JTW106E/JUW 106E/JTW 117E

Business Communication

Dr. Wan Afezah

[email protected]
04-653 4565

Fb: DrAfezah Pjj

Group JUW 106E:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/319623808182673/?ref=bookmarks
 Chapter 1
Professional Communication
in a Digital, Social, and
Mobile World
Communication .........

a process of exchange messages between two

or more individuals.

Business communication .........

a process of sharing information between people

within the workplace and outside the company.
 Communication
1. Process of sending and receiving messages (requires
skill and attention).
2. Process of transferring information and meaning
between senders and receivers, either: one or more
written, oral, visual, or electronic channels.
3. Providing data, information, insights, and inspiration
in an exchange that benefits both parties.
 Why Communication?

1. Improving communication skills is the most important

step in your career.
2. Ambition and ideas are not enough.
3. To be successful, you will need to communicate with
people (communicate as professional).
4. Learn to write, speak, and listen well, and
communicate in any situation.
5. Gain a major advantage that will serve you
throughout your career.
Communication is Important to
Your Career
1. Can express clearly and persuasively.
2. Share complex ideas with executives, customers,
colleagues.
3. Ability to connect with people.
4. Communicate effectively with a wide range of
audiences.
5. Chances of support network.
6. Career growth and success.
 Communication is Important
to Your Career
7. Better understanding, less confusion.
8. Stronger decision making.
9. Better satisfaction/good response.
10. Organize, express ideas effectively.
11. Able to listen to others attentively.
12. Effective communication.
13. Enhance sensitivity.
 Benefits to the Company
1. A stronger sense of trust.
2. Closer ties with important communities in the
marketplace.
3. Opportunities to influence conversations, trends.
4. Increased productivity and faster problem solving.
5. Clearer and more persuasive marketing messages.
6. Greater engagement , higher satisfaction and lower
employer turnover.
 Benefits to the Company
7. Warning of potential problems, rising from business
costs to critical safety issues.
8. Stronger decision making based on timely, reliable
information.
9. Clearer more persuasive marketing messages.
10. Greater employee engagement.
11. Higher satisfaction and lower turnover.
 Benefits as Employee
1. Pursue ambitions & express ideas.
2. Globalization & workforce diversity.
3. Value of business information.
4. Technology.
5. Organizational structures and leadership styles.
6. Teamwork.
7. Get an advantage in the job market.
8. The changing nature of employment.
 The Importance of Communication

1. To get the message clear- both ways.

2. Some of us, have different backgrounds:
a. Try to understand our listeners.
b. We need to make sure that other people understand the words that are coming
from our mouths.
c. Aware -same words but different meanings.
3. Opportunities to influence conversations or perceptions.
Communicating as a Professional
Elements of Professionalism
1. Be the best - striving to excel
2. Being dependable and accountable
3. Being a team player – contribute to the group
4. Be respectful - demonstrating a sense of etiquette
5. Be ethical - making ethical decisions
6. Be positive - maintaining a positive outlook
 The Importance of Effective
Communication

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnjELz3TQD4
1.50
Credit to Chris Hadfield (2014)
Video 1
Benefits of Effective Communication

1. Internal
a) exchange ideas within an organization.

2. External
a) carries information into and out of the
organization.
 Effective Communication
1. Effective communication strengthens the connection
between a company and all of its stakeholders.
2. When communication breaks down, the results can
range from time wasting to tragic.
3. To make the communication efforts as effective as
possible:
a. Provide practical information.
b. Give facts rather than vague impressions.
c. Clarify expectations and responsibilities.
d. Present information in a concise, efficient manner.
e. Offer compelling, persuasive arguments and recommendations.
 Communicate Clearly!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48KPOF96gzo
2.16
Credit to Karyn Buxman (2013)
Video 2
How to Communicate Effectively?

Increase value of business information by:

a) Competitive insights-know your competitors.
b) Understand customer needs.
c) Use “audience centered-approach”.
d) Regulations and guidelines.
Communication With Others

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psTFOHO5SZg
1.13
Credit to Small Business Coach Justin Tamsett (2013).
Video 3
What Employers Expect From You?

1. Be able to organize ideas and information logically.

2. Listen to others actively.
3. Communicate in a civilized manner.
4. Improve intercultural and workplace sensitivity.
5. Manage time wisely.
6. Use the resources efficiently.
 Social Communication
1. Using “Business Communication 2.0” approach.
 “Let’s have a conversation approach” instead of “we
talk, you listen approach”.
2. Increase communication, speed, cost, access, and
satisfaction.
3. Open to all participations.
4. Get feedback, new ideas/insights.
5. Rising of mobile revolution (biggest technology shift).
6. Using technology as productive tools (mobile devices).
Building Communication Skills
1. Commit to ethical and legal communication (avoid
plagiarize, misquote/misinformation).
2. Adopt an audience-centered approach.
3. Use technology to improve business communication.
4. Improve intercultural sensitivity and workplace
sensitivity.
5. Respect privacy and security needs.
 Barriers in the Communication
1. Noise and distraction.
2. Competing messages (unable to deliver the message).
3. Filters (messages are blocked).
4. Channel breakdowns (computer server might crashed).
Barriers in the Communication

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slq1nAhZuqE
3.03
Credit to Young Entrepreneurs Forum (2016).
Video 4
The Rise of Mobile As A Communication Platform
1. More Internet users access the web with a mobile device.
2. Becomes a primary communication platform.
3. Majority of employees use mobile as their main
communication tool.
4. Mobile apps and communication systems can boost employee
productivity.
5. Help companies form closer relationships with customers and
business partners.
6. Email and web browsing rank first and second as the most
common non-voice uses of smartphones.
7. More email messages are now opened on mobile devices
than on PCs.
8. Provide access to the internet (e-mail, web browsing etc).
9. Enhance productivity and collaboration, reduce costs.
 Using Technology to Improve
Business Communication

1. To help enhance communication process.

2. Guard against information overload.
3. Use appropriately (not a distraction).
4. Connect with people.
Keeping Technology in Perspective

Technology
Technology ProsPros Technology Cons
Technology Cons
Useful Tool Can’t Think for You
Useful Tool Can’t Think for You
Enhances Communication
Process Can’t Fill in Skills Gaps
Enhances Communication Process Can’t Fill in Skills Gaps
Assists in Accomplishment of Not a Replacement for
Tasks Communication
Not a Replacement for
Assists in Accomplishment of Tasks Communication
Ethical and Legal Communication
1. Includes all relevant communication.
2. Unethical communication is communication that presents
misleading information or encourages social immorality.
3. Failing to respect privacy or information security needs.
4. Example of unethical communication:
a. Plagiarism
b. Omitting essential information.
c. Misquoting.
d. Misrepresenting numbers/visuals.
Ensuring Legal Communication
1. Code of Ethics
2. Contracts
3. Employment communication
4. Intellectual property
5. Defamation
6. Transparency
Chapter 2

Collaboration,
Interpersonal
Communication and
Business Etiquette
 Communicating Effectively in
Teams
1. Team –a unit or two or more people who share a
mission and the responsibility to achieve a common
goal.
2. Collaboration-working together to meet complex
challenges.
3. Problem solving teams-resolve specific issues and
disband when the goals have been accomplished.
4. Committees-formal teams that usually become a
permanent part of the organization.
 Communication in Teams
Advantages
1. Increased information and knowledge.
2. Broadest possible pool of talent, wider range of
employee talents.
3. Increased diversity of views-broader ideas, help
companies understand market better with diverse
groups.
4. Increased acceptance of a solution.
5. Higher performance levels.
 Communication in Teams
Disadvantages
1. Groupthink-teams withhold unpopular opinions.
2. Hidden agendas-certain motive, take control of the
group.
3. Cost-time consuming (meetings, schedules).
4. Challenge in intercultural communication.
5. Problem in fostering cooperation and harmony
among them.
 Three Types of Team Roles
1. Self-oriented roles: motivated to fulfill personal
needs.
2. Team-maintenance roles: to help everyone work well
together.
3. Task-oriented roles: to help the team reach its goals.
 Resolving Conflict
1. Proactive behavior-deal with minor conflict before it
becomes major conflict (competitions, power struggles,
attitudes, personalities).
2. Communication-participate in resolving it.
3. Openness-express understanding, explain and offer
reassurance.
4. Research- look for actual problems to get the solutions.
5. Flexibility-bring it out into open, discuss it and find
solutions.
6. Fair play- evaluate others fairly, give alternatives.
 Collaborative Writing

1. Select collaborators(teams) carefully.

2. Agree on project goals.
3. Give your team time to bond.
4. Clarify everyone/individual responsibilities.
5. Explain the processes (make sure everyone
understand the process from start to finish).
6. Avoid composing as a group.
7. Make sure the tools needed are ready and
available/compatible.
8. Check the processes on regular basis.
 Preparing for Meetings

1. Define the purpose.

2. Select participants for the meeting.
3. Choose the venue and the time.
4. Set the agenda.
 Efficient Meetings
1. Keep discussion on track.
2. Follow agreed upon rules.
3. Encourage participation-ask
the quiet one for their input.
4. Participate actively.
5. Use mobile devices
respectfully.
6. Close the meeting
effectively-summarize the
objectives and arrange for
follow-up work.
 The Importance of Listening

1. Listening:
a. The process of receiving, constructing meaning from and responding
to spoken and/or nonverbal messages.
b. A collection of skills involving attention and concentration (receiving),
learning (understanding), memory (remembering), critical thinking
(evaluation) and feedback (responding).
c. It is one of the most important skills in the workplace.
2. To be a good listener, you must adapt the way you listen to
suit the situations.
3. Helps you to acquire knowledge of others, avoid problems
and make more reasonable decisions.
4. Helps you to relate, to form and maintain relationships with
others and gain social acceptance.
 Type of Listening Skills
1. Content listening -understand & retain the speaker’s
message.
2. Critical listening -understand & evaluate the
speaker’s message.
3. Empathic listening -understand the speaker’s
feelings, needs, and wants in order to appreciate the
points.
4. Selective listening- only listen to the part of what the
speaker is saying.
 Listening Process
1. Receiving
2. Decoding
3. Remembering
4. Evaluating
5. Responding
 Types of Nonverbal
Communication
1. Facial expression.
2. Gesture and posture.
3. Vocal characteristics.
4. Personal appearance.
5. Touch.
6. Time and space.
 Business Etiquette Online
1. Avoid personal attacks.
2. Stay focus on the topic.
3. Don’t present opinion as facts, and support facts with
evidence.
4. Follow basic expectations of spelling, punctuation, and
capitalization.
5. Use virus protection and keep it up to date.
6. Watch your language and keep your emotion under control.
7. Avoid multitasking.
8. Do not use confusing/sloppy messages.
9. Respect time/virtual space.
10. Be careful with your comments.
The End