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Chapter 13: Managing Communication: 13-2c Communicating to Persuade and Influence Others
Book Title: Understanding Management
Printed By: Thanakrit Lerdmatayakul (6248073626@cbs.chula.ac.th)
© 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage

13-2c Communicating to Persuade and Influence Others

Communication is not just for conveying information but also for persuading and influencing
people. Although communication skills have always been important to managers, the ability
to persuade and influence others is even more critical today. The command-and-control
mind-set of managers telling workers what to do and how to do it is gone. Key points for
practicing the art of persuasion include the following:

Establish credibility. A manager’s credibility is based on knowledge, expertise, and

interpersonal skills. By demonstrating a consistent ability to make well-informed,
sound decisions, managers inspire employees to have more confidence in the
manager’s leadership abilities.

Build goals on common ground. To be persuasive, managers should describe the

benefits that employees will experience by embracing a new policy or fulfilling a
request. An example is the manager who wanted to persuade fast-food franchisees to
support new pricing discounts desired by headquarters. The manager didn’t just
explain that headquarters wanted the policies implemented; he cited research
showing that the revised pricing would increase franchisees’ profits. When the
franchisees saw how they would benefit personally, they were eager to adopt the new
policies. If a manager can’t find common advantages, this is typically a signal that
goals and plans need to be adjusted.

Connect emotionally. The most effective persuaders are good listeners who
establish an emotional connection with others and balance their competence and
credibility with warmth and understanding. They learn to understand others’
emotions and needs and adjust their approach to match the audience’s ability to
receive their message. In addition, by looking at how people have interpreted and
responded to past events, a manager can get a better grasp on how they might react
to new ideas and proposals that the manager wants them to adopt. Robert Tolmach
learned how to connect on an emotional and intellectual level when starting his
nonprofit, Changing the Present, as described in the “Sunny Side Up” box.

Sunny Side Up

Changing the Present

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Robert Tolmach had an idea for a nonprofit 10 years ago, but it really took off when
he relaunched it in fall of 2017. He had been an architect, did real estate investing,
and spent time in Asia. When he got back, he was ready to do something that would
have a positive impact on people and the environment, so he returned his attention
to his nonprofit, Changing the Present, which helps the country’s 1.1 million
nonprofits, most of which are always fund-raising and lamenting about how much
more they could do with more money. His plan included capturing some of the $50
billion Americans spend each year on birthday, wedding, and holiday presents.

Tolmach was inspired by Heifer International, which pioneered and provided the
opportunity to capture some of that gift money. It does so by making donations given
in a friend’s name feel like a rewarding gift and nice alternative to buying more
“stuff.” Heifer offers lovely greeting cards saying the person just provided a flock of
ducks for a family in India (cost $20) or a cow for a family in Rwanda (cost $500),
plus many other options. This is in contrast to what many nonprofits do, which is
send an e-mail (or perhaps a generic letter) saying a donation was made in the
person’s name.

Changing the Present works with any nonprofit to make the experience of a
donation, given a friend’s name, feel like a memorable gift, with unique cards (which
the donor designs online) to notify a loved one of the gift by the donor’s choice. For
example, someone can give $60 and restore eyesight to a person overseas,
preserve an acre of rainforest, or fund an hour of cancer research. Changing the
Present takes the donor’s $60 and sends it with only a 5 percent surcharge to the
charity and then helps the donor send a card to the recipient (with the donor’s return
address, so it is more likely to be opened by the recipient). Any nonprofit that is a
501 (c) (3) can sign up for free and be on the Changing the Present’s Web site.

One of Tolmach’s challenges is staffing. Because this is a huge undertaking and it

hasn’t yet found its own big donor, no one, including Tolmach, has a salary. He
therefore relies on volunteers, interns, and pro bono consultants, which means
recruiting is ongoing. Changing the Present needs people with skills such as sales,
marketing, and design. In order to provide maximum experience for the volunteers,
no one volunteering runs the copy machine or stuffs envelopes. Therefore, Tolmach
has been able to recruit highly skilled volunteers who believe in the mission and
want to make the greatest impact on the world for one or two days week.

Tolmach also spends a great deal of time communicating about the mission, how it
is executed, what the nonprofit world needs, and so on. He ably talks to people at
charities, potential donors, recruits, and everyone involved in the organization. You
might say he is on a mission. “Save as many people as you can,” he says. “Or the
environment. Or both.”

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SOURCE: Robert Tolmach, personal communication, May 2018.

Use multiple media to send important messages. When a message is highly

important, managers often use redundant communications, sending the same
message using different channels. For example, one manager explained a request to
an employee in person, then immediately composed a follow-up e-mail to the same
employee that summarized the request in writing. For companywide changes,
managers might hold small-group sessions to talk with employees about a new policy,
post an article in the company’s newsletter, and use social media to make sure that
everyone gets the information. By saying the same thing more than once via multiple
channels, managers add weight to the message and keep the issue at the top of
employees’ minds.

To persuade and influence, managers must communicate frequently and easily with others.
Yet some people find interpersonal communication experiences unrewarding or difficult and
thus tend to avoid situations in which communication is required. The term communication
apprehension (An individual’s level of fear or anxiety associated with either real or
anticipated communication.) describes this avoidance behavior and is defined as an
individual’s level of fear or anxiety associated with either real or anticipated communication.
With training and practice, managers can overcome their communication apprehension and
become more effective communicators.

Green Power

Local Impact Logistics giant Deutsche Post DHL Group has 38 locations in
Thailand where Buddhist teachings about caring for one another lend themselves to
helping and teaching the local population. Deutsche Post DHL Group managers
plan for corporate social responsibility with sustainability at the local level. DHL
pinpointed local needs and issues and communicated site-specific strategies, such
as efficient lighting and the reduction of air conditioner demand on Thailand’s hot
climate, and the installation of global positioning satellite (GPS) systems to minimize
fuel consumption.

DHL’s commitment to social responsibility is reflected in its three pillars: “Go Green”
(climate protection), “Go Help” (disaster relief), and “Go Teach” (education). Each
pillar in this corporate plan indicates broad goals—such as a 30 percent reduction in
emissions by 2020—that are customized to fit local needs and cultures. For
example, managers at DHL Thailand communicate to potential business partners to
gain buy-in to the company’s “Go Green” philosophy, reflecting a giant leap in
sustainability at the local level.

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SOURCE: Based on David Ferguson, “CSR in Asian Logistics: Operationalisation within DHL (Thailand),”
Journal of Management Development 30, no. 10 (2011): 985–999.

Chapter 13: Managing Communication: 13-2c Communicating to Persuade and Influence Others
Book Title: Understanding Management
Printed By: Thanakrit Lerdmatayakul (6248073626@cbs.chula.ac.th)
© 2020 Cengage Learning, Cengage

© 2020 Cengage Learning Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this work may by reproduced or used in any form or by any
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