2.4 Internal and External Communication Flashcards
Why is effective communication necessary?
Effective communication seems simple, but even between two people talking face to face there can often be misunderstandings. As business grows they have thousands of employees spread across hundreds of countries, speaking numerous different languages. We need to know the: different means of communication, benefits and limitations of each, and also how to overcome communication barriers like language or culture.
Why is effective communication necessary?
Effective communication seems simple, but even between two people talking face to face there can often be misunderstandings. As business grows they have thousands of employees spread across hundreds of countries, speaking numerous different languages. We need to know the: different means of communication, benefits and limitations of each, and also how to overcome communication barriers like language or culture.
Why is effective communication important to a business?
- it avoids mistakes.
For example, ineffective communication could result, in a missed order, losing a valuable customer which can lead to massive loss in sales.
- decisions can be made more quickly and businesses can respond to changes in the market.
If the right information gets quickly to the correct employees it can give a business a competitive advantage.
- Improved coordination between departments is a direct result of effective communication.
If the operations department is aware of the marketing departments product launch, they will ensure they have sufficient production to meet demand.
- improve motivation as workers they feel more valued and involved.
- improves customer relationships.
In order to retain customers, businesses increasingly aim to keep customers fully informed about orders, respond quickly and effectively to customer queries, and update customers about new products or services.
Give an example of what may happen if there is ineffective communication?
f a marketing department fails to coordinate with the operations department, they may not raise production to the correct level. If the information doesn’t get to the right people quickly enough then it will take a long time to come up with an alternative plan. This means customer demand won’t be satisfied, so the relationship with customers will be negatively impacted, as will motivation as employees will have to deal with more complaints, and may not have all the information to explain why the issues occurred.
What are the benefits and limitations of email?
What happens if an organisation is heavily reliant on email?
organisation which relies too heavily on email may find motivation dropping among employees, and lower team morale, if workers only see each other as messages on a computer screen rather than having face to face conversation.
What are the benefits and limitations of meetings?
What are the benefits and limitations of face-to-face conversations?
What are the benefits and limitations of a noticeboard?
What do we need to consider when choosing means of communication?
How urgent is the message?
If you need to communicate a message straight away and make sure the receiver understands, face to face or a telephone call is more suitable.
How detailed is the message?
If there is a lot of information in the message, a written communication like email is much more suitable so the receiver has a record of all the information and can refer back to the details if necessary.
Does the message need to be discussed?
Is quality feedback required?
Meetings allow detailed feedback from the receivers; this can be much more difficult via email.
Is a written record of the communication required?
Often the sender will need evidence that they have sent a communication, with a record of the time it was sent.
This avoids later disagreements over what “he said/she said”, or employees claiming they took no action because they did not receive a message.
Is the message confidential?
If a message contains sensitive information the sender should ensure that the message is not shared with only those employees who need to know the information.
It is important to remember that communication methods can be used together, provided the message is the same.
For example, if a financial manager creates a report on reducing costs, they can present the information to other managers at a meeting, take questions during the meeting and allow face-to-face discussions at a later date.
Many managers have an “open door” policy – so employees can come and ask questions if they are unsure about any message.
What is a communication barrier?
A communication barrier is anything that gets in the way of a message being understood.
What can communication barriers result in?
Communication barriers can result in ineffective communication which will lead to the opposite results of effective communication. It can result in mistakes, demotivation in staff, poor coordination and decision making within the business and poor relationships with customers.
List some communication barriers?
Problems with the physical environment.
Problems with communication channels.
Barriers between Sender and Receiver
How can we overcome communication barriers involving the physical environment?
If there are high levels of background noise, for example, noisy machinery in a factory message may not be clearly understood. This can be fixed by giving instructions in a quiet area of the factory, or developing a system of visual communications
How can we overcome communication barriers involving distance?
Multinational corporations, operating in many countries, may also have to overcome the physical barriers of being far away from other members of the organisations. Technology can increasingly overcome these challenges, by using video conferencing like Zoom, email and instant messaging.
