_ COMMUNICATING _ __FORMANAGERIAL _ ~ EFFECTIVENESS — SECOND EDITION ——_____— Phillip Glampitt__..._How cunPTER How Managers Communicate Human communication permeates the human condition. Human communication surrounds us and is an in-built aspect of everything human beingsare and do. That makes any effort to explain, predict, or to some extent control human communication a pretty big order. How does one get a handle on the totality of human communication? Frank Dance £, by a wave of a magic wand, managers could communicate perfectly, how would organizations change? Would the company be more productive? Em- ployees more satisfied? The wand presents an intriguing dilemma for the manager. On the one hand, managers know that their success is largely a function of their communication skill. On the other hand, they are often unclear about what consti- tutes “perfect” or effective communication. Some argue, for example, that if em- ployees completely understood their managers, organizations would function smoothly. Yet misunderstandings may prove useful, as in the case of an employee who misinterprets a manager’s sarcastic criticism as a legitimate suggestion. Such a misunderstanding may temporarily preserve “the peace.” How managers might use this magic wand proves revealing. It creates the illusions and reality of their world. Typically, managers choose to wave the wand in one of three ways: the Arrow, the Circuit, or the Dance approach, which are al discussed in detail below. Comt