Lecture Six

Communicating at Work

By
Kamal Hossain

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work 1

 Guidelines for Promoting Positive
Workplace Relations Through Conversation

–Use correct names

and titles.
–Choose appropriate
topics.
–Avoid negative
remarks.
–Listen to learn.
–Give sincere and
specific praise.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work 2

 Delivering Constructive Criticism

•Mentally outline your conversation.

•Use face-to-face communication.

•Focus on improvement.

•Offer to help.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work 3

 Delivering Constructive Criticism

• Be specific.

• Avoid broad generalizations.

• Discuss the behaviour (not the person).

• Use the word we (rather than you).

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work 4

 Delivering Constructive Criticism

•Encourage two-way communication.

•Keep it private.
•Avoid
Ø anger.
Ø sarcasm.
Ø a raised voice.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work 5

 Responding to Workplace
Criticism
• Listen without interrupting.

• Determine the speaker’s intent.

• Acknowledge what you are hearing.

• Paraphrase what was said.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Responding to Workplace
Criticism
• Ask for more information, if necessary.

• Agree—if the comments are accurate.

• Disagree respectfully and

constructively—if you feel the
comments are unfair.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Six-Step Procedure for Dealing
with Conflict
1. Listen.
2. Understand the other
point of view.
3. Show a concern for the
relationship.
4. Look for common ground.
5. Invent new problem-
solving options.
6. Reach an agreement
based on what’s fair.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Common Conflict Response
Patterns
• Avoidance / withdrawal
• Accommodation /
smoothing
• Compromise
• Competition / forcing
• Collaboration / problem-
solving

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Conflict
• Competing is assertive and
uncooperative, a power-oriented mode.
When competing, an individual pursues
his or her own concerns at the other
person’s expense, using whatever power
seems appropriate to win his or her
position. Competing might mean standing
up for your rights,defending a position you
believe is correct, or simply trying to win.
05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work
 Conflict
• Accommodating is unassertive and cooperative
- the opposite of competing. When
accommodating, an individual neglects his or her
own concerns to satisfy the concerns of the
other person; there is an element of self-sacrifice
in this mode. Accommodating might take the
form of selfless generosity or charity, obeying
another person’s order when you would prefer
not to, or yielding to another’s point of view.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Conflict
• Avoiding is unassertive and
uncooperative. When avoiding, an
individual does not immediately pursue
either his or her own concerns or those of
the other person. He or she does not
address the conflict. Avoiding might take
the form of diplomatically sidestepping an
issue, postponing an issue until a better
time, or simply withdrawing from a
threatening situation.
05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work
 Conflict
• Collaborating is both assertive and cooperative - the
opposite of avoiding. When collaborating, an individual
attempts to work with the other person to find a solution
that fully satisfies the concerns of both. It involves
digging into an issue to identify the underlying concerns
of the two individuals and to find an alternative that
meets both sets of concerns. Collaborating between two
persons might take the form of exploring a disagreement
to learn from each other’s insights, with the goal of
resolving some condition that would otherwise have
them competing for resources, or confronting and trying
to find a creative solution to an interpersonal problem.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Conflict
• Compromising is intermediate in both assertiveness
and cooperativeness. When compromising, the objective
is to find an expedient, mutually acceptable solution that
partially satisfies both parties. Compromising falls on a
middle ground between competing and accommodating,
giving up more than competing but less than
accommodating. Likewise, it addresses an issue more
directly than avoiding, but doesn’t explore it in as much
depth as collaborating. Compromising might mean
splitting the difference, exchanging concessions, or
seeking a quick middle-ground position.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Communicating in Person, by Telephone,
and in Meetings

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work 15

 Using Your Voice as a
Communication Tool
Pronunciation
Common errors include adding/omitting vowels,
omitting consonants, reversing sounds, and slurring
sounds.
Improve pronunciation by:
– listening carefully to educated people
– reading aloud from well-written newspapers
– looking words up in dictionary

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work 16

 Using Your Voice as a
Communication Tool
Tone
– Identifies your personality and mood
– Check your tone by recording your voice and listening to it
critically
Pitch
– The highness or lowness of a sound
– Most attractive voices rise and fall in conversational tones
– Use a relaxed, controlled, well-pitched voice that is
moderately low

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work 17

 Using Your Voice as a
Communication Tool
Volume
– The intensity of sound
– Adjust your volume to the speaking occasion
– Use your listener’s voice to judge whether you are speaking
at an appropriate volume
Rate
– The pace of your speech
– Strive to speak at a rate of 125 words / minute
– Monitor nonverbal signs of listeners and adjust your rate

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work 18

 Making Productive Telephone
Calls
• Plan a mini-agenda.
• Use a three-point
introduction.
• Be brisk if you are rushed.
• Be cheerful and accurate.
• Bring it to a close.
• Avoid telephone tag.
• Leave complete voice mail
messages.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

Receiving Productive Telephone
Calls
• Identify yourself
immediately.
• Be responsive and helpful.
• Be cautious when
answering calls for others.
• Take messages carefully.
• Explain what you’re doing
when transferring calls.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Practice Courteous and
Responsible Cell Phone Use
• Be courteous to those around
you.
• Observe wireless-free quite
area.
• Speak in low, conversational
tone.
• Take only urgent calls.
• Drive now; talk later.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Using Cell Phones for Business
Location:
– Use good judgement.
– Turn off cell phone when it could be distracting or
disruptive.
– Don’t sacrifice professionalism for the sake of a garbled
phone call.
Time:
– Avoid multi-tasking when talking on the phone.
– Lack of attention results in errors and lack of respect.
Volume:
– Don’t raise your voice when using your cell phone.
– Strive for a low, modulated voice.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Meeting, a common tool in
organisations
• Definition:
• A meeting is when two or more people come together
for the purpose of discussing a predetermined topic.
• It can be formal or informal
• Pros and cons

Advantages Disadvantages

Possibility to convey feelings and Costly

meanings
Double function: achieve Time consuming
organisational goals and helping
attendees
05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work
 Why have meetings?
• The common reasons why to conduct a
meeting are as follows:
• Information, consultation or training
• Problem-solving or Exploring a problem
• Decision-making
• Conciliate diverging opinions
• Getting people to buy into a new action item
• Convince the audience
• Commitment building
• Strategic or Project planning

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Meeting Agendas
•Date and place of meeting
•Start time and end time
•Brief description of each topic
– In order of priority
– Include names of
individuals

•Proposed allotment of time for

each topic
•Any pre-meeting preparation
expected of participants

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Meeting will be different depending
on the culture
• Must have of Meetings:
• An agenda
• Participants are informed and prepared
• A facilitator
• Meeting minutes
 The meeting agenda
• Participants must know:
• Why they will be participating
• What is expected from them
• What they need to prepare
• Where and when the meeting will be

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 What is corporate culture?
• Culture refers to an organization's values, beliefs, and behaviors.

• In general, it is concerned with beliefs and values on the basis of which

people interpret experiences and behave, individually and in groups.

• “ The way things are done in the organisation”

• Culture gives an organisation a sense of identity

• Who we are
• What we stand for
• What we do

• Is determined through legends, rituals, beliefs, meanings, values, norms

and language.

• Encapsulates what it has been good at and what worked in the past.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Types of corporate culture
• Researchers have identified culture types:
– Power Culture
– Role Culture
– Task Culture
– Person Culture

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Power culture
– Power culture:
• Dominance of one or a small number of individuals
• Usually in small business or part of a larger
business
• Lack of consultation can lead to staff feeling
undervalued and de-motivated, which can also
lead to high staff turnover.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Role culture
– Role culture:
• Usually present in large hierarchal organisations.
• Individuals have clear roles to perform,
• Employees work closely to their job description
and tend to follow rules.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Task culture & Person culture
– Task culture:
• When teams are formed to complete particular
tasks
• Distinct culture team
• Team is empowered to make their own decisions
• Can be creative
– A person culture
• Individualistic form of culture
• Exists when individuals are fully allowed to express
themselves and make decisions for themselves
• Exists in very loose form of organisation.
05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work
 How do you communicate the
culture?
• Mission and Vision statements
– Vision statement: A form of mission statement, issued by
a company or organization, in which its intentions for the
future are stated.
– Mission statement is a formal short written statement of
the purpose of a company or organization.
• The mission statement should guide the actions of the
organization, spell out its overall goal, provide a sense of
direction, and guide decision-making.
• It provides "the framework or context within which the
company's strategies are formulated."

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Mission statement
• Defining the Corporate Mission
• An organization exists to accomplish something: to make
cars, lend money, provide a night's lodging, and so on.
• Its specific mission or purpose is usually clear when the
business starts. Over time the mission may change, to
take advantage of new opportunities or respond to new
market conditions.

30/06/10 Lecture 5 Communicating at Work 34

 Mission statement
• Example
• Amazon.com changed its mission from being the world's
largest online bookstore to aspiring to become the
world's largest online store.
• eBay changed its mission from running online auctions
for collectors to running online auctions covering all kinds
of goods.

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work

 Mission statement
• Defining the Corporate Mission
• To define its mission, a company should address Peter
Drucker's classic questions:
– What is our business?
– Who is the customer?
– What is of value to the customer?
– What will our business be?
– What should our business be?
• Successful companies continuously raise these
questions and answer them thoughtfully and thoroughly.

30/06/10 Lecture 5 Communicating at Work 36

 Mission statement
• Mission statements are at their best when they
reflect a vision, an almost "impossible dream"
that provides a direction for the company for the
next 10 to 20 years.
– Sony's former president, Akio Morita, wanted
everyone to have access to "personal portable
sound," so his company created the Walkman and
portable CD player.
– Fred Smith wanted to deliver mail anywhere in the
United States before 10:30 A.M. the next day, so he
created FedEx.
30/06/10 Lecture 5 Communicating at Work 37
 Mission statement
• Example
• The Walt Disney Company
– The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to be one of the world's
leading producers and providers of entertainment and information.
Using our portfolio of brands to differentiate our content, services
and consumer products, we seek to develop the most creative,
innovative and profitable entertainment experiences and related
products in the world.  
• NIKE
– To Bring Inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world. 
• Microsoft
– At Microsoft, we work to help people and businesses throughout the
world realize their full potential.
30/06/10 Lecture 5 Communicating at Work 38
 References
Mary Ellen Guffey, Essentials of Business
Communication, 5 edn, Thomson Learning

Adler & Elmhorst, Communicating at Work:

Principles and Practices for Business and
the Professions, 8th edn, McGraw-Hill

05/07/10 Lecture 6 Communicating at Work 39