Download 1/16/2009 Chapter Eighteen Managing

1/16/2009
Chapter
Eighteen
Managing
Interpersonal Relations
and Communications
Slide content created by Charlie Cook, The University of West Alabama
Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Learning Objectives
After studying this chapter, you should be able to:
1. Describe the interpersonal nature of organizations.
2. Describe the role and importance of communication
in the manager’s job.
3. Identify the basic forms of communication in
organizations.
4. Discuss informal communication, including its
various forms and types.
5. Describe how the communication process can be
managed to recognize and overcome barriers.
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18–2
The Interpersonal Nature of
Organizations
• Interpersonal Dynamics
– Positive
• When two parties know each
other, have mutual respect and
affection, and enjoy interacting
with one another.
– Negative
• When two parties dislike one
another, do not have mutual
respect, and do not enjoy
interacting with one another.
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18–3
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The Interpersonal Nature of
Organizations (cont’d)
• Outcomes of Interpersonal Behaviors
– Satisfaction of social needs
– Social support
– Source of organizational synergy
– Source of conflict
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18–4
Communication and the
Manager’s Job
• Communication
– The process of transmitting information
from one person to another.
• Effective Communication
– The process of sending a message in such
a way that the message received is as
close in meaning as possible to the
message intended.
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18–5
The Communication Process
•
Steps in the Communication Process
1. Deciding to transmit a fact, idea, opinion, or other
information to the receiver.
2. Encoding the meaning into a form appropriate to
the situation.
3. Transmission through the appropriate channel or
medium.
4. Decoding the message back into a form that has
meaning to the receiver.
– “Noise” is anything disrupting the communication
process.
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Figure 18.1: The
Communication Process
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18–7
Forms of Communication in
Organizations
• Interpersonal Communication (cont’d)
– Advantages of oral communication
• Promotes prompt feedback and interchange in the form
of verbal questions and responses.
• Is easy to use and can be done with little preparation.
– Disadvantages of oral communication
• Suffers from problems with inaccuracy in
meaning and details.
• Leaves no time for thought and consideration and no
permanent record of what was said.
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18–8
Forms of Communication in
Organizations (cont’d)
• Interpersonal Communication (cont’d)
– Written communication
• Memos, letters, reports, notes, and other methods in
which the written word is used to transmit meaning.
– Advantages of written communication
• Is accurate and leaves a permanent record of the
exchange.
• Leaves for thought and consideration, can be referenced.
• Is easy to use and can be done with little preparation.
– Disadvantages of written communication
• Inhibits feedback and interchange due to burden of
the process of preparing a physical document.
• Considerable delay can occur in clarifying message
meanings.
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Forms of Communication in
Organizations (cont’d)
• Communication in Networks and Work Teams
– Communication network
• The pattern through which the members of a group or
team communicate.
– Research suggests:
• When the group’s task is simple and routine, centralized
networks perform with the greatest efficiency and
accuracy.
• When the group’s task is complex and nonroutine,
decentralized networks with open communications that
foster interaction and exchange of relevant information
tend to be most effective.
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18–10
Figure 18.2: Types of
Communication Networks
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18–11
Forms of Communication in
Organizations (cont’d)
• Organizational Communication
– Vertical communication
• Communication that flows up and down the organization,
usually along formal reporting lines.
– Takes place between managers and subordinates and
may involve several levels of the organization.
• Upward communication
• Downward communication
• Horizontal communication
– Formal communication in organizations
• Follows the official reporting relationships and/or
prescribed channels.
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Figure 18.3: Formal
Communication in Organizations
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18–13
Forms of Communication in
Organizations (cont’d)
• Electronic Communication
– Formal Information Systems
• Accomplished (created) by either:
– A managerial approach
– An operational approach
• Electronic Communication
– Personal Electronic Technology
• Corporate intranets, the Internet, teleconferences, e-mail
• Telecommuting
• Disadvantages: the lack of face-to-face contact, strong
personal relationships, falling behind professionally, and
losing out in organizational politics.
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18–14
Informal Communication in
Organizations
• Informal Communications
– May or may not follow official reporting
relationships and/or prescribed organizational
channels
– May have nothing to do with official organizational
business.
– Common forms:
• Management by wandering around
• The grapevine
• Nonverbal communication
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Figure 18.4: Informal
Communication in Organizations
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18–16
Figure 18.5: Common Grapevine
Chains Found in Organizations
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18–17
Informal Communication in
Organizations (cont’d)
• Management by Wandering Around
– Managers keep in touch with what’s going
on by wandering around and talking to
people on all levels in the organization
• Grapevine
– An informal communication network that
can permeate an organization.
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Informal Communication in
Organizations (cont’d)
• Nonverbal Communication
– Any communication exchange that does not use
words, or uses words to carry more meaning than
the strict definition of the words themselves.
• Facial expression
• Inflection and tone of the voice.
– Only a small portion of the message content is
due to the words in the message.
– Kinds of nonverbal managerial communication:
• Images
• Settings
• Body language
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18–19
Table 18.1: Barriers to
Effective Communication
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18–20
Table 18.2: Overcoming
Barriers to Communication
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Improving Communication
Effectiveness
• Individual Skills
–
–
–
–
–
–
Being a good listener
Providing feedback (two-way communications)
Awareness word meaning differences
Maintain credibility
Sensitive to the receiver’s perspective
Sensitive to the sender’s perspective
• Organizational Skills
– Following up
– Regulating information flow
– Understanding the richness of different media
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18–22
Figure 18.6: More and Less
Effective Listening Skills
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18–23
Key Terms
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
effective communication
communication
oral communication
written communication
communication network
vertical communication
horizontal
communication
• grapevine
• management by
wandering around
• nonverbal
communication
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