Effective Communication and Writing

Ashley Shisila BalesORG 536 – Contemporary Business

Writing and CommunicationColorado State University – Global

CampusDr. Robert OlszewskiNovember 18, 2013

Importance of Communication

• Why is good communication needed?

o Communication is at the heart of the business world

o Business success depends upon communication

o A top skill looked for by employers

o Employees who effectively write and speak get jobs

Business Communication

• Three main functions of good communication

Inform Persuade

Promote Goodwil

l

Renewed Emphasis on Ethics

• Ethics are the standards of right and wrong that decide how people should act (Guffey & Loewy, 2011)

GoalsAbide Law

Tell Truth

Label Opinions

Be Objective

Communicate Clearly

Inclusive Language

Give Credit

ObstaclesFalse Necessity Trap

Doctrine of Relative Filth Trap

Rationalization Trap

Self Deception Trap

Ends Justify Means Trap

Ethical Checklist

Consider the following when making a decision:

• Is the action legal?

• How would you see the situation on the other side?

• What are the alternatives?

• Can you discuss the situation with someone?

• How would you feel if this was your family or friend?

Displaying Professionalism

Teams:-Team work involves conflict, conformity, and consensus when solving issues

Meetings:-Face to face

-Virtual

Listening:-Superiors-Customers-Teammates

Nonverbal:

-Eye contact-Appearance-Facial expressions

Etiquette Skills:

- Good manners-Polite-Appreciation

Professionalism is displayed through the following in business:

Intercultural Communication

Why is culture so important?

• Globalization of markets

• Technological advances

• Intercultural workforce

Communicating Between Cultures

Intercultural Communication

Techniques

Understand Nonverbal

Communication

Learn Correct Oral

Communication

Understand Email

Etiquette

Learn Proper Writing

Techniques

Learning Diversity

Diversity must be learned through the following:

o Understand who you are dealing witho Learn others ethicso Learn others values and practiceso Build relationships based on similarities

For more information on intercultural communication visit the following:http://www.cie.utoronto.ca/Programs/Global-Lounge/Intercultural-Learning.htm

The Writing Process

• Writing needs to be purposeful, persuasive, economical, and oriented toward the audience

• 3 x 3 Writing Process

o Prewriting

oWriting

oRevising

Prewriting: Purpose & Audience

• During the prewriting stage the purpose of the message must be identified as well as the audience

Purpose

Intent of message

Select appropriate

communication channel

Audience

Who is the message for

Anticipate the audience reaction

Prewriting: Adapting to the

Audience

• Adapting to the audience

o Gear message toward audienceo Cultivate a viewo Be controversial, but professionalo Promote positive expressionso Be courteouso Use bias free languageo Utilize familiar words

Writing: Organizing Messages

• Organized messages gather information from formal research, informal research, brainstorming, and experience

Informal Research

Formal Research

Brainstorming

Experience

Writing: Composing Messages

• Effective Sentence Structure• Emphasize ideas• Manage the voice

• Powerful Paragraphs• Explain• Persuade• Clarify

Revising: Making Changes

• Revisions need to accomplish the following:

o Conciseness• Delete flabby sentences, long lead ins, unnecessary

fillers, redundant words, and empty words

o Clarity• Keep it short and simple, delete business phrases,

drop clichés, and avoid exuberance

o Readability• Filling white space, understanding margins,

appropriate typefaces, proper fonts, number lists, bullets, and headings

Revising: Proofreading

• What needs to be accomplished and revised with proofreading

Spelling

Names and

Numbers

Grammar

Format

Punctuation

Exchanging Messages

• Paper messageso Business letterso Interoffice memos

• Electronic messageso Electronic mailo Instant messageso Text messageso Podcastso Blogo Wikio Social Networks

Emails, Instant Messages, Text Messages

• Electronic messages need to be professional

• These types of messages allow for real-time communication, quick decisions, and communication across countries

Podcasts, Blogs, Wiki’s

Podcasts, Blogs, Wiki’s

Promote public relations

Increase customer relations

Allow for crisis communication

Lets people connect over

distance

Social Networks

• Social networks connect people around the world

• Associated positives:o Brainstorming, teamwork, dispensing information

quickly, promoting brands, exchanging ideas, and connecting with customers

• Associated Negatives:o People may post negative comments but this allows the

organization to respond and correct the situation to build better relationships

The Art of Persuasion

• Persuasion is the ability to influence an individual's beliefs or actions (Guffey & Loewy, 2011).

• Persuasive people establish credibility with their audience, make reasonable requests, explain facts and benefits, recognize the power of loss, and can overcome resistance

Successful Persuasive Messages

• Successful persuasive messages accomplish goals

Persuasive Message

Gains Attention

Builds Interest

Reduces Resistanc

e

Motivates Actions

Remains Ethical

Positive Messages

• Positive Messages

o Apply 3x3 writing process

o Use appropriate information

o Direct message with requests

o Written clearly with instructions

o Make direct claims

Negative Messages

• Negative messages need to establish goals, apply the 3x3 writing process, and avoid legal liability

Decide to Apologize

Buffer News

Convey Empathy

Present Reason and

Facts

Close Pleasantly

Cushion Bad News

Research

• Research should find and evaluate resources to utilize and help generate data that avoids research bias (Guffey & Loewy, 2011).

• Purpose and techniques used to convey a message should avoid plagiarism and take fast paced communication into account

Business PresentationsIdentify the purpose and audience

Build rapport with audience

Use visual aids and images

Practice presentation and delivery

Prepare for any questions from the audience

8 Steps for Multimedia Presentations

Start with text

Select background and

fonts

Choose images

Create graphics

Add special effects

Create a hyperlink

Engage the audience

Post on internet

Business Reports

• Business Reportso Covero Title pageo Letter of transmittalo Table of contentso List of illustrationso Executive summary

• Introduction of Reports Contains:o Backgroundo Problemo Significance of topico Scopeo Authorizationo Review Literatureo Sourceso Key terms

Business Plans

• Business Planso Letter of transmittalo Executive summaryo Table of contentso Company descriptiono Product or service descriptiono Market Analysiso Operationso Financial analysiso Appendixes

Business ProposalsInformal Business

Proposal

Background, problem, purpose

Proposal, plans, schedules

Staffing

Budgets

Author request

Formal Business Proposal

Copy of request for proposal

Letter of transmittal

Abstract or executive summary

Title page

Table of contents

List of illustrations

Appendix

ReferenceGuffey, M., & Loewy, D. (2011). Business

communication: Process and product. (7th ed.). Independence, KY: Cengage Learning.

Colorado State University-Global Campus. (2013). Module 4 Workplace

Communication: Digital Media and Persuasive Messages. [Blackboard ecourse]. In ORG 536 – Contemporary Business Writing and Communication. (p. 1). Greenwood Village, CO: Author.

Colorado State University-Global Campus. (2013). Module 5 Workplace

Communication: Positive and Negative Messages. [Blackboard ecourse]. In ORG 536 – Contemporary Business Writing and Communication. (p. 1). Greenwood Village, CO: Author.