Communication Concepts and Their Impact on Daily Interactions

Was it not for the communication breakdown, we would be using an elevator to access heaven as the tower of Babel would still be standing. Communication is one of the most important traits in a human society as it is responsible for the creation and maintenance of the structure and functions of the society, without which human interactions would be virtually impossible. Communication is a learned trait in human beings though they are born with the ability to learn and engage in it. Communication is the backbone of a society, and its breakdown would spell the death knell to social interactions, and by extension the whole society.  Reflection on the various aspects of communication is important as it makes one aware of the mistakes we commit by taking some it for granted while engaging with our colleagues and people in the society. In the past ten weeks of my studies, I have learned various communications issues that affect and have a bearing on my daily interactions with the people I come into contact with.

On week one, the most significant communication concept that I learned was communication competence. Before coming across the concept, I used to take it for granted that thorough knowledge of the language (grammar, syntax, and phonetics) was all that was needed to communicate effectively. Through this concept, I have come to appreciate that a person might have the best command of the language and still fail to communicate effectively as he or she does not take the social setting into consideration. On the second week, nonverbal communication impressed me as I realized I use it daily in my interactions with coworkers without realizing it. When arguing with colleagues, we use paralanguage aspects such as shouting, while the supervisor lowers his voice when he is angry with our work. The written communication genres are one of the most important forms of communication in the workplace, especially regarding communication with my superiors and juniors. I have learned that in addition to all the grammar rules, there is a need to place the needs of the receiver of the written communication first. Another communication concept I have learned in the course is plagiarism. Plagiarism is to academic writing what stealing is in normal social life. Plagiarism involves the practice of using another person’s work and passing it as your own without acknowledging that it was not your original work. I have learned that plagiarism is an academic crime as severe as a crime of stealing other peoples’ property.   

On Week five, I learned a lot about the importance and the processes involved in writing reflective essays. A reflective essay enables an individual to put into perspective all the information learned and its applicability in real life situations. At the workplace, reflecting on the issues makes the earning processes easier. Approaches to public speaking are one of the most important learning experiences that I have received during the course. At the workplace, I have to present to the department manager and also to other supervisors during meetings. At the same time, I need to present information coming from my superiors to the people who report to me. Presentation’s need proper preparations based on the right knowledge on effective public speaking in order to pass the information in the right way. The content I have learned on effective public speaking in the course will stand me in good stead when it comes to presentations at the workplace. Working in a cross-cultural environment is very challenging for people even when they have adopted a common language like English. Nonverbal communications have different interpretations in different cultures and misunderstandings usually occur resulting in conflicts. I have learned not to take offense when communicating with my colleagues from other cultures as I am likely to either misunderstand their nonverbal cues or vice versa (Wyman, Tomasello., & Rakoczy, 2013). Organization structure is an important determinant of communication within the organization. Hierarchical organizations and ones which have autocratic leadership do not encourage the junior employees to contribute to decision making, and most communication on decisions are cascaded down from the management to the employees. The concept of organizational structures on the communication is important at the workplace as it will guide me on the best way to communicate with the seniors and juniors in the organization.

Importance of Reflective Essays

An organization results from the needs of individuals to combine effort and resources to achieve goals, meaning that teamwork is important for the achievement of objectives within organizations. The knowledge on how to effectively manage teams is essential as most of the time I spend working and organizing those teams. I will apply the knowledge in making sure that there is effective communication between the team members to ensure optimum performance and output from the whole team. Aggressive communication is an important concept in the workplace. Aggressive communication is harmful to the organization as it breeds conflict at the workplace. The knowledge of the concept will help me moderate my communication to take into consideration other people’s needs and feelings, and thus avoid the creation of an unhealthy work environment full of antagonism.                                               

Organization structure affects communication within the organization. Organization structures are established using rules and for the rules to be followed they must be clearly communicated to the employees joining the organization (Taylor & Every, 2009). In this respect, people make up the organization’s structures and which in turn affect their behavior describing the right and wrong way to act within the organization. According to Giddens (1984), organization structures are characterized by four basic components: Procedural rules; moral rules; material resources; and resources for authority. Ahmed & Ali (2010) posit that the organization of the structures of a firm result from the way the people and the jobs are organized through formal chains of command in the pursuit for meeting the organization’s goals in an effective and efficient manner.  The more structured the organizations, the more the centralization of their processes accompanied with formalizations and specialization (Soda & Zaheer, 2012).

One effect of the hierarchically structured organization is that there is an increased perception of communication as something that top management give to the employees with little chances if any of an input from them. The manager’s issue directives which have to be obeyed without questioning by the employees. The management originates the ideas and the employees are expected to be passive recipients of the same (Kirkhaug, 2010). Some communication scholars define organization structures in terms of communication structures. Brunner (2008) describes an organizational structure as a stable communication relationship between all the components parts that make up an organization.

Command rules and regulations establish an environment that determines the kind of communication that the takes place between the senior management and the subordinates. Apart from providing a communication environment, they provide a context for the creation of meanings in communication, and the subordinates use it as a guide as they try to make sense of their interactions in the organization (Bisel & Kelley, 2012).

It is noteworthy structures are established primarily for the purpose of ensuring the proper and efficient functioning of the organization, but left unchecked, they have the ability to place substantive obstacles to communication within the organization (Saxena, 2010). Also, the same structures that were supposed to support the organization’s processes in achieving its goals may end up being hindrances to its objectives. The people given the authority to determine the formation of the structure may end up choosing the kind of information that reaches different groups of people with the end result being lack of coordinated effort and eventual slowdown of the organization’s processes. Also, highly structured organizations tend to create an environment where the majority of the workers fell dissatisfied with their jobs which essentially means lower motivation levels, and by extension the whole organization. Highly Structured organizations are not all doom and gloom, as research indicates that in some instances it is beneficial to the organization and that such organizations perform better than their less structured counterparts (Md Nordin, Halib, & Ghazali, 2011).

Approaches to Public Speaking

Relations between the employees, both vertical and horizontal determine the employees’ perception of working in a good communicative environment.  On the one hand, employees in highly structured organizations with strained relations between superiors and the subordinates felt that they worked in less than conducive communication environment. On the other hand, the workers felt that the horizontal communicative environment with their colleagues at the same level was more conducive and they were able to exchange ideas freely (Ghazali, 2011).            

Knowledge on how to ensure Teamwork and skills needed to communicate in public are important in the career progression (Verc?ic?, & Zerfass, 2016). Currently, I work in a team and I have learned the importance of cooperation and exchange of ideas within a team working toward a common goal. I have, in more than one occasion being called upon to make a presentation to the team especially in presenting the final results of a project or briefing the team on the day’s activity schedule. In three to five years, I expect to be the head of the department in charge of the formation of such teams and the knowledge that I have gained regarding the formation and running of effective teams will come in handy in my future career. At the same time, being the head of the department or manager will require that I present to both the people working under me and the other top management on various issues. First, I will be responsible for ensuring that the decisions reached by the management are communicated to everyone who reports to me. It is not feasible to call each of the subordinates at a time to my office to communicate the same. The most effective way will be to call a meeting and present to them as a group. Public speaking skills that I have learned in the course will stand me in good stead as I communicate the information to them effectively. Some decisions reached by the management might be hard on the employees, which means I will need tact in passing the message along in a manner that will not make the situation worse. The main presentations I am expecting to make to the management is on the various projects assigned to the department. It is always prudent to make periodic presentations on the progress of sensitive projects assigned to the department by the management.  Also, the management will require final reports on all the projects charged to the department whether they are sensitive or ordinary projects. Presentation of these project reports will require public speaking skills. Sometimes, the department will originate projects on a need basis, and as the manager and department head, I will be responsible for presenting the same to the management for approval and funding. The presentation of the proposal will call for the finest skills I have in public speaking to convince them to approve the project and especially the budget part (Dan, 2015).  The most important aspect of public speaking is overcoming communication apprehension (North, Hill, Aikhuele, & North, 2008).

Working in Cross-Cultural Environments

Glossophobia describes the apprehension or fear that a person experiences called upon to present to the public. The surest way of overcoming such fear is through experience. Once a person presents many times, the fear and the tension reduces. However, for the first few presentations, one needs support to overcome the overwhelming fear of presentation. There are various ways that an individual can overcome the apprehension to public speaking including thorough preparation before the presentation, practice and rehearsing in front of friends, being positive and expecting positive reactions among others.          

Conclusion:

The reflective practical essay has covered the significance of the various communication concepts covered over the course of the ten weeks; a literature review on one of the communication issues and the application of two of the communication concepts covered in the course. In conclusion, communication is an essential part of the organization as it is responsible for the creation and maintenance of the structure of the organization and the interpersonal relationships between the people working in it.      

References:

Ahmad, Z & Ali, L. (2010). Satisfaction as an outcome of communication and organizational structures: An outcome based approach. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research in Business, 2(5), 249-257.

Bisel, R.S., Messersmith, A.S. & Kelley, K.M. (2012). Supervisor-subordinate communication: Hierarchical mum effect meets organizational learning. Journal of Business Communication, 49(2), 128-147.   

Brunner, B.R. (2008). Listening, communication & crust: Practitioners perspectives of business/organizational relationships. International Journal of reading, 22(1), 73- 82

Brunner, B.R. (2008). Listening, communication & crust: Practitioners perspectives of business/organizational relationships. International Journal of reading, 22(1), 73- 82.

Dan S. (May 01, 2015). High Oral Communication Apprehensives: How Can Students be Helped to Reduce Their Fear of Public Speaking?. Irish Journal of Academic Practice, 2, 1.

Ferguson, S. D. (2008). Public speaking: Building competency in stages. New York: Oxford University Press.

Giddens, A. (1984). The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration. Berkeley, LA: University of California Press.

Kirkhaug, R. (2010). Conditions for communication in risk exposed organizations. Journal of General Management. 36(2), 26-36.

Kumar, M., Kalakbandi, V., Prashar, S., Neelu, ., & Parashar, A. (December 01, 2017). Overcoming the effect of low self-esteem on public speaking anxiety with mindfulness-based interventions. Decision : Official Journal of Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, 44, 4, 287-296.

Md Nordin, S. Halib, M. & Ghazali, Z. (2011). Strengthening internal communication: A case of communication satisfaction in an organization. European Journal of Social Science, 24(4), 617-624.

North, M. M., Hill, J., Aikhuele, A. S., & North, S. M. (December 01, 2008). Virtual reality training in aid of communication apprehension in classroom environments. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 3, 34-37.

Saxena, R. (2010). Role of Communication in Employee Development. International Transactions In Humanities & Social Sciences, 2(2), 115-121.

Soda, G. & Zaheer, A. (2012). A network perspective on organizational structure: performance effects of the interplay of formal and informal organization. Strategic Management Journal 33(6), 751-771.

Taylor, J.R. & Every, V.E. (2009). The emergent organization: Communication at its site and surface. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc.

Verc?ic?, D., & Zerfass, A. (January 01, 2016). A comparative excellence framework for communication management. Journal of Communication Management, 20, 4, 270-288.

Wyman, E., Tomasello, M., & Rakoczy, H. (September 01, 2013). Non-verbal communication enables children’s coordination in a “Stag Hunt” game. European Journal of Developmental Psychology, 10, 5, 597-610.