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.
 LEARNING CONTENTS

1. Communication Process
2. Formal versus Informal Communication
3. Barriers of effective communication.
4. Achieving communication effectiveness.
5. Verbal and non-verbal communication.
6. Importance of non-verbal communication.

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

 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. 11–3

 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. 11–4

 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. 11–5

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

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

 Figure 11.1 Basic Components in the Communication Process

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–7

 Components of the Communication Process
• Social Context
 The setting in which the communication takes place.

• Sender
 The sender initiates the communication process by
encoding his or her meaning and sending the
message through a channel.
 Encoding translates the sender’s ideas into a
systematic set of symbols or a language expressing
the communicator’s purpose.

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

 Components of the Communication Process
(cont’d)
• Messages
 The tangible forms of coded symbols that are
intended to give a particular meaning to the
information or data.
• Channel
 The carrier of the message or the means by which the
message is sent.

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

 Components of the Communication Process
(cont’d)
• Receiver
 The receiving person or group must make sense of
the information received.
 Decoding the translation of received messages into
interpreted meanings.
• Feedback
 The process of verifying messages and the receiver’s
attempts to ensure that the message he or she
decoded is what the sender really meant to convey.

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

 Components of the Communication Process
(cont’d)
• Noise
 Any internal or external interference or distraction with
the intended message that can cause distortion in the
sending and receiving of messages.
 It can occur during any stage of the communication
process.
 It reduces the probability of achieving common
meaning between sender and receiver.

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

Types of Communication

Formal
Formal Informal
Informal
The sharing
The sharing ofof The sharing
The sharing ofof
messages regarding
messages regarding unofficial messages,
unofficial messages,
the official
the official work
work of
of the
the ones that
ones that go
go beyond
beyond
organization
organization the organization’s
the organization’s
formal activities
formal activities

11-12
 Formal Communication
Organizational Structure: The formally prescribed
pattern of interrelationships existing between the various
units of an organization.

Organizational Chart: A diagram showing the formal

structure of an organization, indicating who is to
communicate with whom.

Types of Communication:
 Downward
 Upward
 Horizontal

11-13
Formal Communication

11-14
 Figure 11.2 Formal Communication Flows

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

 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. 11–16

 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. 11–17

Informal Communication
Old-Boys Network: A gender-segregated informal
communication network composed of men with similar
backgrounds.
Snowball Effect: The tendency for people to share informal
information with others with whom they come into contact.
Grapevine: An organization’s informal channels of
communication, based mainly on friendship or
acquaintance.
Rumors: Information with little basis
in fact, often transmitted through
informal channels.

11-18
 Figure 11.3 Information Understanding and Loss

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

 Sources of Communication Barriers

• Cross-cultural • Language
diversity characteristics
• Trust and credibility • Gender differences
• Information overload • Other factors

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–20

 Table 11.2 Sources of Communication Barriers

1. 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.
2. Trust and credibility Without trust, the communicating parties
concentrate their energies on defensive tactics, rather than on conveying
and understanding meaning.
3. Information overload Individuals can experience information overload
when they are asked to handle too much information at one time.
4. Language characteristics Many words or phrases are imprecise.
Individuals often use different meanings or interpretations of the same
word and do not realize it.
5. Gender differences Since males and females are often treated
differently from childhood, they tend to develop different perspectives,
attitudes about life, and communication styles.
6. Other factors Time pressures, physical distractions, differing
perceptions, and noise can all interfere with good communication.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–21

 Cross-Cultural Diversity
• Individuals from different cultures may encode
and decode their messages differently.
• They may have different behaviors, styles, and
ways of looking at things.
• Ethnocentrism
 The tendency to consider one’s own culture and its
values as being superior to others; a common
problem in cross-cultural communication.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–22

 Trust and Credibility
• A very important barrier to effective
communication is a lack of trust between the
sender and the receiver.
• This lack of trust can cause the receiver to look
for hidden meanings in the sender’s message.
• It can also cause the sender to try and
manipulate the message.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–23

 Information Overload
• Managers and organizations can experience
information overload when the amount of data
that can be processed is exceeded.
 Information overload can lead to:
 Failing to process or ignoring some information.
 Processing information incorrectly.
 Delaying the processing of information until the information
overload abates.
 Searching for people to help process some of the
information.
 Lowering the quality of information processing.
 Withdrawing from the information flow.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–24

 Language Characteristics
• Many words and phrases in our language are
imprecise.
 Individuals often use different meanings or
interpretations of the same word and do not realize it.
• Jargon is terminology or language specific to a
particular profession or group.
 The imprecision and multiple meanings of words are
one reason why jargon develops.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–25

 Gender Differences and Other Factors
• Gender Differences
 Gender differences can result in breakdowns and
lead to distorted communication and
misunderstandings between men and women.
• Other Factors
 Time pressures may cause us to focus on information
that helps us make a choice quickly. Feedback may
be impaired or absent.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–26

Communication Effectiveness
Communication is most effective when it uses multiple
channels, such as using both oral and written
messages.
 Oral messages are useful in getting people’s attention and
allow for immediate two-way communication.
 Following up in writing makes the message more permanent.

A medium’s effectiveness depends on how appropriate

it is for the kind of message being sent.
 Oral media are more effective when messages are ambiguous.
 Written media are more effective when messages are clear.

11-27
 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. 11–28

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

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–29

 Oral and Written Communication
• Oral Communication
 All forms of spoken information; by far the most
preferred type of communication used by managers.
• Written Communication
 Letters, memos, policy manuals, reports, forms, and
other documents used to share information in an
organization.

© 2007 Thomson/South-Western. All rights reserved. 11–30

 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. 11–31

Importance of Nonverbal Messages

• The sender may be unaware a nonverbal

message is being sent.
• Nonverbal messages are usually unplanned.
• Nonverbal messages may be more reliable
than written or oral messages.
• Nonverbal communication is always present.