Table of Contents
Ba llb 3rd semester notes on Importance of effective communication in modern business
In this post you will learn :
What is the importance of effective communication in modern business?
What is the nature and scope of Business Communication?
What are the basic elements of communication?
What are the functions of communication?
What are the elements of the process of communication?
Q 3. What is the importance of effective communication in modern business?
Ans. We can explain the importance of effective communication as follows :
1. Size of Business: The size of business concerns is increasing due to many reasons. The business enterprise has to open branch offices at different places. In order to have proper coordination between branch and head office, the concerned officer has to keep liaison through different types of communication methods.
2. Specialization: This is the age of specialization. Everybody wants to become an expert in his sphere. Specialization always invites departmentalization, each department should be in touch with the happenings in other departments. For instance, the Production department has to collect information from the sales department and stores department. Unless there is close interaction between the department. Things will not move in the proper direction.
3. Tremendous Competition: In the present situation, competition in business has reached to cut-throat level. Skillful salesmanship can help to increase the sales of business organizations. Effective communication is-must for an efficient salesman. Attractive advertisements are used to improve the sales line of the organization.
4. Harmony: Every manager in modern business tries to maintain harmonious relations with his staff. It is very essential to minimize the chances of strikes, lockouts, etc., which may affect the interest of both.
5. Motivation: The continuous dialogue would definitely improve labor-management relations. Training, meeting, and discussion always boost the morale of the workers. Due to effective dialogue, the manager comes to know the hidden ability of his subordinates, which can be used fully for the development of the organization.
6. Image Building: Each business organization has its own personality. The image of the organization, to a greater extent, is dependent on the desire of the organization regarding the public relations aspect.
Q. 4. What is the nature and scope of Business Communication?
Ans. Business Communication is related to the study of communications between individuals and groups engaged in the process of administration and management of an organization. Therefore it is always goal-oriented. According to George Vardaman, effective communication is purpose interchange
resulting in workable understanding and agreement between the sender and receiver of a message. Communication is the interchange of thoughts, opinions or information, by speech, writing of signs. The successful business Communicator should know that Communication is a process of achieving understanding between people.
Business Communication involves the flow of information. One-way Communication informs the receivers whereas two-way communication is an exchange of information and ideas. Today there is no such thing as one-way communication, in fact, it is always a two-way process involving transmission and reaction. Feedback is a core part of every business communication because it is necessarily an action-oriented affair. A two-way communication establishes and builds lasting relationships between people. Personal dialogue through words, telephone, fax, e-mail, television, books, advertising, etc. are all examples and means of communication in business. E.Commerce has been emerging as a powerful method of modern business.
Q. 5. What are the basic elements of communication?
Ans. The basic elements of communication are:
(i) Communicator- the sender, speaker, issuer, or writer who intends to convey or transmit a message.
(ii) Communicatee- the receiver, listener, reader, etc. for whom the communication or information is meant.
(iii) Message- the subject matter of communication. It is the Content of a letter, information itself, order, instruction, idea or suggestion, etc.
(iv) Media or channel- the method through which message or information is passed. It serves as a link between communicator and communicatee.
(v) Response- the effect, reply, or reaction of the message or information on the communicatee. The aim of every communication is to seek a positive response. It is only possible if the message is meaningful and the communicatee understands it.
Q. 6. What are the functions of communication?
Ans. Lee Thayer, the well-known management thinker has divided the functions of communication into the following four categories:
1. The information function: It serves to provide knowledge to the individuals who need guidance in their actions. It also fulfills the workers’ desires for awareness of things that affect them.
2. The command and instructive function: It makes the employee aware of his obligations to the formal organization and provides him with additional guidance on how to perform his duties adequately.
3. The influence and persuasive function: It motivates, directs, and guides the employees to act and influence the behavior and attitudes of the people through arguments and persuasion.
4. The integrative function: Communication, if properly handled, integrates the activities and efforts of the workers. As a result, they move n a single desired direction and the whole organization becomes a well-knit system.
Q. 7. What are the elements of the process of communication?
Ans. No matter what the setting or the number of people involved, all communication consists of a few elements. Although the process of communication is more than the total of these elements, understanding them can help explain what happens when one person tries to express an idea to others. The main elements of the process of communication are as follows:
(1) Sender: The communication process begins with a sender the person who transmits a message-a sales manager making a presenting to a client, a computer programmer explaining a new program to a co-worker, or an after-dinner speaker introducing a guest.
(2) Message: A message is any signal that triggers the response of a receiver some messages are deliberate, while others (such as sighs and yawns) are unintentional. The message is not synonymous with meanings. For example, you might remind a co-worker about a deadline with the intention of being helpful, but your colleague could interpret the message as an indication that you were annoyed or mistrustful.
(3) Encoding: The sender must choose certain words of non-verbal methods to stand an intentional message. This activity is called encoding. The words and channels that a communicator choose to deliver a message can make a tremendous difference in how that message is received. Consider the simple act of a manager’s offering feedback to an employee. Whether the words are respectful or abrupt and whether the message is delivered in person or in a memo can make a big difference in how the feedback is received.
(4) Channel: The channel (sometimes called the medium) is the method used to deliver a message. As a business Communication, you can often choose whether to put your message in writing as a letter or memo. You can deliver it by hand or send it via regular mail or use an overnight delivery service. You can send it electronically via fax or electronic mail. Or you can communicate it orally, either over the phone or in person.
(5) Receiver: The receiver is any person who notices and attaches some meaning to a message. In the best of circumstances, a message reaches its intended receiver with no problem. łn the confusing and imperfect world of business, however, several problems can occur. The message may never get to the receiver. It might be delivered but he buried under a mountain of papers. on the recipient’s desk. Information messages intended for one receiver might be intercepted by another one. A bystander might overhear your critical remarks about a co-worker, or a competitor might see a copy of your correspondence to a customer.
(6) Decoding: Even if the message does get its intended receiver intact, there is no guarantee that it will be understood as the sender intended to be. The receiver must still decode it, attaching meaning to the words or symbols. As we have already seen, decoding is not always accurate. Your friendly joke might be taken as a deliberate offense, or a suggestion might be misinterpreted as an order. The request for “next year’s figures” night means the next fiscal year, not the calendar year. It is a mistake to assume that your messages will always be decoded accurately.
(7) Feedback: Receivers don’t just absorb messages like sponges; they respond to them. Consider audience questions during a talk or the way a customer glances at the clock during a sales presentation. Imagine the role of voice an employer might use while saying “I’ll have to think about your proposal.” Behaviors like these show that most communication is a two-way affair. The discernible response of a receiver to the sender’s message is called feedback. Some feedback is nonverbal smiles, sighs, and so on. Sometimes it is oral, as when you react to a colleague’s ideas with questions or comments. Feedback can also be written, as when you respond to a co-worker’s memo. In many cases, no message can be a kind of feedback. Failure to answer a letter or to return a phone call can suggest how the non-communicative person feels about the sender. When we add the element of feedback to our communication model we begin to recognize that in face-to-face settings people are simultaneously senders and receivers of information. This explains why these two roles are superimposed in the communication model pictured in Figure.
(8) Noise: It might be that, with enough feedback, the mental images of sender and receiver will match, the message received will be identical to the message sent. Your own experience probably shows that this doesn’t always happen. One of the greatest sources of communication failure is Noise-the term communication scholars use for factors that interfere with the exchange of messages. Physical noise-externał sounds that distract communicator-falls into this category, but there are overcrowded rooms or a smelly cigar that can disrupt concentration. The second kind of interference is physiological noise. Hearing disorders fall into this category, as do illnesses and disabilities that make it difficult to send Or receive messages. Recall how hard it is to pay attention when you are recovering from a night on the town or have the flu. The third type of interference is psychological noise, consisting of force within sender or receiver that interferes with, understanding. Egotism, defensiveness, hostility, preoccupation, fear all these and more constitute psychological noise.
