Communicating in Teams and Organisations

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Communicating Through Social Networking Sites

Social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace dramatically increase the scale and speed of communication. Some organisations, such as Australia’s REA Group, are making more use of these sites to communicate with staff. Others worry that social networking sites increase the risk that employees will compromise the company’s reputation.

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Communication Defined

The process by which information is transmitted and understood between two or more people

Effective communication• Transmitting intended meaning (not

just symbols)

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Importance of Communication

1. Coordinating work activities

2. Organisational learning and decision making

3. Employee wellbeing

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Receiver

EncodeEncodefeedbackfeedback

FormFormfeedbackfeedback

Sender

FormFormmessagemessage

EncodeEncodemessagemessage

Transmitmessage

Transmitfeedback

Noise

Communication Process Model

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DecodeDecodemessagemessage

ReceiveReceiveencodedencodedmessagemessage

DecodeDecodefeedbackfeedback

Receive Receive encodedencodedfeedbackfeedback

Improving Communication Coding/Decoding

Both parties have motivation and ability to communicate through the channel

Both parties have similar “codebooks”

Both parties share similar mental models of the communication context

Sender is experienced at communicating the message topic

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Safe to Check Your Email?

As reliance on technology increases, so too does cyber-bullying in the workplace. ‘The big thing with cyber-bullying, particularly email, is it’s very hard to gauge tone, and a lot of confusion arises,’ advises a British manager.

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How Email has Altered Communication

Now preferred medium for coordinating work

Tends to increase communication volume

Significantly alters communication flow

Reduces some selective attention biases

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Problems with Email

Communicates emotions poorly

Reduces politeness and respect (increased cyber bullying)

Inefficient for ambiguous, complex, novel situations

Increases information overload

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Social Networking Communication

Social network communication clusters people around interests/expertiseSeveral types of social network communication:

• Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn• Online discussion forums• Avatar sites (eg. Second Life)• Instant messaging• Wikis

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Nonverbal Communication

Actions, facial gestures, etc.

Influences meaning of verbal symbols

Less rule-bound than verbal communication

Important part of emotional labour

Most is automatic and nonconscious

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Emotional Contagion

The automatic process of sharing another person’s emotions by mimicking their facial expressions and other nonverbal behaviour

Serves three purposes:1. Provides continuous feedback to speaker

2. Increases emotional understanding of the other person’s experience

3. Communicates a collective sentiment – sharing the experience as part of the drive to bond

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Choosing the Best Communication Channel: Social Acceptance

How well the communication channel is approved and supported by the organisation, team, and individual:

1. Communication channel norms

2. Individual communication channel preferences

3. Symbolic meaning of the communication channel

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Choosing the Best Communication Channel: Media Richness

The channel’s data-carrying capacity needs to be aligned with the communication activity.

High richness when channel:

1. conveys multiple cues

2. allows timely feedback

3. allows customised message

4. permits complex symbols

Use rich communication media when the situation is nonroutine and ambiguous

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Oversimplifiedzone

Overloadedzone

Nonroutine/Ambiguous

Rich

MediaRichness

Situation

Hierarchy of Media Richness

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Lean

Routine/clear

Factors that Override Media Richness

Ability to multicommunicate with lean channels

More varied proficiency levels

Social distractions of rich channels

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Persuasive Communication

Changing another person’s beliefs and attitudes

Spoken communication is more persuasive because it:• is accompanied by nonverbal communication• has high quality immediate feedback• has high social presence

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Communication Barriers

Perceptions

Filtering

Language• Jargon• Ambiguity

Information Overload

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Information Overload

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Information load

Episodes of information overload

Employee’s information processing

capacity

Time

Managing Information Overload

Solution 1: Increase info processing capacity• Learn to read faster• Scan through documents more efficiently• Remove distractions • Time management • Temporarily work longer hours

Solution 2: Reduce information load• Buffering• Omitting• Summarising

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Cross-Cultural Communication

Need to be sensitive to cross-cultural issues in communication:

Importance of business cards – communicate rank and status

Different meaning of being late or on time

Recognise that English is usually a person’s second language

Varying degrees of directness about sensitive subjects (observe more nonverbal cues)

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Cross-Cultural Communication

Verbal differences• Language• Voice intonation• Silence/ conversational

overlaps

Nonverbal differences• Interpreting nonverbal

meaning• Importance of verbal

versus nonverbal

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Men Women

Task oriented: report talk

Relationship oriented: rapport talk

Power speech:gives advice directly

Powerless speech:gives advice indirectly

Conversations are negotiations of status

Conversations are bonding events

Less sensitive to nonverbal cues

More sensitive to nonverbal cues

Gender Communication Differences

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Getting Your Message Across

1. Empathise

2. Repeat the message

3. Use multiple communication channels

4. Use timing effectively

5. Be descriptive

Courtesy of Microsoft.

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ActiveActiveListeningListening

Active Listening Process & Strategies

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SensingSensing• Postpone evaluation• Avoid interruptions• Maintain interest

EvaluatingEvaluating• Empathise• Organise information

RespondingResponding• Show interest• Clarify the message

Communicating in Hierarchies

Workspace design• Clustering people in teams• Open office arrangements

Web-based organisational communication• Wikis – collaborative document creation• Blogs – personal news/opinion for sharing• e-zines – rapid distribution of company news

Direct communication with management• Management by walking around (MBWA)• Town hall meetings

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Organisational Grapevine

Early research findings• Transmits information rapidly in all directions• Follows a cluster chain pattern• More active in homogeneous groups• Transmits some degree of truth

Changes due to internet• Email becoming the main grapevine medium• Social networks are now global• Public blogs and forums extend gossip to everyone

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Grapevine Benefits/Limitations

Benefits• Fills in missing information from formal sources• Strengthens corporate culture• Relieves anxiety• Signals that problems exist

Limitations• Distortions might escalate anxiety• Perceived lack of concern for employees when

company info is slower than grapevine

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Communicating in Teams and Organisations

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