Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch.

1–1
 Communication Skills

Why do you need good communication

skills?

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–2

 Communication Skills

Communication skills are essential for

• Job placement
• Job performance
• Career advancement
• Success in the new world of work

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–3

 Trends in the New Workplace

• Flattened management hierarchies

• More participatory management
• Increased emphasis on teams [community]
• Heightened global competition
• Innovative communication technologies
• New work environments
• Focus on information as a corporate asset

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–4

 The Process of Communication

Feedback
travels to
sender
NOISE

Sender
Sender Sender
Sender Receiver
Receiver Receiver
Receiver
has
has encodes
encodes Channel carries message decodes
decodes “understands”
“understands”
idea
idea message
message message
message message
message

NOISE
Possible
Possible additional
additional
feedback
feedback to
to
receiver
receiver

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–5

The Process of Communication
How may the sender encode a
message?
What kinds of channels carry
messages?
How does a receiver decode a
message?
When is communication successful?
How can a communicator provide for
feedback?
Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition
Verbally or nonverbally. By speaking,
writing, gesturing.
Letters, e-mail, memos, TV,
telephone, voice, body. Others?
Hearing, reading, observing.
When a message is understood as the
sender intended it to be.
Ask questions, watch responses,
don’t dominate the exchange.
Ch. 1–6
 Barriers to Effective Listening (1)

• Physical barriers - hearing disabilities, noisy

surroundings
• Psychological barriers - tuning out ideas that
counter our values
• Language problems - unfamiliar or charged
words
• Nonverbal distractions - clothing, mannerisms,
appearance

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–7

 Barriers to Effective Listening (2)

• Thought speed - our minds process thoughts

faster than speakers express them
• Faking attention - pretending to listen
• Grandstanding - people rather talk than listen;
talking all the time or listening only for the next
pause

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–8

 Tips for Becoming an
Active Listener (1)
• Stop talking.
• Control your surroundings.
• Establish a receptive mind-set.
• Keep an open mind.
• Listen for main points.
• Capitalize on lag time.
• Listen between the lines.

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–9

 Tips for Becoming an
Active Listener (2)
• Judge ideas, not appearances.
• Hold your fire.
• Take selective notes.
• Provide feedback.

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–10

 Nonverbal Communication (1)

• The eyes, face, and body send silent

messages.
• Eye contact
• Facial expression
• Posture and gestures
• Appearance sends silent messages.
• Appearance of business people
• Appearance of documents

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–11

 Nonverbal Communication (2)

• Time, space, and territory send silent

messages.
• Time (punctuality and
structure of)
• Space (arrangement of
objects in)
• Territory (privacy zones)

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–12

 Tips for Improving Your
Nonverbal Skills (1)
• Establish and maintain eye contact.
• Use posture to show interest.
• Improve your decoding skills.
• Probe for more information.
• Avoid assigning nonverbal meanings out
of context.

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–13

 Tips for Improving Your
Nonverbal Skills (2)
• Associate with people from diverse
cultures.
• Appreciate the power of appearance.
• Observe yourself on videotape.
• Enlist friends and family.

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–14

 Culture and Communication

Good communication demands special

sensitivity and skills when
communicators are from different
cultures.

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–15

A Comparison of Key Cultural Values

US Cultural Values Asian Cultural Values

Individualism
• Initiative, self-assertion, Membership
personal achievement • Japan: Harmony is the key
value of the society
• Singapore: Group-oriented
culture
Informality
• Little emphasis on rituals,
ceremonies, rank; Formality
preference for informal • Japan: Conscious of age and
dress status

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–16

A Comparison of Key Cultural Values

US Cultural Values Asian Cultural Values

Direct communication Indirect
style communication style
• Impatient, literal / genuine, • China and Japan: high-
suspicious of evasive context culture societies,
nonverbal communication

Importance of time Importance of time

• Precious, correlates with • Unlimited, never-ending
productivity resource to be enjoyed

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–17

 Improving Communication With
Multicultural Audiences (1)

Oral Messages
• Use simple English.
• Speak slowly and enunciate clearly.
• Encourage accurate feedback.
• Check frequently for comprehension.
• Observe eye messages.

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–18

 Improving Communication With
Multicultural Audiences (2)

Oral Messages
• Accept blame.
• Listen without interrupting.
• Remember to smile!
• Follow up in writing.

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–19

 Improving Communication With
Multicultural Audiences (3)

Written Messages
• Adapt local styles.
• Consider hiring a translator.
• Use short sentences and short paragraphs.
• Avoid ambiguous wordings.
• Cite numbers carefully.

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–20

 Effective Communication With
Diverse Workplace Audiences (1)
• Understand the value of differences.
• Don’t expect conformity.
• Create zero tolerance for bias and
stereotypes.
• Practice focused, thoughtful, and open-
minded listening.
• Invite, use, and give feedback.

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–21

 Effective Communication With
Diverse Workplace Audiences (2)

• Make fewer workplace assumptions.

• Learn about your own cultural self.
• Learn about other cultures and identity
groups.
• Seek common ground.

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–22

 End

Essentials of Business Communication, Second Edition Ch. 1–23