Communication

● Fundamental part of our existence. Have you ever wondered what a mess it would be if
there were no effective means of communication? Communication is the bedrock of our
civilization. In our contemporary world of economic liberalisation and rapid
globalisation, the importance of good communication skills has increased a lot. If you
want to carve a niche for yourself, it is not only important to have knowledge but also to
have the ability to convey your point precisely and effectively. You have to learn how to
market your skills in a way that your potential can be utilised to its maximum.
Communicative competence is paramount nowadays.
● Verbal communication- oral and written
● Non- verbal form of communication conveys a lot :- body language assumes a lot of
significance. Nodding the head, shrugging one’s shoulders, raised eyebrows have
situation specific meaning related to them.
● Communication: a piece of information that is to be conveyed to another person and
gradually becomes a social activity where we share our feelings, emotions, thoughts,
facts with people of different age, gender and strata in society.
● Importance of context- ability to mould your communication skills to suit the needs and
requirements of a given context.

The period of English colonisation saw the language grow roots in several parts of the world and
eventually it got established as a kind of link language through which people across the globe
could communicate with each other. As a communicative medium, particularly in areas of trade
and commerce, English has become an essential prerequisite for communication and its
relevance only seems to spread further.

● It is important to understand the significance of communication in a business

organisation.
● Appreciate the necessity of effective communication and the various ways of
communicating.
● Speaking and writing are not the only ways of communication. Your body language
conveys a lot more.

Communication is everybody’s business because all of us share a common faculty, the ability to
communicate and share our thoughts. As adults we communicate in many social contexts-
domestic and professional. We orient our message to suit a particular social context.

Business communication is related to the specific requirement of the modern day workplace that
runs on professional management principles. Good communication abilities have also assumed a
lot of importance in advertising, marketing, brand building etc.
A good communicator is today seen as an efficient corporate person, who is able to juggle his/
her responsibilities well and deliver the target. The entire business organisation rests on the
effectiveness with which managers and workers relate to their jobs, responsibilities,
organisational goals and interpersonal relationships. Effective communication helps the
organisation to develop a sense of common, united purpose, a sense of identity and belonging
and harmony. Communicative competence helps to develop an atmosphere which is conducive
to creating a motivated workforce.

How will you further the business potential of your enterprise if you cannot communicate
properly?!

The communication process

Sender- the person who initiates the communication in a given context.
Encoding- the process of translating the thoughts into appropriate messages using the medium
that is shared between the sender and the receiver.
Medium/message- the system of codes and signs that have a determinable meaning system that
is shared between the sender and the receiver.
Decoding- the process of meaning- making and understanding the message by the receiver.
Receiver- the person who decodes the message. The co-operation of the receiver is essential or
else the exchange of message cannot take place.
Feedback- the feedback message allows the sender to examine whether the receiver has
understood the message.

Importance of effective communication at workplace

● Organizational harmony- any successful organisation requires a good rapport between
individuals, between departments for healthy work environment. How can you build a
sense of fraternity ? By communicating effectively.
● Hierarchical Relationships- for smooth functioning and better understanding, good
communication between superiors and subordinates is important. Misunderstandings
between labour and management can be sorted by keeping the lines of communication
open.
● Planning and decision- making- these are important management functions and
communication is important for effective leadership that can make the organisation
realise its desired target.
● Job-co-ordination and implementation- for good team work, there is a need for
co-ordination and that requires good communication skills.
● Network with external agencies- business means lot of networking with external
agencies, customers, suppliers, banks and various other financial agencies. Networking
demands excellent communication skills.
 ● Marketing and advertising- promotional activities are very important for the growth of
the company and this is where the role of good communication comes in.

Channels of communication

● Formal - it follows the official route. It clearly indicates that formal communication
refers to transfer of messages along the prescribed routes in an organisation. Each
organisation has a main line of operational communication which takes care of the issues
germinating in an organisation and suggests relevant course of action. Every information,
instruction, circular, memo or notice has to follow this path. This rule applies to both
upward and downward communication and reinforces the formal structure in an
organisation. The formal channel is not only effective but also necessary. For example,
Haldirams has branches all over Delhi. The ever- expanding chain would not be able to
run smoothly if a proper formal channel of communication was not available.

● Advantages of Formal Channel

1. It imparts authenticity to the information that is transmitted because the person issuing it
is the one who occupies a position of responsibility in the management hierarchy.
2. Formal mode of communication prevents a state of chaos or confusion because
information is delivered in an orderly fashion.
3. It is the best mode to reach out a large target audience
4. Formal means of communication helps managers to assert and ascertain their control over
their subordinates and enables them to run the organisation efficiently
5. The filtering of information at regional level serves as a boon for top management. Most
of the time the nature of complaints is such that these can be handled by lower
authorities and thus the top management can engage in more important jobs.

Disadvantages
1. It inhibits free flow of information.
2. It is time -consuming as proper channel and protocol need to be followed.
3. Chances of red-tapism and corruption because of partiality by managers.
4. Due to excessive formality, the warmth of communication is missing and consequently,
it is often a dry communicating mode.

● Informal- no clear cut route and spreads randomly without any pattern. If formal
communication is the primary channel of communication, informal communication is a
medium which runs parallel to the formal network.
Informal communication on the surface may appear simple but it is in fact an extremely complex
structure that links all the members of an organisation. Since it spreads randomly without
following any predetermined pattern, it reminds of grapevine which spreads uninhibited. Hence
informal communication is often called grapevine in management literature.
Very often, grapevine contains information which may not be available on the formal front. So it
is up to the manager to use grapevine as a constructive tool for the betterment of the
organisation.
Whereas the formal channel is imposed on the employees by the management, informal
communication is a network that is created by the staff themselves. The need for such a network
usually arises to analyse the inadequacies of the management.
Grapevine can be effectively used to test the possible reaction to a proposed plan. Because
feedback is instant, Grapevine can serve an important purpose in an organisation.
Grapevine is the source of information that cannot be conveyed in formal modes due to fear and
legality. So Grapevine becomes the perfect platform to share opinions on practically anything
from competence, ethics, management policies, etc.

4 types of Grapevine chains

● Single - strand chain- in this type of chain, A tells something to Be who tells it to Close
and so on.
● Gossip chain - one person communicates all the information to many people at random.
● Probability chain- in this the individuals are indifferent to or not really interested in the
persons to whom they are passing information.
● Cluster chain- the main Grapevine pattern that prevails in an organisation is this. In this,
A shares some information with selected individuals and then these individuals inform a
few other selected individuals.

Advantages

● It transmits information speedily.

● Instant feedback.
● Grapevine strengthens the bonds amongst employees and they feel a sense of
togetherness in sharing the same viewpoint.
● It is primarily an oral medium and consequently inexpensive.

Disadvantages

● It lacks authenticity because the source of origin lacks credibility

● Incomplete information
● Chances of misunderstandings
● In its serious form, Grapevine may damage the image of the company. Thus the
management must be smart enough to nip the rumours in the bud and clarify the stand of
the organisation to the employees.