Internal Communication – There’s More to Deliver

May 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Internal Communication – There’s More to Deliver

Internal communication specialist headhunters Watson Helsby, published an entitled report ‘Internal Communications – More to Deliver’, the sequel to a similar research exercise undertaken way back in 2002, which was widely acclaimed at the time.

Based on qualitative research with 75 senior in-house ‘movers and shakers’, the research was designed to assess the state of internal communication practice, to identify some broad themes and issues and, specifically, to provide some pointers on the best way forward for the profession and its practitioners. It was written by two seasoned IC commentators, Nick Helsby of Watson Helsby and Michael Croton of Comma Consulting. To summaries, the big messages from the report are:

We’ve come a long way since 2002 – companies have invested heavily and are demanding more and better IC. However, the results IC has delivered have not always matched expectations.

There is now broad consensus on the scope and remit of IC with most respondents saying they were accountable for developing and communicating the corporate story, developing channels, leadership comms, campaigns and programmes, internal news management, supporting engagement and employer branding efforts, crisis comms and measurement & evaluation.

We’ve still got a long way to go to become a genuinely mature profession – there are many challenges ahead and numerous areas where we could and should be doing better to demonstrate our value to organisations.

The best is yet to come – the future for IC is rosy, if we continue to professionalize the function, raise standards, build understanding and appreciation in the board room and get the talent right.

One of the most useful sections of the report is the discussion on obstacles to progress, where several themes emerge:

Lack of coherence – an increasing focus on IC has resulted in an increase in noise and clutter. As business unit heads, functional leaders and others battle  to give their messages prominence this is creating a situation where there are simply too many badly coordinated messages bombarding employees. The result is a cacophony.   

Poor governance – unlike PR/external comms there are few checks, balances, controls and protocols in place to guide internal comms. It is often informal and decentralized and, as a result, leaders cannot be confident that (a) communication is flowing through the organization effectively (b) they have the ability to communicate quickly and consistently in a crisis situation.

Employees’ ranking in the audience hierarchy -external stakeholders (shareholders, media, etc) are often viewed as more important than employees and, as a result, these audiences often receive more focus, attention and senior executive time. Put simply, IC still often plays second fiddle to external comms.

Senior level support – to thrive inside an organization IC needs to have a senior sponsor who really ‘gets it’ – someone who understands what good IC looks like and can deliver in its broadest sense (i.e. beyond simply pumping out messages). Likewise, it’s vital that there is someone at a senior level – someone with ‘clout’ – who is proactively championing the work of the IC team and helping push through organization-wide initiatives. 

Shortage of talent – IC is still not attracting, nurturing and growing sufficient talent.  As a result there is little in the way of a succession pipeline inside organisations, meaning that candidates have to be lured from elsewhere. Even then, there is a relatively small pool of good practitioners to fish from.  

The report also identifies a number of key areas where IC can add – and be seen to add – more value. This provides a useful checklist for any communicator who wants to develop themselves and/or their team. The report concludes that, in order to realize its full potential, IC needs to focus on getting the right people in the right roles, developing that talent, winning support from senior leaders, beefing up the role, becoming more proactive when it comes to identifying and grabbing opportunities to demonstrate their value, and getting the operating model right.

Internal Communication – There’s More to Deliver

Internal Communication - There's More to Deliver

Lee Smith is Co-director at Gatehouse Group, an internal communication agency, provides consultancy services for internal communications, internal comms research, audit, jobs, and employee engagement.

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Overcoming Communication Barriers in Organizations

May 15, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Overcoming Communication Barriers in Organizations

Although all communication is subject to misunderstandings, business communication is particularly difficult. The material is often complex and controversial. Moreover, both the sender and the receiver may face distractions that divert their attention. Further, the opportunities for feedback are often limited, making it difficult to correct misunderstandings. The following communication barriers in organizations and ways to overcome them will be the main topic of this article.

1. Information Overload. Too much information is as bad as too little because it reduces the audiences ability to concentrate effectively on the most important messages. People facing information overload sometimes try to cope by ignoring some of the messages, by delaying responses to messages they deem unimportant, by answering only parts of some messages, by responding inaccurately to certain messages, by taking less time with each message, or by reacting only superficially to all messages.

To overcome information overload, realize that some information is not necessary, and make necessary information easily available. Give information meaning rather than just passing it on, and set priorities for dealing with the information flow. Some information isn’t necessary.

2. Message Complexity. When formulating business messages, you communicate both as an individual and as representative of an organization. Thus you must adjust your own ideas and style so that they are acceptable to your employer. In fact, you may be asked occasionally to write or say something that you disagree with personally. Suppose you work as a recruiter for your firm. You’ve interviewed a job candidate you believe would make an excellent employee, but others in the firm have rejected this applicant. Now you have to write a letter turning down the candidate: You must communicate your firms message, regardless of your personal feelings, a task some communicators find difficult.

To overcome the barriers of complex messages, keep them clear and easy to understand. Use strong organization, guide readers by telling them what to expect, use concrete and specific language, and stick to the point. Be sure to ask for feedback so that you can clarify and improve your message.

3. Message Competition. Communicators are often faced with messages that compete for attention. If you’re talking on the phone while scanning a report, both messages are apt to get short shrift. Even your own messages may have to compete with a variety of interruptions: The phone rings every five minutes, people intrude, meetings are called, and crises arise. In short, your messages rarely have the benefit on the receivers undivided attention.

To overcome competition barriers, avoid making demands on a receiver who doesn’t have the time to pay careful attention to your message. Make written messages visually appealing and easy to understand, and try to deliver them when your receiver has time to read them. Oral messages are most effective when you can speak directly to your receiver (rather than to intermediaries or answering machines). Also, be sure to set aside enough time for important messages that you receive. Business messages rarely have the benefit of the audiences full and undivided attention.

4. Differing Status. Employees of low status may be overly cautious when sending messages to managers and may talk only about subjects they think the manager is interested in. Similarly, higher-status people may distort messages by refusing to discuss anything that would tend to undermine their authority in the organization. Moreover, belonging to a particular department or being responsible for a particular task can narrow your point of view so that it differs from the attitudes, values, and expectations of people who belong to other departments or who are responsible for other tasks.

To overcome status barriers, keep managers and colleagues well informed. Encourage lower-status employees to keep you informed by being fair-minded and respectful of their opinions. When you have information that you’re afraid you boss might not like, be brave and convey it anyway. Status barriers can be overcome by a willingness to give and receive bad news.

5. Lack of Trust, Building trust is a difficult problem. Other organization members don’t know whether you’ll respond in a supportive or responsible way, so trusting can be risky. Without trust, however, free and open communication is effectively blocked, threatening the organization’s stability. Just being clear in your communication is not enough.

To overcome trust barriers, be visible and accessible. Don’t insulate yourself behind assistants or secretaries. Share key information with colleagues and employees, communicate honestly, and include employees in decision making. For communication to be successful, organizations must create an atmosphere of fairness and trust.

6. Inadequate Communication Structures. Organizational communication is effected by formal restrictions on who may communicate with whom and who is authorized to make decisions. Designing too few formal channels blocks effective communication. Strongly centralized organizations, especially those with a high degree of formalization, reduce communication capacity, and they decrease the tendency to communicate horizontally thus limiting the ability to coordinate activities and decisions. Tall organizations tend to provide too many vertical communication links, so messages become distorted as they move through the organization’s levels.

To overcome structural barriers, offer opportunities for communicating upward, downward, and horizontally (using such techniques as employee surveys, open-door policies, newsletters, memo, and task groups). Try to reduce hierarchical levels, increase coordination between departments, and encourage two-way communication.

7. Incorrect Choice of Medium. If you choose an inappropriate communication medium, your message can be distorted so that the intended meaning is blocked. You can select the most appropriate medium by matching your choice with the nature of the message and of the group or the individual who will receive it. Face-to-face communication is the richest medium because it is personal, it provides immediate feedback, it transmits information from both verbal and nonverbal cues, and it conveys the emotion behind the message. Telephones and other interactive electronic media aren’t as rich; although they allow immediate feedback, they don’t provide visual nonverbal cues such as facial expressions, eye contact and body movements. Written media can be personalized through addressed memos, letters, and reports, but they lack the immediate feedback and the visual and vocal nonverbal cues that contribute to the meaning of the message. The leanest media are generally impersonal written messages such as bulletins, fliers, and standard reports. Not only do they lack the ability to transmit nonverbal cues and to give feedback, they also eliminate any personal focus.

To overcome media barriers, choose the richest media for no routine, complex message. Use rich media to extend and to humanize your presence throughout the organization, to communicate caring and personal interest to employees, and to gain employee commitment to organizational goals. Use leaner media to communicate simple, routine messages. You can send information such as statistics, facts, figures and conclusions through a note, memo or written report

8. Closed communication climate. Communication climate is influenced by management style, and a directive, authoritarian style blocks the free and open exchange of information that characterizes good communication.

To overcome climate barriers, spend more time listening than issuing orders.

9. Unethical Communication. An organization cannot create illegal or unethical messages and still be credible or successful in the long run. Relationships within and outside the organization depend or trust and fairness.

To overcome ethics barriers, make sure your messages include all the information that ought to be there. Make sure that information is adequate and relevant to the situation. And make sure your message is completely truthful, not deceptive in any way.

10. Inefficient Communication. Producing worthless messages wastes time and resources, and it contributes to the information overload already mentioned.

Reduce the number of messages by thinking twice before sending one. Then speed up the process, first, by preparing messages correctly the first time around and, second, by standardizing format and material when appropriate. Be clear about the writing assignments you accept as well as the ones you assign.

11. Physical distractions. Communication barriers are often physical: bad connections, poor acoustics, illegible copy. Although noise or this sort seems trivial, it can completely block an otherwise effective message. Your receiver might also be distracted by an uncomfortable chair, poor lighting, or some other irritating condition. In some cases, the barrier may be related to the receiver’s health. Hearing or visual impairment or even a headache can interfere with reception of a message. These annoyances don’t generally block communication entirely, but they may reduce the receiver’s concentration.

To overcome physical distractions, try to prepare well written documents which are clear, concise, and comprehensive. When preparing oral presentations try to find a setting which permits audience to see and hear the speaker clearly.

Overcoming Communication Barriers in Organizations

Overcoming Communication Barriers in Organizations

Martin Hahn PhD has received his education and degrees in Europe in organizational/industrial sociology. He grew up in South-East Asia and moved to Europe to get his tertiary education and gain experience in the fields of scientific research, radio journalism, and management consulting. For more info visit http://www.martinimhahn.com

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Establishing Successful Customer Relationships Through Effective Communication

May 15, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Establishing Successful Customer Relationships Through Effective Communication

“One cannot always oblige; one can, however, always speak obligingly…” says Sri Sathya Sai Baba, Indian spiritual master, which is an exact explanation for the complex role of corporate communication in modern corporations today.

The customer, as the old saying goes, is the king! A king he truly is he believes, that is, till the not-so-charitable mandarins of marketing let him know and make him aware, rather painfully for him, that he is one among the many millions that feel that way, without actually being that way. However, the same mandarins grudgingly acknowledge that a happy customer is a brand’s success, while a delighted customer is a brand’s ambassador. The customer relationship management paradigm – popularly abbreviated as CRM – is built precisely on these pillars. And the customer enjoys a precarious position in this paradigm.

In the concentrated CRM efforts a company often forgets the basic thing that is the cornerstone of the concept… relationship! Traditional marketing theories have always focused on attracting new customers, rather than retaining existing customers. Over the past decade, thanks to intensified competition and greater variety of products, this has gradually altered. The current flavor of marketing is ‘retain’ more than ‘gain’. Because retention leads to growth and growth leads to fulfillment.

In marketing, today, the consumer is treated not as a king but like a mischievous sprite. He is accused – well, almost – of making a brand dance to his wishes and whims. While purists tend to argue that brands need customers and vice versa, modernists counter it by saying that customers need a brand, any brand, so long as the brand is his willing genie. This disproportionate balance shapes brand communication strategies. Positioning per se is no longer a marketer’s tool but rather as an awkward proposition to grab the customer’s fancy. Positioning is not brand or product or benefit or feature-centric anymore; it is customer-centric.

What is then important to establish a relationship between a brand and its customer? In order to build a personal relationship, the brand’s personality has to come through (Michael C Gray, 2006). It will no longer be brand and customer, but simply ‘you’ and ‘I’… a collaboration is well-developed leads to ‘we’, which could be a fulfilling state for a brand and a customer.

Social researchers have always advised marketers that people prefer to do business with people, not institutions or brands. This implies that corporate communication has to be the link that helps to build and maintain a healthy relationship between both stakeholders. Technically there can be several types of regular communication: newsletters, fax messages, voice broadcasts, blogs, sales letters, emails and more.

Communication with customers reflects the following aspects of a relationship.

o Strong culture

o Favorable identity

o Coherent philosophy

o Genuine sense of camaraderie

It may not be instant gratification or affection but effective corporate communication establishes an appropriate and professional relationship with the customer, including quick, responsible channels of two-way communication. Corporate Communication is all about managing perceptions and ensuring that with effective and timely dissemination of information a positive corporate image is created that ensures a smooth and affirmative relationship with all customers, at all times.

Be it a corporate body, company, research institution, non-governmental organisation, PSU, all of them need to have a respectable image and reputation in the eyes of the customer. In today’s day and age of increasing competition, easy access to information and media explosion – reputation management has gained even greater importance. So, corporate communications as a role has become significant and professional in nature while dealing with customers.

Gone are the days when corporate communications merely meant ‘wining and dining the client’; it has now emerged as a science and art of perception management. The concept of managing relationships with customers is as old as trade itself, but the focus has always been to sell products and services (Kotler, Philip, Introduction to Marketing Principles). Competition, driven by globalization and the Internet, has changed the face of business. Customers now have a variety of choices and, most importantly, they are becoming far more knowledgeable and demanding. The power has truly shifted to the customer. With this scenario, most companies realize that they need to treat their customers with more care.

Companies are now desperately searching for different ways to manage their relationships effectively, not only to acquire new customers, but also to retain the existing ones. According to a Harvard Business Review Study by Reicheld & Sasser, some companies can boost their profits by almost 100% by retaining just 5% or more of their existing customers.

Customers express their satisfaction in many ways. When they are satisfied, they mostly say nothing but return again, and again, to buy or use more. Measuring satisfaction is only half the story. It is also necessary to determine customers’ expectations or the importance they attach to different overtures of a brand, otherwise resources could be spent raising satisfaction levels of things that do not matter. The measurement of expectations or importance is more difficult than the measurement of satisfaction. Many people do not know or cannot admit, even to themselves, what is important.

Consumers do not spend their time rationalizing why they do things, their views change and they may not be able to easily communicate or admit to the complex issues in the buying argument. A customer satisfaction index is a snapshot at a point in time. People’s views change continuously and the performance of companies in delivering customer satisfaction is also changing. Measuring satisfaction must be a continuous process. (Paul & Nick Hague, White paper on Customer Satisfaction Surveys, B2B International Ltd.)

Even when experts discuss CRM, the discussion is almost always from the point of view of marketing, sales and business development. Seldom is CRM looked upon as a ‘goal’ that every organization should actively pursue. Often it is looked upon as a tool that every organisation could use. The differences are plenty. And CRM is not an IT function. CRM is more often a function of communication, by the company directly, through an intermediary such as a PR agency or simply through the media.

Successful CRM practices is not about statistics, data warehousing or loyalty programs, rather it is about competing in the relationship dimension-not as an alternative to having a competitive product or reasonable price-but acting as a differentiator in terms of ‘feelings for the customer’, however abstractly – and sometimes absurdly – romantic that may sound. If brands can get an edge based on how customers feel about the brand, it’s a much more sustainable relationship in the long run. This feeling for a brand, as brand theorists prefer to call it is directly proportional to the communication efforts, written words and spoken sentences, that emanate from a company.

Link it to the corporate communication strategy and you will have a direct connect between the company and its customer. The critical dimension of any CRM practice is the relationship that a brand shares with its customers. Using the word customer itself may sound a trifle improper here because ‘customer’ implies that the person is ‘outside’ a relationship. And any relationship is expressed and nurtured by communication.

Almost always marketers try to understand a customer from the marketing perspective, as people who have to be ‘given’ something to retain their loyalty. This naturally places them on a moral (and commercial) pedestal that enables them to look down upon hapless customers as beneficiaries of their largess. In communication parlance this signifies up and down power positions. And in a relationship between equals the power position is not hierarchical. Sometimes the anachronistic social mindset refuses to place the customer on even keel with a brand – and vice versa – painting him as a king, or as an unrealistically greedy pauper.

CRM is a simple process, because establishing a relationship is simple. Nowhere is understanding more profound than when it comes to human emotions… but surprisingly the very same human emotions have been overlooked by companies while interacting with their customers.

What is a relationship? When is there a relationship between two entities? What is the role of corporate communications in establishing, maintaining and fulfilling such relationships? Relationship could simply mean to be a particular type of connection existing between people related to with each other biologically or emotionally and having social or economic dealings with each other. Unfortunately all pretenses of dealing with relationships that often ask for simplicity, empathy, credibility and sincerity cease the moment commercial returns on investments are discussed. Which is what communication is all about; communicating to customers, and not with them.

Researchers have often argued that to understand brand-customer relationships, it is necessary to consider what the brand thinks of its customers, more than what the customers think of a brand. Marketers struggle hard to enhance the satisfaction of customers only to find that they choose their competitors. Why does this happen? Research has further shown that investments in customer communication, which logically seems to be the most crucial aspect in a relationship, has been the most neglected area in most companies.

The argument for this lies in the reality that 65% of all customer service activities are outsourced to business processing units (BPUs). That means the brand does not directly handle customer interactions and queries – unless they are of a certain level, of course. This is akin to asking your friend to talk to your representative about everything that you want to say, including… affairs of the heart, and speak directly only if it is something serious! This attitude, in the first instance, is marketing-driven and one-sided. There are also many brand loyalty programs, which are being attempted by marketers in isolation without the back up support of several other relevant and related strategies. There is a distinctive need for marketers to understand the importance of customer communication, and not merely look at it from the point of view of PR, Advertising or other known corporate forms of communication.

Often corporate communication strategies are designed… to work as a bridge between stakeholders, to justify policies and decisions, to deliver business strategies, to inform and persuade, and of course to emphasize that the company is committed to putting customer interests first, almost as an afterthought!

Thus corporate communications is almost always understood as a process used to build, foster, nurture and extend business relationships with customers. This is unfortunately a bureaucratic understanding, as GE’s former CEO Jack Welch says, “Bureaucracies love to focus inward. It’s not that they dislike customers; they just don’t find them as interesting as themselves.” And the communication reflects it.

In ‘Customers Are People: The Human Touch’, author Jon McKean states that in competitive markets, where customers have a choice between similar products and pricing, “70% percent of customer decision-making is based on how customers are treated.” “Yet,” McKean adds, “Over 80 per cent of customer initiatives are focused on ‘selling to customers better’ through superior products, prices and promotions, than in investing more resources in treating customers better…” How best can a person be treated? By simply being talked to in a better manner.

The question staring squarely on the faces of companies is: “How to make a customer loyal?” When companies talk of relationships where customers have real choices, they are honestly trying to be the best suitor to the customer, ‘as the customer sees it’, and not ‘as they want the customer to see it’. Reichheld and other loyalty experts have studied this issue for years and have concluded that relationships are driven by the behaviour and perception of customers of the value of the relationship that exists between the brand and himself, which is the net result of what economic and psychological value the customer receives from the brand.

According to psychologists customers’ emotional states influence about 50 percent of the value they perceive from their purchases. Jim Barnes, author of ‘Secrets of Customer Relationship Management: It’s All About How You Make Them Feel’, sums it up by saying, “Value is created every time a customer is made to feel welcome, important and valued.”

After reasonably agreeing to the fact that the important aspects in CRM are relationship and how customers, on account of their distinct behaviour and personality, differently and uniquely perceive a relationship, it is also imperative to stress on the point that corporate communication is the prime driver of any relationship. As the leading Indian telecom brand AirTel shows in its advertisements, communication is all about expressing oneself.

A brand identity is shaped by a collective interactive experience of customers, product, policy, and strategy. Which is why developing a brand-customer relationship is important. The choice is simple: either a brand makes a customer experience or it gets created despite the brand. To create a successful relationship, the brand must develop a compelling identity with the customer and have a genuine value proposition. The brand must rely on customer perspective, appreciate the viewpoint and have the ability to communicate appropriately. A common pitfall for many brands is that they do not take the time to think about how they should articulate the brand identity. Needless to say, a successful brand strategy is incomplete without a sound communications strategy. The organization must be aligned in ways that anticipate and fulfill customers’ emotional expectations at every touch point to create meaningful relationships and lasting competitive advantage.

Successful customer communication clearly highlights the brand’s functional, emotional, and self-expressive benefits, as the customer would like to see. It is delivered in a way that is superior or unique when compared to competitors. Customer experience is shaped by a series of interactions with an organization.

According to Jonathan Hardcastle, barriers to effective communication such as frames of reference, value judgments, selective listening, filtering and distrust (all between sender and receiver) complicate the communication systems and messages. However, these can be overcome by sending clear, complete, and specific messages, which are to put it rather romantically, ‘straight from the heart’. Demonstrating love and affection, clarifying intentions, being reliable and dynamic can enhance credibility, exhibiting warmth and friendliness, and building a positive image. Soliciting and providing specific feedback can also enhance communication effectiveness between partners, which is what brands should consider customers as.

One of the most important consumer satisfaction elements is the ability to ask questions and being able to receive appropriately satisfying answers from the brand’s representatives. Gaining information, uncovering motives, giving incentives, obtaining participation, checking understanding, initiating the thinking process, inducing agreements, and refocusing attention, are all essential components of an effective consumer communication plan, says Hardcastle. Thus, the active listening skills of a brand help to build rapport with customers that is both intimate and empathetic.

The other most important aspect is the subtle non-verbal communication of a brand and the customers, that is useful both in reading the underlying emotions and attitudes of customers, while reinforcing a brand’s verbal messages. Understanding subtle communication can enhance the brand-customer relationship.

Coupled with this are improving standards of technology and devices that add an edge to the communication process. Unfortunately over-dependence on technology and automation has had an adverse impact on customer relationship. While on one hand brands talk of a relationship – a concept normally associated with living things largely and human beings in particular – on the other hand the overuse of technology has led to a dissociation that has taken the customer and brand away from each other. This dichotomous situation has to be recognised by the brand as well as the customer, for communication is all about power positions, and it is important to understand that in a relationship the power positions are on an even keel.

Concluding, due to the growing complexity and turbulence of the business environment and the related growth in research knowledge about customer behavior patterns, managers of the 21st century have to take four themes as paramount; the necessity of managing the challenges of change; functioning within a global environment; being sensitive to the diversity among people; and behaving with ethical integrity.

The final ingredient that binds a customer to your brand in a lasting relationship is dialogue. Your company’s brand isn’t a monolithic, hermetic face that the organization presents to the world. Rather, it’s an ongoing exchange where you listen carefully to your customers, understand what they say, and respond by modifying your value proposition and extending your businesses appropriately to fulfil customers’ desires. You exist because of the customer. This selflessness is the cornerstone to successful CRM.

Therefore any corporate communication effort should focus broadly on three aspects: understanding relationships, understanding the distinct behaviour of consumers to relationship overtures and understanding (and establishing) the role of communication in effective and enduring customer relationships.

Establishing Successful Customer Relationships Through Effective Communication

Establishing Successful Customer Relationships Through Effective Communication

Author: K Sai Prasaad
Designation: Head, Department of Marketing & Management Communication
College: Convergence Institute of Media, Management and Information Technology Studies (Commits), Bangalore, India
University: Makhanlal Chaturvedi National University of Journalism and Communication, India

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The Artist and Animal Communication

May 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The Artist and Animal Communication

I came across something the other day in my mom’s “remem’ry drawer” that was both endearingly funny and insightful. This particular drawer that most mothers have somewhere in their houses is where they place things to “remem’ry” about their children’s lives. At least, that’s what my siblings and I (there are 6 of us) named this drawer when we were much younger – a combination of remember and memory – which was actually located in the bottom of my dad’s dresser.

This special drawer holds report cards – good and bad alike – sweet and tender notes written in crayon for Mother’s Day or birthdays, shockingly bad grade school photos that only a mother could love, and other such charming mementos of a son or daughter’s childhood to cherish from time to time. The funny and insightful object I mentioned earlier was my signature when I was about 12 written in neat cursive with the letter “F” in Flynn in the traditional boat-with-a-cap-on-it style and it read: “Lizanne Flynn, The Great Artist”. I think I was typical in my desires at that point in my life as is every other girl – to have a horse and be an artist. Our young feminine fantasies are the stuff of gossamer and lace and gifts of roses from adoring fans who marvel at both our talent and the product of that talent, be in it art or horseback-riding.

I’ve dabbled in many forms of creativity over the years – watercolor painting, crocheting (I still do this), jewelry-making (I still do that) to name a few. Others, such as pottery and painting with acrylics or oils I’ve yet to attempt – maybe someday. They all pale in comparison to the richness of color, complexity of medium, and daunting challenge of completely finishing a piece that is the essence of the art of animal communication. You see, energy is my medium and specifically the energy created by both human and non-human animals, sentient beings alike, complete with spiritual lives and lessons to be learned together. The work of art co-created and facilitated by an animal communicator has a life-long ripple effect for both animal and guardian as it is gilded with love and compassion for self and the other at the same time.

Attention to technique is sometimes involved at the beginning of an art project for instance, by using the correct mixture of clay and water as in pottery. There might be the preparation of the canvas with water or other substances. There’s the selection of colors and paintbrushes, or yarn and hook or needle. Last but not least is, of course, subject matter. “What is to be created, what meaning will it have and how do I want it to be interpreted? What sort of emotion do I want my visual piece of creation to call forth from the observer? Am I trying to call attention to a cultural issue within our society or do I just want to create a picture of fall because it’s my favorite season?” Yes, the scope is that broad and oftentimes just as formidable. Still, the creative voice within the artist perseveres and knows no rest until it is released from within and outwardly shared.

Once the tools are assembled the creative flame sparks and catches fire. At first the flames are small and low in number needing fuel from within the individual to continue burning. It is an assortment of talents and skills that are called forth perhaps unconsciously by the artist to provide the very breath the fire craves. These things lie dormant within an “other” space existing in all of us that is capable of such great feats of creativity it would be a shame not to visit it from time to time if only to reveal to ourselves our deep and divine potential. It is within this “other” space that an animal communicator works in creating their particular piece of art consisting of the interpretation of pictures, words, and feelings from non-human sentient beings, the animals.

I start with a blank canvas although to the animal’s guardian who is asking for my help it appears much differently. It’s fairly common for the unwelcome behavior issues of the animal (the majority of an animal communicator’s work) to resemble a mixture of sharp, jagged edges and discordant colors that snarl and hiss with their disruptive nature in the lives of both human and non-human animals. Reframing of the picture’s contents is necessary so that balance and harmony can once again reign supreme in their lives. In order to accomplish this goal a separate piece of artwork is created that provides a fresh perspective for all involved that can be cherished for its depth of emotion and simplicity (usually) of issue resolution. They’ll hang side by side as a testament to the heart-centered relationship between human and non-human animal, both pictures necessary to keep the partnership focused on the progress made together.

My own attention to technique in this art form involves explaining the process to the human and ensuring that they understand the journey they are about to undertake with their animal companion may be, at times, uncomfortable. There may be delicate issues brought forth by the non-human animal which the human animal may not like to see. Securing permission from the guardian both as to the process and access to their energy along with their companion animal’s energy is vitally important as they are the true creators of the finished project. Additionally, I ask for verification from the guardian that there was a recent vet visit to rule out any medical issues such as infection that may masquerade as emotional ones.

Technique complete, I can begin preparation of the canvas starting with a series of questions from the human that are designed to draw forth from the animal the answers the human so desperately seeks. “Why are you not using the litterbox? Why do you bark so much when the doorbell rings? Why are you afraid of the stairs?” These are just some of the questions that the animal’s guardian may propose to begin the communication session. Once I hear the questions and talk with the guardian I start to get a tingling sense, a knowing if you will, of the dynamic between human and non-human animal that tells me where I’m going to add or subtract questions during the session. This occurs much in the same way a painter adds or subtracts colors or the way a weaver changes colors on the loom that affects the whole of the artwork. Here I follow the animal’s lead as they best know what needs to be revealed to the human so that they can work productively together both during and after the session. Animals are, in fact, far more intuitive than humans given that they still depend on their intuition for well-being in situations where they lack human language skills – in other words, their daily existence in the human world.

It is at this point that my specific type of artwork begins to draw in the energy of both the human and non-human animal as each plays a role in co-creating the finished piece between them. I begin to unfold the wrinkles in the fabric of energy between animal and guardian so that I can access both human and non-human thoughts, emotions and higher selves. The interpretation of the animal communication artwork has specific and, at times, very personal meaning to both animal and guardian. There will be lessons that are part of the pact they each (perhaps unknowingly) signed when they entered each other’s lives that comprise the ultimate subject matter of the artwork. During this process I need to be alert yet relaxed, questioning yet having no expectations so that I can move in concert with the images, words and feelings that flood my being. I need to trust that all will be revealed as necessary which has gotten much easier with time. Truly, this is a living piece of art as in the best of situations the energy will change between human and non-human animal. Words fail to describe what it is like to witness the absolutely spectacular healing happening at the soul level for both human and non-human animal when an energy shift occurs.

The information coming from the animal is from both their current life-form selves and their higher selves. The communication is usually very direct and honest which sometimes shocks the guardian into silence or perhaps tears. There’s often laughter mixed in with the tears as animal’s directness can also be quite funny and endearing to the guardian. It is never without compassion for the human and firmly gentle requests for a change in behavior – on the human’s part – that will allow the companion animal to return to their intrinsic state of wellness and harmony. Perhaps this is the most surprising element of all to those not familiar with animal communication. It is the human whose choices within the human-animal relationship have – a good majority of the time – caused the animal to mirror back those choices in their own unique way. There’s no cause for guilt at this juncture – just a humble and heart-centered agreement to change what can be changed and accommodation for what cannot be changed. Little, however, can’t actually be changed – it’s all a matter of perception.

In the end the masterpiece, with the barely dry paint or still-kiln-warm brilliant glaze, is held up for both human and non-human animal to view. I’ve heard gasps of delight, again co-mingled with tears, at the depth of honesty, trust and love that was woven into a very unique piece of art belonging only to this particular match of human and non-human animal. The humans are often stunned by their participation in the co-creation process and I see images of the preferred future for the pair – from the animal’s higher self – that sometimes makes me blissfully happy for them. The animals are always prompt and sincere in their expressions of gratitude for the process – a good reminder to humans, gentle reader, that being nice matters in the world today.

I learn something every single time I am honored to be part of an animal communication session. Without fail I am imperceptibly changed by my energetic interaction in a sacred “other” space alongside two other sentient beings. Each time I pledge to continue from a deep creative place my particular form of art – that of animal communicator – in order to reveal the divine possibilities of love. This, in the end, is all that really matters.

The Artist and Animal Communication

The Artist and Animal Communication

http://www.theanimalsiview.com

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Hurdles to Cross Cultural Business Communication

May 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Hurdles to Cross Cultural Business Communication

International businesses are facing new challenges to their internal communication structures due to major reforms brought about through internationalization, downsizing, mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures.

Lack of investment in cross cultural training and language tuition often leads to deficient internal cohesion. The loss of clients/customers, poor staff retention, lack of competitive edge, internal conflicts/power struggles, poor working relations, misunderstandings, stress, poor productivity and lack of co-operation are all by-products of poor cross cultural communication.

Cross cultural communications consultants work with international companies to minimise the above consequences of poor cross cultural awareness. Through such cooperation, consultancies like Kwintessential have recognised common hurdles to effective cross cultural communication within companies.

Here we outline a few examples of these obstacles to cross cultural co-operation:

Lack of Communication

It may seem obvious to state that non-communication is probably the biggest contributor to poor communication. Yet it continues to prove itself as the major problem within most companies.

Lack of communication with staff is not solely due to lack of spoken dialogue. Rather it relates to access to information.

For example, not giving feedback (negative or positive), informing staff of decisions and actions that will affect their roles or failure to properly communicate expectations are all ways in which information can be withheld from staff. This will eventually result in an alienated staff base that feels divided from management and superiors.

If managers are too selective in providing information, this can cause suspicion and jealousy among staff and will eventually result in internal strife instead of cohesion.

A management which does not and will not communicate and interact physically with staff demonstrates a lack of interest, trust and respect.

In the West it is often the case that communication lines are vertical. Staff report up to managers and managers up to senior levels and so on. Ideally lines of communication should run both ways. Those with a subordinate place in the communication process tend to feel estranged, indifferent and possibly even belligerent.

Lack of communication in all its forms is unhealthy. Companies and managers must be aware of how, what and to whom they are communicating.

Language

Communication difficulties through language come in two forms:

Use of inappropriate language

Language carries with it subliminal meanings and messages transmitted through vocabulary, stress and tone. The wrong use of words or emotions hidden behind phrases can send messages that affect staff self-perception, confidence and attitude. Critical language causes poor interpersonal relationships and low self-confidence whereas supportive language and tones has the opposite effect.

Foreign Languages

These days, offices may have native speakers of over 50 languages all under one roof.  It is important that the main language of the office is established, whether it be English, French or Spanish. Once this is constituted all employees should only converse in the main language. This avoids exclusion of staff who can not understand other languages. In addition, a company should ensure that all its employees are fully conversant in the main language. Language tuition should be seen as a necessity not a luxury.

Culture

International businesses with a highly diverse workforce in terms of nationality and cultural background face challenges from the differences in language, values, belief systems, business ethics, business practices, behaviour, etiquette and expectations.

Cross cultural differences can negatively impact a business in a variety of ways, whether in team cohesion or in staff productivity. As we have seen above, different methods of communication are just one area in which cross cultural differences are manifested.

In such multicultural companies, objective help may be needed through a cross cultural consultant who will show teams and individuals how to manage communication and work together more cohesively and productively.

Company Culture

Company culture pertains to the internal culture of a company in terms of how it is managed. For example, does the company view its different departments such as sales, production, administration and HR as closed or open systems? A closed system is one in which a total lack of synergy exists between a sales and production department due to the structure and communication lines between the two. A consequence of such compartmentalization is that managers of departments have a tendency to become territorial. It is vital that team work, team building and team spirit are encouraged in order to create open systems.

Such measures are especially valid in joint ventures and mergers whereby co-operation between two or more companies requires their total commitment to an open system.

Understandably many companies are primarily focused on the financial and strategic side of company operations. International businesses are now realising that many of their business problems have roots in man-management and communication.

In summary, we can conclude that the biggest hurdle to effective cross cultural communication is a reluctance to invest in the expertise and resources needed to overcome the problems as outlined above. Cross cultural hurdles are easily negotiable with some objective and well-qualified assistance.

For more information please visit http://www.kwintessential.co.uk

Hurdles to Cross Cultural Business Communication

Hurdles to Cross Cultural Business Communication

Neil Payne is Director of London based consultancy http://www.kwintessential.co.uk

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The Psychology of Communication

May 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The Psychology of Communication

On the limits of the process of communication and the central role of interpretation

Communication is about using symbols and in case of humans, using language, to convey meanings and ideas between individuals and it involves the act of evoking reactions from other individuals. Human communication is marked by intention and anticipation of the reactions and communication in humans can be verbal when mediated by language or non-verbal when no language is involved. Communication can also be direct when a certain pattern of behavior evokes a particular type of response or subtle and indirect when behaviors are not predictable or ambiguous and not even completely comprehensible. Thus communication is separated into certain distinct categories such as:

1. Direct and Indirect communication

2. Verbal and non-verbal communication

Any direct communication can be both verbal and non-verbal just as indirect communication can also be verbal or non verbal. Verbal communication can again be direct or indirect and similarly non verbal communication can also be either direct or indirect. So let’s say there are four types of communication patterns in humans – verbal and direct, verbal and indirect, non-verbal and direct, non-verbal and indirect. Examples of verbal and direct would be saying things that are straightforward or unambiguous and with no hidden or incomprehensible messages. These are verbal expressions of emotions and ideas as they occur. Like when you are happy and say that you are happy, you are using the verbal direct method of communication to express your feelings. Indirect methods of verbal communication are using subtle expressions such as taunts, sarcasm, hints etc. that can have ambiguous meanings and do not represent expressions of emotions or ideas ‘as they occur’. Thus if you are sad and do not say so but imply indirectly, then you are using indirect methods to convey your state of mind. Non verbal communication is about using cues, facial or bodily expressions, body language, eye or hand movements etc., to express ideas. This can be quite direct like say, hitting a person is rather non verbal but direct as it expresses anger just as crying represents sorrow. However non verbal communication can be indirect such as turning away your eyes from a person you feel uncomfortable with or maintaining prolonged eye contact with a person to convey a message.

Communication is the basis of human and non-human interaction and we can all communicate with a touch or a sound, a look or a symbol, a word or a sentence and also by doing or saying nothing at all. The body is an important interface in communication and I’ve discussed this in the psychology of body in which body language is shown to play an important role in communication. We communicate with our mates through intimate body language and sexual interaction is a very important communication tool in humans and also in animals. The psychology of communication will include the different elements or stages of communication in an individual such as

1. Absorption of external information through listening or reading etc,

2. Interpretation of the stimuli received, and

3. Reaction to the information obtained through behavior

The three stages of the communication process as in absorption or taking in information, the interpretation or deriving meaning of the information and reaction or responding to the information are facilitated by the following elements:

1. Absorption or taking in information – is through sense organs and we simply absorb the sounds and colors, the spoken words and all external data provided to us. Absorption is an objective process

2. Interpretation or analysis of information – involves using brain mechanisms and analyzing external stimuli as well as details such as expressions and subtle verbal and non verbal cues, so interpretation is a subjective process

3. Reaction or response to the stimuli – uses physical communication routes such as speech, language or expressions through facial and bodily movements. Reactions are the result of a subjective and an objective process. This is because when presented with certain stimuli we all have a set of predictable responses which are objective but depending on how we interpret the situation subjectively, the reactions might vary to an extent. Reactions can be imitative – you smile when you see someone smiling or it can be just the opposite as when someone tries to look at you and you try to look away.

This reaction or response evoked in an individual can become a stimulus for another chain of responses or the stimulus can be a completely separate event or situation. Behaviorists will usually consider communication as a stimulus-response pattern with individuals perceiving the stimuli and reacting to them in the form of communication. Freudian psychoanalysis suggests that communication is directly related to how we subjectively perceive the external information based on our own experiences. So ‘interpretation’ of external stimuli or the mediation of the individual mind is the most important aspect of communication according to psychoanalysis, although behaviorists will completely eliminate the importance of the ‘interpretation’ part considering communication as nothing but a series of mechanical ‘stimulus-response’ pattern. Thus according to behavioral psychology, we perceive an object and react to it via communication almost like a computer program. It sounds strange that the importance of mind and consciousness in communication has only been recently acknowledged in ‘scientific’ psychology.

The methods of communication are also equally interesting as humans communicate through the written word and the spoken word and through letters, messages, phone calls, personal face to face conversation, through glances and physical contact, through sex, and on a wider scale through seminars, conferences, news events, newspapers, press releases, books, brochures, and campaigning or propaganda. The newer methods of communication using information technology are via chats and chatrooms, internet and emails, text messages, forums, blogging and networking. Technology has opened up new avenues of communication and the world is now completely dependent on how far and how quickly people are able to communicate.

Communication is central to our modern life, yet it is a difficult and complicated process and a gap remains between the ideas communicated and the ideas perceived. This communication gap as it is generally called is closed only with proper consideration of all verbal, non verbal, indirect and direct elements of the communication process. So in a personal or business meeting the communication process involves not just presentation of the ideas of people verbally but also the non verbal facial and bodily expressions.

The purpose of communication is almost always motivated or intentional as we naturally expect a response from people we communicate with. In fact all communication is based on anticipation of response from others thus communication tend to have a direction or purpose. However the communication gap can create problems in the process and the purpose of communication may remain unfulfilled when communicated ideas are too vague or indirect. The vagueness increases when channels of communication between two or more individuals are remote or distal rather than proximal.

Long distance communication methods such as emails and internet, telephone calls etc. bring in new challenges to the study of communication as we are not able to see the person we communicate with, we find it difficult to ‘interpret’ the stimuli that we encounter. As I have noted in an earlier part of this discussion, the ability to ‘interpret’ the communicative stimuli is a very important part of the communicative process and the interpretation or derivation of the meaning of what we hear or see depends on our inherent need for analysis of all indirect body language cues, facial expressions and hints or subtle or subconscious processes. Human beings are intelligent and in most cases do not take all information for granted. The direct face to face communication provides us with a definite sense of what the other person really means and gives us assurance that our interpretation of the communication is correct. That is why the face to face interviewing process still remains the most popular method of communication in a selection process. All online communication and information on the internet are thus prone to misinterpretation as we are not able to interpret the information using the non verbal cues or expressions that are an essential part of the communication process. The communication gap is thus the gap of interpretation as despite a lot of information there is certain dearth of essential information and our mind recognizes the communication process as incomplete. You may chat with a person online for several hours in a day but unless you are able to see or hear his or her facial and bodily expressions, you can never be assured that the communication process is completely authentic. Of course, modern devices such as the webcam have greatly improved the communication process. Yet it is also true that even if we have all the essential cues of communication, the very fact that we have to interpret the information received subjectively, can suggest the possibility of a communication gap.

In this discussion then, I simply pointed out that the three stages of communication comprise of certain essential elements and a communication gap is inherent in the process of interpretation either because of our own limitations or due to limitations of technology.

The Psychology of Communication

The Psychology of Communication

Reflections in Psychology – Part I – by Saberi Roy (2009)
http://www.lulu.com/content/5865445

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The Psychology of Communication

April 26, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The Psychology of Communication

On the limits of the process of communication and the central role of interpretation

Communication is about using symbols and in case of humans, using language, to convey meanings and ideas between individuals and it involves the act of evoking reactions from other individuals. Human communication is marked by intention and anticipation of the reactions and communication in humans can be verbal when mediated by language or non-verbal when no language is involved. Communication can also be direct when a certain pattern of behavior evokes a particular type of response or subtle and indirect when behaviors are not predictable or ambiguous and not even completely comprehensible. Thus communication is separated into certain distinct categories such as:

1. Direct and Indirect communication

2. Verbal and non-verbal communication

Any direct communication can be both verbal and non-verbal just as indirect communication can also be verbal or non verbal. Verbal communication can again be direct or indirect and similarly non verbal communication can also be either direct or indirect. So let’s say there are four types of communication patterns in humans – verbal and direct, verbal and indirect, non-verbal and direct, non-verbal and indirect. Examples of verbal and direct would be saying things that are straightforward or unambiguous and with no hidden or incomprehensible messages. These are verbal expressions of emotions and ideas as they occur. Like when you are happy and say that you are happy, you are using the verbal direct method of communication to express your feelings. Indirect methods of verbal communication are using subtle expressions such as taunts, sarcasm, hints etc. that can have ambiguous meanings and do not represent expressions of emotions or ideas ‘as they occur’. Thus if you are sad and do not say so but imply indirectly, then you are using indirect methods to convey your state of mind. Non verbal communication is about using cues, facial or bodily expressions, body language, eye or hand movements etc., to express ideas. This can be quite direct like say, hitting a person is rather non verbal but direct as it expresses anger just as crying represents sorrow. However non verbal communication can be indirect such as turning away your eyes from a person you feel uncomfortable with or maintaining prolonged eye contact with a person to convey a message.

Communication is the basis of human and non-human interaction and we can all communicate with a touch or a sound, a look or a symbol, a word or a sentence and also by doing or saying nothing at all. The body is an important interface in communication and I’ve discussed this in the psychology of body in which body language is shown to play an important role in communication. We communicate with our mates through intimate body language and sexual interaction is a very important communication tool in humans and also in animals. The psychology of communication will include the different elements or stages of communication in an individual such as

1. Absorption of external information through listening or reading etc,

2. Interpretation of the stimuli received, and

3. Reaction to the information obtained through behavior

The three stages of the communication process as in absorption or taking in information, the interpretation or deriving meaning of the information and reaction or responding to the information are facilitated by the following elements:

1. Absorption or taking in information – is through sense organs and we simply absorb the sounds and colors, the spoken words and all external data provided to us. Absorption is an objective process

2. Interpretation or analysis of information – involves using brain mechanisms and analyzing external stimuli as well as details such as expressions and subtle verbal and non verbal cues, so interpretation is a subjective process

3. Reaction or response to the stimuli – uses physical communication routes such as speech, language or expressions through facial and bodily movements. Reactions are the result of a subjective and an objective process. This is because when presented with certain stimuli we all have a set of predictable responses which are objective but depending on how we interpret the situation subjectively, the reactions might vary to an extent. Reactions can be imitative – you smile when you see someone smiling or it can be just the opposite as when someone tries to look at you and you try to look away.

This reaction or response evoked in an individual can become a stimulus for another chain of responses or the stimulus can be a completely separate event or situation. Behaviorists will usually consider communication as a stimulus-response pattern with individuals perceiving the stimuli and reacting to them in the form of communication. Freudian psychoanalysis suggests that communication is directly related to how we subjectively perceive the external information based on our own experiences. So ‘interpretation’ of external stimuli or the mediation of the individual mind is the most important aspect of communication according to psychoanalysis, although behaviorists will completely eliminate the importance of the ‘interpretation’ part considering communication as nothing but a series of mechanical ‘stimulus-response’ pattern. Thus according to behavioral psychology, we perceive an object and react to it via communication almost like a computer program. It sounds strange that the importance of mind and consciousness in communication has only been recently acknowledged in ‘scientific’ psychology.

The methods of communication are also equally interesting as humans communicate through the written word and the spoken word and through letters, messages, phone calls, personal face to face conversation, through glances and physical contact, through sex, and on a wider scale through seminars, conferences, news events, newspapers, press releases, books, brochures, and campaigning or propaganda. The newer methods of communication using information technology are via chats and chatrooms, internet and emails, text messages, forums, blogging and networking. Technology has opened up new avenues of communication and the world is now completely dependent on how far and how quickly people are able to communicate.

Communication is central to our modern life, yet it is a difficult and complicated process and a gap remains between the ideas communicated and the ideas perceived. This communication gap as it is generally called is closed only with proper consideration of all verbal, non verbal, indirect and direct elements of the communication process. So in a personal or business meeting the communication process involves not just presentation of the ideas of people verbally but also the non verbal facial and bodily expressions.

The purpose of communication is almost always motivated or intentional as we naturally expect a response from people we communicate with. In fact all communication is based on anticipation of response from others thus communication tend to have a direction or purpose. However the communication gap can create problems in the process and the purpose of communication may remain unfulfilled when communicated ideas are too vague or indirect. The vagueness increases when channels of communication between two or more individuals are remote or distal rather than proximal.

Long distance communication methods such as emails and internet, telephone calls etc. bring in new challenges to the study of communication as we are not able to see the person we communicate with, we find it difficult to ‘interpret’ the stimuli that we encounter. As I have noted in an earlier part of this discussion, the ability to ‘interpret’ the communicative stimuli is a very important part of the communicative process and the interpretation or derivation of the meaning of what we hear or see depends on our inherent need for analysis of all indirect body language cues, facial expressions and hints or subtle or subconscious processes. Human beings are intelligent and in most cases do not take all information for granted. The direct face to face communication provides us with a definite sense of what the other person really means and gives us assurance that our interpretation of the communication is correct. That is why the face to face interviewing process still remains the most popular method of communication in a selection process. All online communication and information on the internet are thus prone to misinterpretation as we are not able to interpret the information using the non verbal cues or expressions that are an essential part of the communication process. The communication gap is thus the gap of interpretation as despite a lot of information there is certain dearth of essential information and our mind recognizes the communication process as incomplete. You may chat with a person online for several hours in a day but unless you are able to see or hear his or her facial and bodily expressions, you can never be assured that the communication process is completely authentic. Of course, modern devices such as the webcam have greatly improved the communication process. Yet it is also true that even if we have all the essential cues of communication, the very fact that we have to interpret the information received subjectively, can suggest the possibility of a communication gap.

In this discussion then, I simply pointed out that the three stages of communication comprise of certain essential elements and a communication gap is inherent in the process of interpretation either because of our own limitations or due to limitations of technology.

The Psychology of Communication

The Psychology of Communication

Reflections in Psychology – Part I – by Saberi Roy (2009)
http://www.lulu.com/content/5865445

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Ignoring Importance Of Communication Is A Direct Ticket To Organizational Failure

April 26, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Ignoring Importance Of Communication Is A Direct Ticket To Organizational Failure

Employees, who make the organization and run its operations, work only when some right person or some other right method tells them in a comprehensible way to do so. Communication is the prime shaft that runs the machine of entire organization no matter how big it is. Employees, if properly communicated to, will understand the vision or grand plan or short term plan or daily work scheme of the organization and contribute their share to its success. A subordinate who understands the mind of the boss when the latter employs right communication methods would comply with latter’s instructions to his highest satisfaction. If a subordinate sends in the right report, the boss or the management team would take the right decision. If the chairman of a company explains to the media correctly the future plans of the company, the investing public would invest their funds with the company. If the employee who has been denied a promotion makes representation correctly, the management may reconsider the earlier decision. All the preceding situations confirm that communication is the trigger of actions as well as the agent of change, without which the organization either stagnates or fails in effective delivery of its offering.

The need for better and organized communication has never been more accentuated than now all owing to replacement of owner-managed small organization with big organizations employing numerous employees. In earlier days, the owner could get done what he wanted with oral instructions or conversation where there was little likelihood of its being distorted or lost, since the communication was direct- there were not so many levels as we see now. Though communication, irrespective of the size of the organization, has the potential of being distorted or lost, the impact of such failure then was not as much as it would be now. Today, the flow of communication passes through many levels and thus faces several occasions of failure like distortion, loss and delay.

Now that the power of communication has been fully realized which was not so for over several decades, the business is no longer limited to geographic boundaries and further, expanded across the globe and that too very effectively with the best control over such business wherever it is being located and operated. Many organizations like nationalized banks in India which were lagging behind in bringing its communication systems like ATMs in step with other competitors were about to lose their business but for their realization of necessity of installing best communication systems-ATMs & Core Banking Software- which are now operational in most of the banks.

Henry Mintzberg (Sekaran, 2004, p-120), while researching on the managerial jobs, found that managers spent 6 % of their working time in communicating with others over phone, 10% in unscheduled meetings and 59% scheduled meetings. It means that mangers spend 75% of their time in communicating.

The function of communication in organizations has risen in its importance of late due to varied reasons like advent of large sized organizations, technological advancement, growth of trade unions and so on. Sri K.K.Sinha (2002, pp-9-11) has enumerated the reasons for increasing importance for communication function, which are briefly discussed in the following paragraphs.

1) Large -sized Organizations: When organizations grow in terms of operations, workforce, locations, volume and product variety, which usually happens over a period of time due to the opportunities presented to a business organization, the organization will be staffed with numerous employees arranged in multiple hierarchical levels. In a multi-hierarchical organization, communication is indirect in that several persons will be in communication with several others but not directly. The person needing to get a job done does not communicate directly with the person enjoined to do it but conversely talks to a person who is subordinate and who is not necessarily the one who executes, but only sends the communication down the hierarchy. The communication flows down the several levels numbering from three to fifteen levels. These multiple levels inherently cause the communication to be either distorted or lost or delayed unless properly managed.

2) Technological Advancement: The world, since the beginning of the twentieth century, has been witnessing astonishing developments in technologies like those related to new electronic products, new delivery services, new transport methods etc, which not only benefit the organizations but also complicate the process of organizing and managing businesses so much so that new technologies are being resisted now. Hence, it requires a lot of best-managed communication. That apart, the new technologies coupled with blurred boundaries created wider physical distances between different departments of the organization. These distances necessitate the proper management of communication so that all organs work in tandem rather than at cross-purposes.

3) The Human Relations Aspect: The management has to maintain good human relations with employees to get the best out of them. There is a growing awareness in corporate circles that the relationship between the manager and the subordinate is not the one between master and servant but that between partners. For the relationship to be best maintained, hearty, rapport-building and problem-solving communication is necessary. Good relations with employees boost their morale and thus ensure best cooperation and best productivity.

4) Growth of Trade Unions: Trade Unions have grown too large to be ignored while any kind of change is introduced into the organization. The change may cover new technology, new procedure, new work goals, new product, new locations etc. All these cannot be successful unless the all those connected with them put their heart and soul into such changes. Any change is resisted since on its face it seemingly presents a host of nervous feelings- insecurity, difficulty and disturbance to smooth flow of life. A well-designed communication only clears all the confusion and fear, leading to the acceptance of change and thus working it out to the benefit of the organization.

5) Public Relations Aspect: Corporate bodies owe their existence and growth very much to a certain host of stakeholders such as shareholders, customers, suppliers, lenders, employees, government and general public. All these stakeholders cherish certain expectations of reciprocation from corporations. Organizations also have the responsibility to take care of the stakeholders and vulnerable sections of general public. The organizations have to communicate constantly and effectively with the stakeholders about its programs and plans related to the service to stakeholders, else the former doesn’t get the necessary support or resources from the latter. It takes a lot of quality communications from the organizations to build goodwill among the public about the organization.

6) Interpersonal Relationships: The recent developments in the behavioral sciences covering transactional analysis, good relationships, empathy etc and also the teachings of Stephen Covey, Dale Carnegie, Eric Berne, Edward De Bono etc have placed a lot of emphasis on relationships and the role of communication in building relationships. The success of an individual is attributed to the ability of his to communicate with his peers, superiors and subordinates.

The communication is the lifeblood of the organization, which fact has to be realized by all those wishing to make their venture a success. While focus on the best communication and the requisite systems to facilitate it is a compelling need for the organizations, communication skills are highly essential for managers across all levels as well.

Lesikar &.Flatley ( 2002, p.3 )made note of the research findings in their most well read reference book on communication, which are briefly mentioned in the following.

A nationwide survey of corporate recruiters conducted by Charles M Ray, John J Stallard, and C Steven Hunt in 1993 confirms the highest importance placed by recruiters on communications skills of the candidates for employment. The findings of the survey revealed that the recruiters ranked four communications – writing, speaking, listening, and interpersonal communicating- in the top five criteria for selecting employees. Further, in a study by Robert Half International of 1000 largest employers in United States, 96% reported that employees must have good communication skills to get ahead.

A study on MBA applicants also revealed that 85% of the recruiters opine that the communication skills are the most important of the skills sought. In another study of 500 undergraduate and postgraduate students, they ranked business communication first among all core business courses.

In another survey, it was found that college graduates with higher scores in literacy (use of printed and written communication) earn 47% more than lower scoring graduates earn. A study by Office Team concluded that such skills as writing and speaking well, displaying proper etiquette, and listening attentively will probably determine career success.

It is clear from the foregoing discussion that communication skills are a must for entry into employment as well as career success. In regards to importance of communication in organizations, if an organization fails to appreciate its importance, it is bound to hit the dead end.

Reference List

Sekaran, U. ( 2004). Organizational Behavior: Text and Cases, Second Edition. New Delhi: Tata Mcgraw Hill Companies

Sinha K.K ( 2002) Business Communication, New Delhi: Galgotia Publishing Company

Lesikar, R.V.Raymond & Flatley, E.M. (2002). Basic Business Communication, New Delhi: Tata Mcgraw Hill Publishing Company Limited

Ignoring Importance Of Communication Is A Direct Ticket To Organizational Failure

Ignoring Importance Of Communication Is A Direct Ticket To Organizational Failure

Prof.Appalayya M is a Professor of Management Studies in Deccan School of Management, an affiliated college of Osmania University, Hyderabad, India. Students can contact him for guidance on projects, dissertations and theses.

He can be contacted at : appalayya22@yahoo.com or ameesala@yahoo.com or on mobile: 0-98485-14-011

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So What is Communication

April 18, 2012 By Leave a Comment

So What is Communication

In “Signature Event Context,” Derrida tackles a weighty question: What is communication? Early in the chapter he offers his definition of communication, “I have been constrained to predetermine communication as a vehicle, a means of transport or transitional medium of a meaning, moreover of a unified meaning.” (Derrida, 1) Recognizing the limitations of his definition, he proceeds to break that definition down into what he considers the two basic forms of communication: written language and spoken language.

He then addresses the merits of written and spoken language based on their value, how the idea of absence affects each form and the intentions of the author/speaker as it relates to the message they are trying to communicate. The emphasis on written communication supposes that it somehow is more accurate, reliable and accessible then spoken word, a supposition that is in many ways inaccurate.

Also, while Derrida’s discussion appears thorough, the solitary focus on spoken and written language as the sole or main means of communication, fails to adequately answer the question he poses by eliminating the import and affect of non-verbal communication.

Derrida begins his discussion on written communication by stating that, “[writing is] an especially potent means of communication, extending enormously, if not infinitely, the domain of oral or gestural communication.”(Derrida 3) Using the philosopher Condillac as a basis for much of his reasoning, Derrida states that writing trumps other forms of communication because of the idea of “thought as representation,” (Derrida 4), man’s ability to create ideas or thoughts in his mind and communicate them to others through a written method, is a complex one and required evolution on man’s part to accomplish such a feat. Also that written word’s value is bolstered by the idea of absence, written word’s ability to continue to communicate even when the originator of the message is no longer present.

On some levels Derrida’s and Condillac’s argument hold true: as a society we value the written word over the spoken word. A civilization is determined to be advanced if it has a written language. We will mark the day that civilization created its alphabet or other form of written communication as the day it became civilized and left its primitive ways behind. We also, as a society, tend to believe that communication in its written form is more valuable than communication that is spoken to us. How often have we asked, “Can we get that in writing?” when wanting to validate a piece of information someone has given us.

Information written down and better yet, that contains a signature has more authority then someone telling us something.

The problem with this emphasis on written word is that it doesn’t account for oral traditions. Spoken word was just as capable as the written word in its ability to communicate outside of the presence of the original communicator and held as much weight as the written word prior to and even after the advent of written language. For centuries town criers, griots and priests were the keepers and disseminators of information from fireside stories to a people’s history.

These gatekeepers of information passed down their responsibilities to others who were given the all important and in many ways sacred duty of continuing the traditions of a people or of simply being accurate record-keepers. The advent of the written word is in many ways like a new technology: it’s great if you know how to use it but absolutely useless to you if you can’t figure out how it works.

So, if you couldn’t read then the fact that all this information is written down is useless. Where before a person had only to speak the language to be informed, as civilizations begin to rely more and more on the written word, those who couldn’t break the code didn’t know what was going on. Think of the person who is computer illiterate. As the world relies more and more on this method of communication those who don’t know to use a computer will suffer.

And as Derrida did disservice to non-verbal communication in his discussion on communication, as will I since I am running out of space. To not give sufficient time to non-verbal communication is to not recognize that most of how we communicate is without words in any form. From a glance to posture one can communicate a wealth of information and many ways more accurately communicate that information then anything that is written or said. Derrida through his use of Austin’s writings, questions the role of intent and context and how important it is in what is being communicated.

For Austin, intent and context are the main reason why he states spoken word is the only form of communication since intent and context are harder to ascertain in the written word. For Derrida the intent of the communicator or the context in which something is said or written is secondary and ultimately not as important as the message itself. What non-verbal communication does is clarify that intent or the context of a message or it may simply allow people to communicate when words are inappropriate or insufficient; think of military communications in a battlefield or a long stare at a person across a crowded room.

Derrida begins an interesting discussion on the nature of communication but in the end his discussion amounts to only a beginning and further discussion is merited to really get at the heart of the question: What is communication?

So What is Communication

So What is Communication

T.S. Johnson is a Florida Based Freelance Writer for Hire, Providing Nation-Wide, Professional, Freelance Writing Services. For All of Your Writing Needs Visit http://prologuezine.com Today!

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Understanding the Communication Process – The Key to Organisational Success

April 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Understanding the Communication Process – The Key to Organisational Success

The process by which one person or a group of persons receive an increment of information which has some value for either sender or receiver either by way of knowledge addition or entertainment or acquisition of energy to act or persuasion to buy or act as required by the sender is the process of communication.

The Process of Communication

The critical part of communication is the information, which is being transferred. Information may be in any form- ranging from hand signals to public speech, from email to detailed contract, from one word greeting to a lengthy letter, from a message on a notice board of a school to a full page advertisement on a daily, from a hint with raised eyebrows to five-minute hug, from a memo from a superior or subordinate to a HR manual and so on. For the transfer of the information or the message, certain vehicle or medium is employed, which loads itself with it and passes it on to the intended receivers. Paper, phone, one-to-one meeting, public meeting, conversation, hoarding, newspaper, words written or spoken, body gestures, smile, books etc are the vehicles or media. The way the vehicles take and transport the information in such a way that the receiver understands it as it should be is the communication process. The medium or the sender or the receiver characteristically distorts the information, which in one way or other contributes fully or partly to the failure of the communication in accomplishing the purpose intended.

Two important stages of communication are a) encoding and b) decoding. The process involved in these two stages is a potential source of communication failure. Encoding is translation or conversion of the idea or intention or message into words or signals so that receiver would reconvert the same as intended by the sender. Decoding is what the receiver does to reconvert the received words or signals into the idea or intention or message as originally intended by the sender. The problems associated with encoding or decoding are due to the fact that words or signals have multiple meanings and thus there is a possibility of either use of wrong words or wrong signals or understanding them in a way different from what is originally intended.

Understanding of the process of communication would facilitate transactions. Else, the there would be no action at all or delayed action if at all there is some action or wrong action or relationships turning bad and so on. For instance, a boss tells his secretary that a meeting with contractors is urgent. But he finds to his surprise that a meeting has been convened quickly the next day morning, but it clashed with another program, which the secretary is not aware. The boss, in this case, while being busy with office routine overlooked the process involved in passing messages and the attendant chances of communication going wrong in many of the stages. He failed to specify the time. But the secretary understood it as next day morning. This illustrates how the process involved in encoding and decoding goes wrong and thus it springs surprises.

All the elements involved in communication which constitute the communication process are a) sender b) receiver c) message c) encoding d) decoding e) channel f) noise g) feedback.

The following brief discussion explains the process of communication.

Sender: The point from where the message originated, here the boss, is the sender. The action intended to happen out of this message is convening of a meeting urgently, but definitely not the next day morning.

Message: Message is the essential content of communication or information intended to be passed. The request for convening of meeting is the message.

Receiver: The person who has to take delivery of message is the receiver. Here the secretary is the receiver whose job is to understand exactly and act on it as intended by the sender.

Encoding: The idea of convening a meeting, in this instance, has been converted into words, probably with facial expressions signaling the urgency of meeting. Such process of converting an idea is words or expressions is encoding.

Channel: The encoded message needs a vehicle or a medium to be transported from sender to receiver. The vehicle may be a paper or a telephone or Internet or meeting or conversation. In the present example, oral communication made by the boss to secretary is the channel.

Decoding: The process of understanding by receiver of the message given by the sender. In this example, the secretary while decoding understood the message given by the sender.

Noise: Noise is the causative factor for the message being miscommunicated or misunderstood due to the problem either in the medium chosen or encoding or decoding or in some stages of the process. In this instance, the message was not properly constructed and hence the secretary did not understand it as intended by the sender. The noise in communication is analogous to the external noise generated by cable or transmission equipment of land line telecommunication while the subscribers talk on land line phones and hence they don’t listen or understand the words exchanged.

Feedback: The sender would be communicating back to the sender his or her evaluation or how he or she understood about each part of the message or word before the sender goes further in acting on the message. Here in the present example the secretary did not give her feedback about what she understood and thus the intended message failed.

While what was described in the preceding paragraphs is a general understanding of the concept of communication process, a brief study of various theories propounded till date would facilitate a fairly in-depth understanding of the communication process. The same has been attempted in the following paragraphs.

Aristotle Theory of One Way Communication: Aristotle proposed that communication has three components- sender, receiver and message. It is a simple and basic model, which, nevertheless, laid base for the rest of the theories to come up. Aristotle, at such an early period of evolution of social science, posited that communication is a one way process. It connotes that sender is responsible for good persuasive communication to happen. Neither the concept of noise nor the necessity of feedback in communication crossed his mind.

Lasswell Model of Communication: Lasswell extended the communication theory of Aristotle to include another element, channel. Three important elements or components in this theory are a) Sender b) Message c) Channel. His theory posits that it is the responsibility of the sender to see that receiver understands the message, by choosing a proper channel. It is also a one-way direction of communication as that of Aristotle.

Shannon-Weaver Model: CE Shannon and W Weaver, the engineers’ duo, proposed this theory in 1949. This theory was based on a mechanistic view of communication. This is the first theory, which recognizes that the message received is not the same as the message sent. This distortion is due to the noise present in the system.

They introduced feedback as a corrective measure for noise. But, they did not integrate the feedback into the model. They proposed that feedback would start another cycle of communication process. The theory essentially posits that real communication takes place only when the message received and message sent are one and the same without any difference, which may be true for an engineering model. But the communication that takes place between individuals, which mostly happens without any machines, cannot be as perfect as assumed in the theory, since the filters in the individuals operate while both listening and sending. Filters are the attitudes, perceptions, experiences and evaluations that operate much before the actual communication starts. The action that takes place as intended is the proof of success of communication.

The elements in this model are a) Information source b) Encoding c) Channel d) Decoding e) Destination f) Noise g) Feedback.

Schramm Model of Communication: Wilburn Schramm proposed this model in 1955, which was considered to be the best of all the theories since it is evolved and comprehensive. It was proposed in three stages with some improvement in each successive stage over the previous one. These stages are also referred to as three distinct models.

In the first stage, it emphasized on encoding process and source like that of Aristotle without any recognition for noise. It too was a one-way direction of communication flow.

In the second stage, the emphasis shifted to the shared domain of experience of sender and receiver. The sender has to take into consideration, according to this theory, the needs and abilities of the receiver, which he must be aware of due to shared experience, and thus the selects the right channel and at the same time encodes the message in the way that can be understood by the receiver. Here the communication process is understood to be a two-way flow.

In the third stage, the feedback was thought to be an essential element of communication system. In this stage of Schramm’s theory, the communication process encompasses sender, receiver, good channel, proper encoding, proper decoding, and feedback. The flow which ends with feedback starts immediately again to make a circular process.

The Inferential Model of Communication: Prof.Mathukutty Monippally proposes a new theory called ‘Inferential Model of Communication’ emphasizing on symbols displayed and the construction of meaning inadequately from such symbols. The model assumes that there is no adequate and proper way to send a message, and nevertheless we send message through some chosen symbols, which again are not properly understood.

Prof. Mathukutty (2001) explains, ” The inferential model assumes that we cannot communicate, that we cannot communicate, that we cannot share our message with anyone, that we cannot it in the minds of and hearts of others. And yet we want to communicate. There is no code that can capture our message faithfully and then be cracked clean by others. So we resort to displaying symbols….This procedure is generally satisfactory. Of course, we can go wrong; and occasionally we go terribly wrong. But this is the only means available.” ( Mathukutty M Monippally, Business Communication Strategies,2001, New Delhi, Tata Mcgrawhill Publishing Company Limited, pp 6-9)

An Overview of Some More Models of Communication

Another model of Katz -Lazarfeld is the one related to mass communication, which states that the sender has to encode the message and transmit the same through mass media to an opinion leader. The opinion leader in turn transmits the same to the target audience, the public. This is also constructed as a one-way direction of information flow.

Another model, which has taken a different path, is that of Westley – Maclean. It emphasizes on interpersonal communication. In this, the carefully encoded message is sent to the receiver who in turn sends it to either the sender or other individual with some changes. The model lays stress on sender, receiver and feedback, which make this model a circular one.

One more one- way model is that of Berlo, which recognizes perception as an important element of communication. According to this model, any discrepancy in the reception of message due to influence of perceptions of intermediaries would lead to miscommunication. The important building blocks of this model are the source, the receiver, the meaning intended and the process of sending and receiving the message.

Watlaw- Beavin-Jackobson, proposed a model of two-way communication with emphasis on the behavior of participants and the relationships existing among them to achieve communication success.

Rogers-Kincaid proposed that for the communication to be successful, the individuals should be connected through social networks and sharing of information.

Conclusion

Understanding communication process is very critical to the managers of the organization. They should understand that communication is rarely understood as it should be. The distortion of the message can happen at any of the stages in communication process-sender, receiver, encoding, decoding, channel, message and feedback.

Understanding the Communication Process – The Key to Organisational Success

Understanding the Communication Process - The Key to Organisational Success

Prof.Appalayya Meesala is a Professor of Management in Deccan School of Management, an affiliated college of Osmania University, Hyderabad, India. Students can contact him for guidance on projects, dessertations and theses. He can be contacted at : appalayya22@yahoo.com or ameesala@yahoo.com or on his mobile:98485-14-011

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