Organizational Communication

Upward Communication

• Communication of subordinates to superiors

• "Open door" policy vs. serial communication

  • Open door policy: Sharing feedback openly

  • Serial Communication: Passed consecutively from one person to another

    • Drawbacks: Tone of message, Minimize Unpleasant Messages (MUM) effect, less effective for far proximity (physically)

Facilitating Upward comms

• Attitude Surveys

  • a survey is conducted to determine employee attitudes about an organization

    • Annual surveys to monitor employee satisfaction

    • Helps address management concerns

    • Examples: Microsoft, Google use surveys extensively

• Focus Groups & Exit interviews

  • Focus groups: Confidential feedback method

  • Exit interviews: Insights from departing employees

  • Employee honesty tied to organizational fairness

• Suggestion boxes & Complain boxes

  • Suggestion box: Employees are asked to place their suggestions in a box

  • Complaint box: Employees are asked to place their complaints in a box

  • Safe, Anonymous way to submit ideas and complaints

• Third-Party Facilitators

  • Liaison: A person who acts as an intermediary between employees and management; sends and receives most grapevine info

  • Ombudsperson: A person who investigates employees, complaints and solves problems

  • Union steward: an employee who serves as a liaison between unionized employees and management

Downward Communication

• Superiors to Subordinate

• Key methods: Keeping employees informed and providing job-related information

• Methods

  • Bulletin boards

  • Policy manuals

  • Newsletters

  • Intranets

Facilitating Downward Comms

• Bulletin boards

  • informal or relatively unimportant written information is posted in a public place.

    • Communicate nonwork-related opportunities (scholarships, events, items for sale)

    • Low cost, wide exposure in high-traffic areas

    • Limited use for vital information

• Policy Manuals

  • A formal method in which an organization’s rules and procedures are placed in a manual; legally binding by courts of law

  • Detailed rules and policies employees must follow

  • Written in technical language but should be simplified for better understanding

  • Two types of company manual

    • Policy manual: specific and lengthy, containing all the rules and policies under which the organization operates

    • Employee Handbook: shorter and contains only the most essential policies and rules, as well as general summaries of less important rules

• Newsletters

  • typically used to communicate organizational feedback and celebrate employee success.

  • Focus on employee morale (e.g., babies, birthdays, ballgame scores)

  • Share employee success stories and organizational updates

  • Printed or electronic format

• Intranets

  • A computer-based employee communication network used exclusively by one organization

  • Organization-wide internal network

  • Includes employee handbooks, FAQs, job postings, benefits information, etc.

  • Common resource for employees to access key documents and tools

Business Communication

• is the transmission of business-related information among employees, management, and customers.

• Methods: Telephone, Video calls, Emails, Texts, Voice mail

Facilitating Business Comms

• Telephone Calls & Video Conferences 

  • Advantages:

    • Immediate voice interaction, tone recognition

  • Limitations: 

    • Lack of nonverbal cues, difficulty in documenting conversations 

  • Video conferences bridges the gap by adding nonverbal communication

• Email & Voicemail

  • For general information and quick updates 

  • Advantages: 

    • Documentation, Multitasking, Reduced paper use

  • Limitations

    • Miscommunication risk, “phone tag” in voice mail, Reduced personal contact

  • Email etiquette

    • Include a greeting and closing

    • Detailed subject line

    • Avoid writing in all caps

    • Proofread for errors

• Business Meetings

  • Average employee spends over 4 hours in meetings weekly

  • Meetings provide clear communication but can be time-consuming

  • Effective meetings require clear purpose, agenda, and actionable takeaways

• Office Design

  • Open office design (cube farm) aims to increase interaction

  • Portable offices and boulevards support impromptu communication

  • Research shows open offices can reduce productivity

Informal Communication

• is communication among employees in an organization that is not directly related to the completion of an organizational task

• Provides employees with information, power, and entertainment

• Informal channels include email, texting, and social media

• Informal communication often transmitted through the grapevine

  • Grapevine: an unofficial, informal communication network

    • Single strand

    • Gossip

    • Probability

    • Cluster

Facilitating Informal Comms

• Grapevine Pattern #1: Single Strand

  • Message passes from one person to another in a sequential manner

  • Like the "telephone game"

  • Often leads to distortion

• Grapevine Pattern #2: Gossip

  • One individual spreads information to a select group

  • Information may not reach everyone

  • Content often personal or not directly work-related

• Grapevine Pattern #3: Probability

  • Random transmission of information

  • Message passed to random individuals

  • Highly unpredictable

• Grapevine Pattern #4: Cluster

  • One individual shares information with a select few, who then pass it on to their own select groups

  • Most common pattern in organizations

  • Information reaches more people but still selective

• Employee Roles in the Grapevine

  • Isolates: receive less than half of the information

  • Liaisons: hear and pass on most information

  • Dead-enders: hear information but rarely pass it on

• How accurate is the Grapevine

  • Research shows grapevine information is about 80% accurate

  • Can be misleading due to distortion or incomplete messages

  • Example: “Hiring” vs. “Firing” 25 employees

• Gossip vs Rumor

  • Gossip: Unsubstantiated information, often about individuals, less significant

  • Rumor: Significant, but poorly substantiated information

  • Gossip entertains; rumors manage ambiguity and stress

• Functions of Rumor in Organizations

  • Helps employees make sense of ambiguous information

  • Used to manage potential threats

  • Common topics: personnel changes, job security, external reputation

• Horizontal Communication and Teams

  • Horizontal communication: exchange of job-related information among peers

  • Self-managed work groups increase job-related communication

Interpersonal Communication

• Communication between individuals

• Requires sender, message, communication channel, and receiver

Problem Area 01: Intended Message vs Message Sent

• Key challenge: Sender does not always express the intended message

• Three solutions:

  • Think about the message before speaking

  • Practice what you want to say

  • Learn better communication skills

Problem Area 02: Message Sent vs Message Received

• Even well-thought-out messages may be misunderstood

• Main factors affecting message reception: Words used, Paralanguage, Noise, Artifacts, Communication channel, Amount of information (info overload), Nonverbal cues

Problem Area 03: Message Received vs Message Interpreted

• Listening is the most important communication skill for managers.

• Poor retention is partly due to poor memory but also poor listening habits.

• Attitudinal Listening Profile: test developed to measure individual's listening styles.

• Listening styles:

  • Leisure listening -  only pay attention to words that indicate enjoyment

  • Inclusive listening - focus on the main points and tend to filter out unnecessary details.

  • Stylistic listening - pay attention to how the message is delivered (appearance or tone) rather than its content.

  • Technical listening -  focus on specific details but often miss the bigger picture.

  • Empathic listening - focus on the emotions behind the words.

  • Nonconforming listening - only hear what aligns with their existing beliefs.

• Emotional State and Communication

  • Emotions can cloud judgment and affect message interpretation.

  • Extreme emotional states impair rational thinking.

  • Emotional control is key to clearer communication.

• Bias and Communication

  • Bias shapes how we process information.

  • We tend to filter out information that contradicts our beliefs.

  • Bias affects both positive and negative perceptions

• In the workplace

  • Bias can distort workplace communication.

  • Employees may misinterpret feedback based on pre-existing beliefs about their supervisor or the company.

• Combined effect of emotions and bias

  • Emotional state and bias often work together to distort messages.

  • Miscommunication is more likely when both factors are at play.