BUSINESS COMMUNICATION - QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

 1.            Business letter is an old method of sending message to those outside the organization.  Does it still have a place in the conduct of Business today?

Answer:

The relevance of Business letter to an organization today’s business world still be overemphasized.  In spite of the ever-growing use of telephone and other electronic media for business communication, the letter continues to play an important role in the conduct of business.  For example, letters provide the most personal, contact an organization has with its public, as well as other business organization or governmental agencies. 

Business letters are classified into the following:

(1)  Information letters

(2)  Problem letters

(3)  Goodwill letters

(4)  Sales letters

2.            Design an effective communication strategy for the promotion of any industrial product of your choice.

Answer:

This involves the announcement of goods and services offered by a company.  It is intended to project the image of goods, services or people in an organization.

a.    Designing the promotion Plan.

b.    Message Content:

c.    Message Format:

d.    Message Source:

3.            Write a letter to your customer introducing a new product offered by your company.

Answer:

The Personnel Manager,

J.M.G. Generators,

Maitama Branch,

Abuja.

Dear Sir,

INTRODUCTION OF NEW SAFETY PRODUCTS

We wish to introduce to you the new range of industrial/safety products.  We all know that protection of the workers against industrial hazards is of paramount importance.  If they are properly protected, they will be free from accidents and put in more working hours per day.

Below is the list of the new products:

a.    Helmet: This made of finest and strong ceramic, well padded and cushioned for comfortability

b.    Rainboot:  This highly installed, chemical and acid resistant.

We also produce to specifications and supply within specified period of time an d at designated place.

We hope this will give us an opportunity to start a good and long lasting business relationship with your establishment.

Yours faithfully,

Odey Ochiche

Marketing Manager.

4.            There are many ways of conveying message from a sender to a receiver.  Which one do you consider best and why?

Answer:

There are many modes of conveying message from a sender to a receiver.  Each of these modes has its advantages and disadvantages.  If for instance you have a message to send to your friend in Zamfara; you may decide to deliver the message in person, you may decide to call him or her on the phone, and you may decide to write that person a letter, or even send it through e-mail.  All these are some of the different options open to you for the transmission of the message to your friend in Zamfara.  It is obvious that while you have many options available to you for transmitting your message, the cost and effectiveness of each of these means a transmission differ.  The message, the target audience, the competence and the resources of the sender and other environmental factors.

A thorough understanding of the different demands, merits and demerits of the different modes of communication would help you decide at all times which is the most cost-effective and efficient means of conveying what message.

The modes of communication can be classified into three namely:

a.    Oral Mode

b.   Written Mode; and

c.    Mediated Communication

ORAL MODE – Oral communication is used in day-to-day activities like conversations, interviews, tutorials and other discussions that are done in a face-to-face communication situation.  Oral communication can take place between two people , among a small group or  a large group of people.  When an individual voices out his thought, he is said to be engaged in a form of oral communication.

In Oral communication, the participants do not only use peach but also the tone of their voices in conveying meanings.  There is also the use of facial expressions, gestures and other expressive body movements to reinforce the message being conveyed. 

FACTORS THAT AFFECT ORAL COMMUNICATION

Oral communication is has four basic controlling factors that the intending user needs to take into consideration before deciding for this mode.  These are behaviour, appearance, voice quality and listening skills.

ADVANTAGES OF ORAL MODE

(a)  It gives room for instant reception, processing and feedback from the receiver.

(b)  The instant feedback reduces uncertainly in the interpretation of the message.

(c)  It is flexible and the sender has the opportunity to adopt his message to suit his audience

(d)  It is competitively cheap and timely if the participants are within the reach.

DISADVANTAGES OF ORAL MODE  

(a)  It is basically transient (lasting for a short period only), and may not be easily recalled for future reference, unless recorded with the aid of an electronic device like tape recorder or camera. 

(b)  Oral Communication is easily misrepresented and susceptible to different forms of distortions raging from omission of detail, addition of extra information, modification of message to suite personal idiosyncrasies, high lightening of a few details etc.

(c)  Some emotional messages like termination, death retrenchment and other misfortunes are not easy to convey to the victims by words of mouth.

(d)  It is often not practical or convenient to reach and converse with high level officials in a face-to-face encounter.

WRITTEN MODE

This refers to the translation of oral messages into alphabetic symbols.   It ranges form the human and writing to the printed text.  This mode of communication is used for documents like letters, memoranda, minutes of meeting, posters, computer print outs and newspapers.

ADVANTAGES OF WRITTEN MODE

(a)  Written communication is more permanent and can be stored for future reference.

(b)   In business, written communication helps us to confirm our transactions and commitments made orally.

(c)  It cannot be easily misquoted since materials can easily be retrieved for verification.

(d)  It can be read several times over for a better understanding of the content.  It can also be read anywhere at any time the reader chooses.

(e)  The sender can edit his message and introduce new ideas before transmission.

(f)   It can be read several times by the sender and modified before it is transmitted to the readers.

DISADVANTAGES OF WRITTEN MODE

(a)  Written communication has a delayed feedback

(b)  It does not have instant reception and interpretation like oral communication. 

(c)  People are cautious in composing written messages because they could be used again them in future or in a law court

(d)  It is more expensive compared to the oral mode.

MEDIATED COMMUNICATION

Mediated Communication involves the transmission of oral and/or written messages through electronic devices like fax, telephone, radio, television, on-line computer, teletype, electronic mails, walkie-talkie, microfilm, video tapes and the like. 

ADVANTAGES OF MEDIATED COMMUNICATION

(a)  It provides greater convenience to the participants because they can engage in other activities as they communicate.

(b)   It gives the sender more flexibility in the techniques of packaging and sending his message.

(c)  It gives the receiver greater control over the message reception in that he can decide to tune in or off at his convenience. 

(d)  It provides more information to many people at the same time.

DISADVANTAGES OF MEDIATED COMMUNICATION

(a)  Most mediated communication lack the advantage of combining oral and non-verbal means for more faithful and effective transmission and reception of message.

(b)  Most mediated communications are depersonalised so much so that the participants may not know much about each other.  This could hamper the success of the communication

(c)  The gadgets are expensive to acquire, consequently, they are beyond the reach of some potential receivers.  After all, you need to own a set to receive the message.

                   

5.            Communication problem is inevitable in organization.  Discuss

Answer:

Communication problems are common to any organization.  It is almost impossible to eradicate communication problems within an organization.  No matter how careful you prepare for and monitor situations or your communication transactions, there are bound to be instances in which your perception, language usage or information overload may create problems.  It is even more problematic when we recognize the fact that communication problems in an organization could emanate not only from the sender but also from the receiver or channel of transmission.

However, as a business communicator, becoming aware of potential problem areas would help you guard against them or respond to them effectively when they occur.  The likely distortions to transmitted messages in any business organization include the following:

(1)  Serial distortion

(2)  Perceptual distortion

(3)  Semantic distortion and

(4)  Overload and under-load

SERIAL DISTORTION

This refers to the kinds of modification that messages are subjected to in the course of transmission from one person or place to another.  The more often a message is transmitted, the more likely it is that errors in transmission will occur.  This is a common problem in business organizations because most messages must necessarily pass through a number of people before work is accomplished or a task is executed.  It also occurs when the grapevine is used to convey official messages.

Then how do we reduce serial distortion in an organization?

Serial distortion is a problem that can be reduced by training employees to monitor the accuracy of the received messages.  The key to overcoming serial distortion problems is the willingness of communicator mutually to check message accuracy.  Other guidelines for checking serial distortions include:

(1) Recognise that most messages pass through other person before reaching you (2) Check out the accuracy of the message prior to acting upon it.  Never assume you have received accurate information unless the person given it to you is responsible for evaluating your work on it. (3)  Keep a record of the accuracy of messages given to you by individuals in the organization.

PERCETUAL DISTORTION

This occurs as a result of individual differences in attitudes, values, belief and behaviour.  The perceptual distortion in any organization includes the following:

(1) Difference in status (e.g. communication between subordinates and superior in the organization)  (2) Difference in race, age and religious demonstrating public respect for others while harbouring private reservations e.g. past experiences, biases, prejudices and fears about a particular group in the society. (3) Difference in value – values about ideas or controversies outside the organization often influence perceptions of the worth or stability of individual personalities. (4) Differences in style- this includes the style of dress, style of leadership, style of perception, style of conflict management and style of communication. 

SEMANTIC DISTORTION

Semantic distortion arises from symbolic which usually have variety of meanings.  We often have to choose one meaning from among many.  Semantic distortion occurs because of misunderstanding or disagreement between or among people over the meaning of words.

(i)           Definitional distortions or disagreements over how something should be defined or classified

(ii)         Emotional distortion or distortion based on passionate images conjured up by the use of certain words or phrase (e.g. “Nigger” or “hockey” etc).

OVERLOAD AND UNDERLOAD

This problem is based on having too much or too little information at any point in time.  It is based on different human limitations, the limitation of needing more, or having too much information. 

What must you do?

(i)           Keep accurate records of all meetings, conferences and other important communication situations.  You many not be able to overcome information overload or under-load using this method, but you will be able to produce documentation showing what information you did use to make decisions or to implement them.

(ii)         Monitor your use of time carefully; try to learn how to budget your time and to make time during crises. 

(iii)       Stay in contact with your networks.  It is vital to be in touch with persons who can pass along information to you in addition to what you receive through formal channels. 

6.            Maryarm is a student of University of Abuja.  Her problem is that she is always afraid to start conversation simply because her friend, Maimuna is feeling shy too.  As an effective communicator, advice Maryam or even both of them on what to do.

Answer:

Maryarn and Maimuna should follow the guidelines below for effective communication devoid of shame and fear.

GUIDELINES FOR CONVERSATION

                         i.    Do not be afraid to start conversation because the other person is probably feeling shy just as you are.

                       ii.    Do not be afraid to voice out your opinion even if you are not through and   knowledgeable on the subject.

                     iii.    Try not to use too many big words and phrases

                      iv.    Try to speak as clearly as possible

                        v.    Decide whether a conversation should be brief or not

                      vi.    Extend your vocabulary, learn new words and read widely.

                     vii.    Seek for knowledge in the subject that interests you and try to become an expert in it.

                   viii.    Learn to develop self confidence so that you can share the knowledge with others

                      ix.    Be a good listener

7.            What do you understand by presentation?

Answer:

Presentations – in most organizations today, managers are usually called upon to make presentation to their colleagues or their superiors.  Presentations are widely used in selling situations, and in management planning exercises; they are also used when formally introducing major reports or when introducing new ideas or proposal to colleagues.

There are three key elements in any presentation:

(1)  Preparation (2) Content (3) Delivery

Preparation is vital prerequisite for any presentation.  The person making the presentation needs to consider the content of his talk and its delivery.  As far as content is concerned, this is primarily a question of considering what to include and what to leave out, taking into consideration the needs and prior knowledge of the audience.  Deliver the presentation again depends largely on the nature of the audience.  Some people will not be satisfied with anything less than a brilliant display of wit and ingenuity; other will be quite satisfied with a low-key, but extremely relevant demonstration. 

8.            What are the things to take into consideration while presenting a paper?

Answer:

GUIDES ON PRESENTATION

I.                             Consider your audience and their needs.

II.    Assemble your facts and ideas in the light of (I) above; and taking account of the complexity of the material.

III.                          Develop sufficient and suitable visual aids.

IV.  Tell your audience what you are going to tell them, and then tell them what you have told them

V.   Consider what other information should be made available (drawing, specifications, reports etc).

VI.  Be natural, i.e if you are a quiet person, and then be quietly enthusiastic

VII. Be prepared for questions both during and at the end of your presentation

9.            What are the factors that affect Oral Communication?

Answer:

Oral communication has four basic controlling factors that the intending user needs to take into consideration before deciding for this mode.  These are behaviour, appearance, voice quality and listening skills.

(I)   Behaviour – Note that oral communication does not entail speech and sound alone; it includes gestures, facial expression and other body movements that are capable of supporting the spoken words. Often confusion arises as to the meaning of what was said if it was not accompanied by appropriate gestures.  

(II)       Appearance – here refers to other items of information like costumes, make-up, hairstyle, nails, jewelleries and other objects that compliment the physical appearance of the speaker.  Often in oral communication, the speaker’s appearance is the first thing that strikes the receiver long before the speaker says a thing. 

(III)    Voice Quality – this factor refers to the speakers’ use of tone, pitch and stress.  It involves the speaker’s mastery of the rules of the language as well as his phonetics, that is, pronunciation and articulation.  Some people are naturally endowed with sweet, melodious voices that can easily convince people, while others have coarse voice quality that tends to irritate their listener’s ears.

(IV)    Listening Skills – In oral communication, it is not enough for the speaker to know how to pass his or her messages or to adopt appropriate appearance and behaviour, he must be a good listener too.

10.         What makes it so unique as compared with other modes of communication?

Answer:

ADVANTAGES OF ORAL MODE OF COMMUNICATION

(a)                                                  It gives room for instant reception, processing and feedback from the receiver

(b)                                                  The instant feedback reduces uncertainty in the interpretation of the message

(c)  It is flexible and the sender has the opportunity to adopt his message to suit his audience

(d)                                                   Offers better possibilities for further planning of the message.

(e)                                                  The source can assess the weak points in his communication on the spot

(f)                                                   It assures the sender that his message is not only being received but understood

(g)                                                  It is competitively cheap and timely if the participants are within the reach.

11.         Why is communication so important in business management?

Answer:

The Importance of Communication in Business Management – Communication system is very essential in the management of a business. This is applicable to both small and large business enterprises.  Communication depends on clear thinking.  You must know to whom you want to communicate and then decide on the best means of doing it.

The importance of communication for the survival of the individual and organizations cannot be overemphasized.  This is as a result of the following:

(a) Growth of the business organization (b) competition (c) Specialization of task

(d) Workers training (e) Crisis Management (f) Motivation (g) Evaluation (h) Government relations.

(a)  Growth of the Business Organization – Most business organizations are much larger today than they were some years ago.  Then, as the organization grows, so also do its communication problems. That is why effective communication system is needed in any organization so as to achieve its goals and objectives.

(b)  Workers Training – Training in any organization is very important in ensuring efficiency of the workforce.  Though related to workers’ education, training is geared towards imparting skills or knowledge to workers with a view to enhancing their performance on the job in organization.  Communication is used in this case for skills acquisition.

(c)  Competition – with the expansion of businesses, the market now witness the introduction of a wide range of similar products from different companies, thereby increasing the consumer choice.  How does a particular business survive this competition.  Such a business organization must fall back on massive advertisement and other forms of consumer relations or persuasive communication.

(d)  Crisis Management – Conflict is inevitable in any organization.  The more employees in an organization, the more the troubles, then, the more the need for a good communication network to educate workers on management decisions, to co-ordinate their inputs and to manage the resultant conflicts that may arise from the interaction of these employees.

(e)  Government relations – The government regulates the activities of business organizations in different ways.  These could be through licensing, taxation and environmental protection laws.  Business organizations are therefore required to provide the different levels of government with a wide range of information to facilitate their work and healthy relationship.

On the other hand, one could term the above as;

                                 i.                                                                            Shape policies and actions

                               ii.                                                                            Makes for effective interaction

                             iii.                                                                            Resolves crisis and conflicts

                              iv.                                                                            Enhances education of workers and management for higher productivity

                                v.                                                                            Creates confidence and trust on superior

12.         Evaluate the impact of information technology on Business Communication

Answer:

Benefit of Information Technology to Business

The explosive growth in computer, telecommunications and information technology has had a major impact on the way companies bring value to their customers.  The technology boom has created exciting new ways to learn about and track customers, create products and services tailored to meet customer needs, distribute products more efficiently and effectively, and communicate with customers in large groups or one to one.  For example, through video conferencing, marketing researchers at a company’s headquarters in New York can look in on focus groups in Nigeria or Cameroun without ever stepping on to a plane.   With only a few clicks of a mouse button, a direct marketer can tap into online data servers to learn anything from what car you drive to what you read to what flavour of ice cream you prefer.

13.         Discuss what you understand by organizational conflict, stating the types, causes, sources and resolution methods. 

Answer:

Organizations conflict can be defined as problems experienced in organization due to misunderstanding between the employees and management or junior staff and senior staff.   Attitudes toward conflict in organizations have changed considerably over the years.  Stephen P. Robins has traced this evolution, emphasizing the differences between the traditional view of conflicts and the current one called interactionist view.

The traditional view – the traditional view of conflict was that it was unnecessary and harmful.  Early managers generally thought that the appearance of conflict was clear signal that there was something wrong with the organization.  The belief conflict would develop only if managers failed to implement sound management principles in directing the organization or if managers failed to communicate to employees the common interest that bind management/employees together.  If their failures were corrected according to the traditional view, the organization should operate as a smoothly functioning, integrated whole.

The Interactionist view – The Traditional view of conflict started to chance as researchers began to identify causes of organizational conflict has been independent of management error and as advantages of effectively managed conflict started to be recognized.   The interactionist view is that conflict in organizations is inevitable

and even necessary, no matter how organizations are designed and operated.  This view still suggest that much conflict is, in fact, dysfunctional; can harm individuals and impede the attainment of organizational goals.   But conflict may be functional because it may make organizations more effective.  Conflict can lead to search for solutions.  Thus, it is often an instrument of organizational innovation and change.

Interpersonal or inter-group conflict may develop for a number of reasons:

-          Poor communication,

-          Disagreement on objectives and results to be pursued

-          Disagreement on intervention method used.

-          Difference over the pace of chance. Resistance to change

-          Fear of losing influence and power.  Competition for resources

-          Personality and culture clashes.

                  Types of Conflicts

-          Conflict within the individual occurs when an individual is uncertain about what work he/she is expected to perform, when some demands of the work conflict with other demands, or when the individual is expected to do more than he/she feels capable of doing.

-          Conflict among individuals in the same organization is frequently seen as being caused by personality differences.

-          Conflict among individuals and groups is frequently related to the way individuals deal with the pressures for conformity imposed on them by their work group for exceeding or falling behind the group’s productivity norms.

-          Conflict among organizations in the economic sphere has been considered an inherent and desirable term of conflict in many countries; usually this type of conflict is called competition.

                     Causes of Conflicts in Organization

                             The causes of organizational conflicts include:

-          Ambiguous Jurisdictions: -When tow people related job tasks for which actual boundaries are ambiguous, the potential for conflict between them increases.  Supervisors should have clearly job responsibilities so that the potential for overlap among them is reduced.

-          Conflict of Interest  - Conflict will be greater where peoples’ interests diverge e.g. the conflict between a marketing manager and plant manager of a leading product of chocolate. 

-          Communication Barriers – If parties are separated from each other physically or by time, the opportunity for conflict is increased for e.g. suppose a company employs only one plant foreman who works on the day shift.  He leaves orders at the beginning of each week for the workers on the night shift.  By the end of the week, however, these orders have only partially been carried out. Obviously, his absence from the night shift has posed a communication barrier, and this in turn causes decreases output.

-          Dependence of one party  - Where parties are dependent, they must rely on each other for performance of tasks or for the provision of resources.  Thus, the opportunity for conflict to occur is increased.

-          Association of the Parties: - Conflicts were greater as the degree of interaction of the parties increases. Degree of association, or interaction, refers both to informal relation between them.

                       Sources of Organizational Conflict

The major sources of organization conflict include the need to share scarce resources, differences in goals between organizational units, the interdependence of work activities in the organization and differences in values or perceptions among organization units.

-          Shared Resources: - If every  unit in an organization had access to unlimited workers, many materials, equipment and space, the problem of how to share these resources would hardly arise.  The potential for conflict exist because these vital resources are limited.

-          Difference in Goals: Organizational sub-units tend to become specialised or differentiated as they develop dissimilar goals, tasks and personnel.  Such differentiation frequently leads to conflicts of interest or priorities, even when the overall goals of the organization are agreed upon. 

Conflict Resolution Methods

Our discussion of conflict-resolution methods will concentrate on actions managers can take to deal directly with conflicting parties.  Other possible methods for resolving conflict include changes in organization structure so that, conflicting members or units are separated or grievance agency set up.

The three-conflict resolution methods most frequently used are dominance or suppression, compromise and integrative problem solving.

1)            Dominance and Suppression: - Dominance and suppression methods usually have two things in common: (i) they repress conflict, rather than settle it, by forcing it underground; and (ii) they create a win-lose situation in which the loser, forces to give way to higher authority or greater power, usually winds up disappointed and hostile suppression and dominance can occur in the following ways.

(a)  Forcing: - When the person in authority exerts his/her view point at a potential expense of another, forcing uses authority and power and can cause considerable resentment.  It may be necessary in extreme cases where agreement obviously cannot be reached amicably. 

(b) Smoothing: - Smoothing is a mere diplomatic way of suppressing conflict, the manager minimizes the extend and importance of the disagreement and tries to talk and side into giving in where the manager has mere information than the other parties and is making a reasonable suggestion, this method can be effective.  

2)            Compromise: - Through compromise, managers try to resolve conflict by convincing each party in the dispute to sacrifice some objectives in order to gain others. 

3)           Integrative Problem Solving: - With this method, conflict is converted into a joint problem solving situation that can be dealt with through problem solving techniques.  Together, parties to the conflict try to solve the problem that has arisen between them.   Instead of suppressing conflict or trying to find a compromise, the parties openly try to find a solution they all can accept.  There are three types of integrative conflict resolution methods: Consensus, confrontation and use of super-ordinate goals.

(a)  Consensus: - The conflicting parties meet together to find the best solution to their problem, rather than trying to achieve a victory for either side.

(b) Confrontation: - The opposing parties state their respective view directly to each other.  The reasons for the conflict are examined and methods of resolving it are sought with skilled leadership and willingness to accept the associated stress by all sides, a rational solution can frequently be found.

(c)  Super-ordinate Goals: Can also be a conflict-resolution method if the higher-level goal that is mutually agreed upon incorporates the conflicting parties lower-lever goals.

From the Lectural Text Book.

Question:      Explain the term Business Communication         

Answer:       

Question:      State & Explain (5) five importance of communication to business management

Answer:        1. Learning about new technologies 2. Specialisation of Task in organization 3. Improving quality 4. Motivation 5. Innovation 6. Increase responsiveness to customers

Question:      Carefully explain the relevance of communication in our daily lives.

Answer:        Communication plays a vital role in our personal daily lives.  Communication has so much impact in our daily affairs to the extent that we consider it part of life.  In the twenty –four hours of a day, almost every one communicates with his or her fellow human beings.  It provides a means by which people in business, politics and other professions act and interact, exchange information and ideas.

Question:      Why is communication considered as a process?

Answer:        It means that a transmitted message passes through different stages before reaching its final destination. Each of these stages affects the other and they interact freely with one another.

                   The stages in the communication process include the following: i. The source (Sender or Encoder) ii. The message iii. The channel iv. The receiver (decoder or destination) v. Feedback vi. Noise.

Question:      What do you understand by noise? What is the effect of Noise in communication process?

Answer:        Noise is a technical term for all forms of obstacles which conspire to reduce the effectiveness of a massage.  Noise could be physical, psychological or linguistic.

                            

                   The effect of noise in communication, it could hamper the communication process.

Question:      What can you do to reduce the incidence of noise in communication process?

Answer:        The senders often repeat their messages, repeat some particular important part of their messages several times or try to improve upon them by using examples and analogies.  This ensures that the message squeezes through he noise to the receiver.

Question:      Mention and discuss the (3) three major modes of communication

Answer:        Oral, Written and Mediated Communication

Question:      What makes Oral Communication not effective sometimes?

Answer:        i. Voice quality ii. Appearance iii. Behaviour iv. Listening skills.

Question:      Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of oral communication

Answer:        Advantages; i. It gives room for instant reception, processing and feedback from the receiver ii. The instant feedback reduces uncertainty in the interpretation of the messages iii. It is competitively cheap and timely if the participants are within the reach. Iv. It assures the sender that his message is not only being received but understood

                   Disadvantages: i. It is misrepresented ii. Some emotional messages like termination, death, retrenchment & other misfortunes are not easy to convey. Iii. Over-dependence on spoken words put a lot of stress on our mental faculties, because we have to try to assimilate all that has been said iv. It is basically transient (lasting for a short period only), and may not be easily recalled for future reference.

Question:      What is mediated Communication?

Answer:        Mediated communication involves the transmission of oral and or written messages through electronic devices like fax, telephone, radio, television, on-line computer, electronic mails, video tapes, microfilm etc.

Question:      What are the advantages and disadvantages of written communication?

Answer:        Advantages; i. It is more permanent and can be stored for future reference ii. It cannot be easily misquoted iii. It can be read over & over again for better understanding iv. The sender can edit his message & introduce new ideas before transmission.

                   Disadvantages: It has a delayed feedback ii. It does not have instant reception and interpretation iii. It is more expensive compared to the oral mode.

Question:      Distinguish between the Interpersonal & Extra Personal Communications

Answer:        interpersonal communication occurs between two or more persons in a face-to-face situation.  It includes such day-to-day activities like interaction between two friends, class mate, colleagues etc.  While Extra personal communication is the product of our technological age where messages are not only exchanged between human, but also with machines and machines.

Question:      Compare and contrast between Group and interpersonal communication

Answer:        Group Communication entails the interaction between members of identifiable groups, be it large or small.  I.e. class, workshop, seminars etc.  While interpersonal communication involve two or more persons but in a face-to-face situation.

                   It is more of a intimacy communication while Group communication is like a business/set goals communication.

Question:      Write short note on the following: i. Intra-personal communication ii. Interpersonal communication iii. Group Communication iv. Mass communication v. Exta personal communication

Answer:        We will only answer Intra-personal & Mass Communications as we have dealt with others.

                   Intra-Personal Communication takes palce within an individual. It forms the basis for all communications.  It is your thoughts, feelings and ideas.  While Mass Communication refers to that kind of message delivered by the media to large group of unidentified person.

Question:      Mention 5 guidelines to business talk

Answer:        Greet fellow workers when you see them for the first  ii. Do not chat about leisure activities during office hours iii. Do not get drawn into office gossip iv.  Arrange your thoughts before i.e. marshal your idea even in what appear simple to you v. give you partner chance to say what he/she wants to say.

Question:      Define the term non-verbal communication

Answer:        Non-verbal communication is just a body language

Question:      Differentiate between verbal communication and non-verbal communication

Answer:        Verbal communication is the spoken word while non-verbal communication is a body language

Question:      List and explain five  categories of non-verbal communication

Answer:        Appearance and Object-appearance tells a lot about somebody ii. Paralanguage-this refers to the tone with which we communicate iii. Gesture/Action Language-this includes all facial expression iv. Space communication – this can be between speaker and audience

Question:      What do you understand by presentation

Answer:        Presentation is like a paper presentation or a slide presentation you know.

Question:      Explain the three elements of presentation

Answer:        1.       Preparation 2. Content 3. Delivery

Question:      What do you understand by the word information reception process?

Answer:        is the greater number of data from which individual could draw to take decision.

Question:      What are the activities that make up the information reception process?

Answer:        Data selection process-the raw materials, which the individual needs to process useful information i.e. messages-images, sounds, people, events etc. ii. Data interpretation process-assigning appropriate meaning to the data received. iii. Data retention process – the process of interpretation of data relies greatly on man’s ability to recall information that had been stored in the memory.

Question:      List and explain the factors that affect information reception.

Answer:        The data ii. The source iii. The environment

Question:      What do you understand by communication networks in organization?

Answer:        is a network that shows the way people communicate in an organization.

Question:      With the aid of diagram explain the following: a. Y shape, b. Wheel, c. Circle, d. Chain and e. Star shape communication networks.

Answer:        Practices the diagram in your text book.

Question:      Which of the above is most preferable for speedy and efficient of action in business practise?

Answer:        It depends

Question:      In any organization, there are some communication problems that occur when communicating to any person(s), what are these problems?

Answer:        Serial distortion – this are kinds of modification that messages are subjected to in the course of transmission from one person or place to another ii. Perceptual distortion – this occur as a result of individual differences in attitudes, values, belief and behaviours. iii. Semantic distortion iv. Overload & Under load distortion-this arises from symbolic systems which usually have variety of meanings.

Question:      Compare and contrast between internet and Intranet.

Answer:        Internet is a global collection of independently operation, but interconnected computers of the world for the purpose of sharing information while intranet is a local network of computers.  It is an organization’s private kind of internet and it has firewalls that block outsiders from assessing internal information.

Question:      What do you understand by telephone in business set up?

Answer:        These are conversations in which you cannot see the person you are talking to or see how the person is thinking. 

Question:      What are the uses of telephone in business?

Answer:        Telephone is used in business to make inquiries, file complaints, place orders, schedule or cancelled appointments. 

Question:      To make a good telephone call, there are some certain guidelines that you must follow; what are these guidelines?

Answer:        i. Answer the phone promptly ii. Give the name of the organization or your own name iii. Place or keep the receiver firmly after each call iv. Avoid using slang v. Do not interrupt the caller

Question:      Define Persuasion Communication

Answer:        Persuasion is the art of getting people do something that they would not ordinarily do if you did not ask.

Question:      List and explain objectives of persuasive communication

Answer:        i. To stimulate – in stimulating the interest of people, you need to establish a common goal or ground between you and the listener e.g in a situation where there is crisis.  ii. To convince iii. To actuate – this is whereby you maintain eye contact with the listener in order to evaluate their emotional state.

Question:      What are the factors that affect the success of persuasive communication?

Answer:        When you are sure of what you are saying ii. When you are not confidence of yourself

Question:      What do you understand by Organization conflict?

Answer:        it is a problems experienced in organization due to misunderstanding between the employees and management or junior staff and senior staff.         

Question:      What are the types of conflict in an organization?

Answer:        Conflict within the individual as a result of uncertainty about what work he/she is expected to perform ii. Conflict among individuals in the same organization is frequently seen as being caused by personality differences iii. Conflict among individuals and groups is frequently related to the way individuals deal with the pressures for conformity imposed on them by their work group for exceeding of falling behind the groups productivity norms iv. Conflicts among organizations in the economics sphere has been considered an inherent and desirable term of conflict in many countries.  This is called competition.

Question:      How does a manager solve conflicts in his/her organization?

Answer:        Conflict resolution methods – i. Dominance and Suppression- a. Forcing b. Smoothing c. avoidance ii. Compromise iii. Integrative Problem solving – a. Consensus b. Confrontation c. Super ordinate goals.

Question:      What are the sources of organization conflict?

Answer:        i. Shared Resources ii. Difference in Goals:

Question:      How does a manager solve conflicts in his/her organization?

Answer:        He/she uses Dominance and Suppression:

Question:      Write Short Note on the following: a. Words b. Sentences c. Paragraphs c. Punctuation.

Answer:        Words -  are symbols which are used to enable other people to understand what we need or what we want to say ii. Sentences – is a combination of many words making a complete grammatical structure iii.  Punctuation  is a way of separating or linking the words, phrases into sentences in order to be meaningful and clear e.g. Full stop, commas, Question, hyphen colon, dashes, etc.

Question:      Differentiate between Dash and Hyphen, colon and semi colon with appropriate examples

Answer:        A dash is used to show that a direct speech has been interrupted e.g. I was only suggesting --- I have had enough of your suggestion, thank you very much. Hyphen are used to divide a word which is too long to fit in at the end of a line.  Colon is used to introduced a series of items in a list. E.g. you must buy the following: Rice, sugar, pencil etc.

Question:      How do you communicate bad news to people within and outside the organization?

Answer:       

Question:      What do you understand by report(s) in an organization?

Answer:        The word report is used to refer to a document providing an account of something witnessed or examined, or of work carried out or of an investigation together with conclusions arrived at as a result of the investigation.

Question:      Mention and explain the classes of report in an organization.

Answer:        Memorandum-it deals with the moment-day-to-day activities in an organization, it provides a simplified form of official communication within organizations, memorandum reports – this is also used as official communication but it has introduction, body and conclusion and letter reports – this is for external communication.

Question:      Differentiate between Routine Reports and Special Reports

Answer:        Routine Reports are reports for which there is precedent their purpose and form will have been decided when they were first instituted and their presentation therefore offer no problem. Example are report on daily fuelling and maintenance of generators in an office, handover from day security to night security officers and vice versa.  While Special Reports are reports called for by a superior, a colleague, or customer, under special circumstance. 

Question:      Explain the following terms: Eye witness Report ii. Work Reports iii. Investigation Reports

Answer:        Eye Witness Reports are mostly used in cases of accident. Investigation reports are more of special reports in nature while Work Reports are routine reports that tend to follow a well established pattern.

Question:      Explain the steps involve in writing a good report:

Answer:        Terms of Reference-this constitutes what the report is all about: Procedure-this involves the method(s) you used to gather or collect the necessary data: Findings-these are what you discovered from the investigation conducted: Conclusions-these are deductions made from the findings arrived at, it must be drawn from the findings which you stated: Recommendations-these are the points you recommend to avoid future occurrence of the incident or to finally solve the problem (s) emanating from the findings:

Question:      What do you understand by business letter? Highlight the essential parts of a business letter

Answer:        Essential parts of a business letter are Letter Head, Date, Inside address of receiver, Salutation, Subject line, Body of the letter, Closing, Official designation,

Question:      State types of business letter

Answer:        Information Letters – this is written to seek, collect or supply business information: Problem Letters – This includes complaints, queries, adjustment: Goodwill Letters – This include congratulations, invitations, condolences, appreciation, greeting cards: Sales Letters – this involves the announcement of goods and services offered by  a company.

Question:      For communication to be effective in an organization, certain factors should be considered, carefully state and explain such factors.

Answer:        i. Seek to clarify your ideas before communication ii. Examine the true purpose of each communication iii. Consider the total physical and human setting whenever you communicate iv. Consult with others, where appropriate, in planning communication v. Be mindful of the overtones as well as the basic content of your message vi. Take the opportunity, when it arises, to convey something of help or value to the receiver vii. Follow up communication viii. Communicate for tomorrow as well as today. Ix. Be sure your action supports your communications x. seek not be understood but also to understand nbe a good listener.

Question:      What do you understand by meeting?

Answer:        Apart from face-to-face communication with individuals, the most important application of oral communication in business is the meeting.

Question:      What is an Agenda?

Answer:        An Agenda is list of items to cover in a meeting.         

Note: Practice Letter writing in your text book.