Unit 3: Business Communication
Effective communication is necessary to relate the firm's goals and strategy to employees to ensure it can execute the strategy. The better the communication, the better people perform and produce. Communication affects relationships and teamwork. It also helps to facilitate innovation. When managers communicate effectively, they can provide constructive feedback and build good relationships. This unit explores how effective business communication benefits a company's growth.
Completing this unit should take you approximately 10 hours.
Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- identify the appropriate method of communication like email and memo, based on factors such as the communicator's role, intended audience, organizational culture, and organizational goal;
- explain practices in daily interactions, selection of communication channels, approaches to the direction of the communication, and levels of authority that build rapport with personnel to foster leadership in organizations;
- use communication strategies and frameworks to effect business strategy;
- classify audience traits such as beliefs, ethnicity, language, values, psychological attributes, and demographics to ensure effective message delivery; and
- determine how the audience and the communicator are affected by perception, interpretation, and the organization of communications.
3.1: Sending the Right Message
The first job of any communicator is to determine who the audience is and what their needs are. Sometimes we do this unconsciously, such as by correcting our children. However, this step should be conscious in the workplace, especially among managers and leaders. The process includes identifying the audience and adapting the message to their interests, needs, knowledge, level of understanding, attitudes, and beliefs. Only after the audience is analyzed should the message be developed. This section will explore the process of audience analysis.
- Read this resource to learn about the types of communication that communicators can use in the initial transmission phase and that receivers can use in the feedback phase.
The video outlines the five levels of communication: intrapersonal, interpersonal, group communications, public speaking, and mass communication.
3.2: Communicating with Followers
The approach we take with followers is different from the one we take with colleagues or executive managers. We must remember that the role of manager and leader may change depending on the task. For example, when project teams are formed, while there may be a "manager" on the team (meaning one who has the formal designation of manager with authority at the firm), that may not be the manager or leader on that particular project team. We need to be able to adjust our communication style based on the circumstances. However, once we have determined that we are communicating with followers, the material in this section will help you establish effective communication skills.- In the informational role, the manager acts as a spokesperson. The manager has to act in an uncertain environment in the decisional role, which requires a longer-term view. This resource explores message encoding and decoding as well as feedback and noise.
3.3: Communicating with Leaders
Learning how to communicate with senior executives is as important as communicating with followers. Leaders who are in positions above you will be most focused on the company's strategic goals and how you are helping them achieve them. However, it is important to have a good relationship with your boss as you hope your subordinates have with you. This section addresses the context in which those relationships occur and how you can foster the relationship with your boss.- This article points out the importance of how generational shifts affect internal communications. Two-way symmetrical communication will positively influence employee engagement. While some communications involve the human resources department, this study examines the use of the public relations department for internal communications. Consider what the study says about establishing commitment from employees and how expectations about communication are changing.
Watch this video about managing up and establishing relationships with senior management. Bringing solutions to the table, being proactive about solving the boss's problems, and how to appropriately challenge a boss' decision are all useful tips for working with senior managers.
- This research used surveys with leaders and followers to examine how mindfulness (which they define) impacts interactions between leaders and followers.
3.4: Encoding and Messaging
This section will address the purpose and quality of effective written and oral communication. Part of the sender's job in communicating is to encode the message. This is not using code but formatting the message to ensure it effectively comes through. So how do we do that? Even if we think we are communicating – are there ways we can improve? What impression are we leaving with people when they read or listen to our communications, and is that the impression we want them to have? Good communication can increase productivity and reduce miscommunications leading to confusion and conflict. Common writing errors (which may be fine when we text friends, such as "their" versus "there") are unprofessional in the workplace. When organizations decide who to promote, they will consider good communicators first. Think about your communication skills and encoding messages when communicating in the workplace.- This resource provides strategies to ensure that your message will be delivered clearly and in the most effective format.
- Read this article to learn about the benefits of applying the 7 Cs to your writing.
3.5: Written Communication
Written communications have certain structures depending on their purpose. This section will familiarize you with the types of written communications and some common structures to achieve your purpose. Furthermore, the section will focus on writing for business rather than other writings, such as casual communications with friends or writing for literary purposes. Writing to specific audiences in business will also be explored in more depth in future sections.- This text will refresh your memory or introduce you to the common writing rules for Standard American English. It addresses the 22 most common errors found in writing. Applying and using the fundamentals of good writing will ensure that your writing is clear, concise, and achieves your intended purposes.
There are two main styles of writing in English: formal and informal. Read this article to understand how to distinguish these two specific styles to classify the writing accurately.
This resource provides an overview of the differences and similarities between verbal and written communication. The concepts of formal and informal communication are addressed. The text also addresses how technology is used appropriately or inappropriately.
3.6: Language and Presentations
We communicate at work orally every day. We speak to our colleagues, our bosses, and our subordinates. Of course, we would like to think we do it well and communicate clearly. Active listening is critical to success in oral communication. We will also need to make formal presentations, communicate with clients, or make a sale. A formal presentation can be intimidating, but it does not need to be. This section will help you polish your oral presentation skills and communication skills in the workplace.- Language can be abstract, but our connotation or denotation lends meaning as it organizes and classifies our reality. This text reminds us of syntactic, semantic, and contextual rules of language. The use of jargon, clichés, slang, sexist and racist language, euphemisms, and doublespeak as barriers to communication is explored. The text also offers tips on improving verbal communication.
Read this article to explore the elements of presentations meant to describe knowledge about a particular event, process, object, or concept.
Read this article to explore the elements of presentations meant to have the audience share a belief or feeling about a particular event, process, object, or concept.
This resource offers some terrific tips on preparing to deliver a presentation.
3.7: Nonverbal Communication
As much as the messages we are trying to convey, how we convey them matters. We have all been in a situation where someone said one thing, but their demeanor told us something else. Nonverbal communication involves our expressions, the use of our entire body, and timing. This section will help you understand how nonverbal communication affects the message you are delivering.This section explains the principles of nonverbal communication, types of nonverbal communication, movement when giving a speech, and strategies you can use to improve your nonverbal communication.
This resource explains how nonverbal communication can supplement or replace verbal communication. One thing to remember is that people tend to believe nonverbal communication more than verbal communication. It also explores time, physical characteristics, body movements, touch, paralanguage, artifacts, and environment.
3.8: Digital Communication
Communicating an information signal over space requires some form of pathway or medium, such as a digital bitstream. This section describes various communication methods commonly used in business.
Suffice it to say that firms use their websites and social media to engage with their customers and stakeholders. This section will focus on using digital communications in the workplace as part of managing people and being managed.Understanding communication models helps us see specific concepts and steps within the communication process, define communication, and apply communication concepts. As we become aware of how communication functions, we can think more deliberately through our communication endeavors and prepare for effective communication. This text discusses the transmission, interaction, and transaction models of communication.
- Digitalization has fostered virtual organizations, and nothing has made that clearer than the shutdowns due to the Covid-19 pandemic. There have been structural changes in how leaders interact with followers and vice versa. This has changed the power dynamics between followers and leaders. This resource will introduce you to how the leader and follower roles can change situationally and examines approaches to leader-followership in the digital age.
This article discusses the flow of information within an organization, including upward, downward, and horizontal communication.
3.9: Business Communication
Not all business communications are between you and your subordinates, colleagues, or superiors. Some communications are with other stakeholders or customers. This section provides an overview of all types of business communications, including those related to project management.
There is a relationship between good communication and getting things done. Furthermore, the right words impact the reputation of the corporation. This text emphasizes the importance of using language well to get things done.
3.10: Receiver Analysis and Decoding
When preparing business communication, you should consider the audience's experiences and elements that could influence how they receive and interpret the message. For example: Is your communication a follow-up of a previous message? Is your audience familiar with your topic and interested in your message? This section explores factors to consider to ensure that your communication is properly received.
Although primarily focusing on giving a speech, the process of audience analysis that it follows is helpful for any communicator. This text addresses language, values, ethnocentricity, psychological attributes, beliefs, and demographics. It also addresses some of the inferences we make about our audience. Pay particular attention to table 5.1, which is about tailoring a speech to demographic characteristics.
This resource provides a scenario to apply the information as you read. It points out the importance of self-awareness and how it affects you as a communicator and addresses tailoring your message to the specific audience, and addresses perceptual strategies.
- This resource will help you group your audience based on their common characteristics. It also introduces a group's roles, status, power, and hierarchy. The purposes of different groups in the workplace are explored.
This text will show you how to use psychographics to segment an audience. This includes looking at people's motives, attitudes, personalities, and lifestyles.
3.11: Perception
Since we have identified the audience and its needs, we need to comprehend how our audience will receive the message we are sending. The intended audience receives our message through their lens of perception. Thus, it is important to understand the factors that affect perception. Perception can distort the message we are trying to send.
- This text provides examples of problems with messages and how we can provide cues to the recipients. It addresses the conventions we use when we communicate.
The perception of the recipient becomes the filter through which they receive and interpret information. This text examines how people select information, organize it internally, and interpret it.
Watch this video to see the psychology behind the process of perception. It introduces and explains the process of perception in terms of selection, organization, interpretation, and negotiation.
3.12: Organizing Presentations for the Receiver
Audiences are influenced by how information is organized. We all have ways to receive information and weigh what information to retain. In writing and speaking, organization refers to how we arrange the information we send. How we organize information depends on the type of message we are sending. For example, we will organize a technical report differently than a sales presentation which will be different from a legal memorandum.
Despite the differences in the types of information presented, there are some rules of organization that will help the flow in an orderly manner. Keeping the structure organized will reduce confusion and keep the audience's interest. The principle of organization also applies to cohesion within the document. This section will look at the general principles of organization, including cause/effect, chronological, comparison, emphatic order, and general to specific order. We will also consider using headings/subheadings, effective transitions, and building the reader's expectations (or, conversely, asking for action).- This resource shows how to organize information based on cognitive strategies. The text also addresses the rhetorical situation for the messaging based on the purpose, context, and audience. You will review formulating a central idea and its main points so that the communication achieves its purpose.
- In the prior sections, you have learned about selection and organization as components of perception. This section will address how people interpret the information that they are receiving. Interpretation is the final component of perception. It is important to remember that people have different communication preferences. Some people want a face-to-face meeting or phone call; others will be fine with a letter or memorandum; others will still be fine with email or voicemail. As we work to communicate with people, pay attention to their preferences in communication as it will impact their interpretation of the message. This resource introduces the concept of the schemata that we use to interpret information. As you read the section on impressions, you will be able to apply that knowledge to your perceptions and use the information in your communication. You will also explore the effects of culture and personality, including the Big Five Personality traits.
This text explains the importance of the connection between you and your audience. It points out the importance of self-awareness and how it impacts you as a communicator.
Study Guide: Unit 3
We recommend reviewing this Study Guide before taking the Unit 3 Assessment.
Unit 3 Assessment
- Receive a grade
Take this assessment to see how well you understood this unit.
- This assessment does not count towards your grade. It is just for practice!
- You will see the correct answers when you submit your answers. Use this to help you study for the final exam!
- You can take this assessment as many times as you want, whenever you want.