Q: Enumerate the legal risk and complications that may occur in

business communication? What are the possible safeguards against risk?

Complications and legal risks in business communication

Lower Inefficiency
Poor communication in business whether written or oral, can obstruct the efficiency of your
organization or a specific department. For instance, vague email messages that require
clarification, documents that need rewriting due to errors, and uninformed presentations and
speeches, can greatly affect the flow of work in the company. Effective business communication
skills are crucial to successfully completing any project, large and small. When multiple
employees or company departments team up to complete a large project, the value of each
department's skills will increase exponentially. Without implementing clear communication
practices, however, company projects will be slow and inefficient to complete.

Employee Morale
Business communication skills impact the motivation of employees. A highly communicative
and collaborative work environment promotes employee productivity, creativity and inspiration.
If communication skills are poor, employees lack enthusiasm in doing their assignments and will
question the value of such products. Poor business communication skills will also demoralize the
employees because they will be forced to sit through dull and boring presentations where they
are provided with unclear instructions on projects, leading to confusion and monotony.

Decreased Innovation
If poor communication skills result in the inadequate handling of important projects, this can
cripple the company’s innovation and capacity to make positive contributions to society. The
capacity to innovate is proportional to the capacity to communicate directions, and to
communicate new and exciting ideas and improvements.

Wrong Audience or Methods

Effective communication begins with understanding the audience and the method of
communication that serves it best. Do your homework first to get to know the audience, the
questions that might be raised and any objections beforehand. Sound research can avoid issues
with communication before they arise. Use the communication method best suited to the
information being conveyed. Face-to-face meetings are better for important changes taking place
at work.
Mistaken or Confusing Information
Verify the information being conveyed before sharing it. If your information is unclear,
confusing or flat out incorrect, the message sent will be wrong. Double-check information you
plan to share in the audience/receiver to ensure its authenticity, clarity and correctness. When
you share information that is wrong or confusing, people will not receive the intended message.

Too Much, Too Little, Too Late

One of the major communication problems at work is that there is usually not enough
information, there is too much information or it is delivered after-the-fact. For communication to
be helpful, it must be timely and in the amount needed for people to become knowledgeable
without causing them to overreact or misconstrue.

Misinterpretation or Application
When communication is vague or ambiguous, it can lead to misinterpretation or misapplication
in the audience/receiver. To convey material effectively, it must be concise, clear and to the
point. Have a clear understanding of the facts, the order of information and its intended use
before sending a message that can't be retracted.

Listening Skills, Questions and Feedback

Verbal communication requires focused listening skills of the audience. When you don't have the
full attention of your audience, your message won't be received. For face-to-face meetings, a
good practice is to avoid distractions during the meeting. Have people leave their cell phones at
their desks and hold the meeting in a conference room or other quiet location. Allow interaction
after the meeting to develop clarity and obtain feedback. Answering questions honestly can help
to clear up any confusion or misunderstandings.

Safeguard against risk and complications of business communication

 Check out your surrounding while you are on the telephone. Who can
overhear? Discuss confidential information quietly.
 If you cannot speak directly to the person you need to reach, leave generic
messages.
 Use fax machines located in the most confidential location possible.
 Call ahead to alert the receiver so that they might retrieve the info. Double check
the fax number with the receiver.
 If you accidentally send the report to the wrong person, attempt to retrieve it.
 If you know confidential info is coming to you, retrieve the transmission promptly.
 Check the fax machine at the end of the day to retrieve and deliver all
confidential material.
 If responding to an individual who requests sensitive information about herself or
himself, reply first by confirming the person?s approval to correspond via
unsecured e-mail.
 Guard your password.
 Lock your workstation (password protect) when you are away.
 Discontinue system access when an employee leaves a position with rights to
databases containing confidential information.
 Keep confidential information in your workspace out of sight (in folders, face
down) from passersby and visitors.
 Confirm the identity of your caller.
 Ensure that all data are encrypted and transferred over secure data
communication lines.