Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 1
Chapter 1 LECTURE NOTES
Communicating in the Digital-Age Workplace
CHAPTER SYNOPSIS
In today’s digital, fast-paced workplace, excellent communication skills matter more than ever. As
electronic and digital channels of communication continue to expand, today’s working professionals
must learn to write and speak effectively in this information-driven workplace. This requires training,
as we are not born with these skills. Moreover, workers need to develop problem-solving and critical-
thinking skills, identified as top priorities among human resource professionals. Employees who
master these skills are better equipped to evaluate critically the avalanche of information that flows at
great speed, across various media, and in many directions.
Chapter 1 helps students prepare for successful intercultural communication by presenting the
characteristics of culture including context, individualism, time orientation, power distance, and
communication style. The chapter explains the effects of ethnocentrism, stereotypes, and tolerance
in achieving intercultural proficiency and identifies techniques for improving oral and written
communication in intercultural settings. Students will explore the challenges and benefits of
working in a diverse workplace. Suggestions for thriving in an intercultural environment will help
students succeed in today’s global village.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1. Describe how solid communication skills will improve your career prospects and help you succeed
in today’s challenging digital-age workplace.
2. Confront barriers to effective listening, and start building your listening skills.
3. Explain the importance of nonverbal communication and of improving your nonverbal
communication skills.
Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 2
WHAT’S NEW IN THIS CHAPTER
The authors made the following changes and improvements:
• Rewrote sections of the chapter to reflect the pervasive influence of new communication
technology to prepare students for the digital-age workplace.
• Presented recent research arguing the prominence of writing and other communication skills in
the thoroughly networked, hyperconnected workplace awaiting our students.
• Devoted attention to social media to impress upon students that writing is more important than
ever in the digital world because of the global reach and repeatability of digital messages.
• Emphasized the need for professionalism in today’s challenging and competitive workplace.
LECTURE OUTLINE
I. Mastering the Tools for Success in the Twenty-First-Century Workplace (p. 2)
A. Solid Communication Skills: Your Pass to Success
• Communication skills are critical to effective job placement, performance, career
advancement, and organizational success.
B. The Digital Revolution: Why Writing Skills Matter More Than Ever
• Digital media require more written communication, not less.
• A survey of American corporations revealed that two thirds of salaried employees
have some writing responsibility.
• In a poll of recruiters, oral and written communication skills were by a large margin
the top skill set sought.
Figure 1.1 Businesslike, Professional E-Mail Message
Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 3
C. What Employers Want: Professionalism
• Soft skills are essential career attributes that include the ability to communicate, work
well with others, solve problems, make ethical decisions, and appreciate diversity.
Figure 1.2 Projecting Professionalism When You Communicate
D. How Your Education Drives Your Income
• College graduates earn more, suffer less unemployment, and can choose from a wider
Figure 1.3 The Education Bonus: Higher Income, Lower Unemployment
E. Meeting the Challenges of the Information Age Workplace
• Rapidly changing communication technologies
• “Anytime, anywhere” and nonterritorial offices
Figure 1.4 Communication and Collaborative Technologies
II. Developing Listening Skills (p. 10)
A. Overcoming Barriers to Effective Listening
• Physical barriers
• Psychological barriers
• Language problems
B. Building Powerful Listening Skills
• Stop talking.
• Control your surroundings.
• Establish a receptive mind-set.
Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 4
III. Learning Nonverbal Communication Skills (p. 11)
A. What is Nonverbal Communication?
• Nonverbal communication includes all unwritten and unspoken messages, whether
intended or not.
B. Your Body Sends Silent Messages
• Eye contact – the best predictor of a speaker’s true feelings
C. Time, Space, and Territory Send Silent Messages
• How we structure our time tells others about our personalities and attitudes.
Figure 1.5 – Four Space Zones for Social Interaction
D. Appearance Sends Silent Messages
• Eye appeal of business documents
• Personal appearance
E. Building Strong Nonverbal Skills
• Establish and maintain eye contact.
• Use posture to show interest.
• Reduce or eliminate physical barriers.
• Improve your decoding skills.
Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 5
IV. Recognizing How Culture Affects Communication (p. 14)
Culture may be defined as “the complex system of values, traits, morals, and customs shared by
a society, region, or country.”
A. Comparing Key Cultural Values
• Context – refers to the stimuli, environment, or ambience surrounding an event
• Individualism – describes an attitude of freedom from control
Figure 1.6 Comparing Low- and High-Context Cultures
B. Intercultural Communication, Social Media, and Communication Technology
• Social media have the potential to improve intercultural connectedness.
V. Building Intercultural Workplace Skills (p. 18)
The global economy needs workers who not only master their technical skills but also can thrive
on diverse teams and interact effectively with customers and clients at home and abroad.
A. Curbing Ethnocentrism and Stereotyping
• Ethnocentrism is the belief in the superiority of one’s own culture.
• A stereotype is an oversimplified perception of a behavioral pattern or characteristic
applied to an entire group.
B. Successful Oral Communication With Intercultural Audiences
• Use simple English.
• Speak slowly and enunciate clearly.
• Encourage accurate feedback.
Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 6
• Follow up in writing.
C. Successful Written Communication With Intercultural Audiences
• Consider local styles and conventions.
D. Globalization and Workforce Diversity
• Better understanding of diverse consumer needs
• Fewer discrimination lawsuits and union clashes
E. Tips for Communicating With Diverse Audiences on the Job
• Seek training.
• Understand the value of differences.
• Learn about your cultural self.
• Make fewer assumptions.
• Build on similarities.
Critical Thinking Discussion Guide
11. Do you consider your daily texting, Facebook updates, blog entries, e-mails, and other
informal writing to be “real writing”? How might such writing differ from the writing done
in business? (Obj. 1)
Answers will vary. A Pew Internet & American Life study found that teens and young adults
12. Why do executives and managers spend more time listening than do workers? (Obj. 2)
Before they can make decisions, executives must listen to feedback from supervisors, specialists,
and others. They must also listen to their bosses—boards of directors and owners—as well as to
Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 7
13. What arguments could you give for or against the idea that body language is a science with
principles that can be interpreted accurately by specialists? (Obj. 3)
Although few would argue that body language does send silent messages, no scientific principles
have evolved explaining exactly what those messages mean. Most researchers agree that
nonverbal cues contain much information, but specifically what those cues mean is unknown. In
14. Consider potential culture clashes in typical business situations. Imagine that
businesspeople from a high-context culture, say, Japan or China, meet their counterparts
from a low-context culture, the United States, for the first time to negotiate and sign a
manufacturing contract. What could go wrong? How about conflicting perceptions of time?
(Obj. 4)
Thoughtful students will recognize that misunderstandings are almost assured if both sides are
not aware of their diverging perceptions and willing to accommodate each other. A
businessperson who prefers directness and relies mainly on precise written information (low
15. A stereotype is an oversimplified perception of a behavioral pattern or characteristic
applied to entire groups. For example, the Germans are formal, reserved, and blunt;
Americans are loud, friendly, and impatient; Asians are gracious, humble, and inscrutable.
In what way are such stereotypes harmless or harmful? (Obj. 5)
These attitudes may or may not accurately describe cultural norms. As we have seen, stereotypes
often do contain a grain of truth because they originate as observations leading to
generalizations. After all, generalizations help us make sense of the world we live in. When we
Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 8
Activities and Cases
Note: The solutions to the activities and cases for this chapter are located in the Solutions to
Activities section of the Instructor’s Manual.
Communication Workshop (p. 31)
Scouring Job Boards to Explore Career Prospects in Your Field
This first Communication Workshop encourages students to visit two job boards, such as Monster.
The goal is to motivate students early in the semester to recognize the value of this course in
developing the communication skills that many job placement advertisements mention.
Students should become familiar with using Internet job boards. This activity takes students through
the steps of locating employment positions in their career fields. They should find three
advertisements and print them. They should analyze the skills required, tasks to be performed, and
salary range for the listed jobs. You may ask them to discuss these findings in groups or submit them
in a report.
Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 9
Supplementary Lecture
High-Context and Low-Context Culture Styles
Anthropologist Edward T. Hall’s theory of high- and low-context culture helps us better understand
the powerful effect culture has on communication. A key factor in his theory is context. This relates
to the framework, background, and surrounding circumstances in which communication or an event
takes place. The following summary highlights the problems facing low-context North Americans
when they interact with people from high-context cultures.
High-context cultures (including much of the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and South America) are
relational, collectivist, intuitive, and contemplative. This means that people in these cultures
emphasize interpersonal relationships. Developing trust is an important first step to any business
transaction. These cultures are collectivist, preferring group harmony and consensus to individual
Low-context cultures (including North America and much of Western Europe) are logical, linear,
individualistic, and action-oriented. People from low-context cultures value logic, facts, and
directness. Solving a problem means lining up the facts and evaluating one after another. Decisions
are based on fact rather than intuition. Discussions end with actions. And communicators are
Discussion: What examples can you give that demonstrate high- and low-context cultures? How
would context help explain instances of miscommunication between North Americans and Chinese
and Japanese? How could you become a better international communicator?
Supplementary Lecture
Proverbs
Discussion of U.S. Proverbs
The squeaking wheel gets the oil.
Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 10
This proverb reflects a primary North American value: individualism. A single person’s voice
Waste not, want not.
People who do not waste their resources will not run out of them and end up wanting them. A
He who holds the gold makes the rules.
The individual with the gold (money, power) is the one who makes the rules (governs).
According to this proverb, individuals with wealth have the power to make rules and laws.
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.
This proverb suggests that perseverance is a prime ingredient of success. It illustrates the value
The early bird gets the worm.
The first person who achieves a goal is the one who will receive the reward. This proverb
Chinese Proverbs
A man who waits for a roast duck to fly into his mouth must wait a very, very long time.
A person must work hard to create his own achievements. A roast duck symbolizes a completed
A man who says it cannot be done should not interrupt a man doing it.
This proverb, attributed to the Chinese, again illustrates the value of industry. Refusing to
Give a man a fish, and he will live for a day; give him a net, and he will live for a lifetime.
Chapter 1 Lecture Notes ● 11
Although this proverb at one time was attributed to the Chinese, it is now often heard in relation
to many developing countries, such as Africa. It conveys the values of resourcefulness,
education, training, and self-reliance.
Other Proverbs
No one is either rich or poor who has not helped himself to be so. — German
This proverb suggests that no one becomes rich or poor by accident. Individuals create their
Words do not make flour. — Italian
One must do more than talk to create concrete achievement. Although this proverb again
The nail that sticks up gets pounded down. — Japanese
This proverb reflects the Asian values of modesty, reticence, and aversion to individualism.