Business Communication Report 5
Summary
Every successful business is built on communication. Effective communication is very crucial for every business organization. Blossom Corners industry has been successful in its operations especially in acquiring and maintaining qualified personnel from all cultures. This has been attributed by effective communication skills that is evident among the staff as well as the management. However, there have been some issues in communication breakdown among the staff as a result of different factors. The management has been working hand in hand with the staff to alleviate these problems, to mend these gaps and to bring about effective communication in the working environment.
Good practice in communication
Effective communication in a working environment is characterized by empathy (Saxena, S.K., Saxena, K., and Dixit, A., 2011). It is essential that staff members respect the opinions of their colleagues even in situations where they disagree with them. Empathy can be shown by understanding the other person situation and demonstrate attentiveness to their case. For instance, “I do understand David showing up late for meals. It’s normal.” The person is empathetic about the situation of his work mate.
Friendliness in communication within the working environment is very crucial since it creates a feeling of appreciation and honesty, (Booth, W.C., 2009). It is very important for every staff member to learn how to use a friendly tone or even a friendly expression such as a smile when communicating sensitive matters of the organization. For instance, the operation staff shows friendliness both to the service users as well as David in her communication, i.e. “David is a lovely old man and has a friendly face, but I can’t make exceptions to the rules.” She then explains that service users are part of the decision making through annual meetings. Friendliness in communication enables all personnel to feel appreciated and called in the organization.
Causes of communication breakdown.
Negative stereotyping is a huge cultural contributor to communication breakdown in a business organization (Kowalski, K., 2008). It involves creating a negative belief about certain characteristics of people. Negative stereotyping brings about prejudices in the working environment since it triggers judgmental altitudes. For instance, a scenario where David insists that his healers in his country say that the only way to cure his kidney problem is by taking fruit. The situation triggers wrong altitude and judgment, especially from the night care worker. He also insists that staff in the UK are rude, yet his timing interferes with the normal program. Stereotyping causes conflicts in an organization.
When staff members are not sensitive about the context of the situation during a working communication, it results in communication breakdown, (Lockwood, J., 2015). Context sensitivity involves understanding the nature of the situation before reacting to any situation. It is important that staff members learn to be sensitive and considerate to situations that require attention before throwing dismissive comments. Medical issues arise in all organizations, and such cases should be handled with sensitivity. For instance, David has a kidney infection that requires taking fruit. Elena seems tired of late night calls about the problem.
On the other hand, the night care worker says it’s impossible to handle these requests especially when it’s late in the night. What they lack is sensitivity towards the medical situation. It is necessary that staff members fit in the situations of the affected ones. In this way, communication is driven by sensitivity towards the situation in hand.
Management Improvements
To eliminate communication breakdown in an organization, managers should encourage and initiate open communication (Booth, W.C., 2009). Managers should lead by example by engaging in active listening with members of the staff. In this way, the needs are brought up and discussed, and the solutions to these needs are devised. Through open communication, the personal problems of the personnel are also considered and catered for if possible.
Managers can also eliminate communication breakdown by devising ways to resolve conflicts effectively, (Seeger, M.W., Sellnow, T.L. and Ulmer, R.R., 2003). Since conflicts are part of work, the best way as a manager is to intervene, listen to all the sides and make a relevant conclusion. Negative stereotyping can result in hatred, conflicts, and a tense working atmosphere. The manager should work hand in hand with a workplace consultant to issue training to the staff in the form of talks.
Any successful business organization is built on a strong relationship among the staff as well as the management. This relationship is created by understanding and effective communication. Therefore, it is important to ensure that a peaceful environment characterized by effective communication is enhanced in every organization.
References
Booth, W.C., 2009. The rhetoric of rhetoric: The quest for effective communication. John Wiley & Sons.
Daim, T.U., Ha, A., Reutiman, S., Hughes, B., Pathak, U., Bynum, W. and Bhatla, A., 2012. Exploring the communication breakdown in global virtual teams. International Journal of Project Management, 30(2), pp.199-212.
Daim, T.U., Ha, A., Reutiman, S., Hughes, B., Pathak, U., Bynum, W. and Bhatla, A., 2012. Exploring the communication breakdown in global virtual teams. International Journal of Project Management, 30(2), pp.199-212.
Kowalski, K., 2008. Tough questions: Recognize and resolve communication breakdown. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 39(2), pp.57-57.
Lockwood, J., 2015. Virtual team management: what is causing communication breakdown? Language and intercultural communication, 15(1), pp.125-140.
Sabanci, A., Sahin, A., and Özdemir, İ., 2016. Interpersonal Communication Skills of the Leaders of Inspection Groups in Turkey. Online Submission, 5(4), pp.148-159.
Saxena, S.K., Saxena, K., and Dixit, A., 2011. Enhancing communication skills using language laboratory. Journal of Engineering, Science and Management Education, 4, pp.53-58.
Seeger, M.W., Sellnow, T.L. and Ulmer, R.R., 2003. Communication and organizational crisis. Greenwood Publishing Group.