Operational Level

07

10 Skills Development Part I

Chartered Institute of Personnel Management Sri Lanka (Inc.)

Web.www.cipmlk.org
 Content

Page No

Session 01. Working with Teams 02-15

Session 02. Personal, social, dress and dining etiquette 16-36

Session 03. Communication skills 37-48

Session 04. Presentation skills 49-56

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Session 01.

WORKING WITH TEAMS

1. Defining and Classifying Groups: A group is defined as two or more individuals,

interacting and interdependent, who have come together to achieve particular objectives.
Groups can be either formal or informal. By formal groups, we mean those defined by the
organization’s structure with designated work assignments establishing tasks. In formal groups,
the behaviors that team members should engage in are stipulated by and directed toward
organizational goals. The six members making up an airline flight crew are an example of a
formal group. In contrast, informal groups are alliances that are neither formally structured nor
organizationally determined. These groups are natural formations in the work environment that
appear in response to the need for social contact. Three employees from different departments
who regularly eat lunch or have coffee together are an example of an informal group. These
types of interactions among individuals, even though informal, deeply affect their behavior and
performance.

It’s possible to further sub-classify groups as command, task, interest, or friendship groups.
Command and task groups are dictated by formal organization, whereas interest and friendship
groups are informal alliances.

a) _________________: is determined by the organization chart. It is composed of the

individuals who report directly to a given manager plus the manager. An elementary school
principal and her eighteen teachers form a command group, as do a director of postal audits
and his five inspectors.

b) _________________: Also organizationally determined, represent individuals working

together to complete a job task. However, a task group’s boundaries are not limited to its
immediate hierarchical superior. It can cross command relationships. For instance, a
college student is accused of a campus crime, dealing with the problem might require
communication and coordination among the dean of academic affairs, the dean of students,
the registrar, the director of security, and the student’s advisor. Such formation would
constitute a task group. It should be noted that all command groups are also task groups,
but because task groups can cut across the organization, the reverse need not be true.

People who may or may not be aligned into common command or task groups may affiliate to
attain a specific objective with which each is concerned. This is an interest group. Employees
who band together to have their vacation schedules altered, to support a peer who has been
fired, or to seek improved working conditions represent the formation of a united body to
further their common interest,

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Groups often develop because the individual members have one or more common
characteristics. We call these formations friendship groups. Social alliances, which frequently
extend outside the work situation, can be based on similar age or ethnic heritage, support for
football, interest in the same Alternative rock band, or the holding of similar political views, to
name just a few such Characteristics.

There is no single reason why individuals join groups. Because most people Belong to a number
of groups, it’s obvious that different groups provide different benefits to their members.
Following summarizes the most popular reasons people have joining groups.

2. Why Do People Join Groups?

a) ____________________: By joining a group, individuals can reduce the insecurity of

“standing alone.” People feel stronger, have fewer self-doubts, and are more resistant to
threats when they are part of a group.

b) ____________________: Inclusion in a group that is viewed as important by others

provides recognition and status for its members.

c) ____________________: Groups can provide people with feelings of self-worth. That is,
in addition to conveying status to those outside the group, membership can also give
increased feelings of worth to the group members themselves.

d) ____________________: Groups can fulfill social needs. People enjoy the regular
interaction that comes with group membership. For many people, these on-the-job
interactions are their primary source for fulfilling their needs for affiliation.

e) ____________________: What cannot be achieved individually often becomes possible

through group action. There is power in numbers.

f) ____________________: There are times when it takes more than one person to
accomplish a particular task—there is a need to pool talents, knowledge, or power in order
to complete a job. In such instances, management will rely on the use of a formal group.

3. Stages of Group Development: Groups generally pass through a standardized

sequence in their evolution. This sequence has five-stage model of group development.
Although research indicate that not all groups follow this pattern, it is a useful framework for
understand group development. We will now look at the the five-stage general model and
alternative model for temporary groups with deadlines.

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4. The Five-Stage Model: The five-stage group-development model characterizes
groups as proceeding through five distinct stages:

a) ____________________: The first stage, forming, is characterized by a great deal of

uncertainty and the group’s purpose, structure, and leadership. Members “test the waters”
to determine what types of behaviors are acceptable. This stage is complete when member
have begun to think of themselves as part of a group.

b) ____________________: The Storming stage is one of intragroup conflict. Members

accept the existence (the group, but there is resistance to the constraints that the group
imposes on individuality. Furthermore, there is conflict over who will control the group.
When this stage is complete, there will be a relatively clear hierarchy of leadership within
the group.

c) ____________________: The third stage, Norming is one in which close relationships

develop and the group demonstrates cohesiveness. There is now a strong sense of group
identity and camaraderie. This norming stage is complete when the group structure
solidifies and the group has assimilated a common set of expectations of what defines
correct member behavior.

d) ____________________: The fourth stage is performing. The structure at this point is fully
functional and accepted. Group energy has moved from getting to know and understand
each other to performing the task at hand.

For permanent work groups, performing is the last stage in the group development. However,
for temporary committees, teams, task forces, and similar groups that have a limited task to
perform, there is an adjourning stage. In this stage, the group prepares for its disbandment.

Many interpreters of the five-stage model have assumed that a group becomes more effective
as it progresses through the first four stages. Although this assumption may be generally true,
what makes a group effective is more complex than this model acknowledges. Under some
conditions, high levels of conflict may be conducive to high group performance. So we might
expect to find situations in which groups in Stage II outperform those in Stage III or IV.
Similarly, groups do not always proceed clearly from one stage to the next. Sometimes, in fact,
several stages go on simultaneously, as when groups are storming and performing at the same
time. Groups even occasionally regress to previous stages. Therefore, even the strongest
proponents of this model do not assume that all groups follow its five-stage process precisely
or that Stage IV is always the most preferable.

5. Group Properties: _________________________________________: Work groups

are not unorganized mobs. Work groups have properties that shape the behavior of members
and make it possible to explain and predict a large portion of individual behavior within the
group as well as the performance of the group itself. Some of these properties are:

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a) ____________________: Shakespeare said, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and
women merely players.” Using the same metaphor, all group members are actors, each
playing a role. By this term, we mean a set of expected behavior patterns attributed to
someone occupying a given position in a social unit. The understanding of role behavior
would be dramatically simplified if each of us chose one role and “played it out” regularly
and consistently. Unfortunately, we are required to play a number of diverse roles, both on
and off our jobs. One of the tasks in understanding behavior is grasping the role that a
person is currently playing. We are all required to play a number of roles, and our behavior
varies with the role we are playing. Different groups impose different role requirements on
individuals. We can think of group roles in four ways: role identity, role perception, role
expectations, and role conflict.

Role Expectations Role expectations are defined as the way others believe you should act
in a given situation. How you behave is determined to a large extent by the role defined in
the context in which you are acting. For instance, the role of a Supreme Court judge is
viewed as having propriety and dignity, whereas a football coach is seen as aggressive,
dynamic, and inspiring to his players. To return to the Stanford prison experiment, the guard
role identity led individuals to expect that they needed to act authoritatively toward the
prisoners. Thus, if role perceptions often lead to role identities, role identities, in turn, often
lead to role expectations.

Role Conflict When an individual is confronted by divergent role expectations, the result
is role conflict. It exists when an individual finds that compliance with one role requirement
may make it difficult to comply with another. At the extreme, it woul3 include situations
in which two or more role expectations are mutually contradictory.

b) ____________________: Did you ever notice that golfers don’t speak while their partners
are putting on the green or that employees don’t criticize their bosses in public? Why? The
answer is norms.

All groups have established norms—that is, acceptable standards of behavior that are
shared by the group members. Norms can cover virtually any aspect of group behavior.
Probably the most common group norm is a performance norm. Work groups typically
provide their members with explicit cues to how hard they should work, how to get the job
done, what their level of output should be, what level of tardiness is appropriate and the
like. These norms are extremely powerful in affecting an individual employee
performance—they are capable of significantly modifying a performance prediction that
was based solely on the employee’s ability and level of personal motivation.

The Hawthorne Studies provide striking evidence for the power of norms over group
members. First, though, let’s describe the studies. In these studies, researchers at Western
Electric were studying the effects of illumination and other working conditions on
employees. Contrary to their expectations, researchers found that in no case was the
increase or decrease in output in proportion to the increase or decrease in illumination. So

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 the researchers introduced a control group: An experimental group was presented with
varying intensity of illumination, whereas the controlled group worked under a constant
illumination intensity, only to find that output rose for both the control group and the
experimental group. What became evident was that the groups’ performance was
significantly affected by being observed. In essence, worker’ in the illumination and
experiments were reacting to the increased attention they were receiving, and their
performance expectations and norms increased in turn.

Though this is the most often-cited finding of the Hawthorne Studies, a follow-up study
showed the power of group norms on individuals. In this study, a sophisticated pay plan
was set up to ascertain its effect on employee motivation. The assumption was that
individual workers would maximize their productivity when they saw that it was directly
related to economic rewards. The most important finding to come out of this study was that
employees did not individually maximize their outputs. Rather, their output became
controlled by a group norm that defined a proper day’s work. Output was not only being
restricted, but individual workers were giving erroneous reports. The total for a week would
check with the total week’s output, but the daily reports showed a steady level of output,
regardless of actual daily production. What was going on? Interviews determined that the
group was operating well below its capability and was leveling output in order to protect
itself. Members were afraid that if they significantly increased their output, the unit
incentive rate would be cut, the expected daily output would be increased, layoffs might
occur, or slower workers would be reprimanded. So the group established its idea of a fair
output—neither too much nor too little. They helped each other out to ensure that their
reports were nearly level. The Hawthorne Studies made an important contribution to our
understanding of group behavior—particularly the significant place that norms have in
determining individual work behavior.

c) ____________________: Status—that is, a socially defined position or rank given to

groups or group member by others—permeates every society. Even the smallest group will
develop roles, rights and rituals to differentiate its members. Status is an important factor
in understanding: human behaviour because it is a significant motivator and has major
behavioural consequences when individuals perceive a disparity between what they believe
their status to be and what others perceive it to be.

What Determines Status? According to status characteristics theory, status tends to be

derived from one of three sources:

I. The power a person wields over others: Because they likely control the group’s
resource. People who control the outcomes of a group through their power tend to be
perceived as high status.

II. A person capability to contribute to group goals: People whose contributions are
critical to the group’s success tend to have high status.

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 III. An individual’s personal characteristics. Someone whose personal characteristics
a: positively valued by the group (for example, good looks, intelligence, money, or
friendly personality) typically has higher status than someone who has fewer value:
attributes.

d) ____________________: Status has been shown to have some interesting effects on the
power of norms and pressures to conform. For instance, high-status members controlled
groups are often given more freedom to deviate from norms than are other group members.
High-status people are also better able to resist conformity pressures than their lower-status
peers. An individual who is highly valued by a group but who doesn’t much need or care
about the social rewards the group provides is particularly able to pay minimal attention to
conformity norms.

Status and Group Interaction: Interaction among members of groups is influenced by

status. We find, for instance, that high-status people tend to be more assertive. They speak
out more often, criticize more, state more commands, and interrupt others more often. But
status differences actually inhibit diversity of ideas and creativity in groups because lower-
status members tend to be less active participants in group discussions. In situations in
which lower-status members possess expertise and insights that could aid the group, their
expertise and insights are not likely to be fully utilized, thus reducing the group’s overall
performance.

e) ____________________: Does the size of a group affect the group’s overall behavior? The
answer to this question is a definite “yes,” but the effect is contingent on what dependent
variables you look at. The evidence indicates, for instance, that smaller groups are faster at
completing tasks than are larger ones and that individuals perform better in smaller groups
than in larger ones. However, for groups engaged in problem solving, large groups
consistently get better marks than their smaller counterparts, at least up to a point
(approximately seven members).

One of the most important findings related to the size of a group has been labeled social
loafing. Social loafing is the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working
collectively than when working individually. It directly challenges the logic that the
productivity of the group as a whole should at least equal the sum of the productivity of the
individuals in that group.

A common stereotype about groups is that the sense of team spirit spurs individual effort
and enhances the group’s overall productivity. But that stereotype may be wrong. In the
late 1920s, German psychologist Max Ringelmann compared the results of individual and
group performance on a rope-pulling task. He expected that the group’s effort would be
equal to the sum of the efforts of individuals within the group. That is, three people pulling
together should exert three times as much pull on the rope as one person and eight people
should exert eight times as much pull. Ringelmann’s results, however, didn’t confirm his

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expectations. One person pulling on a rope alone exerted an average of 63 kilograms of
force. In groups of three, the per-person force dropped to 3 kilograms. And in groups of
eight, it fell to only 31 kilograms per person. Replications of Ringelmann’s research with
similar tasks have generally supported his findings. Group performance increases with
group size, but the addition of new members to the group has diminishing returns on
productivity

What causes this social loafing effect? It may be due to a belief that others in the group are
not carrying their fair share. If you see others as lazy or inept, you can reestablish equity
by reducing your effort. Another explanation is the dispersion of responsibility because the
results of the group cannot be attributed to any single person, the relationship between an
individual’s input and the group’s output is clouded. In such situations, individuals may be
tempted to become “free riders” and coast on the group’s efforts. In other words, there will
be a reduction in efficiency when individuals think that their contribution cannot be
measured.

There are several ways to prevent social loafing:

i. Set group goals so that the group has a common purpose to strive toward;

ii. Increase intergroup competition. which again focuses the group on the shared
outcome

iii. Engage in peer evaluation so that each person’s contribution to the group is
evaluated by each group member; and

iv. If possible, distribute group rewards, in part, based on each member’s unique
contributions.

Although none of these actions is a “magic bullet” that will prevent social loafing in all
cases, they should help minimize its effect.

Cohesiveness: Groups differ in their cohesiveness—that is, the degree to which

members are attracted to each other and are motivated to stay in the group. For instance,
some work groups are cohesive because the members have spent a great deal of time
together, or the group’s small size facilitates high interaction, or the group has
experienced external threats that have brought members close together. Cohesiveness
is important because it has been found to be related to group productivity.

Studies consistently show that the relationship between cohesiveness and productivity
depends on the performance-related norms established by the group. If performance-
related norms are high (for example, high output, quality work, co-operation with
individuals outside the group) a cohesive group will be more productive than will a less
cohesive group. But if cohesiveness is high and performance norms are low,

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 productivity will be low. If cohesiveness is low and performance norms are high,
productivity increases. But it increases less than in the high-cohesiveness/high-norms
situation. When cohesiveness and performance-related norms are both low,
productivity tends to fall into the low-to-moderate range.

What can you do to encourage group cohesiveness? You might try one or more of the
following suggestions:

i. _________________________________
ii. _________________________________
iii. _________________________________
iv. _________________________________
v. _________________________________ and
vi. _________________________________

6. Group Decision Making: The belief—characterized by juries—that two heads are better
than one has long been accepted as a basic component of North American and many other
countries’ leg systems. This belief has expanded to the point that, today, many decisions in
organizations are made by groups, teams, or committees. Now we will look at group
decision making.

7. Groups Vs the Individual: Decision-making groups may be widely used in organizations,

but does that imply that group decisions are preferable to those made by an individual
alone? The answer: to this question depends on a number of factors. Let’s begin by looking
at the strengths and weaknesses of group decision making.

8. Strengths of Group Decision Making: Groups generate more complete information and
knowledge. By aggregating the resources of several individuals, groups bring more input
into the decision process. In addition to more input, groups can bring heterogeneity to the
decision process. They offer increased diversity of views. This opens up the opportunity
for more approaches and alternatives to be considered. Finally, groups lead to increased
acceptance of a solution. Many decisions fail after the final choice is made because people
don’t accept the solution. Group members who participated in making a decision are likely
to enthusiastically support the decision and encourage others to accept it.

9. Weaknesses of Group Decision Making: In spite of the pluses noted, group decisions
have their drawbacks. They’re time consuming because groups typically take more time to
reach a solution than would be the case if an individual were making the decision. There
are conformity pressures in groups. The desire by group members to be accepted and
considered an asset to the group can result in squashing any overt disagreement. Group
discussion can be dominated by one or a few members. If this dominant coalition is
composed of low- and medium-ability members, the group’s overall effectiveness will

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 suffer. Finally, group decisions suffer from ambiguous responsibility. In an individual
decision, it’s clear who is accountable for the final outcome. In a group decision, the
responsibility of any single member is watered down.

10. Effectiveness and Efficiency Whether groups are more effective than individuals depends
on the criteria you use to define effectiveness. In terms of accuracy, group decisions are
generally more accurate than the decisions of the average individual in a group, but they
are less accurate than the judgments of the most accurate group member. If decision
effectiveness is defined in terms of speed, individuals are superior. If relativity is important,
groups tend to be more effective than individuals. And if effectiveness means the degree of
acceptance the final solution achieves, the nod again goes the group.

But effectiveness cannot be considered without also assessing efficiency. In terms of

efficiency; groups almost always stack up as a poor second to the individual decision
maker. With few exceptions, group decision making consumes more work hours than if
one were to compare the group’s combined effort to the same group of individuals working
alone. In deciding whether to use groups, then, consideration should be given to assessing
whether increases in effectiveness are more than enough to offset the reductions in
efficiency.

11. Groupthink and Group-shift: Two by-products of group decision making have received
a considerable amount of attention from researchers in OB. These two phenomena have the
potential to affect a group’s ability to appraise alternatives objectively and to arrive at
quality decision solutions.

The first phenomenon, called groupthink, is related to norms. It describes situations in

which group pressures for conformity deter the group from critically appraising unusual,
minority, or unpopular views. Groupthink is a disease that attacks many groups and can
dramatically hinder their performance. The second phenomenon we will discuss is called
group-shift. It indicates that, in discussing a given set of alternatives and arriving at a
solution, group members tend to exaggerate the initial positions they hold. In some
situations, caution dominates, and there is a conservative shift. More often, however, the
evidence indicates that groups tend toward a risk shift. Let’s look at each of these
phenomena in more detail.

12. Groupthink: Have you ever felt like speaking up in a meeting, a classroom, or for
informal group but decided against it? One reason may have been shyness. On the other
hand, you may have been a victim of groupthink, a phenomenon that occurs what group
members become so enamored of seeking concurrence that the norm for consensus
overrides the realistic appraisal of alternative courses of action and the full expression of
deviant, minority, or unpopular views. It describes deterioration in an individual’s mental
efficiency, reality testing, and moral judgment as a result of group pressures. We have all
seen the symptoms of the groupthink phenomenon:

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 a) Group members rationalize any resistance to the assumptions they have made. No
matter how strongly the evidence may contradict their basic assumptions, members
behave so as to reinforce those assumptions continually.

b) Members apply direct pressures on those who momentarily express doubts about any
of the group’s shared views or who question the validity of arguments supporting the
alternative favored by the majority.

c) Members who have doubts or hold differing points of view seek to avoid deviation from
what appears to be group consensus by keeping silent about misgivings and even
minimizing to themselves the importance of their doubts.

d) There appears to be an illusion of unanimity if someone doesn’t speak, it’s assumed

that he or she is in full accord. In other words, abstention becomes viewed as a “yes”
vote

What can managers do to minimize groupthink?

a) First, they can monitor group size. People grow more intimidated and hesitant as group
size increases, and. although there is no magic number that will eliminate groupthink,
individuals are likely to feel less personal responsibility when groups get larger than
seven to ten.

b) Managers should also encourage group leaders to play an impartial role. Leader should
actively seek input from all members and avoid expressing their own opinions
especially in the early stages of deliberation. In addition, managers should appoint one
group member to play the role of devil’s advocate; this member’s role is to overtly
challenge the majority position and offer divergent perspectives.

13. Group-shift: In comparing the outcomes of group decisions with the individual decisions
of members within the group, evidence suggests that there are differences. In some cases,
group decisions are more conservative than individual decisions. More often, the shift is
toward greater risk. What appears to happen in groups is that the discussion leads to a
significant shift in the positions of members toward a more extreme position in the direction
in which they were already leaning before the discussion. So conservative types become
more cautious, and more aggressive types, take on more risk. The group discussion tends
to exaggerate the initial position of the group

Group-shift can be viewed as actually a special case of groupthink. The decision of the
group reflects the dominant decision-making norm that develops during the group’s
discussion. Whether the shift in the group’s decision is toward greater caution or more risk
depends on the dominant pre-discussion norm.

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 So how should you use the findings on group-shift? You should recognize that group
decisions exaggerate the initial position of the individual members, that the shift bias been
shown more often to be toward greater risk, and that whether a group will shift toward
greater risk or caution is a function of the members’ pre-discussion inclinations.

Having discussed group decision making and its pros and cons, we now turn to the
techniques by which groups make decisions. These techniques reduce some of the
dysfunctional aspects of group decision making.

14. Group Decision-Making Techniques: The most common form of group decision making
takes place in interacting groups. In these groups, members meet face-to-face and rely on
both verbal and nonverbal interaction to communicate with each other. But as our
discussion of groupthink demonstrated, groups do not always work in the way that we think
they should. That holds true with group decision making, too. Here we review the most
common group decision-making technique—brainstorming—and an alternative—the
nominal group technique.

15. Brainstorming is meant to overcome pressures for conformity in an interacting group that
retard the development of creative alternatives. It does this by utilizing an idea-generation
process that specifically encourages any and all alternatives while withholding any
criticism of those alternatives. In a typical brainstorming session, six to twelve people sit
around a table. The group leader states the problem in a clear manner so that it is understood
by all participants. Members then “freewheel” as many alternatives as they can in a given
length of tune. No criticism is allowed, and all the alternatives are recorded for later
discussion md analysis. One idea stimulates others, -and judgments of even the most bizarre
suggestions are withheld until later to encourage group members to “think the unusual.”

Brainstorming may indeed generate ideas—but not in a very efficient manner. Research
consistently shows that individuals working alone generate more ideas than a group in a
brainstorming session. Why? One of the primary reasons is because of “production
blocking.” In other words, when people are generating ideas in a group, there are many
people talking at once, which block the thought process and eventually impede the sharing
of ideas. The following technique goes further than brainstorming by offering a method
that helps groups arrive at a preferred solution.

The nominal group technique restricts discussion or interpersonal communication during

the decision-making process, hence the term nominal. Group members are all physically
present, as in a traditional committee meeting, but members operate independently.
Specifically, a problem is presented and then the group takes the following steps:

a) Members meet as a group, but before any discussion takes place, each member
independently writes down ideas on the problem.

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 b) After this silent period, each member presents one idea to the group. Each member
takes a turn, presenting a single idea, until all ideas have been presented a recorded. No
discussion takes place until all ideas have been recorded.

c) The group discusses the ideas for clarity and evaluates them.

d) Each group member silently and independently rank-orders the ideas. The idea with the
highest aggregate ranking determines the final decision.

The chief advantage of the nominal group technique is that it permits a group:
meet formally but does not restrict independent thinking, as does an interaction group.
Research generally shows that nominal groups outperform brainstorming groups.

16. Group Behavior: An Asian Perspective: The individualism of the west and the
collectivism of the East influence group processes in different ways. Asians place great
value on the group and its acceptance. They prefer to belong to a group and value the
differentiation that their group provides, demarcating them from other groups.

Asians give utmost importance to family. Familiarism and nepotism are common. In Korea,
about, 30 percent of companies have family members as executives. Similarly in India, the
family business is often passed on to the next generation, which then take cover the
business. This practice is based on the belief that family members are more trustworthy,
committed, and loyal. In India, not only the family business but also political candidature
is passed on to the kin. The five generations of the Nehru family in Indian politics and
Bandaranaike family are prominent examples of this practice.

In Asia, groups expect, demand and extract close adherence to group norms. They are
highly sensitive and believe that non adherence to group norms may lead jeopardizing the
relationship or expulsion from the group. As the Asian culture drives individuals toward
flexibility and tolerance, role erosion and role ambiguity are prevalent. Oral communication
plays an important role in offices, in everyday activities and in day-to-day work. Most of
the official work in the West is based on documentation. In Asia, however, only what is
legally needed or very important is documented. This culture has leads to adhocism at work,
or a tendency to respond only to urgent matters, especially in India.

Emotional bonding, through shared lunch at the office, for example, is very popular among
Asians. Sharing of socio-emotional activities is more important than task-orientated
activities. Asian workers frequently visit colleagues and celebrate festivals together. Asians
respond quickly and visit group members when they are distressed or ill.

17. Global Implications: As in most other areas of OB, most of the research on groups has
been conducted in North America, but that situation is changing quickly. There are three
areas of group research where cross-cultural issues are particularly important.

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18. Status and Culture: Do cultural differences affect status? The answer is a resounding yes.
The importance of status does vary between cultures. The French, for example, are highly
status conscious. Countries also differ on the criteria that create status. For instance, status
for Latin Americans and Asians tends to be derived from family position and formal roles
held in organizations. In contrast, although status is still important in countries such as the
United States and Australia, it is often bestowed more for accomplishments than on the
basis of titles and family trees.

The message here is to make sure you understand who and what holds status when
interacting with people from a culture different from your own. A U.S. manager who
doesn’t understand that physical office size is not a measure of a Japanese executive’s
position or who fails to grasp the importance the British place on family genealogy and
social class is likely to unintentionally offend his overseas counterparts and, in so doing,
lessen his interpersonal effectiveness. Sri Lankan context would be different from both U.S.
and Japan. We need to have tailor made knowledge commensurate with the context that we
are working for.

19. Social Loafing: Social loafing appears to have a Western bias. It’s consistent with
individualistic cultures, such as the United States and Canada that are dominated by self-
interest. It is not consistent with collective societies, in which individuals are motivated by
in-group goals. For instance, in studies comparing employees from the United States with
employees from the People’s Republic of China and Israel (both collectivist societies), the
Chinese and Israelis showed no propensity to engage in social loafing.

20. Group Diversity: More and more research is being done on how diversity influences group
performance. Some of this research looks at cultural diversity, and some of it considers
diversity on other characteristics (such as race or gender). Collectively, the research points
to both benefits and costs of group diversity.

In terms of costs, diversity appears to lead to increased group conflict, especially in the
early stages of a group’s tenure. This conflict often results in lower group morale and group
members dropping out. One study of groups that were either culturally diverse (composed
of people from different countries) or homogeneous (composed of people from the same
country) found that, on a wilderness survival exercise, the diverse and homogenous groups
performed equally well, but the diverse groups were less satisfied with their groups, were
less cohesive, and had more conflict.

In terms of the benefits to diversity, more evidence is accumulating that, over time,
culturally and demographically diverse groups may perform better, if they can get over
their initial conflicts. Why might this be the case? Research shows that surface-level
diversity—observable characteristics such as national origin, race, and gender—actually
cues people to possible differences in deep-level diversity—underlying attitudes, values,
and opinions. One researcher argues, “The mere presence of diversity you can see, such as
a person’s race or gender actually cues a team that there’s likely to be differences of

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 opinion.” Although those differences of opinion can lead to conflict, they also provide an
opportunity to solve problems in unique ways.

One study of jury behavior, for example, found that diverse juries were more likely to
deliberate longer, share more information, and make fewer factual errors when discussing
evidence. Interestingly, two studies of MBA student groups found that surface-level
diversity led to greater openness even when there was no deep-level diversity. In such cases,
the surface- level diversity of a group may subconsciously cue team members to be more
open-minded in their views.

21. Implications for Managers: A number of group properties show a relationship with
performance. Among the most prominent are role perception, norms, status differences,
size of the group, and cohesiveness. There is a positive relationship between role perception
and an employee’s performance evaluation. The degree of congruence that exists between
an employee and the boss in the perception of the employee’s job influences the degree to
which the boss will judge that employee as an effective performer. To the extent that the
employee’srole perception fulfills the boss’s role expectations, the employee will receive a
higher performance evaluation.

Norms control group member behavior by establishing standards of right and

wrong. The norms of a given group can help to explain the behaviors of its members for
managers. When norms support high output, managers can expect individual performance
to be markedly higher than when group norms aim to restrict output. Similarly, norms that
support antisocial behavior increase the likelihood that individuals will engage in deviant
workplace activities.

Status inequities create frustration and can adversely influence productivity and the
willingness to remain with an organization. Among individuals who are equity sensitive,
incongruence is likely to lead to reduced motivation and an increased search for ways to
bring about fairness (for example, taking another job).

The impact of size on a group’s performance depends on the type of task in which the group
is engaged. Larger groups are more effective at fact-finding activities. Smaller groups are
more effective at action-taking tasks. Our knowledge of social loafing suggests that, if
management uses larger groups, efforts should be made to provide measures of individual
performance within the group.

Cohesiveness can play an important function in influencing a group’s level of productivity

whether it does depend on the group’s performance-related norms.

Source: Essentials of Organization Behaviour, Judge, Robbins & Sanghi (10th Ed.)

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Session 02
E T I Q U E T T E A ND E T H I C S

Emily Post once said. "Etiquette is a house built on ethics: In the first edition of Etiquette
published in July- 1922. She described the relationship she saw between etiquette and ethics this
way: "Etiquette must, if it is to be of more than trilling use, include ethics as well as manners.
Interestingly, she saw ethics as a subset of etiquette rather than the other way around. To
understand that relationship is to have an understanding and appreciation of what etiquette really
is, because it is not simply some rigid code of manners. Emily has stated “Whenever two people tome
together and their behavior affects one another, you have etiquette. Etiquette is not some rigid cede
of manners; it's simply how persons' lives touch one another.'

When two people come together and their behavior affects each other, what you also have
is a society. Each and every one of us is a social animal. We don't simply live alone, independent of the
people around us. We can't live without regard for the people around us. If we did, humanity
would have been doomed long ago.

One of the hallmarks of good etiquette is that it never calls attention to itself. When
everything is going well as far as your actions, appearance, and words are concerned, your
focus—and the focus of the people you are with—will be on the content of your discussion. Slip
up with any one of the factors, however, and the focus instantly shifts to the error ("I can't believe
he just did that"). By being aware of your actions, appearance, and words, and working to improve
your performance in all three areas. You can directly enhance the quality of your relationships.

We live together. As a group—a society—we identify and then codify behaviors that are
acceptable and behaviors that are unacceptable and then we expect people to abide by those
expectations, which become laws and manners. Laws are rules for which the society defines specific
penalties and imposes those penalties. Manners are those behaviors society has identified as will
interact with each other so we are comfortable in the presence of one another. In essence,
manners tell us what to do, whereas laws tell is what not to do.

While it may seem that we unconsciously observe hundreds of manners each day, there are
situations that cause us to pause because there seems to be no particular manner to apply. How, then,
do we know what to do? Fortunately, etiquette is more than just manners. It also embodies the principles
on which all manners are built, principles that can help a person Identify the best course of action when
there is no particular manner to guide her, when Emily wrote Etiquette must, if it is to be of
more than trifling use. Include ethics as well as manners, in the very next sentence she expounded'
on what etiquette meant to her “Certainly what one e, is of far greater importance C than what one
appears to be. A knowledge of etiquette is of course essential to ones dawn behavior just clothing is
essential to one's decent appearance.”

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 You can clock yourself to appear to be anything, but Emily understood that doing so creates
just a hollow shell for yourself, and eventually that shell will disintegrate that real you is what
really matters in your interaction with everyone you come into contact.
Who is the Real You? You get dressed in the morning, and as you look in the mirror, you think
to yourself, "I look great today!" The problem? When you walk into the meeting room that
day, the other people there, including your boss, wonder, "What on earth is he wearing that
for?" Mistake. Why? Because you forgot a cardinal rule of business etiquette: The perspective
of the other person matters. Every day at work you interact with people and those actions
leave impressions on them about you. You may think it doesn't matter because they are a
colleague or they work for you. But it does matter because one day they may be your boss or
a client who decides if you are someone she wants to work with, or a prospect who is deciding
who gets a new contract, or a future boss who decides if you get a job or get promoted.
Perspective in business matters. And that fact leads directly to three goals that can help you
build better, stronger relationships.

The Three Goals: Throughout the day, you are faced with choices as you interact with people.
Which choice you act on will determine not only if you resolve whatever the situation is but
also if your relationship is enhanced or hurt by it. In essence: How you do things matters.
Recognizing that the how matters in business leads directly to the first goal: Think before you
act. Too often people act impulsively without thinking, and sometimes, as a result, they end
up having to apologize. That apology often takes the form of "I'm sorry. I can't believe I did
that. I don't know what ‘I was thinking." Thinking before you act will reduce the number of
times you have to apologize for your actions because instead of making impulsive decisions
you will make considered decisions. And usually, when we consider (i.e., think), we make
better choices. And that leads directly to the second goal.

Make choices that build relationships. Once you've done the thinking, you will
inevitably consider options. Some of those options will be nonstarters, some will be good for
you, and some will be harder on or less advantageous to you. In examining your choices, the
key is to identify the option that not only resolves the situation but also builds the
relationship. Sometimes the best option is not the easiest choice for you, but if it is best for
everyone else involved, then it is the best solution for you, too.

Answering a phone call while having a conversation with another person is a perfect
example. Instead of reflexively answering the phone, you hesitate and quickly realize you
have another option: You can send the call to voice mail. If you answer it, you know that the
person you are with may feel annoyed at being put "on hold" while you deal with your call. If
you don't answer it, you'll miss the call but will improve your image in the other person's eyes
because you have tacitly said, "You're more important to me than my phone." Realizing that
the perspective of the person you are with matters to your image today and in the future, you
push the button sending the call to voice mail. Good choice.

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 Now, those two goals don't work to build your image without a third: sincerity. Your actions
need to be grounded in sincerity because when they are, people develop confidence in you,
and confidence begets trust, and relationships are built on trust. Try to fool someone, be
someone who you are not, use flattery to get what you want, and that person will soon see
through you and consequently have little if any trust in your motives—at which point
regaining that person's trust will be very difficult.

That's it. Three goals to help you be more successful in business:

1. Think before you act.
2. Make choices that build relationships.
3. Do it sincerely.

The Three Principles that Govern All Etiquette: Interestingly, those three goals go hand in
hand with the three principles that govern all etiquette. The principles are the guiding
concepts on which all manners are based. Among other things, they tell us
 What to do when there is no prescribed manner or a particular manner doesn't work
 How to resolve relationship situations

For example, while attending a business dinner, an elderly client begins to excuse
herself from the table. Because business etiquette is meant to be none—gender specific, the
appropriate "manner" states that you, as a male, shouldn't stand as she gets ready to leave
the table. But you also know the client is old school— and so you decide that, despite the
latest guideline or "rule," you will stand. As you do, she smiles and says, “thank you.” By

Understanding the unique circumstance of the Situation and showing respect for your
dinner companion by standing in spite of what the current rules says, you have made her
appreciate you just that much more in run, you’ve helped yourself and you company build a
better relationship with her.
Virtually all die manners that you’ll find in etiquette books—and, indeed, all the choices that you’ll
ever make about your actions, appearance, and word-are governed are by three principles: consider
action, respect, and honesty.

 Consideration means looking at the current situation and assessing how it affects
everyone who is involved.
 Respect means identifying how a possible action will affect others.
 Honesty means acting sincerely and being truthful, not deceitful.

Having a command of good etiquette really means knowing how to use your own common
sense in applying one or more of the above principles to determine the best course of action
in any situation.

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 The man standing up at the dinner table knows that in this case being respectful of his
companion was more important than following the rule—so he rose. He put the principles
into action by applying the three goals. He was considerate in taking just a moment to think
before he simply acted. He applied the principle of respect by examining each possible action
to identify not only if it resolved the situation but also if it built the relationship. Finally, he
was honest and sincere with himself in his choice to rise
Because it would honor the woman who would be pleased by his action.
Consideration Thinking before you act
Respect Making choices that build relationships
Honesty Doing it sincerely

Where do ethics fit in?: So why is ethics a subset of etiquette? Whereas every ethical situation
is governed by the three principles, not every manner addresses an ethical situation. For
instance, knowing which fork to use at a dinner party is not an ethical issue but it is an
etiquette rule. Other examples of etiquette rules that aren't ethical issues include: not picking
your nose, standing when greeting a person, and responding to an invitation.

When you face a decision that involves a moral right and wrong and isn't just a matter
of how to resolve a situation like how to hold a fork, that's when the issue becomes an ethical
issue. Its resolution is governed by those same principles—consideration, respect, and
honesty. For instance, taking credit for work that's not yours is certainly an ethical issue, but
it is also an etiquette issue as its resolution is governed by etiquette's three principles.

The Ethics Resource Center' identified a number of different types of unethical

behavior that were reported by employees as behaviors they had witnessed:

 Ethics Resource Center National Business Ethics Survey 2013

 Abusive or intimidating behavior toward other employees (18 percent)
 Lying to other employees (17 percent)
 Discriminating on the basis of race, color, gender, age,-or similar categories
(12 percent)
 Conflicts of interest (15 percent)
 Violating company policies related to Internet use (12 percent)
 Misreporting of hours worked (10 percent)
 Violations of health or safety regulations (10 percent)
 Stealing, theft, or related fraud (9 percent)
 Employee benefits violations (9 percent)
 Falsifying time reports or hours worked (12 percent)
 Sexual harassment (11 percent)
 Giving or accepting bribes, kickbacks, or inappropriate gifts (5 percent)

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 All of these unethical behaviors can be defined as inconsiderate, disrespectful, and dishonest—just
the opposite of the principles of etiquette. So ethical behavior is behavior grounded in consideration,
respect, and honesty, and that's why, as Emily said, "Etiquette must, if it is to be of more than trifling
use, include ethics as well as manners."

Ethics is Grounded in Intent: We can all agree that lying about time worked is an ethical issue.
When does an ethical issue no longer qualify as an ethical issue? Are the following ethical
dilemmas?

 Taking $100 from petty cash

 Taking a quarter from petty cash for the parking meter
 Falsifying financial records
 Copying your resume on the office copier
 Lying about hours worked
 Taking a pen from the office home with you

Some of these examples are serious breaches and come with consequences when
discovered. There's no wiggle room to put a spin on the action that excuses it. Other actions
seem petty. Really, who is going to worry about a quarter from petty cash or two pieces of
paper in the copier or a pen? Probably no one.

Still, they are ethical issues because of the intent behind them. "I'll just take a quarter
from petty cash" has a very different intent from "I'll borrow a quarter now and return it after
lunch." In both cases, only the perpetrator knows what has happened, but the intent changes
the action from an excusable one, an action in which others would continue to have trust in
a person, to an inexcusable one, an action that engenders mistrust if the person is caught.
And unfortunately, when ethical situations like this arise, that's when Murphy raises his ugly
head and you get caught. And once caught, dealing with the larger, more serious issue of an
ethical violation is much worse than handling the situation ethically to begin with.

Reporting Ethical Misbehavior: The fellow in the next cubicle has been gone all afternoon—
for the third day in a row. What do you do? While you may feel a tug of loyalty toward the
guy (he's really not such a bad egg), your duty is clear. Besides behaving ethically yourself, it
is also your responsibility to report unethical behavior on the part of your coworkers.

In practice, how you actually respond to such behavior will vary depending on the
severity and nature of the transgression. If it's a matter of a few Ballpoint pens slipped into a
briefcase or someone ducking out of the office an hour early now and then, you may weigh
the pros and cons of saying something and then decide to remain silent for the time being. If
the transgression is more serious—such as repeatedly going missing from the office for hours
at a time, acting abusively toward a fellow employee, or lying about a work-related issue—
you should approach your colleague and give him the opportunity to redress the situation
before you do: "Jack, lying about that sales call reflects badly on the company and the rest of
us. You need to approach [the manager] and explain what really happened—and if you don't,
I will."

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 If the other person ignores you and continues the unethical behavior or tells you to
take a hike—or if the transgression violates the law or is so serious that you don't feel you
should approach your colleague about it—then your next step is to talk to someone in your
firm's management. Your choices could include your immediate supervisor, your company's
human resources department, or your firm's ethics officer.
One thing to bear in mind is that supervisors and human resources staff are obligated
to investigate any complaints brought to them. The advantage of going to your firm's ethics
officer first—especially if you are uncertain about whether the behavior is ethical or not or
want to learn more about your company's guidelines before acting—is that the ethics officer
is not required to take any action and doesn't have to divulge your name to management,
the courts, or any regulatory agency. If you are worried about repercussions, or simply want
to keep your name out of the affair, many companies—including all publicly held
corporations—now offer a simpler option: The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requires public
companies to have anonymous "hotlines" or similar whistle-blower systems so that employees
can report ethical violations without revealing their identities.

Ethics Issues in the Workplace: Behaving ethically toward your coworkers involves more than
simply being honest with them. Good ethics also means treating your colleagues fairly and with-
out discrimination and giving them whatever support and information they need to do their
jobs effectively. The following are key areas to be aware of.

Engaging in Abusive Behavior: You may disagree with the way a colleague is doing her job, or
even dislike her for some reason, but that is never an excuse to berate or intimidate a
coworker. If you're so upset that you can't conduct a job-related discussion calmly and
professionally, put off the discussion for another day or sit down with the other person and
your manager to hash out a constructive solution.

When Someone is Abusive Toward You: While remaining calm yourself, respond immediately
by telling the abusive colleague that his behavior is not only inappropriate but also unethical.
Then offer to continue the discussion at another time when emotions have cooled. If the other
person's abusive behavior continues, bring it to your immediate supervisor's attention.

Discrimination: Just like abusive behavior, treating a coworker differently because of his race,
color, religion, national origins, marital status, parental or family status, gender, sexuality,
disability, or age is an affront to workplace ethics as well as being illegal.

Sexual Harassment: Any sexually oriented talk or behavior in the workplace that makes a
fellow employee uncomfortable is unethical and illegal and should not be tolerated.

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Keeping Confidences: If a co-worker tells you something in confidence, whether it's work-
related or personal, you are ethically obligated to keep the conversation private—unless that
information involves something clearly harmful to your company, a fellow employee, or the
public. At that point, it becomes incumbent on you to tell the person that this cannot remain
confidential—and that if he doesn't take the issue to the appropriate person, you will have to
do so.

Taking Credit: Taking credit for someone else's ideas—either passively or actively—is a form
of stealing. One way to prevent this sort of thing from happening to you is to write up your
idea in memo form at its very inception and email it or circulate a hard copy prior to any meetings
or discussions.

Accepting Blame: When you cause a problem at work, it's incumbent on you to stand up at once and
openly accept responsibility. If someone blames you unfairly, you have every right to demand that
your colleague set the record straight—and to do it yourself if he refuses.

Backstabbing and Undermining: The ethical employee does not backstab or undermine his or her
colleagues. On the other hand, when asked to discuss a colleague with management, it is his re-
sponsibility to objectively outline the positive and negative aspects of his colleague's performance,
focusing only on work-related matters, while avoiding any overtly personal criticism. As for bull sessions
among your peers about a colleague's work performance, the ethical thing is to demur politely—
explaining simply, "I don't care to get into that sort of thing."

You and Your Company: When you joined your firm, you entered into an agreement to abide by all
company policies and to fulfill the contractual obligations of your job. In return, your company took
on the obligations of living up to its financial agreement with you and treating you fairly. There are
several key ethical issues that commonly arise on both sides of this arrangement.

Your Things or Theirs? Even the smallest pilfering could easily be the first step down a slippery
slope. The best ethical approach is simply to avoid taking any office supplies out of the workplace. The
only exception would be if you are explicitly working on work-related project at home and you have
your company’s permission on bring home any needed supplies.

An Honest Day's Work: Avoid padding even a levy minutes to the hours you re contracted to
work or to what you report on your time sheet. If you are forced to miss work time to keep a doctor's
or dentist's appointment, for example schedule the appointment for the beginning or end of the day
to minimize the impact on your work schedule, and offer to work late or through lunch to make up for
the lost time. Minimize the time spent on personal phone calls and emails, or in nonworking-related
conversation with colleagues.

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Telecommuting: Taking a strong ethical position on your work hours is even more important
when you're telecommuting. Since no one is watching to see if you're actually at your desk,
it's up to you and your inner ethical compass to make sure that you're providing your
employer with and reporting on an honest day's effort.

Sick Days: Sick days are strictly for illnesses that are debilitating or contagious enough to
require you to stay out of the office. Using a sick day to catch up on your shopping or go to
the ball game is unethical-and could also put your job in jeopardy if someone spots you in the
act.

Respecting Proprietary Information: If you stumble across data that are not meant for your
eyes, it is your ethical obligation not only to avoid scrutinizing this information but also to call
attention to the lapse in confidentiality.

Expense Reports: Asking your firm to reimburse you for expenses that aren't actually
business-related is a form of stealing. Make sure you know exactly what your company's
expense reimbursement policy is and follow it.

Company Perks: Unless your company's policy explicitly says otherwise, you must assume
that company perks are intended strictly for you and your coworkers and are to be used only
for business-related purposes. If there is any uncertainty, offer to pay the full value of any
perks in question.

Conflict of Interest: Most companies have strict conflict-of-interest rules, and it is your
responsibility to know the details of your firm's policy. Beyond this, the ethical business-
person is careful to avoid even the appearance of a conflict. For example, if you have a
particularly close personal relationship with someone who is a potential vendor and it could
possibly leave you open to a charge of favoritism, you should pass this information on to your
company's management, along with a request that you not be involved in any procurement
decisions involving that firm.

When the Culprit is You: What if through ignorance, carelessness, or a lapse in judgment you
do something yourself that is clearly unethical? There will always be a strong temptation in
such cases to keep quiet about your misstep and hope that no one notices, but ethics experts
agree that the best move is to admit what you've done and offer to make restitution as
appropriate. Tell your supervisor that you're sorry for your actions and that you'd like to start
over with a clean slate. While you may still lose your job, this is better than living with the
knowledge of what you've done and the anxiety that your actions may eventually be
uncovered.

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Lying for Your Boss and Other Ethical Dilemmas: You should never lie for your boss or be put
in a situation where you're forced even to consider it. If your boss doesn't want to deal with
a visitor or a telephone call, it's better to say your boss is "unavailable" rather than telling a
fib like "He's in a meeting" or "She's out of the office." The same holds true, by the way, when
it comes to keeping confidences your boss has shared with you.

In a more troubling situation—if, for example, your boss asks you to alter the minutes of a
meeting— your best response is to say, "I'm sorry, but I'm uncomfortable with that." Most
managers will respect your ethical stance and back down.

Perhaps the toughest of all dilemmas is when a manager or colleague asks you to do
something that you feel is unethical "for the good of the company." If you're feeling pressure
to do something questionable—or observe someone else being so pressured— your first step
should be to discuss the pros and cons of the situation with a supervisor who isn't directly
involved in the assignment. If that doesn't clear up the matter, contact your firm's human
resources department or ethics officer (if you have one). As a last resort, you can go to your
company's legal counsel or compliance officer.

If you attempt to turn down the questionable assignment but the pressure to act unethically
continues, you'll need to consider resigning. At the very least, you'll want to take an
unflinching look at your entire company. Is the pressure you're feeling an aberration, or is it
reflective of the general corporate culture?

The final step, in cases in which you believe your firm's activities are dangerous or illegal, is to become
a whistle-blower and report the company's ethics lapses to the appropriate oversight agency.

The Ethical Manager: As a company manager, you have three additional sets of ethical
responsibilities beyond your obligations as an employee:
 You have a responsibility not to abuse your position when interacting with your
subordinates.
 You have a responsibility to serve as an ethical role model for others in the company.
 You have a responsibility to actively promote an ethical environment within your firm,
including putting systems into place to help accomplish this goal and encouraging
employees to come to you with their concerns.

Let's consider these points one at a time.

Not Abusing Your Position: The ethical manager will never ask an employee to lie or
misrepresent the facts or to perform an action that is ethically dubious. The ethical manager
is also scrupulously fair in her treatment of all subordinates, including hiring and promoting
employees. Finally, the ethical manager never exploits her position to demand a favor or
other consideration from an employee; to harass or vent displeasure toward an employee in
an abusive, belittling, or intimidating way; or to ask an employee to put in more work than he
is being paid for.

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Conversely, the ethical manager makes every effort to support her staff members within the
company and also in regard to their long-term career paths. She works with each employee
in good faith to resolve any problems or difficulties that might arise. The ethical manager is
also careful to be clear and accurate in all interoffice communications and to pass along
important information about the company in an appropriate and timely fashion.

Serving as an Ethical Role Model: Experts agree that corporate ethics are defined from the
top down. When a company's leaders are perceived as having high personal ethics, that
company's employees are more likely to have high ethical standards as well. The higher your
leadership position, the more effect your words and actions will have.

Promoting an Ethical Workplace: The ethical leader insists that his firm adopt ethical goals
and means and encourages an open decision-making process that includes a full discussion
of the ethical implications of various business opportunities. The role of an ethical leader also
involves making sure the company has systems in place that support ethical behavior. These
include a corporate code of ethics that applies to all employees at all times; in-house
communication strategies that emphasize the importance of ethical behavior and encourage
the discussion of ethical issues within the company; training programs to help educate
employees on how to make good ethical decisions; resources for employees who wish to seek
guidance on ethical issues; a mechanism for reporting unethical behavior; and an established
process for dealing with ethics lapses if and when they occur, including an ethics officer who
reports directly to the CEO.

The Ethical Vendor: Clients and customers are the lifeblood of any business. Treating your
customers ethically is not just the right thing to do, it will also help ensure that they remain
your customers over the long haul. The ethical vendor

 Works diligently to finish every assignment professionally within the agreed-upon

time frame, while charging a fair price for it
 Gives honest reasons for any problems and/or delays and offers legitimate, honorable
solutions
 Provides an accurate estimate of the costs for any services or goods ahead of time,
when appropriate, and makes good on that estimate
 Never promises anything that can't be delivered
 Never offers cash or other unethical inducements in an attempt to secure business
 Never colludes with a customer to get around regulations, manipulate fees or prices,
or secure business in an unethical fashion
 Avoids even the appearance of any unethical behavior in its business relationships

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An ethical company will typically have a policy against working for two clients who are
competitors, for example, and will place a limit on the value of gifts that be given to or
received from clients. What should you do if you do get a present that's too expensive? Simply
return the item in question with a note saying, "I appreciate your gift, but I'm afraid the rules
here won't allow me to keep it."

The Ethical Customer: Being an ethical customer or client doesn't mean you can't push hard
for the best possible service or product at the best possible price. It does mean, however, that
you always conduct your negotiations in an open, honest fashion and are careful not to use your
position to exploit or manipulate the vendor—for instance, by asking a firm to spend time
preparing a proposal "on spec" when you know that you have no intention of hiring that
company. In addition, the ethical customer

 Pays vendors within the agreed-upon time period

 Lives up to all contractual obligations
 Doesn't pressure the vendor to provide goods or services beyond the scope of their
agreement
 Never allows a choice of vendor to be influenced by favors, gifts, or kickbacks
 Avoids even the appearance of any conflict of interest or discrimination when
selecting vendors
 Works in good faith with creditors to resolve outstanding debts if financial difficulties
make it impossible to meet contractual obligations

The Ethical Job Seeker: Whether you're between jobs, looking to change potions, or just
starting out on your career path, chine for new employment has its own set of ethical hurdles.
It's always a good idea to head off disruptive speculation by being as discreet as possible when
looking for a new job—for example, by conducting all interviews and job-related phone calls
at a safe distance from your office. These activities should be done only on your own time,
either outside normal work hours or in the context of a personal or vacation day. You also
owe it to your employer to give at least two weeks' notice before leaving your current job .

In addition, the ethical job-seeker

 Never lies or exaggerates in a resume or cover letter

 Focuses only on legitimate accomplishments during interviews
 Avoids bad-mouthing his or her former employer when leaving a job

Ethics experts also suggest taking advantage of the job-interview process to inquire about
your prospective employer's ethical policies and enforcement systems. If a firm has shaky or
nonexistent ethical standards and practices, the time to learn this is before you jump on board—
not after.

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 D R E S S A ND G R O O M I N G

Business dress has undergone such radical shifts in the past ten years that people simply no
longer know what is appropriate anymore. Standards that used to speak for the entire work
world now barely suffice for an individual profession. For instance, some law offices still
require men to wear suits, whereas others opt for a jacket-and-tie look and some go so far as
to permit full-blown business casual anytime. A few firms still subscribe to a casual Friday
mode, although that particular trend is fast dying out. We've even heard of casual firms going
to a formal Friday routine.

Does all this change mean that anything goes? Of course not. Figuring out which clothes are
appropriate for your business simply means assessing the particulars. It boils down to (1)
dressing to fit in at your company and (2) dressing to meet the expectations of those with
whom you do business. In a word, it's situational. But that doesn't mean you should get com-
placent. Some things about clothing never change: People judge you by your clothes; dressing
appropriately at your company is a vital ingredient in making a good first impression as well
as in maintaining a good image at work. Knowing how to dress yourself well will give you an
advantage over your peers.

Attitude and Adaptation: Today's work environment emphasizes situational dress, with an
employee's choice of what to wear to work determined by his or her profession and the
attitudes of the company. Fields such as finance, law, banking, and insurance typically call for
traditional business clothing in almost every case, whereas industries that provide design or
content—advertising, publishing, entertainment, fashion, and information technology—tend
to allow for more personal expression.

The modern business worker is chameleon-like. What to wear to work depends on what
he plans for that day. If he's doing nothing special, a man might wear his usual open-collar
shirt; if meeting with dints who are sure to be wearing ties, he will wear one, 0 Or, if he's going
to be meeting with clients who wear nothing but jeans and T-shirts, he knows that wearing a
suit could build a wall between him and his clients, so he'll opt for jeans and an open-collar
dress shirt.

Seven Key Points: Whether your workplace is stodgily conservative or more casual, here are
seven pointers that always apply to business dress:

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 1. Keep it understated: Understatement—allowing your clothes to speak without
shouting—has always been the hallmark of the well-dressed. Coco Chanel famously said
that you should always remove one accessory before stepping out, a way of putting
"less is more" into practice. Yet this, too, is relative. What is considered too flashy by
a conservative law firm is a far cry from what's too "out there" at a recording studio.

2. Dress for the job you want, not the job you have. Take a look at how your manager
dresses, or the people in the sales division where you really want to work. Use your own
style, but match your dress style to their level of formality, at least occasionally, to show
your employers that you're focused on growing with the company, rather than pushing
the envelope on corporate dress policy.

3. Represent your company. Whenever you deal with people from outside, your clothes
reflect on your company. No matter what the dress code is at the office, be prepared
to look your best.

4. Keep it neat and clean. The blouse with the ripped seam and the unpressed trousers
should stay in the closet until they can be mended and Ironed. The same goes for
footwear, even on casual days: Dirty canvas shoes, beat up flip-flops, or well-worn heels should
be saved for home and not worn to work. Soiled jeans and a T-shirt speak more of slovenliness
and poor personal habits than of rebellion and cool.

5. Don't reveal too much. Clothes that are too revealing are unsuitable in any workplace.
Whether intentional or not, low-cut blouses, tight pants, short skirts, and see-through fabrics
send a sexual message. The smart business dresser knows that the key is to have your col-
leagues, bosses, and clients focus on your work, not your body.

6. Dress for the time of day. Arriving at work in clothes more suitable for evening is also a bad
idea. Bring in your after-work attire and change your outfit after the official workday is done.

7. Don't be a fashion victim. Because your work clothes are the kind of investment that should
last for several years, don't let "what's in" or "what's cheap" be your guide. Following a trend
can be a giant mistake if it doesn't fit who you are and an even bigger mistake if it doesn't fit
your company's culture.

Business Clothes for Men: The following notes on clothes and accessories are to help men make
choices when they shop and dress, no matter what field they are in. Choosing suitable fabrics has to
do with seasonality and practicality. Personal style will always play a part, but erring on the side of
subtlety is generally the best course.

The Suit: Your business suit may spend more time hanging in the closet than it used to, but it
remains an essential in every man's wardrobe. While you want to select a suit with care, think
less of making a fashion statement than of finding something that fits well and feels
comfortable and that will stand the test of time. There's only one ironclad rule in choosing a
fabric for a suit: No matter what the color, the surface should be matte—not shiny, iridescent,
or fuzzy. The choice in fabrics boils down to wool, cotton, or microfiber,

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  Wool. With its many textures, wool is the suit fabric of choice because of its ability
to stretch yet still keep its shape, its matte finish, its ability to breathe (keeping you
warmer in winter and cooler in summer), and its long shelf life.

 Cotton. In summer, cotton and linen are popular suit fabrics because they're so
comfortable and lightweight. But be careful, especially with linen. Unless you aspire
to the fashionable nonchalance associated with wrinkles, remember that linen will
look as if you slept in it after only a few hours.

 Microfibers. Microfiber suits are a great alternative. They come in as many colors and
patterns as wool and cotton options but have the added bonus of being wrinkle resistant,
which make them fantastic for travel and frequent wear.

Dark colors have always been associated with authority, but tradition has also embraced suits
in lighter shades of brown (tan and beige) and gray. Sol-ids are always a safe choice, but
pinstripes are a handsome alternative, with a very thin, light gray stripe being the most
common choice.

Sport Jackets and Blazers: The most versatile style is the single-breasted jacket in a classic
shape. Small checks, muted patterns, and tweeds are the usual designs, while solids come in
almost every color imaginable. If the sport coat is the most casual item of business wear and
the three-piece suit the dressiest, the navy blue blazer occupies the middle ground. A blazer
paired with gray flannel pants creates a classic look that's unsurpassed.

Slacks: Slacks should be worn with the waist high enough to rest the waistband over your
hipbones. Non pleated pants tend to make you look slimmer. Cuffs are classic, whereas no
cuffs present a more modern look.

Dress Shirts: At work, more muted colors work better than loud ones. The only qualification
is to make sure the jacket, shirt, and tie complement one another. White remains the
dressiest choice. A collar with stays instead of buttons is more formal. The button-down collar
offers a wide range of formality as it can be worn with a suit or with jeans and no tie.

Overcoats and Raincoats: The traditional and most versatile length for an overcoat is just
below the knee. Shorter coats such as pea coats, parkas, and duffle coats are also perfectly
fine to wear with casual clothes or even a suit, especially in colder climates where practicality
has to prevail over style. The trench coat is one of the more popular coat styles, and this
raincoat can double as a dress coat.

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Shoes: From the dressiest on down, the traditional business shoes are the oxford (plain toe
or cap toe), the wing tip, and the plain or tasseled loafer. Your shoes should harmonize with
your outfit: black with gray, brown with tan, either with navy.
Socks: Beyond these three basics, few rules apply to socks: (1) Use dark socks for business
wear, (2) match them to your pants, and (3) make sure they're high enough not to show your
bare skins when you sit down. Natural fibers such as cotton and wool are preferable to
synthetics because they are better insulators and are more breathable, keeping feet warmer
and deterring foot odor.
Accessories: As basic as a tie, as small as a pen, as infrequently used as an umbrella—the
smaller items of the businessman's wardrobe can dress up your look, giving it an expensive
sheen, or dress it down. And, like clothing, these accessories should change character accord-
ing to the situation.
The Tie: For the great majority of men who dress for business, the tie remains the most
important of all accessories. Wide, skinny, striped, solid—even ties are subject to fashion
whims. There are two schools of thought about ties: The first says that your tie is a way for
you to express your individuality. The second says that defining your personality with your tie
may make you feel good, but nobody else really cares. Some people find idiosyncratic ties
unprofessional—your coworkers might get a kick out of your tie with the mermaid motif, but
some of your customers may not be amused. One solution to this problem is to keep a "safe"
tie in your office. Regardless of the design, make sure your tie color coordinates with your
shirt and jacket.
Belts and Suspenders: Belts should be coordinated with your shoe color, and that means you
need at least two—a black one and a brown one. The standard belt width is one or one and
a quarter inches, which fits the belt loops on suit pants, flannels, and khakis. Materials of
choice are fine-grade leather and for casual wear, braided leather, suede, or canvas. Avoid
showy buckles, obvious stitching, and other trimmings for your business belts.
Suspenders are coordinated to the tie, with the quietness or wildness of the pattern
determined by the company culture in which the wearer works.
Jewelry: Two words sum up the well-dressed businessman's use of jewelry: minimalist and
subtle. A wedding band, a class ring, and a good watch aren't quite the limit, but they're close.
Anything else on the hands or wrists should be limited to a very simple ring, cuff links, or a
simple bracelet. Tie tacks, pins, and bars are all appropriate. Chains around the neck are never
suitable in a conventional work environment and are often out of place even in casual
settings.

Watches: Think simple. The classic analog watch has always been a traditional businessman's
accessory and is popular even in the age of digital timepieces. Keep that dive watch with
several timers and multiple buttons for non-business situations. Even more important than
the style you choose is making sure you turn off any electronic sounds your watch makes. A
sudden beep announcing the hour can interrupt a meeting or presentation.

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Sunglasses: Don't wear sunglasses when you're meeting with people for business unless
you're walking outside in bright sun. Obviously, you should make eye contact, and sunglasses
render that impossible while at the same time making you look inscrutable (or worse,
suspicious). Wearing sunglasses indoors is an affectation that's going to make most people
think you're trying to shout "Hollywood!"

Briefcases: Laptop computer cases are now challenging the traditional briefcase in
popularity, especially since many now build in additional room for documents and other
materials. Whichever you use, it should be in excellent condition. For a simple sheaf of papers,
another option is a leather envelope carried under the arm.

Staying Well Groomed: Staying well groomed means staying clean, odor-free, and fresh. It's
a practical thing: A man with greasy hair and dandruff is going to be less appealing to be
around, his sloppy personal habits creating a wall between him and his coworkers and—
perhaps even more important—his clients. The idea is to attract, not repel. Here's an
everyday grooming checklist, including some items to keep on hand:

Hair: Wash your hair often enough to keep it from looking greasy. Avoid both the super-blow-dried look
and the gelled-to-the-skull look. If you tend to have dandruff, use a dandruff shampoo and keep a
small clothes brush in the office for whisking flakes off your shoulders. When it comes to style, for most
business fields, you'll want to go with something low key and simple. Anything that makes someone
focus on your hair rather than your work is probably not the style you should choose.

Fingernails: Dirt can mysteriously appear under your fingernails when you least expect it. Keep
a nail clipper with a cleaning tool in your desk drawer, but be sure to use it in the restroom,
not at your desk.

Five O'clock Shadow: This can be a problem if you have very dark hair. An electric shaver will
smarten you up if you have a late-afternoon meeting, so keep one in your desk drawer if
necessary, and remember to take it to the restroom if you need to use it.

Neck, Nose and Ear Hair. One morning a week, check to see if your nose hairs need to be clipped
(special blunt-end scissors and clippers are made for the purpose) or your ears tweezed. Your
barber or Stylist can take care of the neck and ear hair and eyebrows, too.

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Body Odour: A daily shower is the best defense against body odor, and a deodorant or
antiperspirant the second best, but avoid those with a heavy scent. This is another good item
to stash at your desk and use in the restroom if you need to later in the day.

Breath: To keep your breath fresh, keep a toothbrush at work and brush after lunch. Brushing
the back of the tongue helps control odor, and a breath mint or two during the day should
keep you from offending. Flossing is also a huge contributor to keeping your breath fresh.
Think about it: Rotting old food stuck between your teeth collecting bacteria? That can't be
good. Just be sure to brush and floss in the restroom.

Well-Heeled, Shined Shoes: Shoes with the heels worn down should be worn only at home.
A cobbler can repair a worn heel. As for shoe polish, your shoes needn't be mirror like, but
they shouldn't be noticeably scuffed or dirty either. Keep a simple polishing kit at home and
use as necessary. Treat yourself to a professional polish once in a while at an airport, train
station, or hotel lobby.

Ironed Clothes: The wrinkled look at the office makes you look unprofessional. A touch-up with
an iron before work will take a coat hanger crease out of slacks and make any less-than-
smooth shirts more presentable. No-iron clothing has made wrinkles a thing of the past.

Clean Clothes: Don't be tempted to wear that shirt, tie, or pair of pants with the grease spot,
thinking that no one will notice. If it turns out you have to meet with clients, they'll notice.
Wearing clean clothes is as essential as combing your hair. Also be careful of clothing that has
sat too long in your closet or drawer without being aired out. It can develop an "old" odor that
you want to watch out for.

Your Cologne: No element of the businessman's wardrobe requires more subtlety than
cologne. If some scents for men are meant to conjure up a woody glade or a citrus grove, they
should merely hint at those places—not plop you down in the middle of them. Filling a meeting
room with the smell of citrus, balsam, or musk is the job of an air freshener, not you. Wearing
too much cologne is even worse at an interview, where the "all things in moderation"
approach is key.
Business Clothes for Women: While today's businesswoman has more choices available to her
than her predecessors of a generation or two ago did, the principles underlying the traditional
dress code are still in place in most professional fields—namely, that good taste is never showy,
whether in color, fabric, style, accessories, hairstyle, or makeup. Yes, style and customs
change rapidly, but the smart woman in business will ground herself in the traditional styles
and then branch out from there.

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 Here's a basic wardrobe for almost any businesswoman to start with:
 A three-piece suit (jacket, slacks, and interchangeable skirt) or two suits (one with
jacket and skirt, one with jacket and slacks)

 A white, cream-colored or solid conservative-colored blouse (not sleeveless)

 A sweater set suitable for the workplace
 A fine silk scarf, conservative and in good condition for the workplace
 A microfiber all-weather coat
 A good-quality handbag
 A pair of one-and-a-half- to three-inch black-leather heels
 A pair of good-quality flat shoes, loafer-style or similar
 Panty hose, knee-high stockings, or trouser socks
 An umbrella

To these you can add garments and accessories that will individualize your look without
taking it outside of your workplace norm.

Color Considerations: When it comes to color, what is considered appropriate varies by region
as much as by professional field. As always, the smart dresser starts by observing the
conventions in her area and her workplace, taking her cues from those around her. But she also
knows something about the general perception of various colors.

 Navy blue, burgundy, black, charcoal gray, and taupe are the traditional colors of the
businesswoman's wardrobe, with the darker hues worn through the winter. Neutral
colors, or tonal, are preferable to pure colors—sea green over Kelly green, for example,
or peach over orange.

 As for other colors, red is strong and assertive— the reason it's known as a power
color. Bright orange, magenta, and other loud colors can cross the line into tackiness
in conservative businesses if not worn with care; these bright colors may be worn, but
when in doubt, tone them down with a dark color, such as a navy suit.

Coordinate and Accent: Coordinating color in an outfit is equally important. For the more
traditional look, start with basic business colors for the major garments and then accent them
with brighter colors in small amounts, which will create an eye-catching ensemble. A classic
example is the patterned scarf used with a gray or camel suit. A brighter-colored blouse with
complementary earrings, necklaces, or bracelets serves the same purpose and balances the
overall look. But do be careful of matching colors and accessories too much as they will look
forced rather than stylish.

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Fabrics: The enduring preference for natural fabrics is rooted in the fact that cotton, wool,
silk, and linen breathe while keeping the wearer cool or warm. The new microfibers are
synthetics reborn, providing breathability, comfort, and ease of care.

The acceptance of synthetics and knits is particularly good news for businesswomen. These
fabrics that were once thought of as suitable only for casual wear can now go into the
workplace depending on how they're styled. It's even better news for businesswomen who
travel. A garment that blends a natural fiber with a synthetic is more flexible, easier to care
for, and less seasonal, not to mention wrinkle-free, making it perfect for wearing on a trip
that goes from chilly Boston to steamy Houston.

Accessories: The wide range of accessories that you're able to select from gives you more
leeway to achieve a look of authority and style. Choose them to reflect both your own attitude
and that of your organization. Remember that accessories, conventional or not, project an
image, and you want that image to be positive.

Hand bags: A quality handbag is a valuable accessory that need not break the bank. Focus
first on neatness and functionality, making sure the bag is large enough to hold all the items
you carry with you-a touch-up Makeup case, day planner, tablet, cell phone, and wallet for example.

Briefcases: The traditional briefcase is giving way to the protective laptop computer case,
the purchase of which demands the same attention to good design and quality as you would
devote to a briefcase.

Device Covers: Choice your tablet, smartphone, and laptop cases covers with an eye to
business, if that's where you ill use them most. Save the bejeweled phone case for weekends.

Belts: When a woman's outfit requires a belt, the classic style is one-half- to three-quarter-
inch-wide leather. Buckles can be metal or leather in any simple, quiet shape; if metal,
coordinate it to other metal— earrings, necklaces, watchbands, buttons, and bracelets you
may be wearing. The belt's color should harmonize with shoe and garment colors. Wear belts
loose enough to ride with the waistband of your pants or skirt, not above it.

Scarves: A scarf can heighten focus on the face or provide visual relief to a monochromatic
outfit. Scarves can also dress up a casual outfit or soften a tailored look. Coordinate a
multicolored scarf to your ensemble by making sure it picks up a color in the outfit and works
with your skin tone.

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J e w e l r y : If you have a passion for jewelry, curb it during the workday at traditional offices,
at least. Keep in mind that jewelry should accent, not take center stage. Beware jewelry that's
noisy charm and bangle bracelets particularly that could be distracting or annoying to others.

Earrings: Simple button-style earrings in silver, gold, or pearl are classic because they
harmonize well with jacket outfits. Diamond, pearl, or gold studs or small drops are also
always appropriate.

Necklaces: Two necklace styles are traditional for business wear pendants with small-scale
silver or gold chains or small to medium-size classic pearls. Let the neckline of the garment
decide the shape: V-shaped neckline, V-shaped necklace; rounded neckline, rounded necklace.
To coordinate a colored necklace with your outfit, make sure its color is repeated somewhere
n a print, the belt, or the skirt or blouse color.

Rings: With simplicity as the guiding principle, the maximum number of rings for traditional
business wear is one per hand (wedding and engagement count as one ring).

Watches: Two kinds of bands are preferred in conservative offices: leather in black or brown;
and metal in matte stainless steel, silver, or gold. (Match the metal of your watch to that of
your other jewelry.) Large-face watches are fine. Remember to turn off any electronic noises
the watch makes.

Footwear: The traditional taboos against open-toed shoes, backless shoes, sling backs, and
other informal styles still exist in conservative workplaces but have disappeared in most
others. Most offices consider the following shoes undesirable: clogs; hiking boots; boat shoes;
flip-flops; and chunky, thick-soled shoes. Knowing what's appropriate anywhere is equally
easy: the pump. Beyond that, take cues from your peers and your bosses.

Pumps: The classic business pump has a one to one and a half inch high heel (and the wider
the heel, the more comfortable), but any becoming height can be appropriate depending on
the workplace. In all but the most formal workplaces, you'll now see a range between three-
inch heels and flats. Shoe color is also less of an issue than it once was and most women
coordinate their shoes to the color of their outfits, but the traditional business colors remain
black, navy, chocolate brown, and taupe. Whatever the color, under no circumstances should
you wear shoes that are dirty or scuffed or have worn-down heels.

Athletic Shoes (Sneakers): Never wear athletic shoes at work, unless it is the norm at a
casual dress company or when approved for dress-down days. To wear them to or from the
office is fine, however, especially in cities where heels become a problem when negotiating
sidewalks and public transportation. Many women keep a pair of shoes at the office or carry
them in a tote bag to change into at the office.

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 S T A YI N G W EL L G R O O M ED

Grooming is every bit as important as what you wear. Hair has proved its potential to make a
statement as well as or more strongly than clothes do. The amount of makeup sends a
message, too—and in most workplaces, understatement in both is key.
Hair
A woman will attract attention with her hair when she has a flattering cut or healthy, shiny
hair that simply begs to be admired. What about length? There's no longer a rule, but on the
job, keep hair out of the eyes: Tuck it behind your ears, pull it back or up, or aside with a
barrette. Clips that create an instant upswept twist are also popular and make for a nice
professional look.

Makeup: As a rule, use a light touch makeup should enhance, not dominate. Extreme eye
makeup, very unusual lip color, a lot of lip liner that is in obvious contrast to the lipstick—
these are poor choices in most workplaces.

Nails: The best length for nails in most business environments is just over the tip of the finger.
The appropriateness of extreme length or colors (black, blue, purple, neon) and fake nails
decorated with designs or pictures is in direct proportion to the conservatism of your
workplace. Clear nail polish is the best choice if you're uncertain. In conservative offices, a
classic red, an understated pink, or clear polish are all fine.

Perfume: Like it or not, the perfume you wear to the office may be offending someone's nose.
There has been an appreciable jump in the number of people who claim they are "allergic" to
most scent in general, especially manufactured ones. Unless you work in an office with a "no
scent" policy, you don't have to go to work scent-free. Just make sure the scent is light and
clean, not one of the more exotic or "romantic" blends more appropriate for evening and use
it sparingly: If your scent still lingers in the room after you leave someone's office, you're
wearing too much.

After Dark: Evening business functions may call for a dressier wardrobe. On occasion you
might need a cocktail dress and possibly even a long formal gown.

Conclusion: Etiquette is a vast subject which one cannot finish exploring. It is for any
occasions, any situation and any instance even. Also etiquette could be categorized in to four
main areas, namely personal, social and dinning etiquette. The aim of the basic outline of
etiquette is to teach the fundamentals and groom flexibility to suit the occasion.
(Source: Adopted from Etiquette advantage in Business by Peter and Anna Post)

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Session 03
COMMUNICATION SKILLS

N O individual, group, or organization can exist without communication: the transfer of

meaning among its members. It is only through transmitting meaning from one person
to another that information and ideas can be conveyed. Communication, however, is
more than merely imparting meaning. It must also be understood. In a group in which one
member speaks only German and the others do not know German, the individual speaking
German will not be fully understood. Therefore, communication must include both the transfer
and the understanding of meaning. Before making too many generalizations concerning
communication and problems in communicating effectively, we need to describe the
communication process.

1. What is Communication?

“Communication is the activity whereby an individual or group conveys, consciously or

unconsciously, information to another individual or group and, where necessary, evokes a
response.
The information may be facts, feelings or ideas. Eric Moonman, The manager and the
Organization

“Communication is the transfer of information from one person to another with the
information being understood by both the sender and receiver.” Koontz

Communication might be usefully defined as the process by which meanings are exchanged
between people through the use of a common set of symbols (i.e. Language). However, the
exchange can be of feelings and it must be noted that in this particular context emotions do
not need words to be transmitted or received intentionally or unintentionally.

2. What is Employee Communication?

The channel which exchanges information, emotions, suggestions, grievances and

opinions between the management and employees.

3. The Communication Process:

Before communication can take place, a purpose, expressed as a message to be conveyed,

is needed. It passes between a sender and a receiver. The message is encoded (converted to
a symbolic form) and passed by way of some medium (channel) to the receiver, who
retranslates (decodes) the message initiated by the sender. The result is transfer of meaning
from one person to another.

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 FEED BACK

Medium

Figure 1: Communication Process

Figure 1 depicts this communication process. The key parts of this model are
a. __________________
b. __________________
c. __________________
d. __________________
e. __________________
f. __________________
g. __________________
h. __________________
i. __________________ and
j. __________________

The sender initiates a message by encoding a thought. The message is the actual
physical product from the sender’s encoding. When we speak, the speech is the
message. When we write, the writing is the message. When we gesture, the movements
of our and the expressions on our faces are the message. The channel is the medium
ugh which the message travels. It is selected by the sender, who must determine ether
to use a formal or informal channel. Formal channels are established by the
organization and transmit messages that are related to the professional activities of
members. They traditionally follow the authority chain within the organization. Other
forms of messages, such as personal or social, follow informal channels in the
organization. These informal channels are spontaneous and emerge as a response to
individual choices. The receiver is the object to whom the message is directed. But
before the message can be received, the symbols in it must be translated into a form
that can be understood by the receiver. This step is the decoding of the message. Noise
represents communication barriers that distort the clarity of the message. Examples of
possible Noise sources include perceptual problems, information overload, semantic
difficulties, or cultural differences. The final link in the communication process is a
feedback loop. Feedback is the check on how successful we have been in transferring
our messages as originally intended. It determines whether understanding has been
achieved.

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4. Purpose of Communication: In very broad terms, the purposes of communication come
under three major headings,

a) _____________: This considers as the prime and common purpose. Giving facts and
figures, providing explanations, describing events, introduction of products/ services,
forecasting of future needs fall under this category.

b) _______________: As a result of this type of communication, you expect that the receiver
will change their behaviour (Eg. Do something or not do something, Do it faster or
steadily). Alternatively, the receiver would be expected to change their way of thinking.
This type of communication may take the form of an express instruction or order; it may
be persuasion or advice. Whatever the form, the purpose is to get the recipient to take a
particular action or line of thought.

c) ________________: This function can be best described as; “The way in which one
expresses one’s feelings towards another” For this purpose, communications may express
praise or admiration for other people, perhaps of their performance or behaviour; they may
express sympathy or understanding, show dislike or apportion blame.

In all cases, you are telling other people what your feelings are towards them or about them,
or something connected with them, such as their work or behaviour.

5. Functions of Communication: All of these broad purposes are easily identifiable in

organizations but to appreciate the importance of good communication for organizations,
we must grasp the functions and goals that communication fulfils for them. The functions
of communication include,

a) To bring about change: Sales figures may influence the level of production

b) To sustain the stability: information are passed so that the activities are continued in the
same way

c) To lead people into a common purpose: linking the objectives

d) To integrate the activities of management: Linking levels/sections and departments /

functions of organizations

e) To establish links between an organization and its environment: Two-way flow

between customers/ suppliers/ government, community etc.

To facilitate these functions, organizations needs to have effective systems and channels of
communication, such as;

a) To convey information about what is happening , both inside and outside of the
organization

b) To inform about the organization’s policies and objectives

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c) To lay down rules and regulation in specific situations (Grievance / domestic inquiry
procedure)

d) To provide explanation about the nature and implications of current (foreseen) problems
and to explain the necessary changes

e) To stimulate plan

f) To create the relationships to achieve corporate objectives

g) To create/ confirm or modify the attitudes of the members towards the corporate identity/
image

h) To enable collective decisions to be made and render them acceptable

i) To provide the means for upward communication of feedback from staff to management

6. Effective Business Communication: The effective business communication would result;

a. __________________
b. __________________
c. __________________
d. __________________
e. __________________
f. __________________
g. ___________________

7. Direction Communication: Communication can flow vertically or horizontally.

a) Vertical Communication: The vertical dimension can be further divided into upward and
downward directions.

I. _____________Communication: Communication that flows from one level of a group

or organization to a lower level is downward communication. When we think of
managers communicating with employees, the downward pattern is the one we are
usually thinking of. It’s used by group leaders and managers to assign goals provide job
instructions, inform employees of - policies and procedures, point out problems that
need attention, and offer feedback about performance. But downward communication
doesn’t have to be oral or face-to--face contact. When management sends letters to
employees’ homes to advise them of the organization’s new sick leave policy, it is using
downward communication. Another example of downward communication is an e-mail
from a team leader to the members of her team reminding them of an upcoming
deadline.
When engaging in downward communication, managers must explain the reasons why
a decision was made. One study found that employees wert twice as likely to be
committed to changes when the reasons behind them were full explained. Although this

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 may seem like common sense, many managers feel they art too busy to explain things,
or that explanations will “open up a big can of worms. Evidence clearly indicates,
though, that explanations increase employee commitment and support of decisions.

Another problem in downward communication is its one-way nature; generally

managers inform employees but rarely solicit their advice or opinions. The best
communicators are those who explain the reasons behind their downward
communications, but also solicit upward communication from the employees they
supervise. This leads us to the next direction: upward communication.

II. ____________ Communication: Communication flows to a higher level in the group

or organization. It’s used: provide feedback to higher-ups, inform them of progress
toward goals, and relay current problems. Upward communication keeps managers
aware of how employees fec. about their jobs, coworkers, and the organization in
general. Managers also rely on upward communication for ideas on how things can be
improved.

Given that job responsibilities of most managers and supervisors have expanded
upward communication is increasingly difficult because managers are overwhelmed
and easily distracted. To engage in effective upward communication, try to reduce
distractions (meet in a conference room if you can, rather than your boss’s office or
cubicle), communicate in headlines not paragraphs (your job is to get your boss’s
attention: not to engage in a meandering discussion), support your headlines with action
items (what you believe should happen), and prepare an agenda to make sure you use
your boss’s attention well.

b) _______________________: When communication takes place among members of the

same work group, members of work groups at the same level, among managers at the same
level, or among any other horizontally equivalent personnel, we describe it as lateral
communication. Why would there be a need for horizontal communications if a group or
an organization’s vertical communications are effective? The answer is that horizontal
communication is often necessary to save time and facilitate coordination. In some cases,
some lateral relationships are formally sanctioned. More often, they are informally created:
short-circuit the vertical hierarchy and expedite action. So lateral communications comes
from management’s viewpoint, be good or bad. Because strict adherence to the formal
vertical structure for all communications can impede the efficient and accurate transfer of
information, lateral communications can be beneficial. In such cases, they occur the
knowledge and support of superiors. But they can create dysfunctional conflict when the
formal vertical channels are breached, when members go above or around superiors to get
things done, or when bosses find out that actions have been taken decisions have been made
without their knowledge.

8. Basic Forms of Communication: How do group members transfer meaning between and
among each other? There three basic methods. People essentially rely on Verbal (oral and
written) and nonverbal communication.

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 Basic forms of Communication

Verbal Communication Non-verbal Communication

Gestures Voice Qualities Postures

Rate of Speech

Figure 2: Basic Forms of Communication

a) Verbal Communication:

I. _____________________: The chief means of conveying messages is oral

communication. Speeches; formal one-on-one and group discussions; and the informal
rumor mill, or grapevine, are popular of oral communication. The advantages of oral
communication are speed and feedback. A verbal message be conveyed and a response
received in a minimal amount of time. If the receiver is unsure of the message, rapid
feedback allows for early detection by there and, hence, allows for early correction. As
one professional put it, “Face-to-face communication on a consistent basis is still the
best way to get information to and from employees.”

The major disadvantage of oral communication surfaces whenever a message “to be

passed through a number of people. The more people a message must pass through, the
greater the potential distortion. If you’ve ever played the game “telephone one,” you
know the problem. Each person interprets the message in his or her own try. The
message’s content, when it reaches its destination, is often very different from that of
the original. In an organization, where decisions and other communiqués are verbally
passed up and down the authority hierarchy, there are considerable opportunities for
messages to become distorted.

II. Written Communication: Written communications include Memos, Letters, Fax

Transmissions, e-mail, IM (Instant Messaging), Organizational Periodicals, Notices
placed on bulletin boards or any other device that is transmitted via written words or
symbols.

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b) Nonverbal Communication: Every time we verbally give a message to someone, we also
impart nonverbal message. In some instances, the nonverbal component: of may stand
alone. For example, in a singles bar, a glance, a stare, smile, a frown, and a provocative
body movement all convey meaning. Therefore, no discussion or communication would be
complete without consideration of nonverbal communication which incIudes body
movements, the intonations1 or emphasis we give to words, facial and the physical distance
between the sender and receiver.

It can be argued that every body movement has a meaning, and movement is accidental.
The two most important messages that both language conveys are

I. the extent to which an individual likes another and is interested in his or her views and
_________________________ Pitch of Voice: the rising or falling pitch of the voice
when somebody says a word or syllable, or the rising and falling pattern of speech
generally
II.
The relative perceived status between a sender and receiver

For instance, we’re more likely to position ourselves closer to people we like and touch
them more often. Similarly, if you feel that you’re of higher status than another, you’re
more likely to display body movements—such as crossed legs or slouched seated
position—that reflect a casual and relaxed manner. Body language adds to, and often
complicates, verbal communication. Both position and movements does not by itself
have a precise or universal meaning, but when is linked with spoken language, it gives
fuller meaning to a sender’s message.

If you read the verbatim minutes of a meeting, you wouldn’t grasp the impact of what
was said in the same way you would if you had been there or if you saw the meeting on
video. Why? There is no record of nonverbal communication. The emphasis given to
words or phrases is missing. Figure 2 illustrates how intonations can change the
meaning of a message. Facial expressions also convey meaning. A snarling face says
something different than a smile. Facial expressions along with intonations can show
arrogance, aggressiveness, fear, shyness, and other characteristics that would never be
communicated if you read a transcript of what had been said.

9. Organizational Communication: Now, we move from interpersonal communication to

organizational communication. Our first focus will be to describe and distinguish formal
networks and the grapevine. In the following section, we discuss technological innovations
in communication.

10. Grapevine: The formal system is not the only communication network in a group or
organization. There is also an informal one, called the grapevine. Although the grapevine
may be informal, it’s still an important source of information. For instance, a survey found
that 75 percent of employees hear about matters first through rumors on the grapevine. The
grapevine has three main characteristics.

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a) First, it is not controlled by management.

b) Second, it is perceived by most employees as being more believable and reliable than
formal communiqués issued by top management.

c) Finally, it is larger used to serve the self-interests of the people within it.
Is the information that flows along the grapevine accurate?

Can management entirely eliminate rumors? No. “What management should do, however,
is minimize the negative consequences of rumors by limiting their range and impact.

11. Electronic Communications: An indispensable and in 71 percent of cases, the primary

medium of communication in today’s organizations is electronic. Electronic
communications include e-mail, instant messaging, text messaging, networking software,
Internet or Web logs (blogs), and video conferencing.
12. Email: E-mail uses the Internet to transmit and receive computer-generated text and
documents. Its growth has been spectacular, and its use is now so pervasive that it’s hard
to imagine life without it. E-mail, of course, is not without drawbacks. The following are
some of the most significant limitations of e-mail and what organizations should do to
reduce or eliminate these problems:

a) Misinterpreting the Message: It’s true that we often misinterpret verbal messages, but the
potential for misinterpretation with e-mail is even greater.

b) Communicating Negative Messages: When companies have negative information to

communicate, managers need to think carefully. E-mail may not be the best way to
communicate the message.

c) Overuse of e-mail: An estimated 6 trillion e-mails are sent every year, and someone has to
answer all those messages. As people become established in their careers and their
responsibilities expand, so do their inboxes. A survey of Canadian manager revealed that
58 percent spent 2 to 4 hours per day reading and responding to e-mails.

d) Privacy concerns: There are two privacy issues with e-mail. First, you need to be aware
that your e-mails may be, and often are, monitored. Also, you can’t always trust that the
recipient of your e-mail will keep it confidential. For these reasons, yet shouldn’t write
anything you wouldn’t want made public.

13. Instant Messaging (IM) and Text Messaging (TM): Like e-mail, instant messaging and
text messaging use electronic messages. Unlike e-mail, though, TM and TM are either in
“real” time (TM) or use portable communication devices (TM). In just a few years, TM/TM
has become pervasive. As you no doubt know from experience, TM is usually sent via
desktop or laptop computers, whereas TM is transmitted via cell phones or handheld
devices such as BlackBerrys or iPhones.

14. Video Conferencing: Video conferencing permits employees in an organization to have

meetings with people at different locations. Live audio and video images of members allow
them to see, hear, and talk with each other. Video conferencing technology; in effect, allows
employees to conduct interactive meetings without the necessity of everyone being

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 physically in the same location. In the late 1990s, video conferencing was basically
conducted from special rooms equipped with television cameras, located at company
facilities. More recently cameras and microphones are being attached to individual
computers, allowing people to participate in video conferences without leaving their desks.
As the cost of this technology drops, video conferencing is likely to be increasingly seen
as an alternative to expensive and time-consuming travel.

15. Knowledge Management: Knowledge Management (KM) is a process of organizing and

distributing an organization’s collective wisdom so the right information gets to the right
people at the right time. When done properly, KM provides an organization with both a
competitive edge and improved organizational performance because it makes its employees
smarter. It can also help control leaks of vital company information so that an
organization’s competitive advantage is preserved for as long as possible. Despite its
importance, KM gets low marks from most business leaders. Effective KM begins by
identifying what knowledge matters to the organization. Management needs to review
processes to identify those that provide the most value. Then it can develop computer
networks and databases that can make that information readily available to the people who
need it the most. But KM won’t work unless the culture supports sharing of information
and people who hold that power are often reluctant to share it with others. So KM requires
an organizational culture that promotes, values, and rewards sharing knowledge. Finally,
KM must provide the mechanisms and the motivation for employees to share knowledge
that employees find useful on the job and enables them to achieve better performance. More
knowledge isn’t necessarily better knowledge. Information overload needs to be avoided
by designing the system to capture only pertinent information and then organizing it so it
can be quickly accessed by the people whom it can help.

16. Barriers to Effective Communication: A number of barriers can retard or distort effective
communication. In this section, we highlight the most important of these barriers.

a) Language: Even when we’re communicating in the same language, words mean different
things to different people. Age and context are two of the biggest factors that influence the
language a person uses and the definitions he or she gives to words. The point is that
although you and I probably speak a common
language—English—our use of that language is far from uniform. If we knew how each of
us modified the language, communication difficulties would be minimized. The problem is
that members in an organization usually don’t know how those with whom they interact
have modified the language. Senders tend to assume that the words and terms they use
mean the same to the receiver as they do to them. This assumption is often incorrect.

b) Filtering: Filtering refers to a sender’s purposely manipulation of information. So it will

be seen more favorably by the receiver. For example, when a manager tells his boss what
he feels his boss wants to hear, he is filtering information. The major determinant of
filtering is the number of levels in an organization’s structure. The more vertical levels in
the organization’s hierarchy, the more opportunities there are for filtering. But you can
expect some filtering to occur wherever there are status differences.

c) Selective Perception: Receivers in the communication process selectively see and hear
based on their needs, motivations, experience, background, and other personal
characteristics. Receivers also project their interests and expectations into communications
as they decode them

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d) Information Overload: Individuals have a finite capacity for processing data. When the
information we have to work with exceeds our processing capacity, the result is information
overload. An: with e-mails, IM, phone calls, faxes, meetings, and the need to keep current
in one field, the potential for today’s managers and professionals to suffer from information
overload is high.

e) Emotions: How the receiver feels at the time of receipt of a communication influences how
he or she interprets it. The same message received when you’re angry or distraught is often
interpreted differently than it is when you’re happy. Extreme emotions such as jubilation
or depression are most likely to hinder effective communication. In some instances, we are
most prone to disregard our rational and objective thinking processes and substitute
emotional judgments.

f) Communication Apprehension: Another major barrier to effective communication is that

some people—an estimated 5 to 20 percent of the population suffers from debilitating
communication apprehension, or anxiety. Lots of people dread speaking in front of a
group, but Communication apprehension is a more serious problem because it affects a
whole category of communication techniques. People who suffer from it experience undue
tension and anxiety in oral communication, written communication, or both. For example,
oral apprehensive may find it extremely difficult to talk with others face to-face or may
become extremely anxious when they have to use the telephone. As a result, they may rely
on memos or faxes to convey messages when a phone call would not only faster but more
appropriate.

17. Global Implications: Effective communication is difficult under the best of conditions;
cross-cultural factors clearly create the potential for increased communication problems.
This is illustrated in Figure 5. A gesture that is well understood and acceptable in one
culture can be meaningless or lewd in another. Unfortunately as business has become more
global, companies’ communication approaches have not kept pace. Only 18 percent of
companies have documented strategies for communicating with employees across cultures,
and only 31 percent of companies require that corporate messages be customized for
consumption in other cultures.

18. Cultural Barriers: One author has identified four specific problems related to language
difficulties in cross-cultural communications.

a) First, there are barriers caused by semantics. As we’ve noted previously, words mean
different things to different people. This is particularly true for people from different
national cultures. Some words, for instance, don’t translate between cultures.

b) Second, there are barriers caused by word connotations. Words imply different things in
different languages. Negotiations between American and Japanese executives, for instance,
can be difficult because the Japanese word “hai” translates as “yes,” but its connotation is
“yes, I’m listening” rather than ‘yes, I agree.”

c) Third, there are barriers caused by tone differences. In some cultures, language is formal,
and in others, it’s informal. In some cultures, the tone changes, depending on the context:
People speak differently at home, in social situations, and at work. Using a personal,

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 informal style in a situation in which a more formal style is expected can be embarrassing
and off-putting.

d) Fourth, there are barriers caused by differences among perceptions. People who speak
different languages actually view the world in different ways. Eskimos perceive snow
differently because they have many words for it. Thais perceive “no” differently than do
Americans because the former have no such word in their vocabulary.

19. A Cultural Guide: When communicating with people from a different culture, what can
you do to reduce misperceptions, misinterpretations, and misevaluations? You can begin
by trying to assess (and deal with) the cultural barriers. In addition, the following four rules
can be helpful:

a) Assume differences until similarity is proven. Most of us assume that others are more
similar to us than they actually are. But people from different countries are often very
different from us. You are therefore far less likely to make an error if you assume that others
are different from you rather than assume similarity until difference is proven.

b) Emphasize description rather than interpretation or evaluation. Interpreting or

evaluating what someone has said or done, in contrast to description, is based more on the
observer’s culture and background than on the observed situation. As a result, delay
judgment until you’ve had sufficient time to observe and interpret the situation from the
differing perspectives of all the cultures involved.

c) Practice empathy. Before sending a message, put yourself in the recipient’s shoes. What
are his or her values, experiences, and frames of reference? What do you know about his
or her education, upbringing, and background that can give you added insight? Try to see
the other person as he or she really is, as best you can.

d) Treat your interpretations as a working hypothesis. Once you’ve developed an

explanation for a new situation or think you empathize with someone from a foreign
culture, treat your interpretation as a hypothesis that needs further testing rather than as a
certainty. Carefully assess the feedback provided by recipients to see if it confirms your
hypothesis. For important decisions or communiqués, you can also check with other foreign
and home country colleagues to make sure that your interpretations are on target.

A careful review of this lesson yields a common theme regarding the relationship between
communication and employee satisfaction: The less the uncertainty, the greater the
satisfaction. Distortions, ambiguities, and incongruities in communications all increase
uncertainty and, hence, have a negative impact on satisfaction.

The less distortion that occurs in communication, the more that goals, feedback, and
other management messages to employees will be received as they were intended. This, in turn,
should reduce ambiguities and clarify the group’s task. Extensive use of vertical, lateral, and
informal channels will increase communication flow, reduce uncertainty, and improve group
performance and satisfaction. We should also expect incongruities between verbal and
nonverbal communiqués to increase uncertainty and to reduce satisfaction.

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Paying close attention to communication effectiveness is all the more important given ways in
which communication technology has transformed the workplace. Despite the great advantages
of electronic communication formats, the pitfalls are numerous. Because we gather so much
meaning from how a message is communicated (voice tone, facial expressions, body language),
the potential for misunderstandings in electronic communication is great. E-mail, IM, and TM,
and networking software are vital aspects of organizational communication, but we need to use
these tools wisely, or we’ll not be as effective as managers as might be.

Finally, there are a lot of barriers to effective communication, such as culture. By keeping these
barriers in mind, we can overcome them and increase our communication effectiveness.

Adopted from: Essentials of Organization Behaviour,10th e, Robbins, Judge & Sanghi

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Session 04
PRESENTATION SKILLS

1. Presentations for business, sales, and training - oral and multimedia: Presenting
information clearly and effectively is a key skill to get your message or opinion across and,
today, presentation skills are required in almost every field. Irrespective of your position,
administrator or executive or otherwise, you would have to make a presentation. This can be
a very daunting prospect.
If, in this position, the first thing you do is open up PowerPoint, then you should probably first
spend some time developing your presentation skills. Delivering an inspirational or
captivating presentation requires a lot of preparation and work, and you may not even need
PowerPoint at all! Many people feel terrified when asked to make their first public talk, but
these initial fears can be reduced by good preparation which will also lay the groundwork for
making an effective presentation.
2. ____________________________? A presentation is a means of communication
which can be adapted to various speaking situations, such as talking to a group, addressing a
meeting or briefing a team. A presentation can also be used as a broad term that encompasses
other ‘speaking engagements’ such as making a speech at a wedding, or getting a point across
in a video conference. To be effective, step-by-step preparation and the method and means
of presenting the information should be carefully considered. A presentation requires you to
get a message across to the listeners and will often contain a 'persuasive' element. It may, for
example, be a talk about the positive work of your organisation, what you could offer an
employer, or why you should receive additional funding for a project.
Formal presentation of information is divided into two broad categories: Presentation
Skills and Personal Presentation. These two aspects are interwoven and can be described as
the preparation, presentation and practice of verbal and non-verbal communication.

3. The Key Elements of a Presentation: Making a presentation is a way of

communicating your thoughts and ideas to an audience and many of our articles on
communication are also relevant here. Consider the following key components of a
presentation. Ask yourself the following questions to develop a full understanding of the
context of the presentation.

a. ____________________________________________________? There is a
world of difference between a small room with natural light and an informal setting
and a huge lecture room, lit with stage lights. The two require quite different
presentations, and different techniques.

b. ____________________________________________________? If
somewhere new, it would be worth trying to visit it in advance, or at least arriving
early, to familiarise yourself with the room.

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 c. ____________________________________________________? A work
setting will, more or less by definition, be more formal, but there are also various
degrees of formality within that.

d. ____________________________________________________

e. ____________________________________________________? With a new

audience, you will have to build rapport quickly and effectively, to get them on your
side.

f. What equipment and technology will be available to you, and what will you
be expected to use? In particular, you will need to ask about microphones and whether
you will be expected to stand in one place, or move around.

g. ____________________________________________________? Check how

you will be ‘billed’ to give you clues as to what information needs to be included in your
presentation.

4. Presenter: The role of the presenter is to communicate with the audience and control
the presentation. Remember, though, that this may also include handing over the control to
your audience, especially if you want some kind of interaction.

5. Audience: The audience receives the presenter’s message(s). However, this reception
will be filtered through and affected by such things as the listener’s own experience,
knowledge and personal sense of values.

6. Message: The message or messages are delivered by the presenter to the

audience. The message is delivered not just by the spoken word (verbal communication) but
can be augmented by techniques such as voice projection, body language, gestures, eye
contact (non-verbal communication), and visual aids. The message will also be affected by
the audience’s expectations. For example, if you have been invited as speaking on one
particular topic and you choose to speak on another, the audience is unlikely to take your
message on board even if you present very well. They will judge your presentation a failure,
because you have not met their expectations.

7. Reaction: The audience’s reaction and therefore the success of the presentation will largely
depend upon whether you, as presenter, effectively communicated your message, and whether it met
their expectations. As a presenter, you don’t control the audience’s expectations. What you
can do is find out what they have been told about you by the conference organisers, and what
they are expecting to hear. Only if you know that can you be confident of delivering something
that will meet expectations.

8. ____________________________________________________? Presentations are

usually delivered direct to an audience. However, there may be occasions where they are
delivered from a distance over the Internet using video conferencing systems, such as Skype.
It is also important to remember that if your talk is recorded and posted on the internet, then

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people may be able to access it for several years. This will mean that your contemporaneous
references should be kept to a minimum.

9. How can you make a good presentation even more effective?

a. ____________________________________________________: It’s hard to

be relaxed and be yourself when you’re nervous. But time and again, the great
presenters say that the most important thing is to connect with your audience, and
the best way to do that is to let your passion for the subject shine through. Be honest
with the audience about what is important to you and why it matters. Be enthusiastic
and honest, and the audience will respond.

b. __________________________________________________: Your
presentation needs to be built around what your audience is going to get out of the
presentation. As you prepare the presentation, you always need to bear in mind what
the audience needs and wants to know, not what you can tell them. While you’re
giving the presentation, you also need to remain focused on your audience’s response,
and react to that. You need to make it easy for your audience to understand and
respond.

c. ____________________________________________________: When
planning your presentation, you should always keep in mind the question. What is the
key message (or three key points) for my audience to take away? You should be able
to communicate that key message very briefly. Some experts recommend a 30-second
‘elevator summary’, others that you can write it on the back of a business card, or say
it in no more than 15 words. Whichever rule you choose, the important thing is to
keep your core message focused and brief and if what you are planning to say doesn’t
contribute to that core message, don’t say it.

d. ____________________________________________________: This sounds

very easy, but a surprisingly large number of presenters fail to do it. If you smile and
make eye contact, you are building rapport, which helps the audience to connect with
you and your subject. It also helps you to feel less nervous, because you are talking to
individuals, not to a great mass of unknown people. To help you with this, make sure
that you don’t turn down all the lights so that only the slide screen is visible. Your
audience needs to see you as well as your slides.

e. _____________________________: The beginning of your presentation is

crucial. You need to grab your audience’s attention and hold it. They will give you a
few minutes’ grace in which to entertain them, before they start to switch off if you’re
dull. So don’t waste that on explaining who you are. Start by entertaining them.

f. ________________________________: Human beings are programmed to

respond to stories. Stories help us to pay attention, and also to remember things. If
you can use stories in your presentation, your audience is more likely to engage and
to remember your points afterwards. It is a good idea to start with a story, but there

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 is a wider point too: you need your presentation to act like a story. Think about what
story you are trying to tell your audience, and create your presentation to tell it.

g. _________________________________ : The spoken word is actually a pretty

inefficient means of communication, because it uses only one of your audience’s five
senses. That’s why presenters tend to use visual aids, too. But you can help to make
the spoken word better by using your voice effectively. Varying the speed at which
you talk, and emphasising changes in pitch and tone all help to make your voice more
interesting and hold your audience’s attention.

h. _______________________________ : It has been estimated that more than

three quarters of communication is non-verbal. That means that as well as your tone
of voice, your body language is crucial to getting your message across. Make sure that
you are giving the right messages: body language to avoid includes crossed arms,
hands held behind your back or in your pockets, and pacing the stage. Make your
gestures open and confident, and move naturally around the stage, and among the
audience too, if possible.

i. _________________________________: If you find presenting difficult, it can

be hard to be calm and relaxed about doing it. One option is to start by concentrating
on your breathing. Slow it down, and make sure that you’re breathing fully. Make sure
that you continue to pause for breath occasionally during your presentation too.

10. Writing Your Presentation: Harnessing the Power of Three. In public speaking and
rhetorical debate, as well as in much communication, three is the magic number. The brain
finds it relatively easy to grasp three points at a time: people find three points, ideas or
numbers, easier to understand and remember than four or more. You could therefore
structure your presentation about the magic number of three. For example, your
presentation should have three main elements: the introduction, middle and conclusions.
Within the main body of your presentation, divide your key message into three elements and
then expand each of these points into three sub-points. If you are using a visual aid such as
Power Point, limit the number of bullet points to three on each slide and expand on each of
these as you go along.

11. __________________________________: You could try structuring your

presentation by addressing the questions “What?”, “Why?” and “How?” to communicate
your message to the audience.

a. _________________ identifies the key message you wish to

communicate. From the perspective of the audience, think about what is the benefit
of your message. What will they gain, what can they do with the information, and
what will the benefit be?

b. __________________ addresses the next obvious question that arises in the

audience. Having been told “What”, the audience will naturally then start to think
“why should I do that?”, “why should I think that?” or “why should that be the

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 case?” Directly addressing the “why?” question in the next stage of your presentation
means that you are answering these questions and your talk is following what the
audience perceives as a natural route through the material. The result is that you have
the audience on your side immediately.

c. _____________________the next question that naturally arises in the

audience’s mind is also: how are they going to achieve what you have just
suggested. Try not to be too prescriptive here so, instead of telling people exactly how
they should act on your message, offer suggestions as to how they can act. You should
also finish by proving what you have just said: providing evidence that what you have
just said is beyond dispute using either case studies, personal examples or statistics.

12. Fear of public speaking - You are not alone - 'Fearlessness in an Assembly': Many
seasoned teachers, lecturers and other presenters feel nervous beforehand despite having
given hundreds of presentations. The same is true of actors and actresses, celebrities,
politicians, preachers and other people working in the media or in the public eye. Being
nervous is not a problem or a weakness, you just need to channel your nervous energy wisely.
On the other hand, being over-confident and not nervous could be a weakness! The
symptoms of nerves can include "butterflies" or a queasy feeling in your stomach, sweaty
palms, a dry throat and the panic that your mind has gone blank about your opening lines.
Fortunately, there are some tried and tested strategies and techniques to manage your
nerves so that you can concentrate on delivering an effective and engaging presentation.
These techniques will not get rid of your nerves; instead they will help you to use your nervous
to your advantage. When you are in a heightened state from the adrenaline that is being
pumped around your body, you can use that energy to communicate enthusiastically,
convincingly, and passionately. The key is to decrease your level of nervousness so you can
focus your energy on these positive activities, not on trying to control your nerves. When you
feel nervous before a presentation, the following strategies and exercises should help you:

a. _____________________________: Adrenalin causes your breathing to shallow.

By deliberately breathing deeply your brain will get the oxygen it needs and the slower
pace will trick your body into believing you are calmer. This also helps with voice
quivers, which can occur when your breathing is shallow and irregular.

b. _____________________________: Adrenalin can cause a dry mouth, which in

turn leads to getting tongue-tied. Have a glass or bottle of water handy and take sips
occasionally, especially when you wish to pause or emphasize a point. Take care not
to take large gulps of water.

c. _____________________________: Chewing gum before a presentation may

help you to feel more relaxed. Research has shown that the act of chewing can
increase your alertness and help to reduce anxiety. It is usually best to get rid of the
gum when you start your presentation.

d. _____________________________: Smiling is a natural relaxant that sends

positive chemical messages through your body. Smiling and maintaining eye contact
also help you build rapport with your audience.

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 e. _____________________________: Imagine that you are delivering your
presentation to an audience that is interested, enthused, smiling, and reacting
positively. Cement this positive image in your mind and recall it just before you are
ready to start.

f. _____________________________: Press and massage your forehead to

energize the front of the brain and speech centre.

g. _____________________________: Just before you start talking, pause, make

eye contact, and smile. This last moment of peace is very relaxing and gives you time
to adjust to being the centre of attention.

h. _____________________________: Speak more slowly than you would in a

conversation, and leave longer pauses between sentences. This slower pace will calm
you down, and it will also make you easier to hear, especially at the back of a large
room.

i. _____________________________: Move around a little during your

presentation as this will expend some of your nervous energy. However, try not to
pace backwards and forwards or rock on your heels as these activities can be
distracting to your audience.

j. _____________________________: Remember that the audience is there to get

some information and that it is your job to put that information across to them. Try to
put your nerves aside and think about communicating your message as effectively as
possible.

13. Dealing with Questions: Many otherwise extremely competent and confident
presenters will tell you that they really dread the question and answer session of a
presentation. They seek ways to ‘avoid’ difficult questions. But it doesn’t have to be like that.
Dealing with questions in a presentation is a skill which anyone can master. Perhaps the most
important thing to understand is that, as a general rule, if people ask you questions, even
hostile ones, it’s not to trip you up but because they genuinely want the answer. At the start
of your presentation, you should make it clear whether and when you would prefer to deal with
questions - as you go along or at the end of the presentation. Some speakers prefer questions to
be raised as they arise during the presentation. The advantage of this approach is that any
misunderstandings can be dealt with immediately. However, there is also a danger that the
question will disrupt or distract the speaker, or that questions are raised that would have
been covered later in the presentation.

14. Tips for using visual aids in presentations - how to bring a presentation to life: You
should only use visual aids if they are necessary to maintain interest and assist comprehension
in your presentation. Do not use visual aids just to demonstrate your technological
competence - doing so may compromise the main point of your presentation - getting your
messages across clearly and concisely. If visual aids are used well they will enhance a

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presentation by adding impact and strengthening audience involvement, yet if they are
managed badly they can ruin a presentation. Most visual aids will need advance preparation
and should be operated with efficiency. If you wish to use such aids in an unfamiliar room or
location, check what facilities are available in advance so that you can plan your presentation
accordingly. Before you start, ask yourself:

a. _____________________________?
b. _____________________________?
c. _____________________________?
d. _____________________________?
e. _____________________________?
f. _____________________________?

15. Presentation Aids: Having understood the tips above, let’s look at the aids we can
make use of;

a. ________________________________________________: If available,
whiteboards are good for developing an explanation, diagrams and simple headings,
and for recording interaction with, and comments from, the audience during
brainstorming sessions. Remember that writing on a whiteboard takes time and that
you will have to turn your back to the audience to do so. If using a whiteboard, you
should ensure that your handwriting is legible, aligned horizontally, and is sufficiently
large to be seen by all the audience. Also ensure that you use non-permanent pens
(sometimes referred to as dry-wipe pens) rather than permanent markers so that your
writing can be erased later. Bear in mind that white background of a whiteboard can
cause contrast problems for people with vision impairment. If you have access to an
interactive whiteboard, you should make sure you know how this works, and practice
using it, before your presentation.

b. _____________________________: A flip chart is a popular, low cost, low tech

solution to recording interactive meetings and brainstorming sessions. A flip chart can
be prepared in advance and is portable, it requires no power source and no technical
expertise. Flip charts are ideal for collecting ideas and responses from the audience
and are good for spontaneous summaries. However, if the audience is large, a flip
chart will be too small to be seen by everyone.

c. _____________________________: Videos are excellent for training purposes,

but can be difficult to fit into a presentation structure. If a computer connected to a
projector is available then videos can be played as files, from a DVD or with an Internet
connection via YouTube or other online sources. Videos can also be built into a
presentation using PowerPoint or other presentation software.

d. _____________________________: Use of PowerPoint and other presentation

software is very common when presenting today. Care should be taken, however,

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 that visual effects do not detract from the presentation itself. If you do choose to use
PowerPoint try to have a practice run well in advance of a presentation so that you
are confident when giving the presentation itself.

e. _____________________________: Slides of excellent visual quality can have

great impact on any size of group. However, a good blackout is required for the images
to be seen clearly and this causes eye contact with the audience to be lost. Unlike with
other methods of presentation, you will not be able to add any spontaneous notes or
records to the slides. If you are using slides, ensure that they are prepared in the
correct order, ideally numbering the slides so that if the carousel is dropped the slides
can quickly be reordered. Like OHPs, the use of slides has largely been replaced by
digital photography projected using PowerPoint or other presentation software in
professional situations.

f. __________________________: Hand-outs summarising or including the main

points of a presentation are an excellent addition but must be relevant. Presentation
software packages such as PowerPoint can automatically generate handouts from
your presentation slides. However, think carefully about when to distribute your
handouts. Giving out handouts at the start of a talk will take time and the audience
may start to read these rather than listen to what the speaker is saying. However, if
your presentation contains complex graphs or charts, the audience will appreciate
receiving the handout before the presentation starts since they may find it easier to
view these on paper than on the projection screen. The audience may also appreciate
being able to make their own notes on the printed hand out during the presentation.
Consider the best time and method to distribute any handouts, including either
placing them on seats prior to the start or giving them out at the end of your
presentation. You may also consider emailing copies of handouts to participants after
the event. If your talk includes questions or discussion this will give to time to
summarise this and communicate it back to the attendees.

16. Conclusion: Presentation is a tool to communicate your message to an audience. You

must be satisfied at the end of your presentation that you have met the aim. You should have
convinced the audience on what you had to convey whatever it was, message, lesson, sales
or otherwise. It is a must that you meet the basics mentioned above. So that you are a very
powerful presenter and a presenter who can get the message across to any audience.

References:
http://www.skillsyouneed.com/presentation-skills

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