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3 Planning and Decision Making
IN THIS CHAPTER YOU WILL FIND:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
KEY CONCEPTS
KEY TERMS
CHAPTER OUTLINE
TEACHING SUGGESTIONS
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
REVIEW QUESTIONS & SUGGESTED ANSWERS
FEATURED ASSIGNMENTS
ADDITIONAL ASSIGNMENTS
CASE ASSIGNMENTS
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1 Consider contextual forces that may affect whether, how, to whom, and when a message is
sent.
2 Identify the purpose of the message and the appropriate channel and medium.
3 Develop clear perceptions of the audience to enhance the impact and persuasiveness of the
message, improve goodwill, and establish and maintain the credibility of the communicator.
4 Apply tactics for adapting messages to the audience, including those for communicating
ethically and responsibly.
5 Recognize the importance of organization when planning the first draft.
KEY CONCEPTS
Effective spoken and written communication involves a process of careful analysis, planning,
adaptation, and organization that precedes the actual creation of the message. Chapter 3 focuses
on these essential steps of preparation: (1) determining the purpose of the message and an
appropriate channel, (2) envisioning the audience, (3) adapting the message to the audience, and
(4) organizing the message.
KEY TERMS
TERM
PAGE
TERM
PAGE
Deductive
49
Organizational culture
38
Inductive
49
Outlining
47
Libel
47
Slander
47
CHAPTER OUTLINE
3-1 Step 1: Consider the Applicable Contextual Forces 37
3-1a Organizational Culture 38
3-2 Step 2: Determine the Purpose and Select an Appropriate Channel and Medium 40
3-3 Step 3: Envision the Audience 42
3-4 Step 4: Adapt the Message to the Audience’s Needs and Concerns 45
3-4a Focuses on the Audience’s Point of View 45
3-5 Step 5: Organize the Message 47
3-5b Sequence Ideas to Achieve Desired Goals 48
TEACHING SUGGESTIONS
Introduction
A study by the National Commission on Writing found that two-thirds of salaried employees in
large corporations have some writing responsibilities. The same study found that $3.1 billion
annually to train employees to write effectively.
• Ask students: “Imagine how marketable you would be as an employee in any field if you
could show that you already have these writing skills?”
• Have students locate and read an article related to the value of writing and speaking in
a brief class presentation.
• Use the above activity as a springboard for discussing differences between good and poor
communication. Stress the use of simplicity, unexpectedness, concreteness, credibility,
LEARNING OBJECTIVE 1
Consider contextual forces that may affect whether, how, to whom, and when a message is sent.
Step 1: Consider the Applicable Contextual Forces
Students must consider the context of the situation and whether that will affect how and what is
communicated. The context of the message reflects the environmental influences, affect the
content, and ultimate decisions as to whether the message should even be sent.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE 2
Identify the purpose of the message and the appropriate channel and medium.
Step 2: Determine the Purpose and Select an Appropriate Channel and Medium
Identify the purpose and type of message
• Discuss how the purpose of a message impacts the type of message. Ask: How do you know
what your purpose is? Compare choosing a purpose to thinking about what audience
members might tell friends or colleagues after hearing a presentation.
Choose a Channel and Medium
• Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each communication channel presented in
Chapter 3. Use these activities as you discuss the importance of selecting an appropriate
channel.
• Ask students to recall the various channels for sending messages: person-to-person
conversations, telephone, fax, email, meetings, mailed correspondence, etc.
• Pose several communication situations and ask students to choose the best and worst channel
for each. The situations might include the following: announcement of a layoff, dissemination
of new procedures for logging information, response to a colleague’s request for routine
LEARNING OBJECTIVE 3
Develop clear perceptions of the audience to enhance the impact and persuasiveness of the
message, improve goodwill, and establish and maintain the credibility of the communicator.
Step 3: Envision the Audience
• Discuss perception as a part of the communication process, that we base our ideas on our own
limited viewpoint, filtering messages based on our experiences and our stereotypes, hearing
and seeing only what we choose.
• Discuss knowing as much about the receiver or audience as possible. Tell students to consider
LEARNING OBJECTIVE 4
Apply tactics for adapting messages to the audience, including those for communicating ethically
and responsibly.
Step 4: Adapt the Message to the Audience’s Needs and Concerns
Focuses on the Audience’s Point of View
• To illustrate the complexity of the communication process, complete the following activity:
Ask Student A to leave the classroom and make a paper airplane from a single piece of
paper or build a model with building blocks. Ask Student B to study the design of the airplane in
order to relay the information to the class who must replicate the object. Tell the class that
Student B will give them instructions for making something from a piece of paper.
After watching the creation of the object, have Student B develop directions for replication of the
airplane in a verbal message.
Adapting the Message to the Audience
• After determining the purpose and type of message, envisioning the audience, considering
environmental factors, and choosing a channel, students must learn to adapt the message to
the audience by focusing on the receiver’s point of view and promoting goodwill.
• Discuss how the use of “You” centered messages can convey sincere consideration for the
receiver of the message and protect and build goodwill. Mention that a “you” centered
Communicate Ethically and Responsibly
• The guidelines for communicating responsibly and ethically are an excellent preview of
principles that are integrated in the chapters that follow.
LEARNING OBJECTIVE 5
Recognize the importance of organization when planning the first draft.
Step 5: Organize the Message
After you have identified the specific ways you must adapt the message to your specific audience,
and you are convinced that the message is the right message—complete, accurate, fair,
reasonable, ethical, and logical—you are ready to organize your message.
Outline to Benefit the Sender and the Receiver
• Discuss the benefits outlining provides to the writer and the receiver.
• Remind students that best-selling author, John Grisham, believes that outlining is critical for
developing an effective plot and for minimizing the number of pages that will be written and
then discarded.
Sequence Ideas to Achieve Desired Goals
• Review the difference between inductive and deductive sequence of organization.
• Discuss the three-step process of determining whether a deductive (big idea first) or an
inductive (big idea later) sequence is appropriate.
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Understanding your Audience and an Empathetic Attitude: In situations a through c,
identify possible communication problems created because of a manager’s lack of
understanding and empathy when communicating to employees. Select a spokesperson to
share your group’s ideas.
a. A manager for a U.S. firm, who has been transferred to the company’s office in Japan,
provides the following message to launch the marketing/production team’s work on a
new product:
“We really need to put our noses to the grindstone to launch this new product. I’ve
been burning the midnight oil with my people in R&D, and I have some new ideas
Analysis: The writer uses numerous acronyms and expressions that are peculiar to the United
States that the Japanese manager may not understand. The blunt question at the end may be
confusing and considered rude to the manager from an Asian culture.
b. After months of uncertainty at Ramsey, Inc., a corporate official visits an office of the
national corporation with the following response to concerned questions by mostly
lower-wage technical and support staff regarding layoffs and office closures:
“We are realigning our resources company-wide to be more competitive in the
Analysis: The use of overly complex words may intimidate this audience or cause readers to
question the writer’s motive.
c. After several trips to Mexico and nearly a year of negotiation to set up a joint venture, a
U.S. partner faxed the final contract to the Mexican chief executive officer. The final
contract included a request that the CEO personally guarantee the loan, a stipulation
that had not been discussed previously.
2. Appropriate Outline and Channel: For situations a through l, complete the following
analysis to determine whether a deductive or an inductive outline is appropriate for the
following situations. Identify the channel you believe would be most appropriate for
conveying this message; be prepared to justify your answer. Use the format shown in the
following example. Answers should follow the following example, highlighting whether to use
the inductive or deductive sequence.
Situation
Recommended
Medium
Central Idea
Outline
(Deductive or
inductive)
Example
Mailed memo or e-mail
Inform employees of
Deductive
Situation
Recommended
Medium
Central Idea
Outline
(Deductive or
inductive)
Example
Mailed memo
or e-mail
Inform employees of an
increase in annual merit
Deductive
Seller to customer: An
e-commerce site is
promoting a special
Email
Digital music subscription
available.
Inductive
To company from
Letter or email
Request instructions for
Deductive
Quality manager to
production manager:
Phone
Discontinue production
because of flaw.
Inductive
Seller to customer: We
cannot provide a free
cellular phone upgrade
Letter or email
No upgrade until service is
renewed.
Inductive
who purchased the
Model DX laptop, which
had a faulty board.
Seller to customer:
Because of an increase
Letter or email
Communicate an increase
in price structure.
Inductive
still on the telephone
with the customer.
Management to
employees: A new
policy prohibiting
Email or letter
Smoking at work prohibited
to help manage rising
health care costs.
Inductive
3. Audience Analysis: Write a brief analysis of the audience for each of the situations presented
in Activity 2 “Appropriate Outline or Challenge.”
4. Receiver-Centered Messages: Revise the following two sentences to emphasize the reader’s
viewpoint and the “you” attitude.
a. We’re requesting that members call us on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central
Standard Time to confirm reservations.
b. Human Resources requires all employees who work with dangerous goods or hazardous
materials to have a complete physical every year.
5. Adapting the Message to the Audience: Revise sentences a through j by adapting the
message to meet the audience’s needs. Identify the specific weaknesses in each sentence.
a. We want all employees to be familiar with OSHA requirements that pertain to their jobs.
b. Each project manager must complete the appropriate performance evaluation forms
before being awarded his raise.
c. After the recent downsizing, most employees are beginning to feel like rats on a sinking
ship.
d. Please be advised that the city’s new smoke-free policy is effective on January 1.
e. Since I took a leadership role on this project, the team’s performance has improved.
f. The grapevine has it that the company shrink is putting together more tests for us to take
by the end of the year.
g. You failed to read the disclaimer on our website that clearly indicates that the transmitter
you ordered does not work with older generation MP3 players. Unfortunately, we cannot
honor your request for a refund.
h. Through strategic alliances and by internal expansion of programs, Lox Enterprises is
seeking to develop a substantial market presence as the leading provider of management
consulting services in Illinois and its neighboring states.
i. The best computers available for lease through corporate channels are horribly outdated.
j. The supervisor asked Quan to go back and make revisions to the final draft of the report
so the data will be completely accurate.
6. Analyzing Layoff Messages: Your company is planning to announce a series of layoffs that
will affect 10 percent of your workforce. Write an analysis of the situation that addresses the
following issues:
a. What are the purpose(s) that need to be attended to when planning this message? Are
they to inform, persuade, convey goodwill, or maintain credibility? How might a writer
accomplish these purposes?
b. What audience concerns and questions would need to be addressed to ensure positive
reception of the message?
c. Are their contextual issues that may need to be considered when writing the message?
d. What channel(s) of communication should be used to deliver this message?
Student responses should indicate:
a. All four purposes of business communication should be attended to in the message. These can
7. Research Outline: Create an outline for a research paper on one of the following topics:
a. Strategies and programs for becoming a “green” corporation
b. Employee privacy rights in the workplace
c. The benefits and challenges of globalization
REVIEW QUESTIONS & SUGGESTED ANSWERS
1. How does perception and audience analysis affect the communication process? What
factors about the audience should you consider?
Perception affects the way the message is encoded by the sender and decoded by the receiver.
2. What differences in the ideals of the older and younger generations may explain
communication clashes between these groups in the workplace?
3. Why is selecting an appropriate communication channel and media important to the
overall effectiveness of the message? Provide two examples.
Selecting the appropriate channel of communication increases the likelihood that the receiver will
4. What value is gained from cultivating a “you attitude” in spoken and written messages?
Give an example of a writer- and a reader-centered message to make your point.
Cultivating a “you attitude” or communicating from a receiver-centered point of view conveys
5. What primary benefits does the writer gain from outlining before writing or speaking?
How does the receiver benefit?
Outlining before you write encourages brevity and accuracy, permits concentration on one phase
6. What three questions assist a communicator in the decision to organize a message
deductively or inductively?
7. What is empathy and how does it affect business communication? How are empathy
and sympathy different?
Sympathy is merely the ability to feel or express sorrow or pity for the pain or distress of another.
8. What aspect of cultural diversity do you feel will impact you most in your career:
international, intercultural, intergenerational, or gender? Explain your answer,
including how you plan to deal with the challenge.
FEATURED ASSIGNMENTS
1. Preparing a Flier: Prepare an engaging flier describing efficient blog use that will be
distributed to staff as an electronic attachment to an email.
2. Know Your Audience: For the next assignment given by your instructor, consider the
characteristics of audience discussed in this chapter: age, economic level, educational or
occupational background, needs and consensus of audience, culture, rapport, and
expectations. Prepare a “Know Your Audience” tip that details a response to each
characteristic. Then identify how your presentation or paper addresses the tips on the sheet.
Responses will vary. Students should focus on guidelines for adapting messages for audience.
3. Corporate Culture: Visit the website of a company in which you are interested to explore the
company’s culture. Alternatively, you may choose a company from Fortune’s Best 100
Companies to Work For or Fortune’s Most Admired Companies. In a short oral report,
explain how that company’s culture comes through in its communication with its employees,
customers/clients, and suppliers.
4. Generational Phrasing: In a group of two to three students, generate a list of phrases
peculiar to your generation that could be confusing and inappropriate for workplace
communication. Refer to Merriam-Webster’s list of new words for ideas if necessary
(http://www.merriamwebstercollegiate.com/info/new_words.htm). Once you have your list,
substitute expressions that would be acceptable for use in a professional setting. If time
allows, prepare a visual aid to present to the class.
GENERATIONAL PHRASE
REPLACEMENT
cheesed-off
angry
ADDITIONAL ASSIGNMENTS
1. Diversity Awareness Strategies in Real Companies: Conduct an online search to identify
strategies that companies have adopted to raise their employees’ awareness of diversity in
the workplace. In chart form, summarize the indexes you used to locate your articles, the
companies you read about, and the successful strategies they have used to promote diversity.
2. Ethical Communication Practices: Locate the following article from the internet or from
your campus library:
Williams, D. (2002, April). Un-spun: Ethical communication practices serve the
public interest, Communication World, 27.
a. What factors have contributed to the current decline in ethical and moral practices?
b. What is meant by the statement: “Businesses communicators aren’t in the hero
business”?
Business communicators or public relations professionals are traditionally thought of as only
c. Describe briefly the code of ethics of the International Association for Business
Communication.
d. How does this professional code relate to the general guidelines presented in the text for
communicating ethically and responsibly?
3. Choosing Communication Channels and Media Wisely: Locate an article about choosing
the appropriate communication channel for different sales situations at your library or on the
internet. After reading the article, compile a list of the advantages and recommended use for
each communication channel.
CHANNEL
ADVANTAGES
RECOMMENDED USE
Face-to-face
Read body language
Emphasizes importance of message
4. Building Strong Interpersonal Skills: The guidelines presented in this chapter for adapting
your message to convey sensitivity for the receiver are an excellent means for building the
relationships and strong interpersonal skills needed in today’s highly competitive global
market and in diverse work teams. Identify a specific situation in your work or educational
experience, or school or community organizations, that illustrates the negative effects of an
individual who did not consider the impact of his/her message on the receiver. Send your
example to your instructor as an attachment to an email message. Be prepared to discuss
your idea with the class or in small groups.
This activity will encourage students to identify and to share specific incidents that illustrate the
5. Trickery of Illusions: In small groups, search for illusions on the internet or one provided by
your instructor. Allow each member to view the illusion independently and then share his or
her individual interpretation with the team. Relate this experience with the concept of
perception and its effect on the communication process. Be prepared to share your ideas with
the class.
Responses will vary. Students should focus on senders and receivers basing their ideas on their
6. Persuasive Business Message: Find a persuasive business message of at least one page in
length. Do the content and appearance of the message enhance or detract from the writer’s
credibility? How? Did the writer use language and content to establish or maintain a
relationship with the reader (i.e., goodwill)? If so, how? Were there words or phrases that
detracted from the writer’s ability to convey goodwill? How successful was the writer in his
or her attempt to be persuasive? What contributed to that success or detracted from it?
Student responses will vary depending upon the type and quality of the message they choose to
CASE ASSIGNMENT
HALLMARK CRAFTS MESSAGES FOR CHANGING CONSUMER MARKET
Nationwide, American consumers spend about $7.5 billion a year on greeting cards.
Greeting cards can be a meaningful communication tool for customers, coworkers, and important
business contacts and can provide a memorable, cost-effective way to build loyalty and increase
customer retention. Hallmark Cards, Inc., located in Kansas City, Missouri, has been helping
people say the right things at the right time for nearly 100 years, and the continued success of its
cards is directly tied to effective analysis of an ever-changing audience.
As American society has become increasingly heterogeneous, Hallmark product offerings
have also become more diverse. Realizing that Hispanics currently account for 11 percent of the
U.S. population, the company has extended the appeal of its cards to Hispanics through its
Sinceramente Hallmark line, which includes more than 2,500 Spanish-language cards. Hallmark
targets its African-American consumers with its Mahogany line. The Tree of Life series,
meanwhile, is aimed at Jewish customers, and in 2003, Hallmark began carrying Diwali and Eid
al-Fitr cards to appeal to its Muslim clientele. Expansion into international markets has shown
Hallmark that message appeal is largely influenced by cultural values. The Dutch audience, for
instance, tends to be more direct than Americans, while British consumers are more reserved and
less direct.
Shifting cultural demographics is only one challenge faced by Hallmark. Referring to
recent internal research, Hallmark’s CEO Donald J. Hall, Jr. says, “We’re not filling all the needs
that people have when it comes to their relationships, but we have their ‘permission’ and
opportunities to do so” (Mann 2005). Generational changes, such as the tendency of baby
boomers to purchase fewer cards than their parents, and the current popularity of e-cards have
given rise to the design of new products to entice consumers to card shop more often. Because
Rodenbough knew that changes were needed in marketing strategy and in internal
communications.
With economic conditions showing that significant changes were imminent, Rodenbough
and other senior managers knew they had to both prepare and rally the work force. Initial focus
group research with customers, vendors, suppliers, subsidiary leadership, and employees helped
Hallmark identify behaviors that it wanted to integrate into its “new” corporate culture. A
communication audit, which took approximately 12 months to complete, resulted in the formation
of several action steps designed to assist the company in communicating openly, directly, and
honestly. According to Vicci Rodgers of The Rodgers Group, and a member of the audit team,
“Open, honest communication is becoming the norm, it’s no longer the exception, at Hallmark.”
One change implemented at Hallmark was to share with all employees the company’s
long-term vision, strategy, and financial goals. Another change was to focus more closely on
internal communication tools. Publications produced primarily for external audiences had
required extensive support from the editorial and design staff, limiting the resources available for
key internal communication programs. As part of the transformed culture, Hallmark discontinued
some of its external communication tools and repositioned its long-standing Noon News
employee newsletter to devote space to candid commentary about the communication audit and
its findings. An additional change affected information shared over the company’s intranet. An
intranet manager and an online editor were also hired to enhance the intranet’s appeal, and
employees now have access to information on monthly revenue and earnings results and other
performance measures. Hallmark achieved its goals for operating profit during this period of
cultural change. Although the company’s improved earnings cannot be attributed completely to
improved internal communication, Hallmark has a clear understanding of the vital role
communication plays in successful company performance.
Another part of that successful performance comes from knowing how to say just the
right thing, and Hallmark has been helping people say the right thing at the right time for nearly
100 years. Getting and sending greeting cards make people feel good. But the “warm fuzzy”
Questions
1. Visit the Hallmark corporate website at http://corporate.hallmark.com and search
“Tips on Sending Business Greetings” on the Hallmark site. Look through any of the
links. What tips did you find most helpful inside or outside business communication?
✓ Never interrupt an important meeting.
✓ Make everyone involved feel good.
✓ Show a customer that he or she is more than a number.
✓ Tell an employee that he or she is appreciated.
2. How has cultural change impacted the mission and activities of Hallmark?
3. Dean Rodenbough is quoted as saying that “the CEO is traditionally the voice of any
major decision impacting our employees or one of our businesses and is our preferred
spokesperson.” If so, why does Hallmark need a Director of Corporate
Communications? Discuss your response in class or online.
