Business Need Business Communication Skills Essay

BUSINESS NEED BUSINESS COMMUNICATION SKILLS * BASICS OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATION – Communication skills have emerged as the most powerful set of skills to possess for accelerating ones career trajectory and speed of accomplishment in every walk of life. To prepare yourselves for a rewarding career in the broad field of management, it is even more essential to acquire, practice and exhibit high levels of communication skills in normal and crisis situations. Effective communication skills provide the ladder to the managers and leaders for rapid progression in their careers. Business communication is the sending and receiving of verbal and non verbal messages within the organizational context (Roebuck, 2001; Over, 2001; Murphy, Hildebrandt, & Thomas, 1997). Hanna and Wilson (1998) expanded on this definition, indicating business communication is a process of generating, transmitting, receiving, and interpreting messages in interpersonal, group, public, and mass communication contexts through written and verbal formats. Hynes (2005) stated effective business communicat ion is the key to planning, leading, organizing, and controlling the resources of the organizations to achieve objectives, and may be formal or informal in nature. Argenti (2007) discussed business communication functional aspects and found that over half of the heads of corporate communication departments oversee business communications functions that include media relations, online communications, marketing, special events, product/brand communications, crisis management, employee/internal communications, community relations, and product/brand advertising. The expanse and importance of business communication underscores the need for business education and business to collaborate in preparing business majors for the workplace. It is widely accepted that business management and business educators perceive communication skills as highly valuable to employees and organizations alike. In business organizations, numerous sources have reported that communication skills are critical to career success and a significant contributor to organizational success (Du-Babcock, 2006; Roebuck, 2001; Certo, 2000; Dilenschneider, 1992; Rushkoff, 1999). In academia, research  has shown faculty and administrators perceive that communication skills are very important to students’ eventual career success (National Association of Colleges and Employers, 2001; Gray, 2010). Despite the agreement in business regarding the importance of communication skills, evidence exists that long-term employees and those just entering the work force from college still lack these skills. Pearce, Johnson, and Barker (1995) reported fair to poor (the lowest two categories on a 5- point scale) communication and listening skills of managers and employees. Fordham and Gabbin (1996) interviewed 84 business executives and concluded that business students with apprehension about communicating are less likely to practice the communication and, therefore, are less likely to develop communication skills. * Objectives * Scope of Communication * Types of Communication * Significance of Communication Skills * Communication Process * Process at Communicators‟ End * Process at Communicates‟ End * Communication Model * OBJECTIVE – After perusing this unit, students should be able to: 1. Appreciate the vast scope of communication in modern world 2. Distinguish between the process of communication and exercise of power 3. Understand that one-way flow of information is a part of the overall process of communication 4. Identify different types of communications 5. Grasp the importance of communication skills in the life of an individual and enterprise 6. Recount the dividends that accrue from acquiring effective communication skills 7. Understand the sources that lead to multiple interpretations of oral and written communication * SCOPE OF COMMUNICATION – Communication as a subject of study has a very vast canvas. To different people, communication implies various areas of study, research and application: (1) It is a means of transportation from one place to another viz., moving men, machines, materials etc by surface transport like railways, roadways or by air or by sea. It is not uncommon to describe a region or a country backward in terms of means of communication because it is not serviced or well connected by railways, roadways, airways or seaways. (2) It also relates to means of sending / receiving messages, packets or parcels through post, telephone, telegram, radio, wireless or Internet. These means of communications have undergone rapid changes during the last few decades. Postal services have been revolutionized by courier services – same-day delivery, next-day delivery etc. Telephone services have become commonplace – one can talk to a person anywhere even one orbiting in a satellite without shouting. The mobile telephony and use of Internet has changed the way people talk and communicate with one another. They are changing the way business is done. (3) Communication is a major focus of attention for artists – singers, dancers, actors, painters, sculptors etc are all trying to communicate with their audiences. They Endeavour to win their attention and appreciation so as to secure attractive returns for their efforts. In managerial or business context, it is the science and art of communicating. Etymologically, communication as a word is derived from the word „common‟ in English or „Communis‟ from Latin. It means „shared by‟ or „concerning all‟. Thus communication is a process of „influencing others‟ to achieve common, shared objectives. These goals could be that of individuals, families, teams, departments functions and companies. Communication has emerged as a very powerful personal skill that individuals must acquire to be able to perform their duties and become efficient managers and effective 1. Communication and Power – Communication is also the most powerful input resource in an enterprise. The various resources, just to recount, are as below: 1 Men 2 Money 3 Materials 4 Machines 5 Methods 6 Management 7 Measurement 8 Message covering both information and communication flows 9 Motive Power 10 Motivational Leadership Messaging has emerged as the most important resource for, without it, nothing can be transacted anywhere. It is the lifeline of any society. It is the glue that holds companies, communities and countries together. There is another process that is also used to influence others – it is the use of authority or power. They say if person has power it shows because it quickly shows his influence or hold on others‟ opinion. However, it must be understood in its proper perspective. Power has been described as „a process of influencing others to do some thing that, left to themselves, they will not do‟. This process is, then, quite different from that of communication where we influence others as equals – members of the family, members of the inter-departmental teams or customers or fellow members of an association. The process of communication is greatly dependent on the skill of individuals who, as equal members, are in a position to influence others so as to compel, propel or impel them to work together to achieve common goals! (2) Communication as a two-way process Communication is a complete process – it starts with communicators sending messages to receivers, the „communicatees‟. An experienced sender of message, whether oral or written, would think of the audience as his customer. He would try to gauge or guess the kind of level of communication the receiver is comfortable with. Thereafter, he would craft his message in a manner and in the language, words, phrases and idioms that the receiver is familiar with. Each receiver of message is really a customer whose needs and wants should be as well known to the sender as it happens in a market place. Obviously, like the sender who chooses words, phrases and idioms from his vocabulary depending on own learning, experience and exposure, receiver also has his own mental filter that is the product of his learning, experience and exposure. To absorb the message in his mind, he does the abstraction of the message in to words, phrases and idioms that he is familiar with or has command over. This leads to his formulating his response to the message received. Once again, it goes through the mind filter and ultimately comes out of the communicatee and starts its return journey to the sender of the message. It conveys back what is understood by the receiver. A sensitive speaker is able to judge the reaction of his audience from the gestures, sounds and expressions of the audience – the way they sit, the way they yawn or the way they twitter their fingers etc. It is thus a complete cycle because it is a two way process. Until the full process has been gone through the process of communication is considered to be incomplete. (3) Information as a one-way process Information flow is another related process. Information is knowledge; it comes from the processing of raw data which records the events as they take place in every miniscule of an organization or an institution. Knowledge is power. The flow of information is considered to be an extremely powerful tool at the disposal of men at all levels of a business enterprise. However, difference between communication and information flows must be understood clearly. Whereas communication is a two way process, information is a one-way process. It is, therefore, half of the process. Yet it is used  very extensively in organizations. As businesses grow in size, complexity and dynamics, it is very difficult to ensure two way process all the time. Much of the time, information flows one way – downwards, upwards or horizontal along formal lines of command. These lines of command become the channels of information flows and serve as the cornerstones of communication, coordination and control. 2. TYPES OF COMMUNICATION Communication can be classified as below: Communication Verbal Non-verbal Communication ommunication Oral Written Body Language Communication Communication 3. SIGNIFICANCE OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATION SKILLS – Conversing and corresponding with people around is such a common activity that most of individuals are so pre-occupied with their daily routine that they do not stop and ponder over the immense advantages that business enterprises can derive from mastering the art and science of communication. Following payoffs are only suggestive: 1. Internal communication – Before the end of nineteenth century, businesses were small; they started growing in size from the beginning of twentieth century. Contemporary business enterprises are very large and have not only become multinational but also transnational in character. Besides, they have grown in complexity in terms of a wide array of products and services they deal in and the number of countries and  continents they are operating in. Also, arising from liberalizing of many national economies, global competition has intensified and the rate of change in market place has accelerated. Market forces have also become very dynamic, almost verging on chaos. 2. External communication – As a business enterprise in the modern society, it has to interact, pro-act or react to happenings in other institutions viz. 1 Government bodies, statutory / regulatory agencies, municipal authorities etc 2 Distributors, dealers and retailers 3 Customers, community and society at large 4. Communication skills as vital job requirement- Human beings are communicating all the time. Ability to express powerfully and influence the attitude and behavior of people for giving better performance on their jobs, has emerged as a job skill of critical importance for managers / leaders at all levels of management. Thus all employees are expected to: 1 Write good correspondence 2 Be good in oral conversation 3 Develop and cultivate powerful body language 4 Be able to sell ideas and products effectively 5 Be very good in weaning away customers from competitor and retaining them It is now increasingly understood that even specialists like accountants, engineers, technicians etc should have good communication skills. In the present day knowledge society, competitive advantage of acquiring excellent communication skills cannot and perhaps need not be emphasized! * Communication skills essential for promotion – Communication skills have emerged as the most critical prerequisite for  promotion to senior executive positions in the industry. Consequently, managers at lower rungs of organizations should also have good command over the spoken and written language of the business. As a general rule, managers should have the ability to make their communications heard, read or understood. * COMMUNICATION PROCESS – * In order to develop a deep understanding of the subject of communication, it is important that everyone understands the complete process of communication. Broadly, it has two parts: * Process at communicator end (Senders‟ Part) * Process at communications end (Receivers‟ Part) A GOOD DEBTOR IS A GOOD COMMUNICATOR Definition: Debtor is an expression used in the accounting world to specify a party who owes money to a company or individual. A debtor can be an entity, a company or a person of a legal nature that owes money to someone else – your business for example. If you have one or more debtors, that makes you a creditor. To put it simply, the debtor-creditor relationship is complimentary to the customer-supplier relationship. Definition: a person who communicates, especially one skilled at Conveying information, ideas, or policy to the public. a person in the business of communications, as television ormagazine publishing. Definition In this division, â€Å"collector† means a person, whether in British Columbia or not, who is collecting or attempting to collect a debt. Harassment (1) A collector must not communicate or attempt to communicate with a debtor, a member of the debtor’s family or household, a relative, neighbour, friend or acquaintance of the debtor, or the debtor’s employer in a manner or with a frequency as to constitute harassment. (2) Without limiting subsection (1), one or more of the following constitutes harassment: (a) using threatening, profane, intimidating or coercive language; (b) exerting undue, excessive or unreasonable pressure; (c) publishing or threatening to publish a debtor’s failure to pay. Disclosure to debtor (1) A collector must not attempt to collect payment of a debt from a debtor until the collector has notified the debtor in writing or the collector has made a reasonable attempt to notify the debtor in writing of (a) the name of the creditor with whom the debt was incurred, (b) the amount of the debt, and (c) the identity and authority of the collector to collect the debt from the debtor. (2) A collector must not initiate verbal communication with a debtor with respect to the collection of a debt until 5 days after the collector has sent to the debtor the written notice referred to in subsection (1). (3) If a debtor informs the collector that the debtor has not received the notice required under subsection (1), the collector must send that information to the debtor at the address provided by the debtor. Communication with debtor (1) A collector must not communicate or attempt to communicate with a debtor at the debtor’s place of employment unless (a) the collector does not have the home address or telephone number for the debtor and the collector contacts the debtor solely for the purpose of requesting the debtor’s home address or telephone number or both, (b) the collector has attempted to contact the debtor at the debtor’s home address or telephone number, but the collector has not contacted the debtor in any of those attempts, or (c) the collector has been authorized by the debtor to communicate with the debtor at the debtor’s place of employment. (2) The collector must not make more than one verbal attempt, under subsection (1) (b), to contact the debtor at  the debtor’s place of employment. (3) At the time a collector communicates with a debtor, the collector must first indicate to the debtor (a) the name of the creditor with whom the debt was incurred, (b) the amoun t of the debt, and (c) the identity and authority of the collector to collect the debt from the debtor. (4) A collector must not continue to communicate with a debtor (a) except in writing, if the debtor (i) has notified the collector to communicate in writing only, and (ii) has provided a mailing address at which the debtor may be contacted, (b) except through the debtor’s lawyer, if the debtor (i) has notified the collector to communicate only with the debtor’s lawyer, and (ii) has provided an address for the lawyer, or  (c) if the debtor has notified the collector and the creditor that the debt is in dispute and that the debtor would like the creditor to take the matter to court. Communication with persons other than debtor (1) Except for the purpose of obtaining the debtor’s home address or telephone number, a collector must not communicate or attempt to communicate with a member of the debtor’s family or household, or a relative, neighbour, friend or acquaintance of the debtor unless (a) the person contacted has guaranteed to pay the debt and is being contacted in respect of that guarantee, or (b) the debtor has authorized the collector to discuss the debt with the person contacted. (2) A collector must not communicate with a debtor’s employer except (a) for the purpose of confirming the debtor’s employment, business title and business address, or (b) for other purposes authorized in writing by the debtor. Time of communication (1) In this section, â€Å"statutory holiday† means a holiday, except Sunday, unless the holiday falls on a Sunday. (2) Except on the request of the person contacted, a collector must not communicate, either by telephone or in person, with the debtor, a member of the debtor’s family or household, or a relative, neighbour, friend or acquaintance of the debtor, or the debtor’s employer or guarantor (a) on a statutory holiday, (b) subject to paragraph (a), on a Sunday, except between the hours of 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. local time for the person contacted, or (c) on any other day, except between the hours of 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. local time for the person contacted. Cost of communication A collector must not communicate or attempt to communicate with a person for the purpose of collecting, negotiating or demanding payment of a debt by a means that results in the costs of the communication being payable by the person. Collection from person not liable for debt or in excess of amount of debt A collector must not (a) collect or attempt to collect money that exceeds the amount of the debt owing, (b) collect or attempt to collect money from a person who is not liable for the debt, or (c) if a person has informed the collector that the person is not the debtor, continue to communicate with that person unless the collector first makes all reasonable efforts to ensure that the person is in fact the debtor. Legal proceedings (1) If a debt has been assigned to a collector, the collector must not (a) bring or continue a legal proceeding for the recovery of a debt as plaintiff unless the debtor has been given notice of the assignment, or (b) bring a legal proceeding unless the collector first gives notice to the debtor that the collector intends to bring the proceeding. (2) A collector must not recommend to a creditor that a legal proceeding be brought, unless the collector first gives notice to the debtor that the collector intends to recommend that a proceeding be brought. (3) Nothing in subsection (2) affects solicitor-client privilege. (4) A collector must not directly or indirectly threaten, or state an intention, to bring or continue a legal proceeding for the recovery of a debt (a) for which the collector does not have the written authority of the creditor, or (b) for which there is no lawful authority. Removal, seizure, repossession and distress A collector must not do any of the following, whether on the collector’s  own behalf or on behalf of another person, directly or indirectly: (a) unless there is a court order to the contrary, remove from inside the debtor’s private dwelling any personal property claimed under seizure, distress or repossession, in the absence of the debtor, the debtor’s spouse, the debtor’s agent or an adult resident in the debtor’s dwelling; (b) seize, repossess or levy distress against personal property that is not specifically charged or mortgaged, or to which legal claim may not be made under a statute, court judgment or court order; (c) remove, seize, repossess or levy distress against personal property during a day or during the hours of a day when removal, seizure, repossession or distress is prohibited by the regulations. False or misleading information and misrepresentations In collecting or attempting to collect payment of a debt, a collector must not (a) supply any false or misleading information,  (b) misrepresent the purpose of a communication,  (c) misrepresent the identity of the collector or, if different, the creditor, or (d) use, without lawful authority, a summons, notice, demand, or other document that suggests or implies a connection with any court inside or outside of Canada. Additional prohibited practices A collector must not commit or engage in a prescribed act or practice.