How to communicate effectively with foreign colleagues in foreign organizations and companies.doc

How to communicate effectively with foreign colleagues in foreign organizations and companies

1.1 Rationale of the study 1

1.2 Objectives of the study 1

1.3 Scope of the study 2

1.4 Methodology of the study 2

1.5 Structure of the study 3

CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 4

2.1 The communication process 4

2.4.3 Passive-aggressive communication 13

2.4.4 Assertive communication 13

2.5 Principles of effective communication 13

2.6 Benefits of effective communication 15

2.7 Consequences of poor communication 16

2.8 Barriers to effective communication with foreign colleagues 17

2.8.1 Cultural differences 18

2.8.2 English language performance 19

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY AND ANALYSIS 22

3.2.2 How Vietnamese staff communicate with their foreign colleagues 29

CHAPTER 4: DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON HOW TOCOMMUNICATE MORE EFFECTIVELY WITH FOREIGN COLLEAGUESIN FOREIGN ORGANIZATIONS AND COMPANIES 39

4.1 Phase 2: Sender encodes idea 39

4.2 Phase 3: Sender transmits message 43

4.3 Phase 4: Receiver gets message 44

4.4 Phase 5: Receiver decodes message 46

4.5 Phase 6: Receiver sends feedback 47

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 50

5.1 Conclusion 50

5.2 Limitations of the study 50

5.3 Suggestions for further study 51

Appendix 1: Research Questionnaire IVAppendix 2: Raw data for Questionnaire collected on 17 May 2008 VIII

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2 1 Communication process 5

Figure 3 1 Respondents’ sex distribution 25

Figure 3 2 Level ranked by the respondents 27

Figure 3 3 Response rate by frequency of communication ….29

Figure 3 4 Factors considered before starting a conversation 30

Figure 3 5 Ways of confirmation 33

Figure 3.6 Ways to draw attention 34

Figure 3 7 Ways to ensure understanding 36

Figure 3 8 Ways to receive feedback 37

Figure 4 1 The communication process 40

Figure 4 2 The communication process 43

Figure 4 3 The communication process 44

Figure 4 4 The communication process 46

Figure 4 5 The communication process 47

LIST OF TABLESTable 3 1 Occupation of surveyed staff 26

Table 3 2 Type of organization or company 26

28

Table 3 4 Channel and medium 31

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION1.1 Rationale of the study

Communication is the essential need of human It has incessantly improved anddeveloped during our whole life Communication helps us to acquire and increaseknowledge from the outside world and strengthen relations between people, especiallythose from different cultures and countries In workplace, many organizations arelosing valuable business opportunities because they have failed to recognize thefundamental importance of effective communication It is communication breakdownthat is at the root of conflicts or misunderstanding among colleagues Staff’ successalso depends not only on professionalism and diligence but their individualrelationships and communication skills as well

In Vietnam nowadays, the country is integrating into the global village Moreand more foreign companies and organizations have been sprung up like mushroom.Therefore, communication skills with foreign counterparts play an important role inenhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of their work Vietnamese staff’s ability tocommunicate with foreigners has become a subject of discussion; however, few studieson it have been carried out That is the reason why I chose the topic for this thesis as“How to communicate effectively with foreign colleagues in foreign organizations andcompanies.”

1.2 Objectives of the study

The study aims to:

 Provide an overall idea about communication

 Investigate how Vietnamese staff communicate with their foreign counterparts

 Find out how to communicate more effectively with foreign colleaguesResearch questions of the study include the followings:

 What is communication process? What are communication types? What are communication forms? What are communication styles?

 What are principles of effective communication? What are benefits of effective communication? What are consequences of poor communication?

 What are barriers to effective communication with foreign colleagues?

 How do Vietnamese staff communicate with their foreign colleagues atworkplace?

 What are the best ways to communicate with foreign colleagues in foreignorganizations and companies?

1.3 Scope of the study

I carried out a small-scaled survey with 77 respondents This survey focused oninvestigating the oral/spoken communication performance of Vietnamese staff withtheir foreign colleagues in foreign organizations and companies in Hanoi only due totime limitation Such factors as social status and gender were included in thequestionnaires Basing on the findings drawn from 77 informants, the writer madesome tentative conclusions about what are the best ways to communicate with foreigncolleagues.

1.4 Methodology of the study

This thesis was written based on both primary and secondary data A wide rangeof materials regarding communication and relating researches were studied such as the

published books and web documents The research methods I used were descriptiveand quantitative ones A survey on how Vietnamese staff communicate with theirforeign colleagues was conducted in some foreign organizations, other limited andprivate companies, International Agency and Institution of Environmental Technology.A survey questionnaire was carried out to collect data Description, analysis, andstatistics were used in processing and interpreting data Details of studying methodswill be further presented in chapter III.

1.5 Structure of the study

The study consists of 5 chapters:

 Chapter 1: Introduction - provides an introduction of rationale, objectives,

scope, methodology and structure of the study.

 Chapter 2: Theoretical background - presents an overview of studies on

communication In this notion of communication, the process of communicationand communication types, forms and styles are presented Besides, principles ofeffective communication, benefits of effective communication, consequences ofpoor communication and barriers to communication are also included in thischapter

 Chapter 3: Methodology and analysis - is concerned with a description of

studying methods and the results as well as the analyses of the survey

 Chapter 4: Discussions and some recommendations on how to communicateeffectively with foreign counterparts in foreign organizations andcompanies – looks at the discussion about the survey and puts forward some

tips to have a better communication with colleagues from other countries  Chapter 5: Conclusion – discusses conclusion and limitations of the study as

well as suggests some directions for further study

CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

Communication is very important in all areas of life It is “the process oftransferring information from a sender to a receiver with the use of a medium in whichthe communicated information is understood by both sender and receiver.”(“Communication” Wikipedia) In order to have a deep and overview oncommunication, we first look at its process, types, forms, and styles At the end of thischapter, we will focus on the principles and benefits of effective communication,consequences of poor communication, and analyze the barriers to effectivecommunication with foreign colleagues

2.1 The communication process

“You can’t not communicate.

Everything you say or do or don’tsay and don’t do sends a messageto others.” (John Woods)1

It is quite obvious that communication takes place at any time in any form.Whether we say something or keep silent or whatever we do, there is communicationwith other people According to the textbook “Business Communication Essentials”,communication is a dynamic and two-way process of coding and decoding messages

(Bovée, Thill, and Schatzman 4) Specifically, the process can be divided into sixphases (Figure 2.1):

Figure 2 1 Communication process2

Phase 1 is when the sender has an idea We form an idea in our mind and you have anintention to communicate it with other persons We want to share it Phase 2 is whenthe sender encodes the idea Now the idea is translated into the symbols of languageand thus into a message In phase 3, the sender transmits message The message is sentvia a channel such as verbal or nonverbal, spoken or written Besides, you also select amedium to send the message such as telephone, letter, face-to-face exchange, etc The receiver gets the message in phase 4.

After that, the receiver decodes themessage In this phase, the receiverconverts the transmitted message into anabstract idea in his mind The codes of

Phase 1: Sender has an idea

Phase 2: Sender encodes idea

Phase 3: Sender transmits

Phase 4: Receiver gets messagePhase 5: Receiver

decodes messagePhase 6: Receiver

sends feedback

CHANNELAND MEDIUM

the sender and the receiver must have at least a certain set of symbols in common sothat the receiver can send feedback in the final phase Feedback is the receiver’s replyor response to the message The communication process can be one way or two ways.In one-way communication, there is no feedback whereas two-way communicationalways includes feedback Feedback lets the sender know if the communication issuccessful or not

2.2.2 Non-verbal communication

Non-verbal communication refers to themessages we give and receive through body

language, vocal characteristics, personal appearance, touching behavior, use of timeand space (Bovée, Thill, and Schatzman 31) “If the eyes are the windows of the soul,then the body is the mirror of our feelings” (Redhead 2) It is useful to be able to readpeople’s body language Body language includes body movement and gestures, facialexpressions, eye contact and postures It should be noted that in different cultures, bodylanguage can have different meanings Therefore, we should know about that to havebetter communication with people from other countries and cultures Following aresome examples of body language with the most common meaning.

First of all, body movement is one of the tools that can tell us how the peopleare feeling During the conversation, we can move toward or backward, stand upright,which may reflect the confidence Besides, gestures are also of great importance Headgestures are used with different meanings For example, “yes” is shown by nodding thehead up and down, and “no” is conveyed by shaking the head side to side Scratchingthe head indicates that the person is confused and pauses in doubt People also takeadvantage of using hands Waving hands can be either “hello” or “goodbye.” Holdingthe index and the mid finger upright stands for “victory.” In short, the movements ofour bodies can express what we want to say instead of speaking out

A second crucial part of body language is facial expressions, which include a lotof signs Smiling can often cover different emotions such as happiness, sadness,confusion or apologies We also smile our approval to agree with someone A smile,however, can disguise true feelings When we are confused or do not know what tosay, we often laugh off or laugh half-heartedly A sardonic or bitter smile indicates thatthe person is miserable or disappointed Another facial expression is the grimace,which conveys pain and disgust Winking with one eye is a sign of kidding or sharing asecret with the others Rolling the eyes may show amazement or even suspicion As wehave seen, our faces mainly focus on expressing emotions and attitudes

Thirdly, maintaining eye contact when speaking with others helpscommunication Direct eye contact shows attentiveness and listening If people loseeye contact, it means they ignore the speaker and want to change the topic or stop theconversation Nevertheless, staring at someone is seen negative as it makes him/herembarrassed, confused or annoyed Whereas, staring at something may express surpriseand curiosity These examples demonstrate eye contact shows attention and influence

Last but not least of body language use is the posture The way we stand or sitgives information about how we are feeling When people stand up or sit up straight, itcan be understood that they feel confident or comfortable Moreover, the posture isshown through hands and arms Outward and upward hands movements reveal an openand positive message Open arms can indicate a good way to show that the person isapproachable and friendly Folded arms may mean the rejection or the disagreement.Hands in pocket can show either familiarity/informality or the disrespect depending ondifferent circumstances What is more, “slouching, leaning forward, fidgeting, andwalking briskly are all conscious signals that reveal whether you feel confident ornervous, friendly or hostile, assertive or passive, powerful or powerless” (Bovée, Thill,and Schatzman 31)

The second factor of non-verbal communication is vocal characteristics This isexpressed through tone of voice The tone of voice used can tell us a lot about anotherperson because it carries both intentional and unintentional messages There arevarious tones of voice that express the feelings and emotions of people The voice cansound regular, mad, happy, excited, scared, sad, worried, and so on, which depends onthe state of mind Especially when we talk on the phone, it is more crucial to watch thetone in our voice A listener cannot see our face or body language so the tone of voicebecomes a determinant factor of effective communication Not only the tone and

volume but also the speaking pace helps to know much about the people and theiremotions underlying their words

Thirdly, physical appearance is also one of themost important factors of non-verbal communication.Communicating values and expectations can be definedthrough clothing and other dimensions of physicalappearance Normally, people form opinions throughwhat they see in a person physically and then respondto that person accordingly In turn, people tend to fulfillthe others’ perceptions of themselves To be moreexact, if we think, for example, someone is capable andattractive, he/she will feel good about himself/herself, which affects our behavior aswell as his/her opinion about us Therefore, we can make a good impression by payingattention to grooming, clothing, accessories, and style that form our appearance

Fourthly, “touch is an important vehicle for conveying warmth, comfort, andreassurance.” (Bovée, Thill, and Schatzman 32) It can also be an expression ofdominance when a higher-status person touches a lower-status one The use of touch incommunicating can be a handshake, a pat on the back, an arm around the shoulder, ahug, and so on (Protti 25) Touching behavior varies from different gender, age,relative status, cultural background, and circumstances Accordingly, we must becareful with this sensitive factor in order to avoid giving unexpected things ormessages Who may touch whom and how will affect the effectiveness ofcommunication

Finally, personal space and use of time should be paid due attention to “Yourpersonal space is like an invisible bubble that surrounds you.” (“Your personal space”

Worsleyschool) Like body language, physicalspace also differs from different cultures andcircumstances Generally speaking, however, thedistance is often large between strangers We getcloser to someone that we know fairly well Thedistance between a man and a woman who arestrangers to each other may be larger than that ofthe ones who have a relationship In addition, theuse of time can define the status when some

people want to show their importance by making others wait Meanwhile, others showtheir respect by being on time Communicating status is also expressed by allowingsome people to go ahead of others Punctuality also depends on different cultures

In summary, “actions speak louder than words.” People often express ideas,emotions, and attitudes more nonverbally than verbally through all the cues, spatialrelationships, and attitudes toward time That is the reason why the “silent language” isso crucial in communication in general and communication with foreigners inparticular

2.3 Communication forms

2.3.1 Written communication

Research has shown that 9% of communication is happening in writing Themost common written media are emails and memos Recently, communication throughsocial network sites (such as Facebook, MySpace, etc) has been on the rise One of thebiggest advantages of written communication is that both the sender and the receiverhave time to think about what is written Furthermore, it lets us plan and control themessage Though a written channel increases the sender’s control, it eliminates the

possibility of immediate feedback Feedback is delayed and misunderstandings aboutthe message may occur in the communication process

2.3.2 Oral communication

“Oral communication is the spoken interaction between two or more people.”(Perl, Murray, and Lutrick 1) It is appropriate for direct and personal contacts but notvery useful for conveying complex and technical information since it needs to bedemonstrated with visual aids Its big advantage is that it provides immediate feedback.Misunderstandings can be dealt with immediately and the possibility of conflict andmisunderstanding is lessened In general, oral communication is used when ourpurpose is to interact directly with the audience Oral communication includes face-to-face, telephone, voice mail, and so on.

2.3.3 Visual communication

Visual communication means communication with visual aids “It is theconveyance of ideas and information in forms that can be read or looked upon.”(“Visual communication” Wikipedia) Its various forms range from posters, pictures,photos, diagrams, films, etc Although visual communication is useful for long speechwith complex and technical information, it might distract the audience from what isbeing said In a word, visual communication will be more effective if it is combinedwith written and oral communication

2.4 Communication styles

There are various styles of communication Thus, it is crucial to know differentcommunication styles so that we can understand others in order to avoidmisunderstandings Once we are aware of such differences, we will likely be able toeffectively communicate and interact with our colleagues and successfully collaborate

in the work place Otherwise, miscommunication will bring companies andorganizations lots of disadvantages

Researches have shown that there are four common styles of communication:aggressive, passive, passive-aggressive, and assertive communication

2.4.1 Aggressive communication

This style refers to those who are characterized as frank and forceful They tendto exaggerate their messages through words and behaviors They may shout, stare, orhave frightening words to listeners They often stand closely to others duringconversations Additionally, they speak in an ironically voice All of these make theirlisteners feel defensive and humiliated They can get what they want for the first time,but after that they most likely will feel isolated because the others will develop ways oflimiting interaction with them

2.4.2 Passive communication

When people communicate in a passive way, they often fail to make listenersknow what they think or how they feel They often allow others to choose and makedecisions for them Although the pleasant atmosphere is kept in their relationships, it ishard for them, however, to have their say and achieve their goals In the long run, thisstyle of communication will harm them and be visible through stressful symptoms suchas feeling anxious, ignored, and helpless Moreover, others around them, either at workor in family situations will tend not to respect their opinions and characterize theperson as being weak

2.4.3 Passive-aggressive communication

People of this style have to think of reasons to persuade others that what theyare saying is very important and precise Actually, they want to ventilate and speak outtheir ideas but they are hesitating to do so They find it comfortable to hide behindothers’ opinions in order to express their viewpoints This may causemisunderstandings for their listeners and then they may get angry easily Sooner orlater, others will lose trust in them and according they will lose their confidence

2.4.4 Assertive communication

Assertive communicators know how to harmonize their words and behavior.They are very direct and honest Listeners clearly understand what they say and knowhow they feel They allow others and themselves to express ideas Thiscommunication style helps people to be comfortable after expressing ideas, showingtheir feelings and have attention of others Gradually, they will feel confident incommunication and be respected by others

2.5 Principles of effective communication

Although cultures and communication styles vary, communication can beeffective if we follow its principles Followings are five basic principles of effectivecommunication

The first principle of effective communication is to “really connect with youraudience.” (“Principles of effective communication” Sideroad) In a communicationprocess, there must be two subjects: sender and receiver If there is no connectionbetween the sender and the receiver, there is no communication It is often consideredthat sending information is the act of communication Actually, communication is atwo-way process Therefore, we have to pay attention to our audience and let him/her

express his/her views “You need to plan your message, and the medium for themessage, to trigger the emotional and cognitive responses that will ensure you toengage your audience.” (“Principles of effective communication” Sideroad) Effectivecommunication means ideas are exchanging freely.

The second principle of effectivecommunication is to listen and understand first.The most frustrating thing aboutcommunication is when the person whom weare talking to is not listening to us.Consequently, a lot of misunderstandings andmisinterpretation occur It should be noted thateffective communication is about the result we get, which is perhaps the mostimportant thing in communication The person we are talking to should totally get ourpoint and we also understand his idea So to ensure that our communication iseffective, we must always confirm understanding.

The third principle of effective communication is to understand thatcommunication is more than the surface meaning of words To be more exact, we needto be able to interpret other people's messages through their body language also This isanother form of feedback In addition to direct feedback, asking a person to repeat whathas been said for example, feedback may be subtle and manifested through eye contactsuch as a stare or a puzzle look, facial expressions such as frown or changing incountenance, and body language like nodding, folding arms, leaning forward, and soon Due attention should be paid to feedback to make sure that both the listener and thecommunicator understand each other

Last but no means least is to show our respect and not to interrupt whensomeone is talking We can wait until they finish their sentences Interruptions maymake the communicator feel frustrated or even forget the key points that are needed to

be transmitted to us Therefore, it is advised to be respectful and listen attentively Ifwe have any questions, we can ask later

These are the four most basic principles for an effective communication It maysound simple but in reality, it is perhaps the hardest principles to follow Especially,they prove to be rather practical and useful, which helps us to become goodcommunicators

2.6 Benefits of effective communication

In today’s changing workplace, good communication skills are becoming moreand more important than ever before Successful foreign organizations and companiesknow that effective communication is essential to their success The reason is simple:both we and our organizations and companies can gain many benefits from effectivecommunication

First of all, effective communication improves responses from colleagues andemployees, which helps managers to know more about pressures on or problems of thestaffs As a result, the opportunity for efficient management will be promoted.Moreover, stronger relationships among colleagues will be developed, and moreimportantly, the professional image of the organization or the company will beenhanced

The second benefit of effective communication is that it strengthens our existingrelationships Good communication will bring us closer to our colleagues We will feelfree to discuss or exchange ideas with them In response, our colleagues also appreciatethis special relationship in which they can share their opinions openly without the fearof being judged

Finally, effective communication helps us to avoid misunderstandings In dailyconversations with our colleagues, especially foreign ones, many of us assume that weunderstand totally what others are talking and that they are thinking the same as

ourselves This is a big problem which can cause disharmony, discontent ordissatisfaction among staffs in organizations or companies Therefore, effectivecommunication can support a healthy working culture

2.7 Consequences of poor communication

Regardless of what business we are in, effective communication skills areessential for success of individuals as well as of the whole organization In fact, whenour communication is poor, the purpose of communication, which is to get yourmessage to others, cannot be achieved This leads to many consequences

Firstly, if our message is too lengthy, disorganized or contains errors, it isexpected that the message will be misunderstood and misinterpreted, which causesunnecessary confusion Using poor body language can also confuse the message.Consequently, it will cause bad feelings to others

Secondly, if we deliver too much information and too fast, less information willbe received or understood Imagine that too many instructions are given at one time,they may be misunderstood, people may be unsure of what to do or how to do a task,jobs may have to be repeated, and thus time will be lost

Finally, if communication is not open and effective, people may feel left out.Frustration may develop, which can have a negative impact on their work and theirrelations in the work place In a word, when the communication is not successful, itdoes not convey your thoughts and ideas, “causing a communication breakdown andcreating roadblocks that stand in the way of your goals” (Eddy Klopprogge 3)

Here is an example of how big the losses are due to miscommunication incompanies or organizations

The “Nobody, Somebody, Anybody and Everybody” Story3

we can see from the story above, consequence resulted in poor communication is that nobody is responsible for the work and everybody is to blame on each other

2.8 Barriers to effective communication with foreign colleagues

In the international working environment, we meet and talk with foreigncolleagues everyday Certainly, we face quite a few difficulties in communicating withthem There are so many barriers to the effective communication such as muddledmessages, wrong channels, interruptions, physical distractions, and so on Especiallywhen we work with colleagues that come from other countries, cultural differencesrepresent one of the biggest challenges In addition, this paper focuses on thecommunicating with foreign colleagues in foreign organizations and companiesspeaking English Apart from the cultural issue, therefore, the English languageperformance also remains as a common barrier to effective communication withforeign colleagues.

This is a little story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody,and Nobody

There was an important job to be done and Everybody was sure that Somebodywould do it

Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it

Somebody got angry about that because it was Everybody's job

Everybody thought that Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized thatEverybody wouldn't do it

It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybodycould have done.

2.8.1 Cultural differences

According to the definition of culture in the textbook “International Business”,culture is a “set of values, beliefs, rules, and institutions held by a specific group ofpeople” (J Wild, L Wild, and Han 40) Thus, culture is often at the root ofcommunication barriers Culture prevents people from receiving the full messages thatothers want to share with them

First of all, people think about the national culture including outward and visiblethings such as its food, custom, clothes and behaviors Though we share the workingenvironment with foreigners, it is not easy to find common interests or hobbies.Besides, the rules of social etiquette diversify among different cultures Formal rulesare clearly seen through behaviors in common social situations such as the tablemanners at meals, casual or formal dressing, gift giving, telephone etiquette, and soforth In terms of custom, the folk customs range in small areas and are still commonlyused by the people, whereas the popular customs spread throughout the world with noidentity to a certain culture (Cox 38) Effective communicators take these factors intoaccount to improve the intercultural sensitivity.

Then culture is perceived through values which are invisible They are ideasabout “what is good, right, fair, and just” (“Cultural values” Cliffnotes) In otherwords, they are the most distinctive characteristics of one nation or its people, whichshould be paid much attention to when communication is established Particularly,stereotype, which is one of the most serious problems in communicating with peoplefrom different cultures, must be rejected “A stereotype is a simplified and/orstandardized conception or image with specific meaning, often held in common bypeople about another group.” (“Stereotype” Wikipedia) When learning about anotherculture, we can not only understand different points of view and develop our

friendships but also avoid miscommunication or hurting or humiliating othersunintentionally People had better build rapport by trying to understand and appreciateother multifaceted human beings rather than believing in the previously formedopinions or attitudes

If we can identify and be more aware of cultural similarities as well asdifferences, we will definitely communicate with our foreign colleagues moreeffectively

2.8.2 English language performance

The rate of using English for daily work in international working environmentin Vietnam is rather high, accounting for 69% (“DN "lạnh nhạt" dần với chứng chỉngoại ngữ A, B”4 Vietnamnet) 66.1% of Vietnamese staffs get English certificate of Clevel, 25.7% B level, and 6.7% A level (“Thực trạng và giải pháp phát triển nguồnnhân lực chất lượng cao”5 Congnghieponline) These certificates, however, have beenreducing their reliability and replaced by others international standard certificates suchas TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication), TOEFL (Test of Englishas a Foreign Language), IELTS (International English Language Testing System), etc.Sadly enough, a big problem is Vietnamese staffs’ poor English skills, which stillremains to be solved Many discussions on this problem have taken place, yet fewinvestigations about the staffs’ level of English have been carried out This is one ofthe reasons why I conducted a survey to find out how good their English skills are

For those people having studied English since they began to go to work, theymay have to face a lot of difficulties It is a fact that English is not an official languagein Vietnam For this reason, it is not put at the top priority despite its vital importance.Their English is not proficient enough to meet high demands of the jobs A large

4 “Vietnam’s enterprises’ less appreciation of English certificate of A & B levels”

number of Vietnamese people have studied English for a long time Meanwhile, someemployees or staffs might have not have a chance or a driving force to access toEnglish before, thus learning by doing seems a popular way for them to improveEnglish ability Generally speaking, their English skills remain weak On the one hand,they can hear and understand what their foreign colleagues are talking about However,it is difficult for them to speak out in English, which is not their native language Anidea is conceived in their mind but they can not produce it They do not know how toexpress it by words or make others get their points Their ability to respond to foreigncolleagues is low This somehow can disrupt the working environment

On the other hand, people can talk in English but their listening skill is poor,which also can impede workplace communication The main problem may be theaccented English Foreign colleagues from different countries say in different accents,causing Vietnamese people difficulties to recognize words Another reason is that theypronounce the words incorrectly and imprecisely Their bad pronunciation somehowinfluences on their listening skill Consequently, they do not get others’ pointscomprehensively

In addition, many people have difficulties in encoding and decoding bodylanguage when they talk to their foreign colleagues This may be due to the fact that itis not highly appreciated by the Vietnamese Conversations, therefore, are often ruinedwhen incorrect gestures are conveyed As body language plays an important part incommunication, it should be taken into considerations so that better communicationamong Vietnamese staffs and foreign ones is facilitated

As such, when ideas or instructions are misunderstood, the organization or thecompany may suffer from a substantial loss of money Imagine that staffs have a teamworking on a project in an organization or a company If there is miscommunication

among Vietnamese staffs and foreign ones, the meetings will last longer or they mighthold some more meetings to ensure that everything is clear to everybody.Consequently, time and money could be wasted to the organization or the company.Worse still, the staff’s full potential is not fully utilized because of the communicationproblem It is the communication barriers that frustrate to those who speak English as asecond language as well as their listeners Although they have spent years learningEnglish, it is their actual English skills that are holding them back

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY AND ANALYSIS

3.1 Methodology

3.1.1 Study design

The paper was written based on the theory of communication process of“Business Communication Essentials.” At first, I intended to focus on the barriers toeffective communication with foreign colleagues which included languageperformance and cultural differences Each nation, however, has its own culture, whichinfluences the way they communicate with other people Correspondingly, it is verydifficult for me to study the identity differences among cultures That is the reason whyI followed the communication process stated in chapter 2 to find out what is the mosteffective way to communicate with their foreign colleagues The ways that werechosen by the majority of the informants will be considered as the most effective oneswhen Vietnamese staffs deal with foreigners in the workplace.

Among a wide range of non-empirical methods, survey investigation waschosen The questionnaires designed were based on my own knowledge and theconsultancy of my supervisor and the consultant of Pan Nature, a local non-governmental organization Respondents were given statements and they would choosethe best or the most appropriate options with them Besides, if no statement wasappropriate, they could tick the option “other ways” and specified their ideas

3.1.2 Research Instrument

The pilot survey was done beforehand by 4 people who work for foreignorganizations After the pilot phase, the questionnaire was adjusted according to some

comments from the respondents and then sent to 25 targeted participants directly (26%)and 70 via email (74%) at the beginning of May Within two weeks, when 77questionnaires were filled and returned (81%), the information and data were enoughfor analysis However, when the questionnaires were delivered to the participants, Iassumed that all of them were good at English enough to understand the questionsalthough I took considerations about their English level In fact, according to thesurvey results, some had poor or fair English, which was over my expectations (see 3.2for more details) The data, accordingly, may not be really reliable.

3.1.3 Participants’ characteristics

The survey questions were designed to collect opinions of the Vietnamese staffswho work with foreigners For the convenience of time use and data analysis, theeligible participants for the study are Vietnamese and working in a foreign company ororganization in Hanoi Additionally, other working characteristics of the participantswere mentioned including gender, current occupation, type of organization orcompany, and duration of working with foreign colleagues

3.1.4 Brief on the survey questions

The questionnaire was designed in English basing on the theory ofcommunication process by Bovée, Thill, and Schatzman (Business CommunicationEssentials 4) It consisted of 14 multiple-choice questions With such medium length,the participants would be willing to complete the questionnaires as it took them only 5-7 minutes The questionnaire aimed at discovering the communication process betweenthe Vietnamese staffs and their foreign colleagues in foreign organizations andcompanies to find out the most effective ways to communicate with foreign colleagues.

To achieve this aim, the questionnaire was divided into 2 parts The first partconsisted of 7 questions concerning general background information of the participants(Vietnamese staffs) and their foreign counterparts Apart from the workingcharacteristics such as their gender, current occupation, type of organization orcompany, and duration of working with foreign colleagues, other factors includingtheir English level, foreign colleagues, and frequency of communicating with themwere also concluded

The second part, questions 8 to 14, asked the respondents to reveal how theywould behave during the communication process with their foreign colleagues in theworkplace In this part, each question was about each step of the communicationprocess The first step in which the sender has an idea was assumed to be obvious, thusno question asked about this Question 8 was the second step of encoding idea.Questions 9 and 10 asked about the channel and media they used to transmit themessage Step 4 was manifested through questions 11 and 12, which found out how thestaffs made sure that the receivers got the message and how they earned attention fromtheir foreign colleagues Question 13 was about step 5 when the receiver decoded themessage Finally, the last step of sending feedback was expressed in question 14.

For some questions, the option “other ways” was included to seek further waysof responses that the participants might think of By doing so, the limitations ofquantitative methods were minimized

3.1.5 Data processing

The data collected was processed by Excel Then it was expressed throughfigures and tables so that it can be systematic The findings were organized andpresented under the sub-headings, which facilitated the analyses and interpretations ofthe data The researcher studied the data basing on the understandings of effectivecommunication as well as theoretical background showed in the first chapter.

In the first part of the questionnaire (questions 1 to 7), the respondents providedbasic information such as gender, current occupation, type of company or organization,English ability, working duration with foreign colleagues, and frequency ofcommunication with foreign colleagues.

The survey people were from both sexes Male informants accounted for46.75% and female ones 53.25% (Figure 3.1)

Figure 3 1 Respondents’ sex distribution

male female

About their current occupations, less than half of them were junior staffs, somewere seniors or managers and higher, and the rest were internships (Table 3.1).

Table 3 1 Occupation of surveyed staff

Occupation Managers or higher Senior staff Junior staff Internship

In terms of type of organization or company, 100% foreign invested companiesmake up for the largest proportion (35.06%) Many of the informants work in joinventure companies (19.48%) or non-governmental organizations (NGOs) (22.08%).Only 7.79% work for Vietnam NGO and the rest (15.58%) are from others includinglimited, private companies, government-donor mechanism, Institute, and InternationalAgency (Table 3.2).

Table 3 2 Type of organization or company

Type of organization or companyPercentage

good at English Especially, 18.39% reaches to an excellent level of it These peopleare often seniors or managers and work in foreign companies English language,therefore, is not a communication barrier to them Anyway, there are some informantshaving fair or even poor English This somehow has a significant influence on theirconversations with their foreign colleagues and possibly impairs the effectiveness ofthe communication.

Figure 3 2 Level ranked by the respondents

Together with the English language ability, the duration of working in foreignorganizations and companies is also a contributory factor to the effectiveness ofcommunication with foreigners.

Table 3 3 Response rate by working duration

Working duration Less than 5 years 5 - 15 years More than 15 years

According to the results of the survey provided in table 3.3, those who have beenworking with their foreign colleagues for less than 5 years are in a majority within thesurveyed interviewed people (57.89%) This proportion dropped to 39.47% for thosehaving working duration with foreign colleagues for 5 – 15 years Only 2.63% of thetotal participants worked with foreigners for more than 15 years It can be said that thelonger they work with foreigners, the more experiences they have, thus the better theycommunicate with them.

The proportion of foreign colleagues as native English speakers and non-nativeEnglish speakers is nearly equal (44 % and 56% respective) As such, the Vietnamesestaffs have many opportunities to work in a multi-cultural environment Accordingly, itis necessary for them to know the cultural differences between Vietnam and othercountries where their foreign colleagues come from Understanding others’ cultureshelps to facilitate a good communication.

Similar to the duration of working, the effective communication is also greatlyaffected by the frequency of communicating with foreign colleagues As clearlypresented in figure 3.3, while it was 58.44% for everyday communication with foreigncolleagues, it dropped to 28.97% for communication in a couple of days in a week(28.97%) Very few respondents communicate with their foreign colleagues once aweek or rarely (7.79% for each).

Figure 3 3 Response rate by frequency of communication