COMMUNICATION

Communication is how organizations represent, present, and constitute their organizational climate and culture—the attitudes, values and goals that characterize the organization and its members. .

Process of Communication (8 Stages of Communication Process):

Communication connects sender with receiver of the message. A process is “a systematic series of actions, operations or series of changes directed to some end.” However, in real life situations, communication process is more complex than it sounds. It consists of a series of elements which result in sharing of meaning by sender and receiver.

These elements are discussed below:

• Sender:

Sender is the person who initiates, generates and sends the message. He represents the source of message. The communication process begins when the sender develops an idea or message that he wants to transmit. He arranges the ideas in a manner that can be understood by the receiver. A teacher delivering a lecture in the classroom is the sender of the message.

• Message:

Message is the idea or information that the sender wants to convey. He may convey it verbally (by writing or speaking) or non-verbally (through gestures or body language). Whatever the form, the message should be clearly formed so that the objective is accomplished.

• Encoding:

Once the sender is clear of what message he wants to transmit, he decides the code through which message shall be transmitted. Encoding means giving meaning to the message or converting ideas into codes which can be understood by the receiver. Encoding means translating the message into words (written or spoken), symbols or gestures. It may even be a combination of the three.

• Transmission:

Transmission involves selecting the medium or channel of communication. Once decided that the message has to be sent in writing, the sender may select the electronic channel and the medium of e-mail or fax. Short messages can be transmitted through telephone but lengthy messages can be sent through letters or circulars.

Choice of channel depends upon the message to be conveyed, personal biases of the sender and nature of information. Where drawings, charts and illustrations form part of the message, it has to be sent in writing. Personal biases include sender’s preference for a particular channel. Some senders prefer to communicate in writing, howsoever short the message may be and, therefore, prefer the written channel of transmission. Nature of information refers to immediacy and confidentiality of information. Confidential information where immediate feedback is required is generally transmitted orally.

• Receiver:

Receiver is the person or a group of persons to whom the message is conveyed. In case of telephonic conversation, the sender can send message to one receiver but in case of group discussions, seminars and conferences, receivers can be more than one. The message must be designed, encoded and transmitted in a manner that receiver can understand easily. Use of technical words, jargons and complicated symbols should be avoided. Depending on the channel selected, receiver may be a listener, viewer or a reader.

• Decoding:

Decoding means giving meaningful interpretation to the message. On receiving the message, the receiver translates the symbols into meaningful information to the best of his ability. Communication is effective if receiver understands the message in the same way as intended by the sender. The receiver must, therefore, be familiar with the codes and symbols used by the sender in his message.

• Noise:

It represents the disturbing factor in the process of communication. It interferes with effective communication and reduces clarity of the message. The message may be interpreted differently than intended by the sender. Conversing near a machine making sounds, disturbance in telephone line, physical ailment or mental distress of sender or receiver are the common causes of noise that obstruct the quality of message transmitted from sender to the receiver.

• Feedback:

Feedback is receiver’s response to the sender’s message. The receiver communicates reaction to the sender through words, symbols or gestures. It is the reversal of communication process where receiver becomes the sender and sender becomes the receiver. Unless the receiver responds to the message, communication process is incomplete. Feedback helps the sender transform his message, if needed. It also allows the receiver to clear doubts on the message, ask questions to build his confidence and enables the sender to know efficiency of the message. Feedback of information makes the communication process complete.

In face-to-face communication, sender can immediately receive the feedback. Written communication, on the other hand, takes longer for the sender to receive feedback on the message.

Feedback plays important role in two-way communication. In one- way communication, sender communicates with the receiver without getting any feedback but in two-way communication, the receiver provides feedback to the sender. Though one-way communication takes less time and is more orderly (it avoids noise and chaos), feedback in two-way communication makes it more accurate and precise.

Feedback offers the following benefits:

• It allows sender to improve communication with the receiver.
• It allows receiver to clarify doubts on the message and, therefore, perform better.
• Allowing receivers to ask questions builds confidence and they are more confident of their work performance.
• It enables the sender to know efficiency of his message; whether or not the receiver has understood the message in its right meaning. Feedback makes the communication process complete.

ORAL VERSUS WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

Verbal (Oral) Communication:

• ‘Verbal or Oral Communication’ implies the transmission of orders, message or suggestions through the spoken words.
• The media of oral communication are face-to-face talk, speech, lecture, interview, meeting, telephonic talk, video conference, etc.
• It is an informal method of communication.
• In oral communication the contact being direct, feedback is immediate.
• It saves time and money as communication is direct.
• Oral communication is very much flexible.
• Explanation may be sought and misunderstanding may be removed immediately through discussion.
• It not understood, immediate clarification is possible in oral communication.
• Secrecy can be maintained.
• The employees can be motivated by personal contact.
• It is expensive to communicate orally with the persons at distant places by telephone.
• Communication of long message or statistical data is not suitable for it.
• Uniformity of work procedure cannot be maintained in oral communication.
• No        record         is       kept   generally     (unless        audio or      video  tape- recording is made).
• Unless recorded in tapes, videos, etc. verbal communication can-not be considered as legal evi-dence.

Written Communication:

• ‘Written Communication’ means transmission of message, order or instruction in writing.
• The media of written communication are letter, circular, manual, report, telegram, office memo, bulletin, journal, magazine, e-mail, fax, inter-net, etc.
• It is a formal method of communication.
• In written communication feedback requires sometime.
• It is time-consuming and costly.
• It is less flexible.
• The chances of misunderstanding remain unless feed-back is proper.
• It has no scope for immediate clarification.
• Secrecy may be endangered.
• Motivation through written words is less effective.
• Communication can be made to the person/persons at distant places at a low cost by post, fax or through internet.
• Sending of long message or statistical data with accuracy is suitable for written communication.
• Uniformity of work procedure can be maintained here.
• A written document preserved properly becomes a permanent record of the organisation and can be used as future reference.
• Written communication can easily be used as legal evidence.

VERBAL VERSUS NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

Definition of Verbal Communication

The communication in which the sender uses words, whether spoken or written, to transmit the message to the receiver is known as Verbal Communication. It is the most effective form of communication that leads to the rapid interchange of information and feedback. There are fewer chances of misunderstanding as the communication between parties is clear, i.e. the parties are using words for saying anything.

The communication can be done in two ways (i) Oral – like face to face communication, lectures, phone calls, seminars, etc. (ii) Written – Letters, E- mail, SMS, etc. There are two types of communication, they are:

Formal Communication: Also termed as official communication, it is a type of communication in which the sender follows a pre-defined channel to transmit the information to the receiver is known as formal communication.

Informal Communication: Most commonly known as grapevine, the type of communication in which the sender does not follow any pre- defined channels to transmit the information is known as informal communication.

Definition of Nonverbal Communication

Non-verbal communication is based on the understanding of the parties to communication, as the transmission of messages from the sender to receiver is wordless i.e. the communication uses signs. So, if the receiver understands the message completely and proper feedback is given afterwards, then the communication succeeds.

It complements the verbal communication many times, to understand the mindset and the status of the of the parties, which

is not spoken by them, but it is an act of understanding. The types of Non-verbal communication are as under:

Chronemics: The use of time in communication is chronemics, which speaks about the personality of the sender / receiver like punctuality, the speed of speech, etc.

Vocalics: The volume, tone of voice and pitch used by the sender for communicating a message to the receiver is known as vocalics or paralanguage.

Haptics: The use of touch in communication is the expression of feelings and emotions.

Kinesics: It is the study of the body language of a person, i.e., gestures, postures, facial expressions, etc.

Proxemics: The distance maintained by a person while communicating with others, communicates about the relationship of the person with others like intimate, personal, social and public.

Artifacts: The appearance of a person speaks about his personality,

i.e. by way of clothing, carrying jewellery, lifestyle, etc. This kind of communication is known as arti factual communication.

Key Differences Between Verbal and Nonverbal Communication

The following points explain the difference between verbal and non- verbal communication in detail:

• The use of words in communication is Verbal communication. The communication which is based on signs, not on words is Non-verbal communication.
• There are very fewer chances of confusion in verbal communication between the sender and receiver. Conversely, the chances of misunderstanding and confusion in non-verbal communication are very much as the use of language is not done.
• In verbal communication, the interchange of the message is very fast which leads to rapid feedback. In opposition to this, the non-verbal communication is based more on understanding which takes time and hence it is comparatively slow.
• In verbal communication, the presence of both the parties at the place of communication is not necessary, as it can also be done if the parties are at different locations. On the other hand, for an effective non-verbal communication, both the parties must be there, at the time of communication.
• In verbal communication, the documentary evidence is maintained if the communication is formal or written. But, there is no conclusive evidence in case of non-verbal communication.
• Verbal communication fulfils the most natural desire of humans – talk. In the case of Non-verbal communication, feelings, status, emotions, personality, etc are very easily communicated, through the acts done by the parties to the communication.

THREE COMMUNICATION TYPES:

• Upward Communication
• Downward Communication
• Horizontal/Lateral Communication

Upward Communication

It involves passing of information from the employee levels to administration. The most common purpose of this information flow is to relay feedback and how well things are going. Upward communication serves essentially two purposes in an organisation. First, it helps in coordinating and controlling the activities of the organisation. Second, it enables the superior to appraise the performance of subordinates. The upward communication can take the form of progress reports, budget reports, profit and loss statements, requests for grants, etc The upward channels of

communication not only enable higher level managers to get valuable information but also opinions and suggestions from lower levels at the time of making decisions on plans and policies. The opportunity of upward communication encourages people to transmit their complaints and grievances to superiors, draw the attention of managers to problems and make proposals for improving the efficiency of work performance in the organization

Downward Communication

It involves the dissemination of information from superiors to the immediate subordinates in the form of orders and directions. It also includes directives and messages which are issued by top management and are transmitted down the hierarchy through intermediate levels of management to employees at the lower levels. In downward communication, the authority flows downwards. Different organisations adopt different methods to convey downward communication in the form of circulars, notice boards, posters, house magazine, face to face conversations, policies, procedures, memorandas, bulletins, handbooks etc.

Horizontal/Lateral Communication

This means the flow of communication amongst personnel at the same level of the hierarchy in an organization. The most common purpose of this communication flow is to promote job coordination or teamwork. it is much easier to contact this individual via a lateral communication. Instead of contacting him through administrator, the communication takes place directly’ between two persons having equal ranks in the managerial hierarchy or between two subordinates ‘ under the same manager is called horizontal communication or lateral communication. Thus, horizontal communication consists of interaction between people in the same or different departments. This facilitates coordination of activities which are interdependent. For example, coordination of production and sales activities requires continuous exchange of information          between the respective managers      of the two departments

 

BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION

• Semantic barriers,
• Psychological barriers,
• Organisational barriers,
• Personal barriers, and
• Mechanical barriers.
• Semantic Barriers:

This denotes barriers of language and symbols and their interpretation. Every language consists of symbols used to transmit meaning from one person to another. Even the Morse code and mathematical symbols are used in a language for communication purpose. The barriers are from the linguistic capability of the individual involved in the communication.

The following are the different types of semantic barriers:

• Poor Quality of Message:

When a message is prepared, it must be consistent in all respects like – clarity, precision and usage of appropriate words to express the ‘idea’ to be transmitted. It should be in simple words, easily understood by the receiver. Otherwise it becomes non-specific and the receiver will have a difficulty in following it properly.

• Faulty Transmission:

When message is received from the superior to the subordinate, the individual receiving it must be able to translate it to different categories of subordinates having the constraints of level of understanding and their IQ. It does require proper interpretation of the message received to help disseminate the information to the subordinates.

• Lack of Clarity:

In all the messages, there are certain ideas, which need to be understood correctly. In other words, the meaning between the lines of the message must be well- perceived by the receiver. If it is not, there is every likelihood of the message being misunderstood leading to confusion.

• Technical Language:

It is often seen that technical language is used by specialist persons in their communication. This may not be known by a common man. As far as possible, when communicating to common people, it must be in a simple language, common to all. For example, take the case of a doctor, who prescribes medicine to a patient and writes ‘TDS’ (an abbreviation of three times a day). An ordinary patient may not be able to understand this unless it is written in a simple language, or the abbreviation is explained to him.

• Psychological Barriers:

In interpersonal communication, the psychological state of mind of the sender, as well as that of the receiver makes lot of difference. When an individual is under emotion, his tone overpowers the script of the message. This creates an obstacle in normal communication leading to emotional barriers.

Following are psychological barriers:

• Premature Evaluation:

This premature evaluation is the possible outcome of message before it is transmitted to the receiver. Such an evaluation may prematurely conclude the message may not bring the desired result, thereby he withholds the message. This is an important psychological factor of communication barrier.

• Inadequate Attention:

Normally, in a communication this happens at the receiver’s end due to carelessness and not listening properly what the person at the other end is telling. This takes place in fact to face communication or in attending telephones.

• Transmission Losses and Poor Retention:

When communication passes through various hands and levels in an organization, the transmission of the message by various persons tends to become inaccurate or corrupt. This happens in written as well as vocal communication. In the latter, the receiver may not retain the message as it was transmitted to him due to poor retention capability, thus leading to confusion at a later stage.

• Undue Stress on Written Message:

Organization every executive believes that written message, instructions and orders would be better, since the chances of any miscarriage of the message are almost nil. When face to face communication of a message takes place between a superior and subordinate, it not only makes better understanding but is also effective. It does in stil confidence in the subordinate in so far as execution of the orders instructions is concerned. No doubt, it is a better medium of communication than the written one.

• Lack of Trust in the Sender by the Receiver:

When a communicator (sender) frequently alters the original communication, the receiver at the other end will normally delay the action warranted by the message. This happens due to uncertain decisions often taken by the sender. Thus, the communication becomes ineffective, for various alterations and additions. This is an example of lack of confidence on the part of the sender.

• Failure to Communicate:

At times, the superior/manager fails to communicate the desired information/order, etc. This may be the cause of flippant attitude of the sender or his apathy. For instance, the sender’s over confidence that the message has already been conveyed to the people is likely to create confusion and embarrassment.

• Organisational Barriers:

This depends upon the general organisational policy governing the communication network of the organisation. Such policy might be a written text explaining various aspects of communication, especially the upward, downward and lateral since it is desirable to bring an effective communication flow in the organisation.

The barrier on this aspect is discussed below:

• Restrictions Imposed by Rules of Organisation:

Normally, the information is to be passed to higher ups through proper channel. This gets delayed while passing through the hierarchical ladder. Instructions in general for passing messages must be given. Also, specific instructions for handling important messages need to be explained to all in order to avoid delays.

• Status/Hierarchical Positions Restrict the Flow of Communication:

Status and/or position of an individual make a lot of difference in personal dealings. Superior/subordinate capacity in formal organisation also prevents free flow of communication. This happens especially in case of upward communication. A person from the lower rung in the hierarchy may find it difficult to approach directly the top executive of the organisation.

• Complex Situation of the Organisation:

Large organisations, where there are a number of levels in managerial posts for communication may get distorted. This takes place due to censoring of the message when transmitted in the upward direction; since people are usually hesitant to inform the superiors about the adverse aspects.

• Personal Barriers:

These barriers are those, which occur in communication, according to personal constraints at various levels of organisation such as:

• Attitude of Superiors:

Attitude of the superiors play as vital role in the communication process; whether it is upward or downward or in any other direction. Therefore, the attitude of superior, either favourable or unfavourable affects the flow of communication, i.e., from superior to subordinate and vice versa.

• Insistence on Following Proper Channel:

Superiors instruct their subordinates to follow the proper channel, while communicating. They don’t want that a subordinate bypasses them and goes direct to the next higher authority. They always want to be in touch with the communication process, so as to help them to know what is happening in their jurisdiction.

During emergency situation, there may be a need to bypass the superior; however, the superior may not like it. He may prevent it and instruct the subordinates to keep him in the picture with whatever information / message being passed to higher up, as and when occasion arises.

• Lack of Confidence in Subordinate:

It is a general perception that subordinates are not competent enough to advise superiors, since they do not possess the capacity to do so. This apprehension makes the superior to have lack of confidence in subordinates. However, this idea may not be correct, as there are more able subordinates than their superiors in many respects.

• Preoccupation of Superior:

A superior feels that there is no necessity to communicate him each and every matter, as he is always preoccupied with his own work. Supervisor’s involvement with their subordinate is a major requirement for efficiency, which many superiors ignore due to lack of time as an excuse.

• Lack of Awareness:

Inadequate knowledge about the importance of communication and its usefulness in various ways, at times, the superiors may not give desired attention to it. This may lead to restricted or poor transmission of communication affecting the organisation. This can lead to inefficiency and mismanagement.

• Hesitation to Communicate:

This happens to be a cause with subordinates not to communicate with their superiors. Subordinates show unwillingness to convey the superior certain information; since such part of information may have an adverse effect on them. Thus, the hesitation to communicate takes place.

• Mechanical Barriers:

Mechanical barriers are another group of factors putting barriers in the smooth flow of communication.

They are:

• Inadequate arrangements for transmission of message
• Poor office layout
• Detective procedure and practices
• Use of wrong medium.
• Inadequate Arrangement for Transmission of Message:

The arrangements include proper coding and decoding facilities. This is normally carried out through coding machines and trained staff to operate such machines. When important information is sent under different classification, top secret, secret, confidential, etc., adequate care has to be taken in its transmission. It should not be leaked out to unauthorized persons. Safety and security of classified information need to be handled by responsible staff.

• Poor Office Layout:

A proper information centre is an inescapable necessity to transmit the messages with in the organization and outside. Therefore, various types of information transmitting through like wireless sets, radio communication system, electronic machines- FAX, e-mail, etc., are required. The infrastructural facilities to accommodate these systems are very essential for effective communication. In their absence there can be various obstacles in the transmission of information.

• Defective Procedures and Practices:

There must be defined procedures for docketing of incoming and outgoing messages properly maintained in an information centre. Also, proper arrangements to allot priority messages like immediate, most immediate, etc., and their subsequent transmissions, if all these are not looked into, the very purpose of communicating will be defeated.

• Use of Wrong Medium:

This is another barrier in mechanical communication. It is the responsibility of the sender of the message to select the right medium. For example, let us take despatch of letters from one organisation to another at a distant place.

Whether the letter should go by an ordinary mail of Speed post, Courier, FAX or e- mail, depends on the exigency (urgency) of the action to be taken at the receiving end. This aspect needs to be decided by the sender himself at all times. Thus, the sender must select a proper medium of communication.