ORAL COMMUNICATION

• 65-75% of an executive’s time is spent on

oral communication.

• Is of significant importance to the sender

as well as receiver.
 ROLES OF SPEAKER
• Contents: Do one’s homework prior to the
event and ensure you have planned your
speech.
• Audience: Analyse audience in terms of their
requirements, knowledge, experience etc.
• Adaptation: Speaker must adapt according
to the nature and size of audience.
• Clarifications: One must clarify whatever
one is unsure about prior to making the
presentation.
 CHARACTERISTICS
• Follow up: with written communication since
there is no record for oral communication.
• Day to day language: Use of conversational
language.
• Presence of both: Both sender and receiver
are present during oral communication.
• Fast: Feedback and reaction are immediate,
resulting in a speedy communication process
 CHARACTERISTICS
• Understanding: Provides an immediate opportunity
to clarify what is being said.
• Communication principles: Accuracy, brevity and
clarity and three principles of communication.
• Sequencing: Introduce the topic, develop the
argument/logic, arrive at conclusion and call for
action.
• Feedback: Analyse listener’s response to gauge
whether the message has been received and
understood, and if not, what can be done to improve
matters.
 METHODS
• Face to face conversations
• Interviews
• Telephone conversations
• Meetings
• Grapevine (Discussion among employees on
various aspects of organisation)
• Negotiations
• Presentations
• Conferences
• Public Speeches
CATEGORIES OF CONVERSATION
• Speaking: have a pleasant, friendly voice and speak
in a relaxed informal manner.
• Listening: Concentrate on the speaker.
• Questioning: Ask for clarifications.
• Giving opinion: Express your views on a subject
after establishing a rapport.
• Gesturing: Keep gestures to minimum.
• Learning & teaching: Try to learn something useful
from conversations, and impart knowledge to
others.
 IMPROVING COMM. SKILLS
• Interested listener: Try to find an interested
listener, and then seek common interest and
experiences.
• Third person intervention: When a third
person joins the conversation, draw him into
the discussion by briefing him about the topic.
• Thanking: Accept compliments graciously by
thanking the other person.
• Develop new areas of conversation to
generate further interest.
 IMPROVING COMM. SKILLS
• Avoid slangs and abusive language.

• Avoid personal questions that may embarrass

the other person.

• Avoid disagreement and conflict by remaining

neutral.

• Keep silence when required.

• Be sensitive and courteous to the others.

 IMPROVING COMM. SKILLS
• Always look at the person when speaking.
• Never get too physically close to a person.
• Sitting posture should be relaxed.
• Try not to get into an argument.
• Conversation should be descriptive, not
evaluative.
• Don’t let a conversation go on if one is tired,
angry, bored or frustrated.
 STRUCTURING A TALK
4 W’s to structure a talk:

• Where are we going? (summarise agenda)

• Why should we care? (show benefit to
listener)
• What is it all about? (give details and
examples)
• Well… (let listeners know what they have to
do as a follow up to speaker’s message).
 CONTENT
• Decide what to include and what to exclude.

• Analyse audience and focus on their psyche

and motivation.

• Cover neither too much nor too little.

• Give supporting details.

• Ensure contents are relevant and accurate.

• Speech must have human interest.

 DELIVERY
• Authority: Generate authority and assurance to
generate confidence and empathy of audience.
• Involvement: Depth of speaker’s understanding of
subject matter. Avoid reading or reciting from
memory.
• Persuasiveness: Try to persuade audience to
accept belief/course of action for their own interest.
• Vocal expressiveness: Work with pitch, loudness,
rhythm and quality of voice.
• Be friendly with audience.
 ADVANTAGES
• Shades of meaning can be conveyed through
tone, pitch & intensity of voice.
• Saves time since words are understood as
soon as they are spoken.
• Immediate feedback.
• Speaker can be persuasive & carry
conviction.
• Saves money (cost of stationery, machinery
etc.)
 ADVANTAGES
• More informal.
• Secret and confidential information can be
communicated.
• Can be used to communicate with groups
(meetings, discussions, assemblies,
presentations, public speeches etc.)
• Can be used for communication with illiterate
people.
 DISADVANTAGES
• Can be misunderstood or misinterpreted
since it is not possible to refer to the message
again.

• Has little legal value since there is no record,

documentation or proof.

• Only a good speaker can communicate well.

• Not useful for lengthy communication or

technical information.
 DISADVANTAGES

• People cannot retain oral messages for a

long period of time.

• It is not possible to pinpoint responsibility.

• One cannot always be precise and accurate

since there is no time to consider words.
 USAGE OF ORAL COMM.
• Confidential/Secret messages

• Frank expression of ideas

• Urgent message has to be conveyed

• Personal touch is required

• Immediate feedback is required