Business Communication Unit 10

Unit 10 Internal Business Communication – Electronic

Media and Shareholder Communication

Structure:
10.1 Introduction
Objectives
10.2 Intranet
Advantages and disadvantages of intranet
10.3 Communicating through e-mail
Principles of e-mail communication
e-mail etiquette
10.4 Communication through Instant Messaging
Three step process for successful IM
10.5 Communication with Shareholders
10.6 Summary
10.7 Glossary
10.8 Terminal Questions
10.9 Answers
10.10 Case Study

10.1 Introduction
In the previous unit, we studied communication within the organisation through
written channels, including memos, circulars and notices. Computers, the
Internet and the intranet have revolutionised the way communication takes
place in organisations. Memos, circulars and notices can be sent to employees
within the organisation using electronic mail or e-mail. In this unit, we will learn
the significance of intranet and e-mails in business communication.

Some interesting facts about e-mail usage

 On an average, a business user receives 25 e-mail messages per
day and this is increasing by 10% per year.
 On an average, a business user spends 2.6 hours per day reading
and responding to e-mail.
 About 38% of employees have sent an e-mail without the required
attachment.

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 It takes 77 minutes a week for an employee to manage his/her

mailbox, doing tasks such as cleaning out old messages and filing old
messages or attachments.
 It takes 27 minutes for a user to delete or archive enough messages
in order to be able to use the e-mail system again after hitting a
’quota limit’.
 It takes 8.2 minutes for a user to find an e-mail that is older than two
weeks.
 About 60% of business correspondence has grammar or spelling
errors.
 About 60% of an organisation's intellectual property is in the e-mail
system.
 The typical user stores more than one-half of his/her critical business
information within the confines of the e-mail system.
 About 38% of US and UK companies monitor and read e-mails
written by employees.
(Source: http://justinhartman.com/2008/03/03/interesting-email-facts/)

This unit provides answers to the following questions:

What is an intranet?
What are the etiquette one has to follow while writing an e-mail?
In this unit, we will learn the significance of intranet and e-mail in business
communication. You will also learn the importance of Instant Messaging in
business communication and communicating to stakeholders.
Objectives:
After studying this unit, you should be able to:
 explain the meaning and purpose of the intranet
 list the advantages and disadvantages of the intranet
 describe the principles of e-mail communication
 describe the etiquette for e-mail communication
 identify the importance of Instant Messaging in business communication
 recognise why communicating to shareholders is very important

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10.2 Intranet
An intranet is a communication network that operates on an internal network
that is exclusive to a particular organisation. This means that only the
employees of an organisation have the authority to access it. This is as
opposed to an ’extranet’, which is also an internal or private website, but where
access privileges are also extended to external stakeholders of the company,
such as customers, suppliers, partners and others.
Although the intranet is better suited for large organisations where distributing
information is an enormous task, a number of smaller companies today are
also using this form of internal communication.
Simply defined, the intranet is a tool for distributing and sharing information of
different types within the company. For example, weekly reports, goals, human
resources related information such as employee benefits and declared
holidays, interactive forms, vacation requests, supply orders, company policies
and even memos and notices can be posted on the intranet.
Apart from large organisations, the intranet is particularly suited for ’virtual’
companies that have only an online presence, as well as companies with
frequently travelling employees and off-site workers, as communicating with
such employees becomes a challenge.
10.2.1 Advantages and disadvantages of intranet
Like any other tool, the intranet has its advantages and limitations. Some of the
primary advantages are:
 Discourages grapevine – Grapevine or the informal communication
network, although useful, leads to rumours. When employees are
misinformed, they become dissatisfied and de-motivated. Using the
intranet as an official channel to post information for all employees to
discourages gossip and avoids creating a transparency gap.
 Facilitates pre-meeting discussion – The intranet can be used to
discuss and debate ideas prior to a meeting, so that valuable meeting
time is spent focusing only on relevant ideas.
For example, suppose a sales team of five members are required to
make a presentation to the Vice President - Sales, on how to increase
sales during the current year. Instead of each salesperson making a

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lengthy presentation during a meeting and then getting ideas reviewed

and approved, a ’discussion board’ can be created using the intranet, a
few days before the meeting. The salespersons could post their ideas on
the discussion board for the VP to review in advance, so that only the
most promising ideas are discussed during the meeting. This way, the
salespersons can come into the meeting more focused.
 Saves time – The intranet is paperless communication and is therefore
a big time saver. A lot of unnecessary time wasted on filling out forms,
leave requests, supply orders, etc., can be saved by doing this through
the intranet.
Employees can get information on official holidays and other Human
Resource (HR) related information, without having to interact with the
HR manager.
 Is superior to e-mail – Sending some types of information through
e-mail can sometimes create confusion and information overload. For
example, consider that five salespersons want to meet and give a
presentation to the Vice President – Sales, on how to increase sales. If
each one of them has three different ways in which they could increase
sales and start e-mailing multiple versions of their Power Point
presentations to the Vice President for review, it could lead to disastrous
results. Instead, they could work on a shared file, by using the intranet.
The intranet allows you to create a central location where you could
save your most recent file.
While the intranet saves valuable time and money, it has some disadvantages.
Before an intranet is set up, a lot of groundwork needs to be done. You need to
determine what you want it to do and how employees will use it. Some of the
important disadvantages of an intranet are:
 Getting started – Building the intranet to your specifications can be
expensive. A consultant may have to be hired to give it the desired look
and feel and to make sure that it is user friendly and simple enough for
all employees to use.
 Developing and maintaining content – Once the intranet has been set
up, someone has to be responsible for maintaining and updating the
information on a continuous basis. In small organisations, it may be

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sufficient to appoint one person to do this. In larger organisations with

multiple departments, it may be necessary to appoint several persons to
maintain and update information for the different departments. This
becomes a complex and expensive task.
 Training employees – Once the intranet has been set up, employees
have to be familiarised and trained on how to use the intranet. This
involves investment in time and money.
 Convincing ‘old economy’ employees – Some employees may not be
technology or computer savvy and may be reluctant to use the intranet
to access information. Therefore, they may have to be convinced about
the benefits of using the new technology.
The following case study illustrates how an intranet must be designed and used
as an effective communication tool.

Rand Library Intranet

The Rand Library is part of a non-profit research institution based in
Santa Monica, California, USA. It helps to improve policy and decision
making of federal, state and local governments through research and
analysis.
The RAND library intranet has been designed with the objective of being
an interactive tool that helps library staff and clients communicate
regularly with each other. Another objective is to constantly update the
information available to its customers. This does not require an IT
specialist and can be done by any library staff member.
Their intranet communication strategy includes three components: an
updated home page, an e-mail alert service and several e-mail links. The
home page contains the library logo and a menu, which are standard
components, while the body of the page is changed at least once a week.
The home page includes internet sites that may be of value to their
research staff, as well as announcements regarding library news, new
services and policy changes.
The e-mail alert service includes e-mail distribution lists for topics such as
Health Care, Science and Technology. Once a person signs up for the
e-mail alert service for one of these topics, the person receives regular
e-mails pertaining to these topics.

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Multiple e-mail links are used to make the communication two-way. This
means that the clients can login to the intranet site and make requests for
books, research articles, etc. They can also click on a “Contact a
Librarian” link that brings up the name, job title and photograph of each of
the reference librarians.

Additional Reference:
Thompson, S. (2002). Communicate in the Workplace. Australia: Max
Johnson.

Self Assessment Questions

1. An intranet is similar to a __________________, except that it operates
on an internal network that is exclusive to a particular organisation.
2. The intranet can be used to discuss and debate ideas prior to a meeting.
(True/False)
3. Identify the advantage of the intranet. (Pick the right option)
a) Building the intranet
b) Maintaining content
c) Superior to e-mail
d) Encourages grapevine
4. In large organisations, it may be sufficient to appoint one person to
maintain the intranet. (True/False)

10.3 Communicating through e-mail

Although e-mail is a tool for external communication, it is also regularly used
within an organisation, in place of telephone and face-to-face communication.
This is because e-mail is instantaneous and allows you to send messages that
others can pick up at their convenience. Besides, e-mail also makes it possible
to send messages to people anywhere in the world and to people who are
otherwise impossible to reach.
While the other forms of written communication are highly formal in nature,
e-mail is more informal and spontaneous. It is therefore easier to write an
e-mail message than it is to write a business letter or a report, where greater

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attention has to be paid to the language, style and tone. As e-mail is quick,
easy to use and spontaneous, it can also help to improve personal relationships
in the workplace.
Two of the most primary types of business communication e-mails are as
follows:
 Business-to-Customer (B to C) e-mails – If the business
communications or a transaction happens over e-mail, directly between
the company and consumers it is called B to C e-mails. Usually
companies that sell products directly to consumers can be referred to as
B to C companies. These companies (like online retailers) communicate
with their customers via e-mails. .
 Business-to-Business (B to B) e-mails – This type of e-mail
communication happens between two businesses for example, when the
manufacturer sells the product to a wholesaler. Let us now study the
principles that you need to follow while communicating over e-mail.
10.3.1 Principles of e-mail communication
The principles of communicating through e-mail are a little different from the
principles of written communication, as e-mail is more informal in nature. Figure
10.1 depicts the principles of e-mail communication.

Fig. 10.1: e-mail Communication Principles

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Let us now discuss the principles shown in figure 10.1 in detail.

 Watch the content – e-mail messages are not always confidential and
one can never be sure who will read them. The minute an e-mail
message is sent, multiple copies are created on your own Personal
Computer (PC) and server. At the same time, a copy is also created on
the recipient’s PC and server. There is no way of ensuring that the
message will not be forwarded to others. Sometimes, e-mail messages
can even be used as proof in court. Once a message is sent, a
permanent record is created. Therefore, it is always wise to avoid writing
anything negative or offensive in e-mails.
It is particularly important to watch the content of official. e-mail
messages sent using an employer’s equipment. As the employer has a
right to read the message and is legally responsible for its content, it
must be carefully worded.
 Pay attention to the tone – The very nature of e-mail communication
can make the message sound negative, abrupt and rude. For one thing,
e-mail lacks the personal quality of face-to-face communication, where
body language and other non-verbal cues may be used to make the
communication more positive. Secondly, e-mail messages are brief, use
short words and sentences and lack salutations. Brief messages may be
interpreted as being rude and unfriendly. Therefore, you must pay close
attention to the tone of the message and ensure that you sound friendly
and courteous. Avoid using humour and sarcasm which might be
misunderstood or sending messages when you are angry or annoyed.
 Include a specific subject line – Your e-mail message must always
include a subject line that clearly mentions the topic of the e-mail. As
business executives receive several e-mails a day, this would help them
to decide which messages are most important to them. They may also
have an idea of what the message contains.
 Place important information first – As business executives do not
have time to read lengthy e-mail messages, it is a good idea to put all
the important information that you want to convey in the first three lines
of the message. Whether you are seeking a clarification, making a
request or giving instructions, it is best to mention this right at the outset,
so that it is noticed.

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 Explain attachments in the body of the e-mail – Attachments take

time to download and must be sent along with an explanation in the
body of the e-mail, as to what they are all about. This makes it easier for
the recipient of the message to decide whether they must be opened or
not. Otherwise it can lead to unnecessary waste of time.
 Use the “to” and “cc” button carefully – The “to” box must be used
only to send messages to people who are responsible for doing
something. The “cc” button is used when sending multiple copies of the
same e-mail message to other recipients, who need to be kept informed
on a specific issue. This must be used with care, making sure that the
message is sent only to the right persons. It is important to respect
privacy, as not everyone likes having their e-mail address displayed to
others. Besides, sending a long list of e-mail addresses can interfere
with the reading of the main message.
 Pay attention to brevity, emphasis and white space – The look,
appearance and language used in the e-mail message can influence the
readability of the message. Some techniques for enhancing readability
of e-mail messages include short paragraphs (six lines maximum),
spacing between paragraphs, use of bullet points and numbers for lists,
use of paragraph captions, highlighting main points in bold type and use
of white space.
 Use the “WIFM” rule – WIFM stands for “What’s in it for me?” and
means that the benefits of your message to the reader must be
emphasised. This involves the use of the second person pronoun, ’you’,
rather than the first person pronouns ’I’ or ’me’. It is important to
stressing on the ’you’ attitude rather than the ’me’ attitude.
 Tidy up your mail box – e-mail traffic can lead to your inbox becoming
cluttered, with more messages than you can handle. It then becomes
difficult to retrieve important messages when you need them. It is
therefore a good idea to clean up your mailbox regularly, by deleting
unimportant messages. The important messages that you want to refer
later must be put into separate topic folders. Every now and then, any
outdated messages in the topic folders must also be deleted.
 Proofread your e-mail message – Just as it is important to proofread
business reports, letters and memos, e-mail messages must also be

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checked for spelling and grammar mistakes, so as to avoid any

embarrassment.
 Set aside time to check e-mail – e-mail must not become a substitute
for face-to-face interaction at the workplace or use valuable time that
could be spent on other important jobs. It is a good idea to determine a
certain time during the work day when you can check and respond to
e-mail messages.
10.3.2 e-mail etiquette
Similar to meeting etiquette which we discussed in unit 8, there are etiquette for
writing e-mail messages, which must be strictly followed. They are:
 Mind your P’s and Q’s – These refer to the three ’magic’ words,
’Please’, ’Thank You’ and ’Sorry’. They are all the more important in
e-mail messages, which have to be extra polite and friendly.
 Avoid ‘shouting’ – Shouting in an e-mail message refers to use of all
capital letters in the text. If only capital letters are used, it makes it
difficult to read a message and is therefore considered to be rude, like
shouting.
 Avoid symbols and acronyms – Symbolic messages using
punctuation marks, known as ‘emoticons’ for example, ,  etc., must
be avoided, especially in business related e-mail messages. Similarly,
abbreviations like BTW for by the way must be avoided as they sound
over casual and may not be understood by everyone.
 Use friendly salutations and sign-offs – Although these are not strictly
required in e-mail communication as in business letters, a salutation
such as “Dear John” and a sign-off such as “Warm Regards”, helps to
make the tone friendly and personal.
 Respond promptly – In the case of business related e-mails, it is
important to respond promptly, especially when communicating with
superiors. Even if you are hard pressed for time, are out of town or out
of the office, you can set an automatic e-mail response to your received
messages, which will mention that you will be responding in detail on a
specific date.
 Avoid personal messages at work – Do not make use of office facility
to send personal e-mail messages. As confidentiality of the message is
not guaranteed, it may lead to embarrassment later.

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 Avoid sending ’junk mail’ – Do not send irrelevant messages or

messages that are not work related to people at work. If you overload
people with this kind of mail, they will not pay attention to the really
important messages.
e-mail must be used constructively and judiciously, to meet your goals at the
workplace and to enhance your performance.

Some Do’s of e-mail

Use e-mail when:
1. you wish to be a part of a network where you can share information and
receive information from others.
2. you want to contact important people quickly and save time spent in
meetings.
3. you want to send information to a large number of people located across
the globe.
4. you want to establish a professional image. Your language and writing
style on electronic media can say a lot about you, just like your dress and
outward appearance. Watch your spelling, grammar and usage of
English.
5. you want to cut through hierarchy and speed up team projects.

Activity 1:
List three different situations at the workplace when e-mail
communication would be more appropriate for conveying a message,
compared to oral and written channels, explaining why.
(Refer section 10.3 for detailed guidelines.)

Self Assessment Questions

5. e-mail is more __________________and _______________________.
(Pick the right option)
a) Informal, spontaneous
b) Elaborate, spontaneous
c) Informal, elaborate
d) Formal, elaborate

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6. The very nature of e-mail communication can make the message sound
negative, abrupt and rude. (True/False)
7. __________________________ take time to download and must be
sent along with an explanation in the body of the e-mail.
8. ________________ make it difficult to read a message and is therefore
considered to be rude.

10.4 Communication through Instant Messaging

e-mail is one of the primary medium for business communication. However,
some drawbacks of e-mail such as viruses, spam and extensive overuse are
forcing organisations to explore alternatives. Instant Messaging (IM) is one
such alternative that organisations prefer over e-mail.
Instant Messaging (IM) is a technology initially designed for having one-to-one
personal chat at workplaces. Over the years, many executives, including senior
executives in an organisation prefer text-based IM over phone calls and e-mails
to communicate with other executives, employees and customers within and
outside the organisation. This is because of the immediacy and streamlined
efficiency in communicating real-time information within the organisation that IM
offers.
Instant messaging can happen over the intranet and Internet, but within an
organisation IM happens over intranet. In many large and small business
organisations, IM is extensively used as an important communication tool as it
provides enhanced collaboration and increased opportunities for saving time
and cost. IM offers a range of capabilities for business communication that
includes basic chat, remote display of documents, video capabilities, controlling
other computers from remote location, automated news feed from websites,
etc. In spite of its simplicity, efficiency and reliability it cannot be used to
communicate sensitive and confidential information due to lack of security and
susceptibility to a virus attack.
10.4.1 Three step process for successful IM
Instant messages are often written and sent within a matter of few seconds.
You can follow the steps depicted in Figure 10.2 to write instant messages for
business communication more effectively.

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Fig. 10.2: Steps for IM

As shown in figure 10.2, the three steps for successful IM are:

 Plan – Think every instant message exchange as a conversation and
take a moment to plan the overall conversation. Make sure you read the
message before you sent. If you are requesting something, ensure that
you are requesting exactly what you need in the most effective way
possible. If a request is being made to you, ensure that you are able to
meet the demand as per the requirement before you respond. It is a
good practice to communicate the information in a coherent and
complete way using minimum number of individual messages.
 Write – A formal writing style is more appropriate for business IM. You
must generally avoid short forms such as, 'Thanx' for 'Thanks', 'Plz' for
'Please', 'HTH' for 'hope that helps', etc. It is always good practice to
maintain good etiquette and a professional tone while communicating
business messages using IM especially with customers, stakeholders
and other audience who are not part of the organisation.
 Complete – To complete the instant message you have to send it.
Before you send it, select a basic font setting. For example, text style
'Arial' or 'Times New Roman', font size 11 or 12 and font colour 'Black'.
You must also spend some time to revise and proofread the message to
ensure that there are no missing or misspelled words and the message
is clear and complete. Then just click the ‘Send’ button to deliver the
message.
There are many IM tools available for communication over the intranet and
Internet. For example, 'IP Messenger' is a popular tool for IM over the intranet.
'Skype', 'ALO Instant Messenger', 'Yahoo Messenger', etc are examples of IM
over the Internet.

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Dos and Don’ts for IM Users

1. Do: Adopt a user policy for instant messaging. If you are an owner, your
employees need to know whether you view IM as an appropriate vehicle to
communicate with, say, customers or business partners. Any policy must
contain at least general guidelines for its use.
2. Don’t: Do not use IM to communicate confidential or sensitive information. If
your company is in the business of providing professional advice regarding
stocks, finances, medicine or law, it is advisable not to use IM. IM is better
suited to send quick information about project status, meeting times or a
person's whereabouts.
3. Do: Organise your contact lists to separate business contacts from family and
friends. Contact lists, also known as ’buddy lists’ contain your menu of
potential recipients for instant messages. Keep your business contacts
separate from family and friends. Make sure your employees do the same.
Eliminate even the remote possibility that a social contact could be included in
a business chat with a partner or customer – or vice versa.
4. Don’t: Do not allow excessive personal messaging at work. Although you can
make personal phone calls at work, send personal e-mails and allow your
employees to do the same, it is better to keep it to a minimum. Ensure that
personal chats are done during breaks or the lunch hour – or that the chats
generate new customers or revenue to the business.
5. Do: Be aware that instant messages can be saved. You may think IM is great
because you can let your guard down, make bold statements, chastise a
boss, employee or co-worker and have it all wiped away from the record when
you are done. What you aren't realising is that one of the parties to your
conversation can copy and paste the entire chat onto a Notepad or Word
document. Some IM services allow you to archive entire messages. Hence,
always be careful what you say, just as you would in an e-mail.
6. Don’t: Compromise your company's liability or your own reputation.
Statements you make in IM about other people, your company or other
companies probably aren't going to land you in court. But they could damage
your reputation or your company's credibility. Again, be careful about what
you say.
(Source: http://www.microsoft.com/business/en-us/resources/technology/
communications/10-tips-for-using-instant-messaging-for-business.aspx?
fbid=PAfflGY1jda)

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10.5 Communication with Shareholders

Shareholders are important internal stakeholders of an organisation and they
are the owners of the company. As the capital required to run large
organisations is huge, a group of proprietors and partners cannot fund all the
capital required. Therefore, capital to run an organisation is raised from the
public or private organisations or both and they become the stakeholders or
investors of the organisation. As organisations grow, shareholding is widely
scattered. Therefore, it is essential to retain the shareholders’ confidence in the
company’s management, through effective communication with them on a
regular basis.
There are two situations where shareholder communication is extremely vital:
 If the company is doing well and wants to expand its scope of operations
or diversify into unrelated areas. In this case, good shareholder relations
can help to raise the required capital and minimise borrowing from
banks and financial institutions.
 If the company is going through a crisis or difficult times, more
communication with shareholders is needed. Take the example of Coke
and Pepsi during the pesticide controversy. In such a situation, the
company must be open with its shareholders and explain the problem
clearly, including the steps being taken to overcome the crisis.
Crisis communication is an important, but often overlooked area of shareholder
communication. Lack of communication during a crisis encourages the
grapevine among shareholders and leads to false rumours. For example,
rumours may spread that the company is going to close down. On the other
hand, if you tell the truth, chances are that your shareholders will stand by you.
The appropriate media for communication with shareholders include both oral
and written channels. Periodic mailers must be sent to all shareholders, giving
a fair and truthful representation of the company’s results and progress on
various fronts. In areas where there is an aggregation or concentration of
shareholders, shareholder meetings and conferences must be held, making
presentations on the company’s progress. When the company is going through
a crisis, shareholders must be taken on project site and factory visits, to show
them the measures that are being taken to solve the problem.

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The overall guiding factor in communicating with shareholders must be that

they are the owners of the company.
Two examples are given below of two companies, Cognizant and Reliance that
are well known for effective shareholder communication.

Cognizant’s Communication with Shareholders

Cognizant is a leading provider of IT services, based in New Jersey,
USA. They have won national acclaim in the US financial media for being
one of the most shareholder friendly companies in the US.
In a survey where respondents were asked to rate various companies on
criteria such as financial performance, communication with shareholders,
investor relations and quality of corporate governance, Cognizant was
ranked the highest.
Shareholder friendly companies were described by respondents as those
that are known for their policy of openness and high quality of
communication with their shareholders.

Reliance’s Communication with Shareholders

In India, one out of every four investors is a shareholder of Reliance.
The company has set up a firm of Chartered Accountants as Internal
Security Auditors, to audit the transactions and communication with
shareholders.
The Board of Directors of the company has also appointed a
Shareholders’/Investors’ Grievance Committee, for examining and
responding to shareholders’ complaints with regard to transfer of shares,
non-receipt of balance sheet, declared dividends, etc. The Committee also
makes recommendations on how to improve the overall quality of investor
services.
Figure 10.3 depicts a sample letter written by Reliance to its shareholders.

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Fig. 10.3: A Sample Shareholder Letter

(Source: Adapted fromhttp://www.futureventures.in/letter-to-shareholders.htm)

Self Assessment Questions

9. Instant Messaging is a technology initially designed for having
_________________________ at workplaces. (Pick the right option)
a) One-to-many public chat
b) One-to-one public chat
c) One-to-one personal chat
d) One-to-many personal chat
10. Appropriate writing style for business IM is _____________________.
11. A good shareholder relation can help to raise the required
_______________ and ________________ borrowing from banks and
financial institutions.
12. Periodic mailers must be sent to all shareholders, giving a fair and
truthful representation of the company’s results and progress on
various fronts. (True/False)

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10.6 Summary
Let us recapitulate the important points discussed in this unit:
 Intranet is a business communication tool exclusively used for an
organisation's internal communication.
 Intranet helps organisation to discourage grapevine, facilitate pre-
meeting discussion and is considered superior to e-mail.
 Internet is very expensive to build, and demands regular maintenance.
 e-mails are widely used in business communication instead of face-to-
face communication.
 We have to follow the following principles to improve the efficiency of the
e-mails that we sent:
o Watch the content
o Pay attention to the tone
o Include a specific subject line
o Place important information first
o Explain attachments in the body of the e-mail
o Use the "to" and "cc" button carefully
o Pay attention to brevity, emphasis and white space
o Use the "WIFM" rule
o Tidy up your mail box
o Proofread your e-mail message
o Set aside time to check e-mail
 The following are the etiquette to be followed while using email for
business communication:
o Mind your P's and Q's
o Avoid using all caps
o Avoid symbols and acronyms
o Use friendly salutations and sign-offs
o Respond promptly
o Avoid personal messages at work
o Avoid sending 'junk mail'

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 Instant Messaging which was initially designed for having one-to-one

personal chat at workplaces, but now-a-days it is used for business
communication.
 One has to plan, write and then send instant messages in order to
ensure that the message is formal, clear and concise.
 Shareholders are the owners of the company as they provide the
necessary capital for running the company.
 It is very important to communicate correctly, regularly and truthfully the
status of the company and issues associated to the company to the
respective stakeholders.

10.7 Glossary
Grapevine: The informal transmission of information, gossip, or rumour from
person to person.
Human Resource: The department or support systems responsible for
personnel sourcing and hiring, applicant tracking, skills development and
tracking, benefits administration and compliance with associated government
regulations.
Savvy: Practical understanding or shrewdness.
Server: A computer that provides services used by other computers.
Spam: Flooding the Internet with many copies of the same message, in an
attempt to force the message on people who would not otherwise choose to
receive it. Most spam is commercial advertising, often for dubious products,
get-rich-quick schemes, or quasi-legal services.

10.8 Terminal Questions

1. What is an intranet?
2. What are the advantages and disadvantages of intranet?
3. Explain the principles that you need to follow while using emails for
business communication.
4. Write a note on Instant Messaging.
5. Which are the two situations wherein communication to the stakeholder
becomes vital?

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10.9 Answers

Self Assessment Questions

1. Website
2. True
3. c) Superior to email
4. False. In small organisations, it may be sufficient to appoint one person
to maintain intranet.
5. Informal, spontaneous
6. True
7. Attachments
8. All caps
9. c) One-to-one personal chat
10. Being more formal
11. Capital, minimise
12. True
Terminal Questions
1. It is an internal network that is exclusive to a particular organisation. It is
similar to a website and only the employees of the organisation are
authorised to access it. For more details, refer section 10.2.
2. Intranet discourages grapevine, facilitates pre-meeting discussion and
saves time. However, it is very expensive to setup the intranet and
operate it. For more details, refer sub-section 10.2.1.
3. While using emails for business communication watch the content, pay
attention to the tone, include a specific subject line, place important
information first, explain attachments in the body of the email, etc. For
more details, refer section 10.3.
4. Instant messaging is an alternate to reduce the emails for business
communication to certain extent. The three step process - plan, write
and complete can be used to successfully send instant message. For
more details, refer section 10.4.
5. You need to communicate frequently to the stakeholder about the status
of the organisation. However, when the company is doing well and when
it is going through some crisis the communication becomes vital. For
more details, refer section 10.5.
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10.10 Case Study

Broadridge International Shareholder Communications Programme

The Allianz Group is a leading global service provider in insurance, banking
and asset management. The company has achieved revenue of over 100
billion Euros in the year 2006. It serves more than 70 million customers
across 70 countries with a strong work force of 173,000. In Germany, Allianz
is a strong market leader in insurance sector.
The Allianz Group is also one of the world’s largest asset managers, with
third-party assets of 764 billion Euros under its management in the year end
2006. Also in 2006, Allianz SE - the parent company - became the first
company in the Dow Jones EURO STOXX 50 Index to adopt the legal form
of a Societas Europaea, a new legal structure for stock corporations.
Objectives:
In order to support its competitive strength and company values, Allianz
Group depends on number of factors. These include global diversification,
complexity reduction, a strong value-based management approach and its
employees. As a result of its success it has attracted lot of investors from
across the globe and the investors are the most important stakeholders of
Allianz. The Group's management gives high significance on sustaining
good relationships with their investors or stakeholders. Allianz uses
Broadridge International Shareholder Communications Programme to
successfully communicate with its large and diverse investor base in a more
direct and efficient manner. This has improved the Group's communication
with its international shareholders and helped to achieve highest standards
in corporate governance.
Outcomes
With the help of Broadridge communication programmes Allianz Group has
become more transparent among its stakeholders. “By working together with
Broadridge, Allianz is assured that any information intended for its non-
resident shareholders, whose custodian banks are linked to Broadridge’s
systems, is sent electronically on a real-time basis, thereby significantly
reducing our overall proxy costs”, said Dr. Elsbeth Pabst, Head of the Share
Register Service, Allianz SE. Allianz was able to receive a daily electronic

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report from Broadridge during the final ten days before the general meeting
deadline. This report indicated the number of shareholders who have been
informed of the impending general meeting, the custodial details of those
who have voted and where the votes are located on the return custodial
channel. Allianz is also provided with supplemental information including
exclusive statistics about the chain of intermediaries, the opportunity to verify
whether votes are received on time via the local custodians, as well as
additional data of use to the share registry.
Discussion Questions:
1. Why did Allianz use Broadridge International Shareholder
Communications Programme? Explain.
(Hint: Refer to section ‘Objectives’ in Case Study)
2. Did the use of Broadridge International Shareholder Communications
Programme help Allianz? Explain.
(Hint: Refer to section ‘Outcomes’ in Case Study)
(Source: http://www.broadridge.com/investor-
communications/international /Noblleed - Allianz Case Study.pdf )

Reference:
 Bovee, C.L., Thill, J.V., & Chaturvedi, M. (2009). Business
Communication Today. New Delhi: Dorling Kindersley (India) Pvt. Ltd.
E-References:
 http://www.microsoft.com/business/en-us/resources/technology/
communications/10-tips-for-using-instant-messaging-for-business.aspx?
fbid=PAfflGY1jda – Retrieved on January 19, 2012.
 http://www.broadridge.com/investor-communications/international/
Noblleed - Allianz Case Study.pdf - Retrieved on January 20, 2012.
 http://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/btob.asp#axzz1jykg1XMT –
Retrieved on January 20, 2012.
 http://www.rcom.co.in/Rcom/aboutus/ir/pdf/RCOM_CCM_Notice.pdf
– Retrieved on February 14, 2012.

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