CHAPTER 2
Improving Personal and Organizational
Communications
CHAPTER PREVIEW
After studying this chapter, students should be able to:
1. Explain the communication process.
2. Identify and explain the filters that affect communication.
3. Identify ways to improve personal communication, including developing listening skills.
4. Understand how communications flow throughout an organization.
5. Learn how to communicate effectively using social media and other communication technologies.
PURPOSE AND PERSPECTIVE
It is important for the student to realize that maintaining effective communication is a major challenge
for most organizations. Impersonal communication is a one-way process designed to present facts,
instructions, and the like. Interpersonal communication is a two-way exchange in which the receiver
understands the message in the way that the sender intended. Both the sender and the receiver are
responsible for making sure that the message is clearly understood. Our language is filled with words
that can have a variety of meanings depending on the context of the message. The understood meaning
of every message sent or received will be altered by our communication filters: semantics, emotions,
language and cultural barriers, attitudes, role expectations, nonverbal cues, and gender-specific focus.
Students can learn to improve their communication skills by using repetition, choosing words carefully,
and timing messages appropriately. They can learn to be aware of the listening climate in each situation
and develop active listening skills. High-tech communications systems such as e-mail, instant
messaging, and text messaging are changing the way individuals within organizations exchange
information.
PRESENTATION OUTLINE
I. Communication in an Information Economy
A. The battle for our attention
II. The Communication Process
A. Impersonal versus interpersonal communication
B. Sender—message—receiver—feedback
III. Communication Filters
A. Semantics
B. Language and cultural barriers
1. Head
2. Body
3. Heart
6 Chapter 2: Improving Personal and Organizational Communications
C. Emotions
D. Attitudes
E. Role expectations
F. Gender-specific focus
G. Nonverbal messages
1. Eye contact
2. Facial expressions
3. Gestures
4. Posture
5. Personal space
H. Who is responsible for effective communication?
IV. How to Improve Personal Communication
A. Send clear messages
1. Use clear, concise language
2. Use repetition
3. Ask questions
4. Use appropriate timing
5. Consider the receiver’s preferences
B. Develop effective listening skills
1. Active listening
2. Critical listening
3. Empathetic listening
V. Communications in Organizations
A. Communication channels
B. Improving upward communication
C. Informal communication channels
D. Enterprise social networks
VI. Communicating in a Digital World
A. Social media
B. Mobile communication
C. E-mail
1. Know your company’s policies
2. Use an appropriate e-mail address
3. Create a descriptive subject line
4. Compose clear, concise messages
5. Recognize e-mail limitations
D. Blogs
CAREER INSIGHT EXERCISE
Students will benefit from understanding that while business in North America is characterized by
informality, too much informality during the job interview process can cause problems.
TRY YOUR HAND EXERCISES
1. Students can keep a journal of their observations of listening habits and non-verbal behaviors and
share them with the class.
2. Students can analyze the effectiveness of their recent e-mail communications based on the e-mail
tips given in the chapter.
Chapter 2: Improving Personal and Organizational Communications 7
3. Students can observe and report on their postural habits and the influence of posture on their
personal confidence and effectiveness in communicating face to face.
4. Students should list the number of times they stop listening and interject their own stories during
conversations with friends, family, and coworkers.
5. Students will learn some common polite phrases and basic etiquette for interacting with people in
Poland and Greece.
CRITICAL THINKING CHALLENGE
1. Answers will vary according to students’ experiences. Encourage students to identify the
communication filters (see Fig. 2.2) in their daily conversations.
2. Students should decide whether or not to alert coworkers to a potential upcoming reduction in
force (based on a tip-off from a friend outside the company), then defend this decision.
SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE
Completion of the self-assessment exercise will provide students with information needed to develop
goals for self-improvement. After recording a response to each item, students select a skill or attitude
they would like to improve and describe the steps they will take to achieve this goal.
YOU PLAY THE ROLE EXERCISE
This role play is designed to enhance awareness of the filters that alter or aid a message between a
sender and a receiver during the communication process. Ask students to form pairs and be prepared to
discuss specific information about their present or past work situation. Allow approximately 3–4
minutes following the exercise for students to write down their insights as to whether or not the other
person really listened to what was being said. Open a larger group discussion with students sharing their
findings.
CASE QUESTIONS
BELOW THE SURFACE: Appreciate Communication Style Differences
1. Students will evaluate the communication style of Steve Jobs as described in the chapter.
2. Students can imagine themselves interacting with Steve Jobs and develop strategies for
communicating effectively with him by adjusting their own message delivery and listening
practices.
3. Students can imagine themselves in a mentoring role, providing Steve Jobs with an evaluation and
improvement plan for his employee communication style.
CLOSING CASE: Should Employers Restrict Social Media Use?
1. Students can discuss where employers should draw the line with respect to social media use by
employees. They can outline the policies they would put in place for the use of social media.
2. Students will learn to set up Google alerts, and can use these alerts to monitor and evaluate
positive and negative comments about a particular topic that appear in social media.
8 Chapter 2: Improving Personal and Organizational Communications
ADDITIONAL APPLICATION EXERCISES
1. “He did not say she sent the text message.” Repeat this sentence aloud eight times, each time
putting the emphasis on a different word. How does the varied emphasis change the meaning of
the sentence?
Note to the Instructor: Have eight different individuals read the sentence in class. Start with the
emphasis on the first word: “He did not say she sent the text message”; then the second word: “He
did not say she sent the text message”; then the third word: “He did not say she sent the text
message”; and so on.
After each reading, briefly discuss with the class the change, if any, in the meaning of the
sentence. This exercise should demonstrate the potential for communication breakdown when
only written communication is available.
2. Read a story or simply talk into a videotape recorder. Then play back the tape and consider how
you could speak more clearly or vary your voice tone or inflections to make your speech more
easily understood or more interesting to listen to.
Note to the Instructor: You may want to set up various business situations that students are likely
to encounter on the job, preferably situations that involve phone use. They may need to handle an
angry customer, a request for service, or their boss’s need for information. Record the students’
voices and play back the conversations, again analyzing how the students can alter their tone or
inflections to convey the best impression.
3. Introduction to Learning Blocks. The purpose of this role play is to help students learn how to
recapture the attention of someone who is not being a good listener. Introduce students to the
problem of listening “blocks” and discuss the information below. For the first activity, ask one
class member to play the role of job interviewer and ask another person to play the role of job
applicant. Prepare the interviewer to assume the role of someone who is preoccupied and
displaying several listening blocks. Encourage the job applicant to use various methods to
improve communication. For the second activity, you will ask one student to respond to each of
the three complaint situations and solicit feedback from the rest of the class.
a. Throughout life there are situations where we desperately want another person to listen
carefully to what we say. For example, suppose you have a personal problem and seek
advice from a friend. As you discuss your problem, it becomes obvious that your friend is
preoccupied and not listening closely to what you are saying. Another example might be a
job interview situation. Just as you begin discussing some of your major strengths, it
becomes clear that the interviewer is not paying attention. When faced with this
communication problem, you need to do something. Because barriers or “blocks” to
listening interfere with communication, you need to take appropriate action when these
barriers surface during a conversation. A few typical blocks follow:
• Mental holiday: The person is daydreaming or focused on thoughts that have nothing to
do with the current conversation.
• Judging: The person is focused on your clothing, tone of voice, posture, or hair style
and is ignoring the conversation.
• Rehearsing: The person is busy thinking about how to respond to your comments and is
ignoring what you are currently saying.
If the person seems only slightly distracted, try making eye contact, varying your speech
pattern, or asking questions. If the person seems completely preoccupied, you may want to
reschedule the meeting.
Chapter 2: Improving Personal and Organizational Communications 9
b. When a customer, patient, or client complains about something, we have an opportunity to
improve relations and build greater loyalty if we respond in the correct manner. Any
indication of indifference may result in a lost customer. The purpose of this exercise is to
give students practice in responding to customer concerns. Read one of the following
statements and then instruct a member of the class to stand and give a verbal response. Ask
other members of the class to assess the response and give the person feedback. Keep in
mind that the appropriate response will require the right combination of verbal and
nonverbal communication. For example, tone of voice and body language must complement
the spoken word.
• “After I checked out of the hospital and returned home, I discovered that some personal
items were missing. I think a member of your staff stole these items and I want you to
reimburse me for my losses.”
• “One of your waiters was very rude to my wife when she had lunch at your café
yesterday. What should have been a pleasant lunch with friends was ruined by the
young man’s attitude.”
• “Today my expense account payment request was returned by the accounting
department. The person who checked my form says your hotel made an error, and I
was overcharged. My request for travel expense reimbursement will not be processed
until I turn in a corrected invoice. I need that money today!”