Ethics in Professional

Communication

November 23th, 2020

 Communication

◆ Communication is central to our lives.

◆ Effective communication can help us solve problems and improve

relationships in our professional as well as personal lives.

◆ Communication experts believe that poor communication is at the

root of many problems and that effective communication is one
solution to these problems.
 Communication
◆ Communication itself is probably best understood as a dialogic
process.

◆ A dialogue is simply the act of taking part in a conversation,

discussion, or negotiation.
 Communication
◼ E.g. A student may describe a conflict with an instructor as
unfair treatment: “I know my instructor doesn’t like the fact
that I don’t agree with his opinions, and that’s why he gave me
such a poor grade in that class.”

◼ The instructor might counter, “That student doesn’t

understand all the factors that go into a final grade.”

◼ Each person may believe that he or she is correct and that the
other person’s view is wrong
 Communication Principles

◆A definition of communication may be insufficient to

clarify the nature of communication.

◆Thus, to explain it in detail, we consider some

principles that guide our understanding of
communication:
 Communication Principles

◆ Communication begins with the self.

◆ It involves others.
◆ Communication is unavoidable and irreversible.
◆ Communication has both, a content as well as a relational
dimension.
◼ For example, if a person asserts, “Sit down,” the content of the

brief message is a request for the other person to be seated.

◼ Relationally, he/she is suggesting that they have the authority
to tell the other person to be seated.
◼ Consider the difference between “Sit down!” and “Would you
care to be seated?”
◼ While the content is essentially the same, the relational aspect

seems far different.

 Communication Principles
◆ Communication involves choices about multiple aspects of the
message, including:

◼ Verbal, nonverbal, and behavioral aspects; characteristics of

the speaker; relationship between the speaker and the
audience; characteristics of the audience; and the situation in
which the communication occurs.

◼ A change in any one of these variables affects the entire

communication process.
Communication Ethics
 Significance of Ethical Communication

◆ Ethics are those moral principles, which guide the conduct of

individuals.

◆ When an organization communicates internally, it shapes the

values of its employees.

◆ When it communicates externally, it influences the perception of

the external public.

 Significance
◆ Ethical business communication holds great significance on
three main fronts.
◆ Maintaining high ethical standards on each front is essential to
success in business.
1.Business to business:
◼ E.g. between a business and its suppliers or distributors.
2.Business to employees:
◼ Organizational communication within the business itself,
how the leadership communicates with the employees.
3.Business to the public:
◼ How the business develops its public image.
 Function of Ethical Communication

◆Ethical business communication's primary function

is to send and receive messages in a neutral, non-
offensive manner.

◆When communication does not adhere to ethical

standards, the consequences can include unhappy
employees and a poor public image, thus, adversely
affecting business.
 Ethics Guidelines for
Professional Communication
Guidelines for Effective Ethical Communication

◆Communicating ethically in one’s business all of the

time can be a struggle.
◆However, ethical communication for professionals and
in businesses means being truthful and upfront and
saying what needs to be said, even when it is difficult.
◆Fabricating false information is clearly unethical, and
so is exaggerating or omitting important information
that others need to know.
 Guidelines
◆ Ethical communication:
◼ Should include all relevant information.

◼ Is true in every sense and is not deceptive in any way.

◼ Is accurate and sincere; avoids language that manipulates,

discriminates or exaggerates.
◼ Does not hide negative information behind an optimistic
attitude.
◼ Does not state opinions as facts

◼ Does not show bias.

◼ Is easy to understand.

◼ Does not forget to acknowledge/credit source.

◼ Takes extra care with confidential information.

 Factors Influencing
Ethical Communication
Factors Influencing Ethical Communication

1.Every communication decision has some ethical aspect

to it, acknowledged or not:
◆There are countless complexities involved in the
communication process, but communicators initially
face two simple choices:
◼ To speak,

◼ To listen,

◆Each choice implies an ethical decision.

 Factors

◆In a message, should the sender disclose information,

motives, or feelings to others?

◆That choice inevitably involves an ethical element.

◆Clearly, some messages should not be sent, such as

those involving “inside information”, rumors about
organizational change etc.
 Factors

◆The timing and mode of communication adds another

layer of complexity to the ethical dimension.
◼ Is it wrong to tell the truth?

◼ Is it alright to hide the truth?

◼ Can one be too blunt?

◼ Should certain information be communicated only face-to-

face?
 Factors

2.The ethical nature of communication must be considered

within the context of who, what, when, and where:
◆ Ethical communicators are not only concerned with who or
what or where or when, but with all four dimensions
simultaneously.
◼ Suppose a group of employees, belonging to different

departments discussed an important project they were

working on.
◼ The discussion took place in a restaurant, while they

sipped their coffees, along with working on the project

details.
◼ This may seem perfectly ethical on the surface but the

problem was that a competitor overheard their

conversation.
Characteristics of Ethical Communication
◆ The vital characteristics of ethical communication are
discussed below:
◆ Conveying the point without offending the audience:
◼ While communicating to the audience, conveying the

desired message to them in a significant manner is of

primary importance.

◼ E.g., the employees in a company can be asked to increase

their efficiency in a demanding manner whereas managers
and executives will feel offended if the same tone is used on
them.

◼ There are different ways to explain the exact things to them

in a much smoother manner.
 Characteristics
◆Maintain a relationship with the audience:

◼ Maintaining the same wavelength with the

audience is very important for a communicator to
ensure the effectiveness of the message.

◼ Experienced communicators immediately build a

relationship based on trust with the audience as
soon as they start speaking.
 Characteristics
◆ Avoid withholding crucial information:

◼ In the modern era, information is vital for all decisions.

◼ Hence, it is important for any organization to be cautious

when communicating with the public.

◼ The communicated information should be complete and all

vital information must be conveyed appropriately.

◼ Purposely withholding crucial information might result in

the public conceiving a bad image.
 Characteristics
◆Accuracy of information is necessary:

◼ Any information that is to be passed on must be

true and accurate.

◼ Communicating without checking the truth of the

information can be highly dangerous for the
organization.

◼ Identification of the source and testing the

information is necessary before communicating it.
Consequences of Unethical
Communication
Consequences of Unethical Communication
◆There are many consequences of unethical business
communication.

◆Everything in business rises and falls on

communication.

◆A business may have an outstanding product or

service, but if it doesn't communicate well with its
customers, they will not be satisfied, and this can
weaken the business/customer relationship.
 Consequences

◆When ethical communication is lacking; moral,

corporate image and motivation will lack as well.

◆Each of these elements affects the spirit of the

employees, which in turn will reflect to the customer
and result in a decrease in revenue.