How may communication affect organizations? - Chapter 12

Communication is of key importance to organizations, as it is related to both job performance and job satisfaction. Talking is the basis of the work of a manager. Without a doubt, spoken communication is a powerful way to influence others. In addition, nonverbal communication can be used for various different purposes. Yet, it is important to be aware that leaders cannot not communicate. Even not communicating is interpreted (for instance, remaining silent or not showing up for a meeting).

What are the characteristics of the communication process?

Organizational communication refers to the process in which individuals stimulate meaning in the minds of other individuals by means of verbal and nonverbal messages in the context of a formal organization. Positive organizational communication is related to both job performance and job satisfaction. 

To understand the two-party communication process, it is important to understand the Shannon-Weaver model of communication. The elements of this model are:

• The sender: the source transmission who selects a desired message (written, spoken, pictures, music, or a combination).
• Encoding: the transformation of the message into the signal (transmitter > communication channel > receiver).
• The channel: the medium that transmits the message. 
• Decoding: translating the message by what is seen and heard into an understanding of the message. This is not a perfect process, because there is noise in the communication process that affects this decoding process. Noise is defined as any communication barrier that may affect how a person interprets the message. Examples are perceptual bias, language barriers and cultural differences.
• The receiver: the person who receives the message. 

How does communication apprehension affect the communication process?

As is mentioned at the decoding process, there may be barriers, blocking effective communication. Some people are uncomfortable communicating with others, this imposes a significant barrier to their success as a leader. Communication apprehension (CA) refers to an individual's level of fear or anxiety with either real or anticipated communication with other people. In other words, CA is anxiety or fear of an individual of either actual or anticipated communication, with a group or a person, that can profoundly affect their oral communication, social skills and self-esteem. 

Words may have different meaning to different people, even if they are communicating in the same language. Due to noise and communication barriers, it is important for the receiver to provide feedback to the sender to ensure that the communicated message was understood correctly. One way to achieve this is via active listening, defined as the way of listening that is creative, active, sensitive, accurate, empathic and nonjudgmental. Leader must become active listeners as it allows them to verify their communications, clarify messages and encourage more two-way communication with followers. The three components of active listening are:

1. It demonstrates moderate to high nonverbal involvement.
2. It reflects the message of the speaker, using verbal paraphrasing.
3. It may include asking questions that encourage speakers to elaborate on their experiences.

Guidelines for active listening in organizations can be summarized as follows:

• Listen to understand the complete meaning.
• Respond to feelings.
• Note all (nonverbal) cues. 

What are the characteristics of the different forms of communication networks?

Communication often occurs through networks that flow in all directions; upward communication, downward communication and lateral communication. Upward communication is defined as the process where employees communicate with superiors. This provides essential feedback to leaders, regarding whether employees understood their messages. Upward communication is essential for leaders to implement change. Another common way in which communication occurs is through the informal network, known as grapevine. Often, this includes rumor and gossip, but it is still an important source of information that leaders need to tap into. A study found that 89% of the 419 managers believed that the grapevine carried rumors that reflected a lack of trust in organizational leaders and their policies. 

There are different forms of communication networks:

• The wheel network indicates that all communication flows through one person, most likely the group leader.
• In the circle network each person can communicate with two others that are located to them.
• The all-channel (or star) network is more decentralized and allows a free flow of information among all group members.
• The chain refers to a flow of information among members, even though the people are at the end of the chain.
• The Y-pattern is a bit less centralized than the all-channel network, because two persons are closer to the center of the network. It can be visualized as a (short) chain with a split into two branches.

Organizational communication can be both internal and external. Internal communication refers to the communication transactions between individuals or groups at various levels and in different areas of specialization that is intended to (re)design organizations, to complement designs, and to co-ordinate daily activities. External communication is defined as communication that is shared with the public through marketing and public relations efforts. These communication flows are important, since leaders should create a positive impression with various stakeholders, such as customers, shareholders, the government and the general public. Nowadays, the distinction between external and internal communication is more blurred, because employees are now considered important stakeholders of an organization. Moreover, some employees communicate externally with suppliers, customers, or clients, also known as boundary spanners. Consequently, external and internal communications have become fused into one function in many organizations, representing integrated communications. 

What are the advantages and disadvantages of electronic communication?

Electronic communication, such as e-mail, is fast. Research found that more information is conveyed in e-mail than in other communication mediums. People pay less attention to social cues that suppress information and are more uninhibited in e-mails. Because of this inhibitation, harassment may be more likely to occur through e-mail than face-to-face. Therefore, organizations should have formal policies for e-harassment. Leader should avoid e-harassment. Over time, the internet has developed rules on how to be polite in e-mail communication, also called netiguette. Some netiguette rules are: be careful about forwarding messages. If you are not sure if the original sender wants the message to be forwarded, do not do it. Also, do not expect answer right away. E-mails may be delivered quickly, but your recipient may not read it immediately. Other topics to consider, related to after-hours communication, are: is after-hours communication appropriate? How will after-hours communication be received? How can the potential negative impact of after-hours communication be minimized?

Text messages via smartphones and other mobile devices are a way of quickly checking e-mail and sending messages more frequently than ever, even during evenings and weekends. Due to their short character, text messages will probably never replace e-mail as the primary mode of electronic business communication. Moreover, using mobile devices may be distracting and harm productivity.

Social networking may be of use in finding a job (via recruiters), promoting the organization, and communicating messages more broadly. Yet, it is important that social media sites are public, so discretion matters. Another challenge is cyberslacking: an increase in the use of the internet for personal use during working hours. 

Lastly, videoconferencing (conducting virtual meetings) is becoming more and more popular, especially during the covid-19 crisis, making it possible to 'meet' with people from all over the world, saving (travel) time and expenses. Yet, cross-cultural communication is now more important than ever. 

How to communicate effectively across cultures?

Cross-cultural communication refers to the ability to communicate effectively with people from other cultures. Nowadays, this is an essential leadership skill. Notice that it is different from intercultural communication in which the focus is on the behavior of two individuals' communication patterns. Instead, cross-cultural communication compares one culture to the other. Cultural differences may result in misunderstandings, even if communication is in the same language. Translation adds yet another layer of complexity that may lead to (more) misunderstandings. 

Emotional intelligence (EI) is positively associated with communication competence. Other ways of improving communication are preparation for cross-cultural communication challenges, active listening and bilangualism. Lastly, training in cross-cultural communication is also effective.  

What is the significance of nonverbal face-to-face communication?

Nonverbal communication refers to the sending and receiving of thoughts and feelings via nonverbal behavior, such as facial expressions, posture, gestures, and tone of voice. Nonverbal communication serves the following functions in organizations:

• Display of personal attributes (personality, intentions, attitudes).
• Establishment of dominance and hierarchy.
• Promotion of social functioning.
• Fostering high-quality relationships.
• Display of emotions. 

Why do employees remain silent or withhold information and how to address this? 

Employee silence refers to the intentional withholding of meaningful information from management, which includes asking questions, expressing concerns, and offering suggestions. It forms a barrier to organizational change and compromises the ability to hear different points of view on important organizational matters. It also has negative consequences for the employee, as it is negatively related to job satisfaction and organizational commitment. To conclude, organizational silence has various negative outcomes for both employees and the organization. 

The most common incidents to which respondents reported remaining silent are (from most common to least common):

• Experienced unfair treatment (21,0%)
• Someone else behaving unethically (17,6%)
• Concerns about a coworker's competence or performance (16,8%)
• Operational process concern and/or idea for improvement (13,3%)
• Disagreement or concerns with company policies or decisions (6,5%)
• Personal performance issue (6,2%)
• Concerns about supervisor or management competence (6,0%)
• Someone else being treated unfairly (3,5%)
• Personal career issue or concern (1,9%)
• Unclear (7,2%)

What to do about it? Research suggested that employee involvement and a participative climate both encourage employees to provide opinions, which reduce organizational silence. Moreover, ethical leadership supports employees and encourages them to be more confident to speak up in a constructive way.