Communication

Meaning

Communications is fundamental to the existence and survival of humans as well as to an organization. It is a process of creating and sharing ideas, information, views, facts, feelings, etc. among the people to reach a common understanding. Commuanication is the key to the Directing function of management.

Nature of the communication

1. Communication involves atleast 2 persons
2. Communication is a 2 way traffic.
3. The basic purpose of communication is to create an understanding in the mind of the receiver of information.
4. Communication may take several forms e.g. Order, instructions, report suggestions etc.
5. Communication is a peruasive function of management.

Process of commuanication

• Sender – The sender or the communicator generates the message and conveys it to the receiver. He is the source and the one who starts the communication
• Message - tt is the idea, information, view, fact, feeling, etc. that is generated by the sender and is then intended to be communicated further.
• Encoding – The message generated by the sender is encoded symbolically such as in the form of words, pictures, gestures, etc. Before it is being conveyed.
• Media - It is the manner in which the encoded message is transmitted. The message may be transmitted orally or in writing. The medium of communication includes telephone, internet, post, fax, e-mail, etc. The choice of medium is decided by the sender.

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Process of commuanication

• Decoding – It is the process of converting the symbols encoded by the sender. After decoding the message is received by the receiver.
• Receiver – He is the person who is last in the chain and for whom the message was sent by the sender. Once the receiver receives the message and understands it in proper perspective and acts according to the message, only then the purpose of communication is successful.
• Feedback – Once the receiver confirms to the sender that he has received the message and understood it, the process of communication is complete.
• Noise - It refers to any obstruction that is caused by the sender, message or receiver during the process of communication. For example, bad telephone connection, faulty encoding, faulty decoding, inattentive receiver, poor understanding of message due to prejudice or inappropriate gestures, etc.

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Types of commuanication

Channel

• Formal
• Informal

Direction

• Downward
• Upward
• Horizontal

Method

• Oral
• Written
• Gestural

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Formal commuanication

Formal communication refers to the flow of official information through proper, predefined channels and routes. The flow of information is controlled and needs deliberate effort to be properly communicated. Formal communication follows a hierarchical structure and chain of command.

1. It is based on formal organisation relationships.
2. The channels of communication are pre-planned.
3. It is rigid as deviations are not allowed.
4. In case of formal commuanication, status or position of the parties is more important.
5. Maintaining records of information till required.

Informal commuanication

Informal communication is casual communication between coworkers in the workplace. It is unofficial in nature and is based in the informal, social relationships that are formed in a workplace outside of the normal hierarchy of business structure.

1. It is not based on formal organisation relationships. It is free from formalities.
2. The channels of communication are not pre-planned.
3. It is flexible.
4. In case of informal commuanication, status or position of the parties has no relevance.
5. Maintaining records of information may or may not required.

Download commuanication

Downward communication is the flow of information and messages from a higher level inside an organization to a lower one. Effective downward communication is crucial to an organization's success. The purpose of downward commuanication is to communicate policies, procedures, programmes and objectives, and to issue orders and instructions to subordinates.

Downward commuanication is needed

1. To ge the things done.
2. To prepare for changes.
3. To discourage misinformation and suspicion ; and
4. To let the people feel pride of being well informed.

Upward commuanication

Upward Communication is the process of information flowing from the lower levels of a hierarchy to the upper levels. This type of communication is becoming more popular in organizations as traditional forms of communication are becoming less popular.

It is needed :

1. To create receptiveness of communication.
2. To create a feeling of belongingness through participation.
3. To evaluate commuanication ; and
4. To demonstrate a concern for the ideas of each Employee.

Horizontal commuanication

Horizontal communication (sometimes called ‘lateral communication’) is the communication that occurs between people at the same level in an organisation. 

As an example, let’s take an account manager and a sales executive. The sales executive wants to hand off over a new customer to their account manager.

1.  It decreases misunderstanding between departments working on the same project, thereby increasing efficiency and productivity.
2. It may result in better implementation of top-level decisions because employees on lower levels are permitted to coordinate directly with each other in the implementation of the decision made at the top.
3. Horizontall communication facilitates teamwork if a project requires tasks from different people or departments. It may also increase job satisfaction and motivation by creating more employee empowerment in communication.

Oral communication

Oral communication is communicating with spoken words. It’s a verbal form of communication where you communicate your thoughts, present ideas and share information. Examples of oral communication are conversations with friends, family or colleagues, presentations and speeches.

Importance of oral communication

1. It saves time by letting you convey your message directly to the other person and getting their response immediately. 
2. It’s the most secure form of communication for critical issues and important information
3. It helps to resolve conflicts with face-to-face communication
4. It’s a more transparent form of communication as it lets you  gauge how others react to your words

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Written communication

A ‘Written Communication’ means the sending of messages, orders or instructions in writing through letters, circulars, manuals, reports, telegrams, office memos, bulletins, etc.

It is a formal method of communication and is less flexible. A written document preserved properly becomes a permanent record for future reference.

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Importance of written communication

1.It is suitable for long distance communication and repetitive standing orders.

2. It creates permanent record of evidence. It can be used for future reference.

3. It gives the receiver sufficient time to think, act and react.

4. It can be used as legal document.

5. It can be sent to many persons at a time.

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Gestural communication

A gesture is a form of non-verbal communication or non-vocal communication in which visible bodily actions communicate particular messages, either in place of, or in conjunction with, speech. Gestures include movement of the hands, face, or other parts of the body.

Gestural communication is very much helpful to motive the subordinates, as for instance, handshake with the subordinates or a pat on the back of the subordinates.

Barriers to the communication

• Noise - Noise is the first and foremost barrier to communication. It means “interference that occurs in a signal and prevents you from hearing sounds properly.” In a factory, for example, the continuous noise made by machines makes oral communication difficult.
• Organizational structure - Complex and rigid organizational structure can be the main culprit for inefficient communication, making it one of the most common communication barriers. 
• Semantics – Semantics is the study of words and their meanings. Problems arising on account of transmission of meanings are semantic problems. Different words mean different things to different people. 
• Filtering - Filtering means manipulating information in a way that only favourable information is sent to the receiver. In business organisations, when messages are transmitted vertically along the chain of command, some part of information normally gets lost on the way.
• Information gaps - Complete information is not transmitted from one level to the other. Part of the information is retained at some levels and the gap is filled by some unintended information.

Barriers to the communication

• Technical jargon - Nowadays, people tend to use a lot of abbreviations and slang during a meeting which doesn’t leave a good impression on the listener. Thus, avoid using these words and use simple language to communicate with the group.
• Lack of listening skills - When a person is unable to listen to the speaker effectively because of reason like lack of interest or attention, then the purpose of the discussion gets ruined.
• Physical disability: Hearing impairment, speech problem, impaired eyesight, or any physical illness can sometimes act as a barrier. It can interfere with effective communication in the workplace.
• Cultural differences. The norms of social interaction vary greatly in different cultures, as do the way in which emotions are expressed.
• Interpersonal barriers - Low self-esteem and prejudices can prevent you from forming relationships and connections with others due to your false perceptions

Overcoming from barriers

• Feed back - Among the several methods of improving communication, feedback is probably the most important one. The manager must be ever alert to see whether or not he is understood.
• Get informed - If a manager does not know and understand, he cannot communi­cate. Therefore a manager must learn and clearly understand the information he is expected to communicate.
• Clarity -Messages should be couched in straight forward and simple language so that the message is understood by the recipient.
• Consistency - Messages should be consistent with one another. Orders should be consistent with known objectives of the organisation and with its other activities.
• Adequacy -The goal in communication is to ensure an optimum flow of information. It should be enough to cover the fields, but should not smother where directions are complicated, they may be repeated, probably in different ways.

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Overcoming from barriers

• Distribution – One of the most frequent causes of shortcomings in performance is the failure of information to reach the right position or person. Who is to be told is often as important as what is to be told.
• Balance between Adaptability and Uniformity – The smooth working of an organisation depends in part upon uniformity. Yet adaptability should be resorted to when different situations and individuals are involved.
• Interest and Acceptance – The purpose of communication is to secure a positive response. The person communicated to should be interested in and accept the message. Downward communication is more effective if morale is good.
• Maintaining similarity – People always think that others are like as them. The sound principle is to assume the presence of differences until similarity is proved.
• Be positive - When faced with incidents of an intercultural nature steer clear of blame and conflict. Remain positive and analyze the problem sports and work as a team to frame strategies and solutions to ensure flawlessness.