Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
Communication is a requirement for survival and growth not only of people but also
organizations. These organizations consider communication as an important factor in
motivating their employees to improve productivity and to meet competition.
Social context: It includes the relationships that exist between and among the
participants. Whether the communication takes place among family members,
friends, acquaintances, work associates or strangers; these will influence what and
how the messages are formed, shared, and understood.
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Psychological context: It includes the moods and feelings each person brings to the
communication.
Cultural context: it includes the beliefs, values, and norms that are shared by a large
group of people.
Communication Settings:
Interpersonal communication
Problem-solving groups
Public speaking
Nonverbal communication
Pictures
Company logos
Gestures and body language
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Words seldom tell the whole story. Indeed, some messages are sent with no words
at all. The eyes, face, and body can convey a world of meaning without a single
syllable being spoken.
Eye contact. Considered as the “window of the soul.” The eyes are often the
best predictor of a speaker’s true feelings. Sustained eye contact suggests
trust and admiration; brief eye contact signals fear or stress. Through good eye
contact, it enables the message sender to see whether a receiver is paying
attention, showing respect, responding favorably, or feeling distress.
Facial expression. The expression on a person’s face can be almost as
revealing of emotion as the eyes. Experts estimates that the human face can
display over 250,000 expressions.
Posture and Gestures. A person’s posture can convey anything from high
status and self-confidence to shyness and submissiveness. However, the
meanings of some of these gestures differ in other cultures.
Table 1
Commonly Accepted Interpretations
of Various Forms of Body Movements
BODY LANGUAGE INTERPRETATION
Facial Expressions
Frown displeasure, unhappiness
Smile friendliness, happiness
Raised Eyebrows disbelief, amazement
Narrowed eyes, pursed lips anger
Eye Contact
Glancing interest
Steady active listening, interest, seduction
Gesture
Pointing finger authority, displeasure, lecturing
Folded arms not open to change, preparing
to speak
Arms at side open to suggestions, relaxed
Hands uplifted outward disbelief, puzzlement, uncertainty
Body Postures
Fidgeting, doodling boredom
Hands on hips anger, defensiveness
Shrugging of shoulders indifference
Biting lips, shifting, jingling money nervousness
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Time. How we structure and use time tells observers about our personality and
attitudes.
Space. How we order the space around us tells something about ourselves and our
objectives.
Territory. We all maintain zones of privacy in which we feel comfortable. Each of us
has a certain area that we feel is our own territory, whether it is a specific spot or just
the space around us.
Barriers to Communication
1. Filtering
2. Selective perception
3. Information overload
4. Emotions
5. Language
6. Communication apprehension
7. Absence of feedback
8. Physical separation
9. Lack of credibility of the sender
Basic functions:
1. To give and receive directions
2. To give and receive information
Functions:
To provide feedbacks to higher-ups or management,
To inform the management of progress towards goals, and
To relay current problems or suggestions
Functions:
To coordinate activities between departments,
To persuade others at the same level of organization, and
To pass on information about activities or feelings
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The techniques used are memos, telephones or cellphones, picnics, and
other dinners and other social affairs
Meetings and Conferences. These are done to disseminate information
to solve certain problems, to train employees and participants, or to
brainstorm. It emphasizes the philosophy of participative management
and these are vital and regular feature of the company’s management
procedures and decision-making function.
Seminars and Workshops. These are held to upgrade the knowledge
and skills of the employees, increase production, create savings, or
make optimum use of human resources in the company.
Socials. These serve as an excellent opportunity for interdepartmental
or individual relations. They take the form of testimonials, sports fest,
company outing, welcome party, birthday celebrations, Christmas party
and the like.
Grapevine. An informal communication medium that involves the
information or social interrelationships among employees. The pattern of
communication changes depending on the situation. It is an informal source
of company information.
Ethics is the study of moral standards and how they affect conduct; while Morality
deals with the standards of conduct that are generally accepted as right or proper.
Understanding the ground rules of ethical communication is an essential skill that will
enable you to interact successfully with people who hold different ethical values or
who attempt to hide or rationalize their unethical behavior or decisions. Therefore,
learning how to engage in ethical communication behavior consistently should be an
integral and focus in your study of business communication.
Through good practices, you will be able to internalize a set of ethical values that will
guide you in becoming an ethical business communicator.
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Lawrence Kohlberg believed that individuals progress in their moral reasoning
through series of stages. These identifiable steps are generally grouped into three
levels:
1. Fear of Punishment
2. Desire for Rewards as well as Fear of Punishment
3. Desire for Approval
4. Sense of duty to obey the law
5. Regard for standards of society: utilitarianism
6. Respect for the universal principles of justice and welfare
1. Pre-conventional Level. Individuals at this level are merely concerned with the
self (egocentric) and thus judge the right and wrong of an action by its direct
consequences on the self. At stage 1, Individuals behave the way they do because
they are told to do so by authority figures, such as parents, teachers, superiors, or
employers. Their reason for behaving ethically is the fear of being punished.
At stage 2, they show a very limited interest in the needs of others, but only to the
point where the action might further their self-interest. All actions are performed to
serve the individual’s needs.
2. Conventional level. The morality of actions is judged by prevailing societal norms
and expectations. At stage 3, individuals seek to gain the approval of others, while
at stage 4, they abide by the law as they consider it their duty to do so. They try to
live up to society’s expectations of the so called “good boy” or “good girl” as their
concerns are largely whether their peers are receptive to and approve the social
roles they play by. While at stage 4, individuals consider obeying laws and social
conventions as being very important. Thus, violating a law is considered morally
wrong, and it separates the good from the bad.
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According to Kohlberg, while most individuals reach stage 4 and 5 by adulthood, it
appears that people rarely, if ever, reach stage 6, even though they are aware of the
existence of this stage.
2. Moral Rights Principle. This approach recognizes that human beings are born
with fundamental rights and privileges. Basic human rights should be
established in order to create a minimum level of morally acceptable behavior
in people. This stresses that respecting and protecting the fundamental rights
of all human beings is the essence of ethical behavior. It focuses on examining
the morality of a given course of action independent of any consequences.
People taking this approach in making decisions tend to choose the action that
is in line with moral principles and leads to a positive consequences.
3. Justice Principle. This principle focuses on how the costs and benefits of an
action are distributed and whether the distribution is fair and equitable. The
justice approach covering moral behavior believes that the rules and
regulations applied to the individuals involved should be fair and impartial.
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Writing is a part of everyday job. In fact your first contract with a potential employer
is through your letter of application, which determines a company’s first impression
of you. And the higher you advance in an organization, the more writing you will do.
Clearly, writing is an essential important to everyone in business – employers and
employees alike.
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By knowing why you are writing, you will communicate better and find writing itself
to be an easier process. The reader’s needs and your goal in communicating will help
you to formulate your purpose. It will guide you in determining exactly what you can
and must say. Get to the point right away. At the start of your message, state your
goal clearly.
The message is the sum of what facts, responses, and recommendations you put into
writing. A message includes the scope and details of your communication. Keep in
mind that you will adapt the message to fit the audience.
The details are the key points you think the readers need to know
Scope refers to how much information you give the readers about those key
details.
(How?) Style is how something is written rather than what is written. It helps to
determine how well you communicate with an audience, how well your readers
understand and receive the message. It involves the choices you make about:
Tone in writing, like tone in voice, expresses your attitude toward a topic and toward
an audience. In general, your tone can range from formal and impersonal (a scientific
report) to informal and personal (e-mail to a friend or a how-to article for
consumers). Tone, like style, is indicated in part by the words you choose. The tone
of one’s writing is especially important in occupational writing because it reflects the
image you project to your readers and thus determines how they will respond to you,
your work, and your company. Depending on your tone, you can appear sincere and
intelligent or angry and uninformed.
These six functions tell you what kind of writing you will produce after you
successfully answer the Who? Why? What? and How?
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Successful meetings result from effective planning, which includes the preparation of
the following:
Types of Meetings:
1. Formal meeting 3. Electronic meeting
2. Informal meeting
Forms:
1. Annual or Quarterly corporate meeting of directors, executives, or shareholders
2. Monthly Board meetings of executive management groups, service organizations, educational
institutions, and local government
3. Conventions for professional organizations
Informal meeting. This type of meeting is held as it is needed. The meeting may
follow a discussion format, with one person serving as a facilitator or coordinator and
another person a recorder or note taker.
Forms:
1. Staff meeting
2. Management meeting
3. Project team meeting
Electronic meetings. These are becoming more and more a part of doing business.
By using audio, video, and/or computer equipment, including an electronic writing
board (also known as an electronic white board or smart board), several groups of
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people at various locations can participate in a meeting. This equipment allows the
facilitator to write, draw, or type and print a copy of the information.
Forms:
1. Videoconferencing. It brings people in different locations together without
their being in the same location. With this, groups can quickly hold an
impromptu meeting with individuals from different sites.
2. Audio-conferencing. This allows an operator to dial up all participants in the
teleconference group, bringing each participant into the meeting as reached.
A joint meeting of the Relocation and Commercial Investment Division will be held
on Monday, February 26, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. in the Conference Room.
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The meeting will be discussing a team approach to our organization’s goal of
relocating business in the Dallas area.
Janinessantiago
JANINE S. SANTIAGO
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Example 2: Letter format
APEX CORPORATION
Notice of the Meeting
There will be a meeting of Department Heads on Monday, February 26, 2018 at the Function
Hall of Galaxy Hotel, Kamias Road, Lingayen, Pangasinan. Please bring the Monthly Sales Reporst for the month
of December 2017 and January 2018.
Alice D. Bueno
ALICE D. BUENO
Asst. Secretary
Agenda. Out from the planning to have a meeting will come the Agenda, or the
topics to be covered at the meeting. It is a plan for a meeting that contains the topics
to be covered at the meeting. The agenda is a valuable tool for keeping the
participants focused in order to achieve the meeting’s desired objective(s) – it should
help the participants understand what is expected in the meeting. An agenda is a
one-, sometimes two-page outline of the main pertinent points. It may also include
short reports or presentations for which one or two members are responsible. Every
meeting has an agenda that should be written and distributed before the meeting.
Other documents may be attached to the agenda as reference materials for the
topics to be covered in the meeting. When writing an agenda, make sure that the
items are listed in parallel form and write every agenda item as a noun phrase.
Example.
Giving the Treasurer’s Report (incorrect)
Treasurer’s Report (correct)
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Not Parallel Parallel
Calling to order instead Call to order
Report of Budget Committee instead Budget Committee Report
Reviewing Management survey instead Management Survey Review
Report of Accounting Dept. instead Accounting Department Report
Some other Announcements instead Announcements
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Minutes of the Meeting. The Minutes of the meeting are the account of the meeting.
It is a summary of what happened at the meeting. They serve as the official written
record of the meeting that was conducted. Copies of minutes are kept on file – they
are the official record of the organization or group’s deliberations and are regarded as
legal documents. Accordingly, minutes must be clear, accurate, and impartial. It is
prepared after a meeting; and is usually transmitted within twenty-four to forty-eight
hours after the meeting had adjourned. Minutes can be compared to a report. It has
its parts; introduction, body, and conclusion. Minutes can be brief or lengthy,
depending on the length of the meeting’s agenda – they may range from one page
summary to a book length. They are critical to the decision-making process of
companies.
Purposes:
1. To prevent any misunderstanding of meeting actions.
2. To keep absentees and other interested parties informed of decisions.
3. To provide basis of discussion for the next meeting.
4. To provide an official record of the meeting results.
Parts: Introduction includes the specifics about the meeting, such as day, date,
time and venue.
Body includes what actually happened during the meeting.
Conclusion describes actions, decisions, and information about the
meeting
2. The past tense of the verb is used to relate what happened at the meeting.
e.g. As there were no amendments, the chairperson confirmed the meeting.
4. When writing minutes, avoid using the same reporting verb, instead of said,
the following verbs may be used:
explained announced agreed stated
reported pointed out suggested opposed
commented informed remarked supported
5. Accounts of what was said in the meeting are given in reported or indirect
speech.
e.g. Mr. Duque asks, “Has the new set been purchased?”
Mr. Duque asked whether the new set has been purchased.
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Telecommunication Skills
The telephone is the most universal – and, some would say, the most important –
piece of equipment in office today. For many businesspeople, it is a primary contact
with the outside world. The telephone is considered as an indispensable machine in
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business activity. It is an office equipment which is an extension to your personality.
The voice is the only tool that you have to effectively communicate your needs and
information required. You will be judged over the phone by the voice you project and
by what you say. The telephone is a convenient way of communication that saves
considerable time and expense. Telephone conversation calls for two (2) qualities:
directness and courtesy. Directness means that the telephone should not be used for
idle talks and prolonged chats. Calls should be made clear and to the point. Also,
time should be noted by giving specific information. Courtesy means identifying
yourself properly, listening politely to the message, and speaking on the mouthpiece
clearly in a well modulated voice. Developing good telephone manners also reflects
well on you and your organization.
Cell phones enable you to conduct business from virtually anywhere at any time.
More than a plaything or a mere convenience, the cell phone has become an
essential part of communication in today’s workplace.
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A set of rules or protocol on usage is still evolving for cell phones. How are they best
used? When is it acceptable to take calls? Where should calls be made?
Business communicators find cell phones to be enormously convenient and real time-
savers. Here are specific suggestions for using cell phones safely and responsibly.
Be courteous to those around you. Don’t force those near you to hear your
business. Apologize and make amends gracefully for occasional cell phone
blunders.
Observe wireless-free quiet areas. Don’t allow your cell phone to ring in
theaters, restaurants, museums, classrooms, important meetings, and similar
places. Use the cell phone’s silent/vibrating ring option.
Speak in low, conversational tones. Avoid “cell yell.” Microphones on cell
phones are quite sensitive, thus making it unnecessary to talk loudly.
Take only urgent calls. Make full use of your cell phone’s caller ID feature to
screen incoming calls. Let voice mail take those calls that are not urgent.
Drive now, talk later. Pull over if you must make a call. Talking while driving
increases the chance of accidents, the same as driving while intoxicated.
Observe your location. Some places are dangerous or inappropriate for cell
phone use. Taking a call in a crowded room or bar makes it difficult to hear
and reflects poorly on you as a professional. A bad connection also makes a
bad impression. Static or dropped signals create frustration and
miscommunication. Don’t sacrifice professionalism for the sake of garbled
phone call. It’s smarter to turn off your cell phone in an area where the signal
is weak and when you are likely to have interference. Use voice mail and
return the call when conditions are better.
Consider Time. When you are having an important discussion with a business
partner, customer, or superior, it is rude to allow yourself to be interrupted by
an incoming call. It’s also poor manners to practice multitasking while on the
phone. Lack of attention results in errors. If a phone call is important enough
to accept, then it’s important enough to stop what you are doing and attend to
the conversation.
Pay attention to Volume. Many people raise their voices when using their cell
phones. “Cell yell” results much to the annoyance nearby. Raising your voice
is unnecessary since most phones have excellent microphones that can pick up
even a whisper. If the connection is bad, louder volume will not improve the
sound quality.
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Interviews are a lot like people; they come in all sizes and shapes. There are group
interviews, lunch interviews, behavioral interviews, and competency interviews, just
to list a few. In addition, each interview with a hiring manager will be a unique
learning experience, because every hiring manager is an individual, no matter what
interview technique the manager uses.
Types of Interview:
1. Telephone Screen Interview
2. One-on-One Interview
Informal One-on-One interview
Highly Structured One-on-One interview
Unstructured One-on-One formal interview
3. Sequential Interview
4. Group Interview
5. Panel Interview
6. Competency Interview
7. Problem-Solving Interview
8. Behavior Description Interview
Informal One-on-One Interview. This is the best and the worst interview. If
the interviewer is knowledgeable; the interviewer can learn a great deal about you
and your qualifications in a few minutes. If not, the interview becomes a pleasant
conversation about special interest (e.g. movies, sports, hobbies and the like). In this
case you might have enjoyed yourself, but you haven’t been interviewed, and the
skills you might bring to the company and the job are still a mystery to the company.
This is one of the most common and difficult questions to answer, but yields you the
greatest opportunity. Do not give long autobiographical lecture; rather, organize your
thoughts around why you are interested for the job vacancy and you are
qualifications.
3. Be on time. Better if you’ll show up about fifteen minutes earlier in case the
interviewer wants you to complete some initial forms.
4. Observe personal space.
Maintain ideal distance between you and the interviewer that will
convey the degree of formality.
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Don’t intrude to the interviewer’s personal space like touching things
on the table.
5. Observe body gestures. Body language is equally important. Pay attention to
your posture and bearing.
Sit comfortably, not appearing too stiff or too relaxed.
Avoid exhibiting gestures showing nervousness – fidgeting your hands,
pens, or other things.
Don’t make unnecessary noise like tapping your feet, hands, drumming
your fingers, or clearing your throat or coughing.
Offer a handshake, greet and thank the interviewer for inviting you to
discuss your qualifications.
6. Maintain eye contact. This suggests confidence, honesty, and interest, thus
always look directly to the interviewer.
7. Modulate your voice. Don’t talk too loud or too soft. What you say and the
manner how you speak reflects your attitude and values.
Speak distinctly and do not nervously hurry to finish your sentences.
Do not mumble, and avoid one- or two-word answers, which may
sound you are unfriendly or unprepared.
Do not use slang (e.g. “Right on…” “gonna”); overly casual language
(e.g. “You know…”) or filler utterances (“ahh” or “Umm”).
8. Express appreciation. Never forget to say Thank You after the interview.
9. Come on time for tests and interview. You are assessed the moment you step
in the office.
10. Wear proper business attire.
Men: dark slacks and long sleeved polo shirt
Women: skirt and blouse or dress or slacks
11. Do not bring unnecessary things.
12. Always carry a pen and extra copies of your resume.
13. Observe good manners. Don’t sit unless told to do so. Don’t chew gum or
smoke even if these are offered to you.
14. Speak clearly and be attentive with the questions of the interviewer.
15. Do not volunteer information which is not job-related unless asked.
16. Let the interviewer take the lead in discussions.
You can expect questions about your education, job experience, and ambitions. The
interviewer will also ask you about your courses, schools, technical skills, and job
goals. Through these questions, the interviewer attempts to discover your good
points as well as your bad ones.
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