Types of communication used by Woolworths

Write a report identifies and explains the types or forms of communication used, explains both excellent and poor communication with suitable examples along with discussing the factors and reasons behind successful and unsuccessful communication.

Effective communication determines the success of the business organizations, as this provides an opportunity to be productive thereby, ensuring effective business operations. Effective communication can also help in motivating and engaging the employees by communicating with them. Both verbal and non-verbal communication highlights effective communication at the workplace that helps in developing a capable workforce for achieving organizational goals and objectives (Bovee, Thill & Raina, 2016). Thus, effective communication helps in communicating with the customers, employees and the associated business stakeholders. However, lack of effective communication hampers business operations and productivity. Therefore, it is essential for the business organizations to develop strategies that ensure effective communication.

This report identifies and explains the types or forms of communication used, explains both excellent and poor communication with suitable examples along with discussing the factors and reasons behind successful and unsuccessful communication and explaining the reason how the particular communication improved or damaged the business for Woolworths, Australia.

Woolworths is a supermarket in Australia that sales groceries, magazines, pet products, baby supplies, stationery items and health and beauty products. Based on the type of business operations of Woolworths, effective communication is crucial. Effective communication provides an opportunity for Woolworth to increase productivity and maximize sales (Shockley-Zalabak, 2014). Verbal and non-verbal communications are the most used communication forms that are used by Woolworths. The verbal communication includes written and spoken communication whereas non-verbal communication includes expression and body language. The use of verbal communication allows Woolworths to share things by using words (Krum, 2013).

The different types of verbal communication includes

• Face-to-face communication: Face-to-face communication allowed the company to share their thoughts and ideas in terms of business with the employees, stakeholders and customers thereby, increasing productivity.
• Telephonic communication: Telephonic conversation is a type of verbal communication where both the parties exchange ideas and message from a distance without being physically present. Telephonic communication allows Woolworths to ensure effective communication between different branches and customers (Austin & Pinkleton, 2015).
• Writing a letter: Penning down the thoughts, ideas and strategies for the business is also a type of effective communication that Woolworths can use for keeping an official record of the business strategies.
• Giving advice: Woolworths can use verbal communication for giving advice to the employees in terms of effective business operations.
• Making announcements: As a supermarket, Woolworths have to develop their business strategies and inform the staffs at regular interval. Thus, verbal communication allows the company to make announcements to the employees in the store (Arnold & Boggs, 2015).

Apart from the verbal communications, Woolworths can use types of non-verbal communication types for successful business operations. The types of non-verbal communication include:

• Facial expressions: Appropriate use of facial expression help Woolworths to communicate use suitable expressions for communicating with the employees and the customers.
• Gestures: The use of appropriate gestures by Woolworths help in showing respect to the other party while communication thereby, ensuring effective sharing of ideas.
• Appearance: Woolworths emphasizes in obtaining appropriate appearances from the employees that help in attracting customers and increasing sales (Knapp, Hall & Horgan, 2013).
• Body language and posture: Appropriate body language and posture also helps in ensuring effective communication, as this helps in creating a positive impact on the fellow workers and customers.
• Eye-contact: It is essential for maintaining an eye-contact while communicating, as this helps in convincing and assuring the other party involved in communication (Burgoon, Guerrero & Floyd, 2016).

Examples of excellent and poor communication

Effective communication is essential for the business organizations, as this provides an opportunity to interact with the surrounding people in order to communicate relevant business information and ideas (Wigham & Chanier, 2013). Thus, it is essential for Woolworths to establish successful business communication in order to ensure successful business operations.

As Woolworths is a supermarket and deals with thousands of customers daily, one of the examples of excellent communication was recorded, when the Woolworths solved the issue of a customer by excellent communication. Once a customer reported maggots in the packaged meat that was bought from the Woolworths departmental store. This was a case of ineffective packaging by the company and hampered the customer service. However, the problem was soon resolved by excellent communication that was managed and ensured by the management of Woolworths. Initially, the customer service executive established both verbal and non-verbal communication with the customer in order to gather required information about the incident. The customer service executive used appropriate language, tone, body posture, appearance and eye-contact while communicating (Onwuegbuzie & Byers, 2014). As a result, the customer was convinced and assured that it was unintentional and was ready to co-operate and Woolworths exchanged the packaged product free of cost for the customer.

Examples of communication used by Woolworths

On the other hand, Woolworths recorded an example of poor communication when a customer was left unattended in spite of having issues in terms of the product purchased from the departmental store. The customer service executive used inappropriate tone, posture and body language while addressing the issue and also failed to communicate the issue with the higher management by writing it. As a result, the customer was unsatisfied, as the issue was poorly communicated and took time for resolving. Thus, Woolworths lost a valuable customer due to poor communication thereby, hampering the business.

The factors that helped Woolworths in ensuring effective communication include:

• Maintaining eye-contact: Maintaining eye-contact is one of the factors that help in maintaining effective communication, as the individuals feel connected due to eye-contact. For instance, maintaining eye-contact with the customers at Woolworths helps the customer care executive to convince, assure and relate to them easily (Afshari et al., 2014).
• Resolving conflicts: Lack of conflicts help in effective communication, as the individuals at work can communicate with each other without hesitation thereby, ensuring clear flow of information at work (Finch et al., 2013)
• Active listening: Active listening helps in ensuring effective communication, as this provides an opportunity for the individuals to keep their personal agenda aside and consider the perspectives and viewpoints of the surrounding people (Dehghani, Mosalanejad & Dehghan-Nayeri, 2015).
• Being prepared: The individuals need to be prepared by gathering adequate information in terms of business before communicating, as this helps in active participation and co-operation.

The barriers that hampered Woolworths in establishing effective communication include:

• Cultural diversity: Difference in cultures hampered effective communication at Woolworths, as individuals from different cultural background do not prefer to communicate with individuals due to distinct cultural preferences and beliefs (Pfaff et al., 2014).
• Personal conflicts: Difference in individual beliefs, habits and attitudes resulted in personal conflicts among the employees at Woolworths, as individuals do not prefer to work by keeping their personal agenda aside.
• Lack of attention: Lack of attention by the employees at Woolworths has resulted in ineffective communication, as this resulted in noticing and incorporating the minute details is the necessary for successful business (Muduli et al., 2013).
• Lack of eye-contact: Lack of eye-contact while communicating with the fellow employees and the customers hampers effective communication, as the individuals fail to convince and assure the other party.
• Lack of credibility: Lack of preparation hampers effective communication, as the individuals have no idea of what to say and contribute while discussion.
• Lack of active listening: Individuals lack the ability of active listening that hampers effective communication, as the individuals keep on communicating their thoughts without considering the viewpoints of others (Gray et al., 2013).

 Active listening, maintaining eye-contact and being attentive help Woolworths in ensuring effective communication thereby, helping the business in terms of productivity. Maintaining strict eye-contact helped the employees of Woolworths to relate to the customers better as well as convince and support them in their purchasing decisions. Additionally, communicating with the fellow workers by maintaining eye-contact helps in building a strong relationship thereby, making work fun (Siegman & Feldstein, 2014). Active listening provides an opportunity for the individuals at Woolworths to be prepared by listening to others perspectives and work mutually by keeping personal agenda aside.

However, on the contrary, cultural diversity hampered communication at Woolworths. This is because the individuals working at Woolworths belonged to different cultural background due to which they have distinctive beliefs, attitudes and habits. As a result, the cultural differences of the employees at Woolworths restricted the employees to ensure effective communication. This hampered the clear flow of information within the organization thereby, leading to decreased sales and productivity. Lack of effective communication also resulted in the loss of loyal customers for Woolworths (Mandal, 2014).

Conclusion

In this report, it can be concluded that effective communication is crucial for the business organizations to succeed. From the report, it can be evident that Woolworths used both verbal and non-verbal communication for communicating with the employees and the customers. Successful verbal and non-verbal communication allowed Woolworths to ensure the clear flow of information within the company thereby, keeping everyone updated about the organizational business strategies and policies. Woolworths have encountered situations where the management has highlighted both excellent and poor communication that has benefitted and hampered the business for Woolworths. The factors affecting positive communication at Woolworths include active listening, being prepared, resolving personal conflicts and maintaining eye-contact. On the other hand, the potential barriers that hampered communication at Woolworths include cultural diversity, lack of credibility and personal conflicts. The barriers to effective communication have resulted in the loss of business and loyal customers for Woolworths.

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