speech, or a
television commercial.
5. The audience receives the message
The message arrives and is noticed.
6. The audience decodes the message
The receiver interprets the idea from the message.
7. The audience responds to the message
If motivated to respond, the audience remembers the message and acts on it.
8. The audience provides feedback to the sender
Social media has turned this process from being a very formal one with clear expectations of
moving an idea from the sender to the audience, to one that is much more interactive and
conversational. (Thill, 15) The audience influences and takes control of the message and it
can be spread in ways and in numbers way beyond the initial expectation of the sender.

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Organizational Communication Worksheet

COM/520 Version 1

Part B
Answer each statement with a specific example and explanation in a couple of sentences.
Discuss the importance of business etiquette in the workplace. Provide an example of how
business etiquette directly affects the effectiveness of a workplace communication.
Business etiquette ensures that all opinions are heard and that real communication takes
place without distractions.
Several people speaking at once, will ensure that only the loudest speaker or the one closest
to the decision makers ear will be heard, if at all. If a salesperson is rude, they will most likely
lose the customer and the sale. If a speakers dress or body art is offensive to the audience, it
may take away from the effectiveness of the message.
What is the difference between an ethical dilemma and an ethical lapse? Why are these
distinctions important?
An ethical dilemma is a situation that involves making a choice when the alternatives arent
completely wrong or completely right. (Thill, 29) An ethical lapse is a clearly unethical
choice. (Thill, 29)
When faced with an ethical dilemma an individual or an organization has a choice on how to
proceed. They must weigh the alternatives, looking for the one that is more right. The
individual or organizations reputation can depend upon it and at this point its not too late to
make the better choice. Once an ethical lapse has occurred, its too late to go back. Regret
will not solve the problem. Some people say that its better to act now and apologize later, but
for some ethical lapses, there is no apology that can make a difference. Its better for an
organization to do the right thing and not to have to deal with the negative repercussions from
an ethical lapse.
List two guidelines of using communication technology effectively. Provide an example of when
your communication in the workplace was directly affected by technology.
1. Provide enough information to get the message out in a clear and concise manner.
2. Provide an effective means for response.
Messages to alert employees of upcoming software downtime messages are sent out on a
routine basis by my companys Information Technology Department. It has happened that an
ineffective message has generated an avalanche of unnecessary emails due to the failure of
the message to provide an effective means for response. For example, a particular employee
responded to one mass email by saying, Please remove me from this email. Then
numerous people told them to not hit Reply All, while hitting Reply All themselves. This
went on for hours. This could never have happened without technology.
Why is it important to consider diverse backgrounds when considering effective communications
in an organization? Provide an example of how a lack of consideration for diversity might
produce an unintended result.
Organizations generally are made up of diverse individuals. Diversity can take on many
forms, gender, sexual orientation, cultural and/or ethnic background, and language, to name
a few. What is funny to one individual, may not be funny to another. Jokes can add be a
wonderful icebreaker and a great way to begin a speech. However, a speaker must take their
audience into consideration. What might have been intended to produce laughter, can cause
hurt or anger instead.
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Organizational Communication Worksheet

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With technology available to you in the workplace, how important is it to maintain in-person
interactions with colleagues and clients? What effects might the use of technology-based
communication have on an organization?
It is more important today to maintain in-person interactions than ever before. With all the
technology in use, we can feel isolated and disconnected from our colleagues and clients.
Strictly using technology, we dont get the same opportunities to build relationships. Jill Smart
of Accenture said, You get things from being there, over breakfast and dinner, building
relationships face to face. (as cited in Thill, p. 17) We can reach more people in more
places than ever through technology, but we cant shake a hand or share an experience.
People need each other and need human contact. Without it, we may feel that we are just an
extension of the technology, instead of the technology being just an extension of our
capabilities.

Copyright 2013 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved

Organizational Communication Worksheet

COM/520 Version 1

Reference List

Kolin, P. C. (2001). Successful writing at Work, 6th ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin
Lohr, Steve, (2008, July 22), As Travel Costs Rise, More Meetings Go Virtual. New York Times,
www.nytimes.com
Solis, B. (2010). Engage! Hoboken: Wiley & Sons.
Thill, J. and Bove, C.. (2013). Excellence in Business Communication, Tenth Edition. Prentice
Hall.

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