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Business Communication: In Person, In Print, Online
INSTRUCTOR’S GUIDE
Chapter 3
Interpersonal Communication Skills
Overview
Business professionals use interpersonal communication to build
relationships. Nonverbal communication and listening skills are important
supplements to written and spoken messages.
Learning Objectives
• Explain the meaning and importance of nonverbal messages.
9e
Quick Links for Chapter 3
PPT Slides | Solutions to Exercises| Handouts | Video Suggestions | Company Examples | BizCom in the News
Teaching Suggestions
Resources
LO1: Explain the meaning and importance of nonverbal
messages.
INTRODUCE nonverbal communication as an important interpersonal skill.
Focus on the idea that successful communication goes beyond written and
spoken messages.
INSTRUCT the audio clips on the “Tone of Voice” slide to demonstrate the
difference, and ask students to guess what is meant by each.
ASSIGN students to work in pairs to practice a similar exercise. Have them
say “Why don’t you do some more research?” three times, each time
Resources
LO2: Listen effectively in business situations.
INTRODUCE the concept of listening as an important business
communication skill. Distinguish between listening and understanding, i.e.,
clearly receiving the message.
Resources
LO2: Listen effectively in business situations.
internship and business—experience.
14-week non-business: Students may refer more to their personal—school,
family, and friends—experience.
SHOW the PPT slide that demonstrates three ways to respond to a
situation using progressive active listening statements.
INSTRUCT students to work with a partner and practice active listening.
One student makes a statement, and the other student replies in three
Resources
LO3: Use social media to build business relationships.
INTRODUCE the role social media plays in business communication and its
emphasis on conversation and interaction.
DISCUSS the components of communication through social media—
listening and engagement—that contribute to successful interaction with
customers.
Resources
LO3: Use social media to build business relationships.
interested?
• What would you like the company to do to make their online
presence even more successful?
SHOW “The Seven Stages of Committing a Social Media Sin” to continue
the discussion of social media challenges. Say that this tracks the Kenneth
Cole situation—and shows how quickly a social media crisis can disappear
if handled well.
INSTRUCT students to work in teams. Ask them to search for companies
communicating poorly via social media and to share their observations in
class. You may ask students to follow the company’s communications over
a few days to see how the situation evolves.
Resources
LO4: Use voice technologies and texting effectively in business
situations.
INTRODUCE the role voice technologies and texting play in the professional
workplace—and their relation to face-to-face interaction and other
communications.
Resources
LO4: Use voice technologies and texting effectively in business
situations.
most useful? The least useful? Why? What other tips would you add?
• 14-week business: What has been your experience working with these
technologies? How did these technologies help employees, and what
were the downsides of each technology?
14-week non-business: How, if at all, do you think texting has affected your
use of proper grammar and punctuation?
Resources
LO5: Plan, facilitate, and participate in a business meeting.
INTRODUCE the concept of business meetings for managing work and
building positive relationships.
INSTRUCT students to work in teams to share their views on meetings.
14-week business: Think of examples of business meetings.
Resources
LO5: Plan, facilitate, and participate in a business meeting.
DISCUSS the important steps in planning and conducting a successful
business meeting. Ask students to relate these steps to the earlier
discussion about their positive and negative experiences: which steps were
either followed successfully or missed?
INSTRUCT students to work in teams. Each team should have four or five
members with one team leader. Ask students to practice facilitation
techniques in mock meetings. Use the PPT slide for challenging situations
that students are asked to role play. The leader should react professionally.
Solutions to Exercises
3Ps in Practice: Planning a Meeting
Process
1. What is the purpose of this meeting, and why is a meeting necessary?
2. What is the best format for the meeting (in person, teleconference, online, or
videoconference)? Why is this format the best choice?
3. What will you include in the meeting agenda? How can you make sure the agenda is
detailed enough?
In the meeting agenda, I will include time for opening the meeting, introducing the goals,
sharing the data I have about the company website, and gathering feedback from
associates. Because this meeting emphasizes discussion, I will prepare some questions to
make sure the meeting keeps rolling and plan most of the time for gathering feedback.
4. How can you inspire associates to come to the meeting prepared?
5. What else will you include in your email?
I will thank the associates for their dedication to customer service.
Product
An email to the customer service associates:
To: Customer Service Associates
From: Customer Service Division Manager
Subject: Meeting on Friday to Discuss Frequently Asked Questions
Hello Customer Service Associates,
On Friday at 10:00 a.m., we will hold a meeting in Emerson 52 to update the FAQs on the
Customer Support page of the website.
John
1. Identify facial expressions.
Student responses will vary based on the facial expressions of their partner as the partner tells a
2. Communicate without talking.
3. Use your voice tone to convey emotions.
Students should practice repeating the same sentence several times, conveying a different
4. Analyze time norms.
Students should discuss a meeting they recently attended and compare the behavior of those
who arrived early, on time, or late. The students’ analysis of their personal experience will be
5. Listen to key ideas and compare notes.
Show a news report in class and encourage students to take notes. Or instruct students to watch
6. See how nonverbal communication affects a speaker.
In groups, students should practice negative nonverbal communication and positive nonverbal
7. Observe someone listening.
Students should take turns evaluating and being evaluated on their listening skills. Encourage
students to use a range of ratings (between 1 and 5) to give an accurate assessment of their
8. Listen to an employee’s explanation.
Students should use a variety of listening strategies. You could stop this activity after a few
9. Help a company improve how it listens to customers online.
In a one- or two-page memo, students should accomplish the following:
• An overview of social media activity that the company has in place.
10. Use Twitter to engage customers.
Students should discuss the following:
• Sony’s use of hash tags and @ to link their posts to other posts. These methods keep
Sony in different conversations, popping up on many different pages besides their own.
Sample tweets:
Back to school? The new VAIO 13.3-inch laptop is trendy, powerful, and portable. Save up to
$650 and go to school in style!
11. Propose a way to include employees’ input.
In a one- or two-page page proposal, students should accomplish all the following:
• Explain the need for employee feedback on the new office design. Students should
discuss the importance of employee input on something that affects their workspace.
12. Consider Yammer for a company.
Yammer helps employees share information and learn from one another. With an informal
13. Leave a voice mail message.
This is a sample response: “Hello, Ms. Catona. This is Christine Smith. Thank you for your call.
I’m very excited about the interview opportunity, and I’m available on Friday between 9:00 a.m.
and 1:00 p.m. Please let me know what time is best for you. My number again is 555-9372. I
look forward to meeting you! Good-bye.”
14. Evaluate a telephone greeting.
15. Practice using VoIP.
Differences students may identify between VoIP and talking on a cell phone include the following
(assuming no video option):
16. Determine the best meeting format.
You want to close a sale with a new client.
Face-to-Face (best to build the
relationship)
You have a weekly meeting with
housekeeping staff at the Arlington, VA,
hotel.
Face-to-Face (convenient and inexpensive)
You call a meeting to discuss cost-cutting
ideas with your counterparts in three
different states.
Videoconference (best to see each other
because it could be a difficult topic, but it
is expensive to travel)
17. Evaluate a business meeting.
Student responses will vary based on the meeting they choose to attend and evaluate. Students
18. Plan a business meeting.
Scenario 1:
Students should include the following in the email:
• The purpose for holding the meeting
• Background information on MLK Day and other schools that observe the holiday
• The agenda (as an attachment)
Students should include the following in the agenda:
Scenario 2:
Students should include the following in the email:
• The purpose for holding the meeting
• Why they want to change the policy
Students should include the following in the agenda:
• Overview of the issue
• Proposed solution
19. Facilitate a face-to-face meeting.
Students are to practice facilitating a face-to-face meeting based on the principles in Chapter 3.
20. Write meeting minutes.
Student responses will vary based on the student experience from Exercise 18. Each student
21. Participate in an online meeting.
In groups, students should experiment with free online meeting services. They should consider
work experiences and how online meetings could have been utilized in those organizations. To
