Part 4 Leadership Challenges in the 21st Century

Chapter
11
Communicating
Effectively within
Diverse
Organizations

PowerPoint Presentation by Charlie Cook

The University of West Alabama
© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved.
 Can We Talk or Whatever?
• Communication
 The process that managers use to interact with
subordinates, peers, supervisors, customers,
suppliers, owners, the general public, etc.
 It is a complex process that requires constant
attention so that intended meanings, understandings,
and/or feelings, are sent and received.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–2

 Communication Complexity
• Communication is complicated and dynamic
with many factors influencing its effectiveness.
 Senders, messages, channels, and receivers do not
remain constant or static.
 Even a simple two-person interactions involving
multiple variables.
 Communication is symbolic with the meaning of most
of our words and signs changing over time.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–3

 Communication Defined
• Communication stems from the Latin root word
communicare, which means “to make common.”
 A process in which one person or group evokes an
identical meaning in a second person or group.

• Defining communication is relatively simple, but

achieving high-quality communication is both
complicated and difficult.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–4

 Figure 11.1 Basic Components in the Communication Process

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–5

 Interpersonal
Communication
• Oral Communication
• Written Communication
• Nonverbal Communication
• Technological Communication

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–6

 Table 11.1 Checklist for Planning More Effective Oral Presentations

• Establish your goals Have a clear image of your goals or purpose. Ask yourself,
“What is it that I want to accomplish?”
• Analyze the audience Know your audience so you can effectively select the
appropriate content, vocabulary, and visual aids. When the members of your
audience are from diverse backgrounds or occupations, it is especially important to
find a common bond.
• Diagnose the environmental conditions Be aware of how much time you will
have, and use your time effectively. Determine in advance, if possible, the audience
size, physical layout of the room and speaking area, and technical equipment.
• Organize your material Remember that your message can be followed easily if
your material is organized. A logical flow of thoughts will help your listeners follow
the message. Start with a brief introduction that provides a preview, follow with a
body that develops, and finish with a conclusion that reviews.
• Design and use visual aids Keep in mind that visual aids not only help to clarify
material and heighten its impact but also keep an audience alert. Keep the visual
aids simple and use them to emphasize, clarify, or pull together important
information. Remember, the purpose of visual aids is to support your presentation
rather than be the presentation.

Source: Adapted from Management Skills: Practice and Experience by P. Fandt. Copyright
1993. By permission of South-Western, a division of Thomson Learning Inc., Mason, Ohio
45040.
© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–7
 Nonverbal Communication
• Kinesic behavior, or body motion: gestures, facial
expressions, and eye behavior.
• Physical characteristics: body shape, physique, posture,
height, and weight.
• Paralanguage: voice quality, speech rate, pitch, and
laughing.
• Proxemics: the way people perceive space, seating
arrangements, and conversational distance.
• Environment: building and room design, furniture, light,
noise, and cleanliness.
• Time: being late or early, keeping others waiting.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–8

 Technological Communication
• Telecommuting or “Telework”
 Working at a remote site through a computer linked to
a central office or other employment location.
• Electronic Mail (E-mail)
 Sending messages through computerized text-
processing and communication networks.
• Video Conferencing
 An umbrella term for technologies that use live video
to unite widely dispersed company operations.
• The Internet
 Essentially, “everything” can be done on the internet.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–9

 Why Managers Communicate
• To motivate
• To inform
• To control
• To satisfy social needs

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–10

 Table 11.2 Sources of Communication Barriers

• Cross-cultural diversity Cultural differences may arise between people

from different geographic or ethnic groups within one country as well as
between people from different national cultures.
• Trust and credibility Without trust, the communicating parties
concentrate their energies on defensive tactics, rather than on conveying
and understanding meaning.
• Information overload Individuals can experience information overload
when they are asked to handle too much information at one time.
• Language characteristics Many words or phrases are imprecise.
Individuals often use different meanings or interpretations of the same
word and do not realize it.
• Gender differences Since males and females are often treated differently
from childhood, they tend to develop different perspectives, attitudes about
life, and communication styles.
• Other factors Time pressures, physical distractions, differing perceptions,
and noise can all interfere with good communication.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–11

 Communication Channels
• Formal Communication Channels
 Formal communication follows the chain of command
and is recognized as official.
• Direction of Flow
 One way to view formal communication within
organizations is to examine how it flows—vertically
and horizontally.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–12

 Vertical Communication
• The flow of information both up and down the
chain of command.
 Downward communication
 Messages
sent from individuals at higher levels of
the organization to those at lower levels.
 Upward communication
 Messages sent up the line from subordinates to
managers.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–13

 Figure 11.3 Information Understanding and Loss

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–14

 Horizontal Communication
• The flow of information that occurs both within
and between departments.
• Effective organizations encourage horizontal
communication because it increases:
 Coordination

 Collaboration

 Cooperation

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–15

 Spontaneous Communication
Channels
• Casual, opportunistic, and informal paths for
communication that arise from the social
relationships that evolve in the organization.
• The Grapevine
 An informal method of transmitting information
depicted as the wandering of messages throughout
the organization.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–16

 Communication Competency
Challenges
• Expect to be misunderstood by at least some
listeners and readers.
• Expect to misunderstand others.
• Strive to reduce the degree of such
misunderstandings, but never expect total
elimination of them or the ability to anticipate all
possible outcomes.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–17

 Principles of Effective Feedback
• Give feedback that is specific rather than general.
• Give feedback when the receiver appears ready to
accept it.
• Focus feedback on behavior rather than the person, and
focus it on behavior that can be changed.
• Provide feedback using descriptive information about
what the person said or did.
• Avoid feedback using evaluative inferences about
motives, intent, or feelings.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–18

 Advanced Listening Skills
• Listen for message content.
• Listen for feelings.
• Respond to feelings.
• Be sensitive to both the nonverbal
and the verbal content of messages.
• Reflect back to the sender, in your own words,
what you think you are hearing.
• Be attentive and listen to understand, not to reply.
• Be patient. Don’t interrupt the speaker. Take time
to digest what has been said before responding.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–19