Chap 9: Internal and Employee Communications

Question 1

Alvie Smith, former director of corporate communications at General Motors - two factors are changing internal communication with employees and enhancing management’s respect for this part of the public relations function. What are they?

Answer 1

1) The value of understanding, teamwork, and commitment by employees in achieving bottom-line results.
2) The need to build a strong manager communication network, one that makes every supervisor at every level accountable for communicating effectively with his or her employees.

Question 2

Ideally, working relationships are characterized by at least seven conditions. What are they?

Answer 2

1. Free flowing honesty
2. Optimism about the future
3. Satisfying status and participation for each person
4. Continuity of work without strife
5. Employer-employees trust
6. Healthy/safe surroundings
7. Success for the enterprise

Question 3

downward communication describes what?

Answer 3

communication from management to employees

Question 4

upward communications describes what?

Answer 4

communication from employees to management

Question 5

What is the primary medium for encouraging upward, two- way communication and for building good working relationships with employees?

Answer 5

Face- to- face communication with an “ open- door policy”

Question 6

What is however, the goal of internal relations?

Answer 6

to establish and maintain mutually beneficial relationships between an organization and the employees on whom its success or failure depends

Question 7

What is organizational culture?

Answer 7

the sum total of shared values, symbols, meanings, beliefs, assumptions, and expectations that organize and integrate a group of people who work together.

Question 8

T/F organizations are independent of the national cultures they operate in.

Answer 8

False. Organizations often reflect the national cultures in which they operate.

Question 9

power- distance

Answer 9

the extent to which people see inequities as natural and unchangeable,* where managers and employees see themselves as inherently different from each other*

Question 10

individualism

Answer 10

the extent to which people put their own individual needs ahead of the needs of the group

Question 11

As another example, in one study of an international public relations firm, employees from cultures high in individualism preferred less _______ of their work activities. In other words, they wanted to do their jobs their own way.

Answer 11

standardization

Question 12

Which is right? United States, a traditionally (high/low) power-distance country.

Answer 12

low

Question 13

What is uncertainty avoidance?

Answer 13

the extent to which people prefer organizational communication and structures that reduce their social anxiety.

Question 14

What is the goal of an organization that has an asymmetrical worldview?

Answer 14

to get what it wants without having to change the way it does business internally

Question 15

What incorporates the ideas of negotiation, conflict resolution, and compromise in an organization’s operating procedures?

Answer 15

symmetrical worldview

Question 16

(A/An) _______ organizational culture arises from an asymmetrical worldview.

Answer 16

authoritarian

Question 17

communication processes are structured and formalized in this type of organizational culture

Answer 17

authoritarian

Question 18

T/F authoritarian organizational culture usually stresses group accountability

Answer 18

False authoritarian organizational culture usually stresses individual accountability

Question 19

Which is more valuable in an authoritarian organizational culture: efficiency or innovation?

Answer 19

Efficiency is valued over innovation in many authoritarian cultures due to the emphasis on uniform output of a product or standardized provision of a service.

Question 20

In what type of organizational culture do organizations engage in morphogenesis to maintain homeostasis?

Answer 20

Participative

Question 21

In participative organizational cultures, decisions are made in a _______ manner— across varying levels of the organization— and implemented by those who hold responsibility over a specific area.

Answer 21

decentralized

Question 22

The U. S. Department of Labor requires organizations to hang posters in the workplace that list what? (3 things)

Answer 22

federal, state, and OSHA standards.

Question 23

In the United States, one primary responsibility of the internal relations function is what?

Answer 23

to communicate Occupational Safety and Health Administration ( OSHA) worker safety standards required by the government.

Question 24

Is human resources in charge of relationships with unionized workers within their company?

Answer 24

No, this responsibility usually goes to an internal relations specialist. HR is usually limited to hiring/firing, training and benefits.

Question 25

T/F? In tough decisions made by management, sometimes its better to say nothing to employees until final decisions have been made.

Answer 25

False. better to say “we are still working that out” than “no comment”

Question 26

When do efforts to acculturate employees start?

Answer 26

from the moment a new person is hired.

Question 27

T/F Usually, no distinction is made between information about organizational culture that is provided to internal and external publics.

Answer 27

True

Question 28

Explain the two benefits of congruence of internal and external messaging.

Answer 28

1) it ensures that employees get the same information about organizational culture as everyone else.
2) it helps to attract new employees who already believe in the organization’s culture and values.

Question 29

_______ ________ is often articulated in vision statements, mission statements, policy documents, ethics statements, and training manuals.

Answer 29

Organizational culture

Question 30

What part of the organization creates the vision statement?

Answer 30

A vision statement is usually created at the highest level of the organization by the CEO or other members of the dominant coalition.

Question 31

The mission statement answers what question?

Answer 31

“How are we different from our competitors?”

Question 32

Alternate name for mission statement

Answer 32

“competitive advantage statement”

Question 33

What is the most common way for organizational policy and procedures to be communicated?

Answer 33

employee handbooks explaining how to implement policies and procedures in common situations.

Question 34

A well- written _____ ____ _____ provides more concrete guidance and priorities than does a vision or mission statement, but it is much briefer than a policy manual.

Answer 34

code of ethics

Question 35

The ______ ______ is a means of learn-ing the values, standards, and norms of the organization, as well as what is expected in relation to job responsibilities.

Answer 35

socialization process

Question 36

The grapevine is neither a _____ nor a ______ medium, but word of mouth is often the quickest means for communicating information.

Answer 36

formal, controlled

Question 37

What should PR staff keep in mind about “the grapevine”?

Answer 37

The lesson for the public relations practitioner is that the grapevine will fill the information gaps left by an inadequate internal communication program.

Question 38

What is the primary source of internal communication in most organizations?

Answer 38

printed publications

Question 39

T/F printed publications fail to create an opportunity for two-way communication to generate employee feedback, questions, and concerns.

Answer 39

False. This is one of the things they do aim to do.

Question 40

Organizational publications give an organization a means of ________ communication.

Answer 40

controlled

Question 41

T/F Organizational publications are only to be used in employee communication because they contain language unique to the employee situation.

Answer 41

False. Organizational publications are directed to many publics, but the most common use is in employee communication.

Question 42

T/F Many organizations construct their publications as two- way communication— inviting questions, seeking input and comments, and conducting surveys, then reporting the results.

Answer 42

True

Question 43

Two- way communication also demands a climate of _____. Employees are often reluctant to submit questions or write for publication, so sometimes comments are solicited anonymously.

Answer 43

trust

Question 44

T/F A “payroll stuffer” is a monetary incentive used to boost employee loyalty to the company. It is essentially a reward system.

Answer 44

False. A common form of insert is the “ payroll stuffer” that goes into paycheck envelopes or gets direct deposit receipts. The insert is a valuable medium for appealing to natural constituencies for support and for important notices and news.

Question 45

What is a ombudsman or ombuds officer?

Answer 45

This person is charged with giving employees the opportunity to share their concerns and resolve them through informal mediation.