Management A Practical Introduction Third Edition Angelo Kinicki & Brian K Williams Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin Chapter 15: Interpersonal & Organizational Communication Mastering the Exchange of Information The Communication Process Barriers to Communication How Managers Fit into the Process Communication in the Information Age Improving Communication Effectiveness Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.1 The Communication Process: What It Is, How It Works WHY DO WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS? Communication is the transfer of information and understanding from one person to another Good communication skills, both written and oral, are essential to success One study found that managers spend over 80 percent of their day communicating Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.1 The Communication Process: What It Is, How It Works Communication is a process The sender is the person wanting to share information, called a message, and the receiver is the person for whom the message is intended Messages have to be encoded (translated into understandable symbols or language) Then, messages have to be decoded (interpreted and made sense of) The pathway by which a message travels is the medium Feedback is the receiver’s reaction to the sender’s message Any disturbance that interferes with the transmission of a message is noise Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin The Communication Process Basic Model McGraw-Hill/Irwin Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc All rights rese 15.1 The Communication Process: What It Is, How It Works Figure 15.1: The Communication Process Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin The Communication Process Expanded Model McGraw-Hill/Irwin Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc All rights rese The Communication Process What assignment you mean? Did you finish your assignment? Noise! Noise! Sender McGraw-Hill/Irwin Receiver Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc All rights rese 15.1 The Communication Process: What It Is, How It Works HOW DO MANAGERS KNOW WHICH TYPE OF COMMUNICATION TOOL TO USE? Managers need to know how to use the right type of communication tool for a given situation How well a particular medium conveys information and promotes learning is referred to as media richness Media are positioned along a continuum ranging from high media richness (face-to-face communication) to low media richness (impersonal written media like newsletters) In nonroutine situations, a rich medium works best In routine situations, a lean medium works better Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin The Selecting the Right Media High Media Richness (Best for nonroutine, ambiguous situations) Face-to-face presence McGraw-Hill/Irwin Videoconferencing Low Media Richness (Best for routine, clear situations) Telephone Personal written media (e-mail, memos, letters) Impersonal written media (newsletters, fliers, general reports) Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc All rights rese 15.2 Barriers To Communication ARE THERE DIFFERENCES IN HOW MEN & WOMEN COMMUNICATE? There are a number of general differences in how men and women communicate Men tend to be more direct and blunt, women have a softer approach, for example Similarly, men tend to be stingy with praise while women hand out lots of compliments Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.3 How Managers Ft Into The Communications Process HOW DO MANAGERS USE THE DIFFERENT CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION? There are both formal and informal channels of communication Formal communication channels follow the chain of command and are recognized as official There are three types of formal communications: vertical, horizontal, and external Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.3 How Managers Ft Into The Communications Process Vertical communication flows up and down the organizational hierarchy Downward communication flows from a higher level to a lower level while upward communication flows from a lower level to a high level Horizontal communication flows within and between work units - its main purpose is coordination Horizontal communication is encouraged through the use of committees, task forces, and matrix structures External communication flows between people inside and outside the organization It involves people like customers, suppliers, and shareholders Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.3 How Managers Ft Into The Communications Process Informal communication channels develop outside the formal structure and not follow the chain of command Two informal channels are the grapevine (the unofficial communication system of the informal organization) and management-by-wandering around (a manager literally walking around and talking with people across all lines of authority) Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.4 Communication In The Information Age HOW CAN MANAGERS USE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TO COMMUNICATE? Information technology can allow managers to communicate more effectively There are several types of information technology including: The internet, intranets, & extranets The Internet is a network of computer networks Two private uses of the Internet are intranets (an organization’s private Internet) and extranets (an extended intranet that connects internal employees with selected customers, suppliers, and other strategic partners) Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.4 Communication In The Information Age E-mail E-mail (electronic mail that is sent via the Internet) reduces the cost of distributing information, increases teamwork, reduces paper costs, and increases flexibility However, it can also lead to wasted time dealing with spam (unsolicited jokes and junk mail), information overload, and neglect of other media Videoconferencing Videoconferencing or teleconferencing uses video and audio links along with computers to enable people in different locations to see, hear, and talk with each other Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.4 Communication In The Information Age Group Support Systems Group support systems use state-of-the-art computer software and hardware to help people work better together They allow people to share information without time or space constraints Companies with these systems can create virtual teams Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.4 Communication In The Information Age Telecommuting Telecommuting involves doing work that is usually done at the office away from the office Telecommuters use phone, fax, and the Internet to communicate Telecommuting can: reduce capital costs, increase flexibility and autonomy for workers, provide a competitive advantage when recruiting, increase job satisfaction, increase productivity, and allow companies to tap nontraditional workers Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.4 Communication In The Information Age Handheld Devices Handheld devices like PDAs and smartphones allow workers to work from anywhere Blogs A blog is an online journal in which people write whatever they want about any topic Blogs give people an informal means of discussing issues However, they’re not always accurate, they can be used to say unflattering things about the company, and there aren’t any guidelines about what is acceptable to post Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.4 Communication In The Information Age WHAT PROBLEMS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY? Information technology can be problematic in the workplace when it interferes with productivity One of the biggest time killers in the workplace is personal use of the Internet Trying to get online connections to work, dealing with spam and viruses, and so on also detract from an employee’s productivity Information overload occurs when the amount of information received exceeds a person’s ability to handle or process it Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.5 Improving Communication Effectiveness HOW CAN YOU BE A BETTER LISTENER? To be a better listener, managers should: -judge content, not the delivery -ask questions and summarize remarks -listen for ideas -resist distractions and show interest -give a fair hearing and correct for personal biases Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.5 Improving Communication Effectiveness HOW CAN YOU BE A BETTER READER? To streamline reading, managers should -be savvy about periodicals and books - focus on the important stuff -transfer their reading load - get employees to write up summaries of important books -make internal memos and e-mail more efficient -use the five steps of the top down reading system: rate reasons to read, question and predict answers, survey the big picture, skim for main ideas, and summarize Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin Effective Reading Top-Down Reading – RQ3S Rate reasons to read Question and predict answers Survey the big picture – get overview Skim for main ideas Summarize as you skim McGraw-Hill/Irwin Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin © 2006 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc All rights rese 15.5 Improving Communication Effectiveness HOW CAN YOU BE A BETTER WRITER? Don’t show your ignorance - be sure to proofread and use spelling and grammar checks before sending e-mails Understand your strategy before you write - when writing, lay out ideas: most important to least important, least controversial to most controversial, and negative to positive Start with your purpose - state your purpose and what you expect of the reader Write simply, concisely, and directly - be direct and use an active voice Telegraph your writing with a powerful layout - make your writing easy to read by using highlighting and white space Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15.5 Improving Communication Effectiveness HOW CAN YOU BE A BETTER SPEAKER? Tell them what you’re going to say - the introduction of your speech should prepare listeners for the rest of the speech It should take about 5-15 percent of your time Say it - this part of the speech should take 75-90 percent of your time Be succinct Tell them what you said - the conclusion can be as important as the introduction It should take about 5-10 percent of your time Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin ... channels are the grapevine (the unofficial communication system of the informal organization) and management- by-wandering around (a manager literally walking around and talking with people across all... provide a competitive advantage when recruiting, increase job satisfaction, increase productivity, and allow companies to tap nontraditional workers Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction. .. suppliers, and other strategic partners) Kinicki/Williams, Management: A Practical Introduction 3e ©2008, McGraw-Hill/Irwin 15. 4 Communication In The Information Age E-mail E-mail (electronic mail that