ORGANIZATIONAL

COMMUNICATION.

BY

Mubarak
 Communication
 “the lubricant of organizations…”

 The art of being able to structure and transmit

a message in a way that another can easily
understand and/or accept

 Using symbols (words) to attempt to create

shared meaning (mutual understanding) that
will result in an effect on the two of them.

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 Organization

 The objective approach suggests that an

organization is a physical, concrete thing, that it is
tangible and actually holds people, relationships,
and goals. (container view of organization)
 A subjective approach looks at an organization as
activities that people do. Organization consists of
the actions, interactions, and transactions in which
people engage. Organization is created and
maintained through the continually changing
contacts people have with one another and does
not exist separately from the people whose
behavior constitutes the organization.

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Definition of Organizational
Communication:

A program that focuses on general communication

processes and dynamics within organizations. Includes
instruction in the development and maintenance of
interpersonal group relations within organizations;
decision-making and conflict management; the use of
symbols to create and maintain organizational images,
missions, and values; power and politics within
organizations; human interaction with computer
technology; and how communications socializes and
supports employees and team members.  (source: U. S.
Department of Education)

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The Communication Process

Noise

Decodes Decodes

Sender Channel Receiver

Encodes Encodes

Feedback

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Historical Trend Views can be Categorized

1. Org .communication as one aspect of organization

Example of Drenth et al (1998)
“ The sending and receiving of message by means of symbols and
see org. communication as key element of org .climate.”

2. As underlying basis of organization itself

Example of Myers and Myers (1982)
“ The central binding force that permits coordination among
people and thus allows for organized behavior.”
Example of Rogers and Rogers ( 1976)
“ The behavior of individuals in org. is best understood from
communication point of view.”

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 Continue

 Organizations evolved in such a directions that

make latter view more important. Changing an
organizations confronts have make org comm
important to over all organizational functions.

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Span of Organizational Communication

 Highly diverse and fragmented (Patches)

 Key distinctions with respect to org.
communication involve
i. Formal Vs informal
ii. Directional (Vertical, Horizontal,
Diagonal)
iii. Levels
iv. Internal vs external focus

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Formal Communication
 Communication through officially
designated channels of message flow between
organization positions
 Official information exchange
 Usually found in organizational charts, policy
manuals, or hierarchical structures

Informal Communication
 Episodes of interaction that do not
reflect officially designated channels of
communication.
 is inherent and even a necessary aspect of
organization life.
 Pro: Creates a relaxed, comfortable climate

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Directional Communication

 Vertical
D
i. Downward U
p
o
w
w Lateral n
ii. Upward a
r
w
a
 Horizontal d r
nal
d
go
 Diagonal
a
Di

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 Vertical Communication
• Occurs between the hierarchically positioned persons
• Status and power are not equal among participants in
vertical communication
• The flow of information both up and down the chain of
command
• Downward comm is more prevalent than upward
• Formal communication
• Recognized as official
• Downward Commis most effective if top managers
communicate directly with supervisors and supervisors
communicate with their staff (Larkin & Larkin: 1994)

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 Downward Communication
 flows from upper to lower (such as manager to employer or superior to
subordinate).
 Types of messages:
job instructions, job rationales, procedures and
practices information, feedback, and indoctrination. (Katz & Kahn, 1978)
 Pro- efficient (fast)
Con- managerial control
 Problems:
 information overload
 lack of openness - withhold information even if sharing is important
 filtering - some information is left out
message can be distorted by adding personal interpretation
the fewer the number of authority levels through which
communication must pass, the less information will be lost
or distorted

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International Association of Business
Communication, Survey 32,000 Employees
higher satisfaction with downward communication:
71 percent reported that their organization tried to
keep employees well informed.
65 percent agreed that they had been given sufficient
information to perform their jobs.
51 percent agreed that their organization’s downward
communication was candid (honest) and accurate.
 Found employees want to hear more
organizational news from top executives

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Level of certainty (Jablin 1980)

 Top managers should communicate directly

with immediate supervisors;
 Immediate supervisors should communicate
with their direct reports; and
 On issues of importance, top managers should
then follow-up by communicating with
employees directly.

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 Upward Communication
 Transmission of messages from lower to higher levels of the
organization ( comm initiated by subordinates with their
superiors)
 Types of messages: performance on the job, job related
problems, fellow employees and their problems, subordinates
perceptions of org policies and practices, tasks and procedures
Pro: managers learn what’s going on
 employees gain from the opportunity to communicate
upward
 promotes morale among all employees
 facilitates downward communication
Con: not enough superiors encourage subordinate
Problems similar to those for downward communication

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Employee satisfaction with upward communication
tends to be lower than their satisfaction with
downward communication (Gibson 1985)
management-based reasons
 strategies often do not involve two-way
communication.
 are not packaged well
employee-based reasons
 Fear of reprisal – afraid to speak their minds
 Filters – ideas/concerns are modified as they get
transmitted upward
 Time – managers give the impression that they don’t
have the time to listen to employees.

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 Horizontal Communication

Flow of messages across functional areas at a given level of

an organization (this permits people at the same level to
comm directly).

• The flow of information between colleagues and peers

• Trend of flatten org have enhance its importance
• Informal communication
• Does not follow the chain of command
• Not recognized as official

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Pro: direct contact among managers
 Integrate roles, task forces, and project teams
 management information systems
 create a culture of openness, honesty, trust, and
mutual obligation
 facilitates problem solving
Con: Not efficient (time consuming)

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Diagonal Communication

• Communication that cuts across both work

areas (functions) and organizational levels.
• in the interest of efficiency and speed.
• Important when members cannot
communicate through upward, downward,
or horizontal channels.

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COMMUNICATION WITHIN THE
BRAIN:  
Our brain is a collection of separate
parts that must learn to work
together. To help explain this,
neurophysiologist, Dr. Paul Maclean,
who heads the federal government
laboratory of brain evolution, has
developed the concept of an
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5-Steps of Communication

 Identify your Purpose;

 Analyze Your Audience.
 Choose Your Idea.
 Collect data to support your Idea.
 Organize your Message.

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 Levels Of Communication

 Communication is frequently divided into

following levels
 Interpersonal communication
 Group level communication
 Organizational level communication
 Inter-organizational level communication
 Mass communication (information to lots of people
at once )

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Internal Vs External Communication
 Internal communication involves the
communication that exists within a company and
can take many forms. Key to the success of an
organization is communication from within. In
order to effectively engage in two-way
symmetrical relations, (the goal of public relations
practitioners), communication is essential
internally.
 External communication covers how a provider
interacts with those outside their own
organization. This may be with the public,
employers, community organizations, local
authorities, job centers, careers offices, funding
bodies, specialist agencies and other training
providers.

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 Communication Networks
Sets of employees who have stable contact through which
information is generated and transmitted.

Types of Communication networks

Chain Network
Communication flows according to the formal
chain of command, both upward and downward

Wheel Network
All communication flows in and out through the group leader
(hub) to others in the group

All-Channel Network
Communication flows freely among all members of the work
team
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 Communication Networks and How They
Rate on Effectiveness Criteria
Chai Whee All-
n l Channel

Criteri
a
Spee Moderat F F
d
Accurac e
H ast
H ast
Moderat
y
Emergence of igh
Moderat igh
H e
N
leader
Member e
Moderat igh
Lo one
H
satisfaction e w igh

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 Grapevine
The Social network of informal communication through
which messages flow throughout the organization.

helps people to interpret the organization

conveys information that the formal system leaves
unsaid

“When the grapevine allows employees to know about a

management decision almost before it is made,
management must be doing something right.”

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One Way Vs Two Way Communication

Person A Person B
Sender 3. Receiver
Communication
1. Intended 4. Decoding
channel
meaning
5. Perceived
2. Encoding meaning
10. Intended Sender
meaning 8.
Communication
6. Intended
channel meaning
9. Decoding
(receiver) 7. Encoding
Two-way
One-way communication
communication if B sends
feedback to A
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 Barriers to Organizational Communication

Physical Barriers
Distortion
Lack of Subject Knowledge
Ambiguous, Muddled Messages
Semantics(The study of language with
special concern for the meanings of words
and other symbols.)
Rumors
Stress
Information overload
Failing to Communicate /Loss of Transmission
Hesitation to be candid
Narrow viewpoints
The message is delivered to the wrong audience

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Cont..

Unreliable transmission (due to noise or inconsistent

sending)
Misreading non-verbal elements
Avoiding non-verbal elements
Status differences
Distorted perception
Organizational culture
Slowed communications
Boundary differences
Cultural, Linguistic, and Diversity Barriers
Not Listening/Selective hearing
Lack of basic communication skills.

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 Psychological Barriers
 Perception
 Selectivity/exposure filtering out of unpleasant things and
focusing on or recalling things not heard.
 Retention filtering of things that feel good, and the tendency
to forget those things that are painful.
 Experiential Barriers
 The difficulty in understanding things not personally
experienced.
 Emotions
 Communication can involve tension, fear , anger and other
emotions and can hamper ability to speak clearly
 Emotions influence both what is said and what is heard.
 Never blame someone else for a problem
 Defensiveness
 Adjustments people make to avoid acknowledging personal
inadequacies that might reduce their self-esteem

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 Written communication

 With increased use of e-mail, managers

substitute face-to-face communication with e-
mail
 Communication Objective Guidelines
Memos
Letters
Reports
Bulletin board notices
Posters
Computers/e-mail
Fax

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 Effectiveness of Communication

 Related to timing
 Related to choice of channel
 Related to message structure
 Related to delivery style
 Related to mode

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Requisites for a promotable
Executive
1. Ability to Communicate
2. Ambition- Drive
3. College Education
4. Sound Decision Making Skills
5. Good Appearance
6. Ability to get things done with and
through people.
7. Capacity for Hard work

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 7 Cs
in Communication/5Cs in verbal

1. Completeness
2. Conciseness
3. Consideration
4. Concreteness
5. Clarity
6. Courtesy
7. Correctness
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 Completeness

 Provide all necessary information.

 Answer all questions asked.
 Give something extra, when
desirable.

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 Conciseness

 Eliminate wordy expressions.

 Include only relevant material.
 Avoid unnecessary repetition.

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 Consideration

 Focus on ‘you’ instead of ‘I’ or ‘we’.

 Show audience benefit or interest in
receiver.
 Emphasize positive ,pleasant facts.

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 Concreteness

 Use specific facts and figures.

 Put actions in your verbs.
 Choose vivid, image building words.

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 Clarity

 Choose precise, concrete and

familiar words.
 Construct effective sentences, and
paragraph.

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 Courtesy

 Be sincerely tactful, thoughtful, and

appreciative.
 Use expressions that show respect.
 Choose non discriminatory
expressions.

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 Correctness

 Use the right level of language.

 Check accuracy of figures, facts and
words.
 Maintain acceptable writing
mechanics.

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Person to person communication in
organization

 Male to male.
 Male to female.
 Female to female.
 Female to male.

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 Male to male.

 More formal.
 Relevant to job.

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 Male to female.

 Sympathetic.
 Relevant to job.

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 Female to female.
 More social.
 Less relevant to job.

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 Female to male
 More courteous.
 More relevant to job.

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Good communication
is stimulating as
black coffee, and
just as hard to sleep
after.
Anne Morrow: American Writer and aviation pioneer (1906-2001)

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Communicate positively and truly.

Thanks
Mubarak