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3/30/2009

COMMUNICATION SKILLS




Communication Skills
To be a manager is to be a communicator – the two are inextricably linked. An effective manager needs to communicate upwards, sideways and with his/her team all the time. Employees have a stake in the business, so it is essential that they are kept fully informed regularly and that their views and opinions are sought.
Poor communication can cause many problems. What is more, one of the two most common reasons why employees feel de-motivated is that they don’t know what’s going on and no-one’s interested in their views. Good communication can improve the performance of your business, so take time to do it well.
The Business HR guide takes you through the following essential pointers to effective communication:
TWO-WAY COMMUNICATION
Ensure it is two-way. Many managers focus only on communications downwards – giving information to their people. However, for communication to be really effective it must be two-way. You need therefore, to give information to others and to gain information from them by asking questions.

WHAT?

Decide what to communicate. Many managers are too secretive: whilst confidential information clearly has to remain confidential, some take the view that "information is power" and forget to impart to their team the key information needed to do a job effectively and efficiently. If you are keeping something from your team, ask yourself why. There may be a good reason, but most issues relating to the business, its performance and its future plans should be shared. This will create a greater sense of ownership and involvement amongst your team and may lead to some really good suggestions as to how you can grow and improve the business.

WHEN?

Decide when to communicate. Communication should be timely. Share information as things happen. Avoid the temptation to store up your communication until the next monthly meeting! By then, it may seem like history and you may have lost the opportunity to gain the input of others.

WHY?

Decide why you are communicating. This will influence how best to do it. Is it to share information? Is it to persuade? Influence? Is it to gain feedback? Is it to prompt action?

TAILOR THE COMMUNICATION

Make it relevant to your audience. The art of good communication is to tailor the message to the recipient. Consider, for example:
· what is their reaction likely to be?
· how much detail do they like to have?
· How easily and quickly can they absorb information?
· Are they interested in hard facts, data and substantiation?
· The best communicators are those who make the effort to get it right for their audience.
HOW?

There are lots of ways to communicate.
Select the right combination for the right circumstances. Here are a few:

Method
Pros
Cons
Telephone
Quick and easy Tele-conferencing can be a good way of linking international and remote teams
No body language People don't always absorb the entire message - either deliberately or not, they can ignore or mishear parts of what you are saying.
Meeting
Good way of sharing the same information with many people Opportunity to explore and discuss Good for gaining consensus Good for building teams
Takes time to arrange Reliant on the skills of the person chairing the meeting Takes the time of each participant
Letter
Provides the writer with the opportunity to draft, re-write and re-write again until it's right Allows copies to be taken and kept for the record
Slower than telephone or email One-way
Email
Quick and easy Information can be kept and stored Lends itself to communicating the same information to a wide audience
Relies on the technology being available Can lead to over-communicating e.g. copying everything to everyone
Presentation
Formal Can have great impact Communicates a consistent message to a wide audience
Cost Time Relies on the skills of the presenter
Informal chats
Quick and easy Timely – you can speak as and when things happen Requires little preparation
Can be disruptive Can exclude employees based elsewhere
Newsletters /bulletins
Good for business-wide communications Can mix business and people information Can engender a feeling of belonging and establish an organization culture
Cost and time of production
Notice board
Immediate Can have impact Reaches lots of people, including visitors
Relies on employees taking the time to look at it Needs regular updating

REVIEW

Review the effectiveness of each method from time to time, to ensure that you are using the most effective combination. For example, at the end of a team meeting, take five minutes to conduct a review – what went well? What could we do differently next time?

AND FINALLY
Good communicators make the message interesting by giving a human twist, telling a story, using analogies, giving examples…. etc.
The recall rate of the spoken word improves when supported by good visual aids, but is still only around 30%!

Comparing Verbal & Nonverbal Communication
Similarities
ü Both are symbolic
ü Both are rule-guided
ü Can be intentional or unintentional
ü Are cultural-bound
Differences
ü NV communication is "more believable"
ü Nonverbal can be multi-channeled
ü Nonverbal is continuous
4 Principles of Nonverbal Communication
ü supplements or replaces verbal communication
ü regulates interaction
ü establishes relationship-level meanings
ü (responsiveness, liking, power)
ü reflects & expresses cultural value
Types of Nonverbal Communication
ü Kinesics - body position & motion
ü Hap tics - touch
ü Physical appearance
ü Artifacts - personal objects
ü Environmental factors
ü Polemics - use of space
ü Chromatics - time
ü Paralanguage - how we speak
ü Silence
Give me an example of...
ü Emblems
ü Illustrators
ü Affect Displays
ü Regulators
ü Adaptors
Facial Communication
ü Management Techniques
ü Intensifying
ü Deintensifying
ü Neutralizing
ü Masking
Eye Communication
ü Functions
ü Monitor Feedback
ü Maintain Interest and Attention
ü Regulate the Conversation
ü Signal the Nature of the Relationship
ü Compensate for Physical Distance
Touch
ü Many meanings
ü Touch more in intermediate stages than in initial or established relationships
ü Facilitates self-disclosure
ü Playfulness
ü Power and Control
ü Ritualistic (shake hands, etc.)
ü Task-related
ü interesting -- more touch, more tips
Touch Avoidance
ü Avoidance & Communication Apprehension
ü Low self-disclosers tend to avoid touch
Gender Issues with Touch
ü Men avoid touching other men; Women are less likely to avoid same-sex touch
ü Women have higher avoidance of opposite-sex touch.
ü As we age we avoid opposite sex touch
ü Women initiate opposite sex touch more often than men. Especially in married relationships.
ü Opposite sex friends touch more than same-sex friends.
Cultural Issues
ü Muslim children are not to touch the opposite sex.
ü Korean’s avoid touch in public (store owner)
ü Japanese student’s touch 1/2 less than American students.
Smell Communication
ü Attraction Messages
ü Taste Messages
ü Memory Messages
ü Identification Messages
Use of Space
Spatial Messages
Personal Space
Space that surrounds a person in which they are made comfortable or uncomfortable. It is a personal bubble of space that moves with you.
Hall’s Distances
ü Intimate distance: 0-18 inches
ü Personal Distance: 18-48 inches
ü Social Distance: 4-12 feet
ü Public Distance: beyond 12 feet
Territoriality
ü Our need to establish and maintain certain spaces as our own. (non-verbal indicators that signal ownership)
ü In a dorm room- items on the common desk mark territory.
Personal Space Theories
ü Protection Theory
o you establish a protective body buffer zone
ü Equilibrium Theory
o intimacy and distance vary together
ü Expectancy Violations Theory
o Explains what happens when you <> distance.
Territoriality and Types
ü Primary
o areas you call your own (your room, desk, office)
ü Secondary
o do not belong to you, but you occupy and are associated with (a regular parking spot at work, a table you sit at)
ü Public
o open to all people (movie theater seat)
Territoriality and Ownership
ü Signals Ownership
ü Home Field Advantage (get raise, win argument in your space!)
ü Markers
o Central Markers -- items placed somewhere your drink at the table
o Boundary Markers -- show the division like bar placed in check-out lane
o Ear markers -- "branding" like a name tag, initials on shirt or briefcase
Territoriality and Status
ü Who has the right to invade territory?
ü Who has more?
ü Who has what?
Male and Female Tendencies
ü Women exhibit less discomfort with small space and tend to interact at closer range.
ü Men have higher territorial needs, especially where it’s short in supply.
ü Women and children seem to desire more relational closeness than do men
Space and Children
ü As children grow older their perceptions of crowding will increase.
ü Personal space requirements grow with age and that once that personal space is invaded we consider the perception of crowding.
Overcrowding Personal Space
ü As our personal space gets smaller, our perception of feeling comfortable becomes minimized.
ü Tension builds up and conflict arises
ü Sometimes personal items become a factor and an uneasiness of security of personal items sets in.
Personal Space
ü Europeans: Don’t need as much personal space.
ü French: Emphasis on outside and public space
ü Arabians: Like to have high ceilings, out of normal line of vision, and an unobstructed view.
ü Asians: Place higher focus on functional space.
Differences in Gender
Theory:
Generally, females use more nonverbal gestures than males in order to express themselves and give feedback
Art factual Communication
ü Space Decoration
o What you have and where
ü Study of beautiful, average and ugly rooms
ü Color Communication
ü Clothing and Body Adornment
o Formally dressed professor = prepared, knowledgeable and organized
o Informally dressed = friendly, fair, enthusiastic and flexible
Temporal Communication
ü Cultural Time
ü Technical Time = precise, scientific time
ü Formal Time = manner in which a culture defines time.
ü Informal time = forever, right away, soon, etc.
Time...
ü Displaced time
o Views time exactly.
ü Diffused time orientation
o Approximate rather than exact.
ü Time is Cultural, for example:
o Japan -- clocks were exact and fastest walkers
o England, Italy, Taiwan and US in between
o Indonesian -- slowest walkers and least exact.
Monochromic and Polychromic
ü Monochromic
o Does one thing at a time.
o Time is very serious!
o Job tends to be more important than family even.
o Privacy is extremely important.
§ Seldom borrows or lends
§ Works independently
ü Polychromic

o Does several things at a time.
o Time is important but not sacred.
o Family and interpersonal relationships are more important than work.
o Actively involved with others.
Cultures...
ü Monochromic
o United States, Germany, Scandinavia and Switzerland.
ü Polychromic
o Latin Americans, Mediterranean people, Arabians.
Psychological Time
ü Importance placed on the past, present or future.
ü Past Orientation -- reverence to the past…good ole’ days
ü Present Orientation -- Live in the present for the present.
o Less $$ -- tend to be happy with what they have.
ü Future Orientation -- Focus on future
o More $$ -- tend to look down on other orientations as lazy, unmotivated.
Time and Status...
More Status you have, the more freedom you have!
Dinner…
Less status eat sooner
More status waits...
2 Guidelines for Improvement of Your Nonverbal Communication Skills!
monitor your nonverbal communication
be tentative interpreting others’ nonverbal communication
More Tips on Improving Nonverbal Communication:
Self-awareness

Being aware of the ways in which you communicate, and realizing different people have different ways of using nonverbal comm.
monitor behavior, take note of your posture, movements, and objects
ask friends for feedback
videotape yourself in a conversation or speech
Expand your repertoire of nonverbal activities

by expanding your own vocabulary for sending messages, you will expand your ability to decode the messages of others
Remember that good communication focuses on the receiver of the message
You can send appropriate signals to amplify or intensify your verbal messages

Student of Rai Business School-New Delhi
Sanjeev Kumar Singh

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