CH-10-11 Understanding Work Teams – Essentials of Organizational Behavior : Chapter Notes

This Document Contains Chapters 10 to 11 Chapter 10 Understanding Work Teams Chapter Overview Teams are increasingly becoming the primary means for organizing work in contemporary business firms. Understanding how and when to create these work teams is the purpose of this chapter. Chapter Objectives After studying this chapter, the student should be able to: 1. Analyze the growing popularity of teams in organizations. 2. Contrast groups and teams. 3. Contrast five types of teams. 4. Identify the characteristics of effective teams. 5. Show how organizations can create team players. 6. Decide when to use individuals instead of teams. Suggested Lecture Outline I. WHY HAVE TEAMS BECOME SO POPULAR? A. As organizations have restructured themselves to compete more effectively and efficiently, they have turned to teams as a better way to use employee talents. B. Teams are more flexible and responsive to changing events than traditional departments or other forms of permanent groupings. C. They can quickly assemble, deploy, refocus, and disband. But don’t overlook the motivational properties of teams. D. Consistent with our discussion of employee involvement as a motivator, teams facilitate employee participation in operating decisions. E. So another explanation for their popularity is that they are an effective means for management to democratize organizations and increase employee motivation. F. The fact that organizations have turned to teams doesn’t necessarily mean they’re always effective. II. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN GROUPS AND TEAMS A. Work Group. 1. A group is defined as two or more individuals, interacting and interdependent, who have come together to achieve particular objectives. 2. A work group is a group that interacts primarily to share information and to make decisions to help each member perform within his or her area of responsibility. a. Work groups have no need to engage in collective work or joint efforts, so no positive synergy is created. 3. In contrast to work groups, work teams create positive synergy through coordinated effort. a. Their individual efforts result in a level of performance that is greater than the sum of those individual inputs. 4. In both work groups and work teams, there are often behavioral expectations of members, collective normalization efforts, active group dynamics, and some level of decision making (even if just informally about the scope of membership). a. Both work groups and work teams may generate ideas, pool resources, or coordinate logistics such as work schedules; for the work group, however, this effort will be limited to information gathering for decision makers outside the group. b. Whereas we can think of a work team as a subset of a work group, the team is constructed to be purposeful (symbiotic) in its member interaction. c. The distinction between a work group and a work team should be kept even when the terms are mentioned interchangeably in differing contexts. Exhibit 10-1 highlights the differences between work groups and work teams. 5. The definitions help clarify why organizations structure work processes by teams. Management is looking for positive synergy that will allow the organization to increase performance. a. The extensive use of teams creates the potential for an organization to generate greater outputs with no increase in employee headcount. b. Notice however that we said potential. There is nothing magical that ensures the achievement of positive synergy in the creation of teams. Merely calling a group a team doesn’t automatically improve its performance. c. Effective teams have certain characteristics. If management hopes to gain increases in organizational performance through the use of teams, its teams must possess these characteristics. III. TYPES OF TEAMS A. In this section, we first describe four common types of teams; problem-solving teams, self-managed work teams, cross-functional teams, and virtual teams. Then we discuss multi-teams, a “team of teams.” B. Problem-Solving Teams. 1. These are teams in which members, often from the same department, share ideas or offer suggestions on how work processes and methods can be improved. 2. They rarely have the authority to unilaterally implement any of their suggested actions. C. Self-Managed Work Teams. 1. Unlike problem-solving teams, these teams move beyond simply making recommendations and instead implement solutions and take responsibility for outcomes. 2. Typically made up of 10 to 15 employees who perform highly related or interdependent jobs. a. This team takes on many of the responsibilities of their former supervisors such as 1) planning and scheduling of work 2) assigning tasks to members, collective control over the pace of work 3) making operating decisions 4) taking actions on problems 5) working with suppliers and customers 3. Research has indicated that the effectiveness of self-managed teams is not uniformly positive. a. Self-managed teams do not typically manage conflicts well. b. When disputes arise, members stop cooperating and power struggles ensue, which leads to lower group performance. c. Moreover, although individuals on these teams report higher levels of job satisfaction than other individuals, they also sometimes have higher absenteeism and turnover rates. D. Cross-Functional Teams. 1. These are teams made up of employees from about the same hierarchical level, but from different work areas, who come together to accomplish a specific task. 2. This type of team is an effective means of allowing people from diverse areas within the organization (or even between organizations) to exchange information, develop new ideas and solve problems, and coordinate complex projects. 3. Cross-functional teams are somewhat difficult to manage and it may take significant time for the teams to develop sufficient trust to become effective. 4. The strength of traditional cross-functional teams is the face-to-face collaborative efforts of individuals with diverse skills from a variety of disciplines. When the unique perspectives of these members is considered, these teams can be very effective. E. Virtual Teams. 1. Unlike the first three types of teams, virtual teams do not meet face to face. 2. Virtual teams use computer technology to tie together physically dispersed members in order to achieve a common goal. 3. These teams have become so pervasive and the technology so advanced that nearly all types of teams today do some of their work remotely. 4. Special Challenges of Virtual Teams. The lack of face-to-face contact results in: a. Less social rapport and direct interaction among members than in other types of teams. b. Another challenge is to correctly disperse information. Evidence from 94 studies involving more than 5,000 groups found that virtual teams are better at sharing unique information (information held by individual members, not the entire group), but they tend to share less information overall. c. A further challenge is finding the best amount of communication. Low levels of virtual communication in teams results in higher levels of information sharing, but high levels of virtual communication hinder it. 5. Thus, it is a mistake to think that virtual teams are an easy substitute for face-to-face teams. While geographic reach and immediacy of virtual communication make virtual teams a natural development, managers must make certain this type of team is the optimal choice for the desired outcome and then maintain an oversight role throughout the collaboration. F. Multiteam Systems. 1. The types of teams we’ve described so far are typically smaller, standalone teams, though their activities relate to the broader objectives of the organization. As tasks become more complex, teams often grow in size. 2. Increases in team size are accompanied by higher coordination demands, creating a tipping point at which the addition of another member does more harm than good. 3. To solve this problem, organizations are employing a multiteam system, collections of two or more interdependent teams that share a superordinate goal. In other words, multiteam systems are “teams of teams.” 4. Some factors that make smaller, more traditional teams effective do not necessarily apply to multiteam systems and can even hinder their performance. a. One study showed that multiteam systems performed better when they had “boundary spanners” whose job was to coordinate with members of the other sub teams. b. This reduced the need for some team member communication. Restricting the lines of communication was helpful because it reduced coordination demands. c. Research on smaller, standalone teams tends to find that opening up all lines of communication is better for coordination, but when it comes to multiteam systems, the same rules do not always apply. 5. In general, a multiteam system is the best choice when either a team has become too large to be effective, or when teams with distinct functions need to be highly coordinated. IV. CREATING EFFECTIVE TEAMS A. Many researchers have tried to identify factors related to team effectiveness. Exhibit 10-3 summarizes what we currently know about what makes teams effective. 1. In considering the team effectiveness model, keep in mind three points. a. First, teams differ in form and structure. The model attempts to generalize across all varieties of teams, but avoid rigidly applying its predictions to all teams. Use it as a guide. b. Second, the model assumes teamwork is preferable to individual work. Creating “effective” teams when individuals can do the job better is like perfectly solving the wrong problem. c. Third, let’s consider what team effectiveness means in this model. Typically, team effectiveness includes objective measures of the team’s productivity, managers’ rating of the team’s performance, and aggregate measures of member satisfaction. d. We can organize the key components of effective teams into three general categories. First are the resources and other contextual influences that make teams effective. The second relates to the team’s composition. Finally, process variables are events within the team that influence effectiveness. B. Context: What Factors Determine Whether Teams Are Effective? 1. There are four general categories of key team effectiveness components (context, composition, work design, and process variables): a. Adequate Resources. 1) All work groups rely on resources outside of the group to sustain them. 2) A scarcity of resources directly reduces the ability of the team to perform its job effectively. 3) These supportive resources include timely information, proper equipment, adequate staffing, encouragement, and administrative assistance. b. Leadership and Structure. 1) Team leadership and structure are required in order to get team members to agree on the specifics of work and how they fit together to integrate individual skills into a team output. 2) Leadership is especially important in multiteam systems, where different teams need to coordinate efforts to produce a desired outcome. 3) In these situations, leaders need to play the role of facilitators. c. Climate of Trust. 1) Members of effective teams trust each other and their leaders. 2) This trust facilitates cooperation, reduces the need to monitor each other’s behavior, and increases bonding. 3) Team members are more likely to take risks and expose vulnerabilities when they believe they can trust others on their team. 4) Trust in the leadership helps the team accept and commit to the leader’s goals and decisions. d. Performance Evaluation and Rewards Systems. 1) These systems must be modified to reflect team performance in order to hold both individuals and the team accountable. 2) These modifications may include group-based appraisals, profit sharing, gainsharing, and small-group incentives. C. Team Composition. 1. There are five variables in this category related to how teams should be staffed. a. Abilities of Members. Part of a team's performance depends on the knowledge, skills, and abilities of its members. 1) A team’s performance is not merely the summation of its individual members’ abilities, but these abilities set limits on what members can do and how effectively they will perform on a team. 2) Research has shown the following results when considering the abilities of members of effective teams. a) For tasks that entail considerable thought, high ability teams (teams composed of mostly intelligent members) do better. b) High ability teams are also better at adapting to changing situations. c) When tasks are simple, high ability teams do not perform well; team tasks must be matched to team abilities. d) The intelligence and ability of a team’s leader also matters. A less intelligent leader can neutralize the effect of a high ability team. b. Personality of Members. 1) As demonstrated in a previous chapter, personality has a significant influence on individual behavior; it also does on team behavior. 2) Teams that rate higher in mean levels of conscientiousness and openness to experience with a minimum level of agreeableness tend to perform better. 3) Conscientious team members are valuable because they back up other team members and are good at sensing limited support is truly needed. a) When there are not enough conscientious team members to go around, it is better to “pack” teams of conscientious members rather than “seeding” them throughout all of the organization’s teams. 4) Opening team members are better communicators and throw up more ideas leading to more creative and innovative solutions. c. Allocation of Roles. 1) Teams have different needs, and members should be selected to ensure all the various roles are filled. 2) A study of 778 major league baseball teams over a 21-year period highlights the importance of assigning roles appropriately. a) As you might expect, teams with more experienced and skilled members performed better. b) However, the experience and skill of those in core roles who handle more of the workflow of the team, and who are central to all work processes (in this case, pitchers and catchers), were especially vital. c) In other words, put your most able, experienced, and conscientious workers in the most central roles in a team. 3) We can identify nine potential team roles. a) Successful work teams have selected people to play all these roles based on their skills and preferences. (On many teams, individuals will play multiple roles.) b) To increase the likelihood the team members will work well together, managers need to understand the individual strengths each person can bring to a team, select members with their strengths in mind, and allocate work assignments that fit with members’ preferred styles. d. Diversity of Members. 1) Organizational Demography: The degree to which members of a work unit share a common demographic attribute such as age, sex, race, educational level, or length of service in the organization. 2) Attributes such as age or the date of joining should help us predict turnover. 3) Surface-level social-category diversity such as race/ethnicity, gender, and age tend to have negative effects on the performance of teams. 4) While these effects may decline over time, there is little evidence diverse teams perform better. 5) For diverse teams to realize their creative potential, they need to focus on their differences, not their similarities. 6) Culturally heterogeneous teams have more difficulty learning to work with each other and solving problems, but these difficulties dissipate with time. e. Size of Teams. 1) Most effective teams have five to nine members. 2) Using the smallest possible number of people who can accomplish a task tends to be the most effective way of sizing a team. 3) Doing so reduces coordination problems, decreases the chance of social loafing, and increases cohesiveness. f. Member Preferences. 1) Not every employee is a team player. a) Given the option, many employees will select themselves out of team participation. b) When people who would prefer to work alone are required to team up, there is a direct threat to the team’s morale and to individual member satisfaction. c) This suggests that when selecting team members, managers should consider individual preferences along with abilities, personalities, and skills. High-performing teams are likely to be composed of people who prefer working as part of a group. D. Team Process. 1. The final key component for team effectiveness is process: specifically six variables related to how a team completes their task. 2. Team processes should produce positive results: the output should be greater than the sum of the inputs (positive synergy). 3. Common Plan and Purpose. a. Effective teams begin by analyzing the team’s mission, developing goals to achieve that mission, and creating strategies for achieving the goals. b. Teams that establish a clear sense of what needs to be done and how to consistently perform better. c. Members of successful teams put a tremendous amount of time and effort into discussing, shaping, and agreeing on a purpose that belongs to them both collectively and individually. d. This common purpose, when accepted by the team, becomes what celestial navigation is to a ship captain: 1) It provides direction and guidance under any and all conditions. e. Like a ship following the wrong course, teams that don’t have good planning skills are doomed; perfectly executing the wrong plan is a lost cause. f. Effective teams also show reflexivity, meaning they reflect on and adjust their master plan when necessary. g. A team has to have a good plan, but it also has to be willing and able to adapt when conditions call for it. 4. Specific Goals. a. Successful teams translate their common purpose into specific, measurable, and realistic performance goals. b. Specific goals facilitate better communication and help teams maintain focus on results. c. These goals should be challenging in order to be motivational. 5. Team Efficacy. a. Effective teams have confidence in themselves: they believe they can succeed. b. Past success breeds future success. c. In order to increase team efficacy, managers can take one or both of the following two options. 1) Help the team to achieve small initial successes. 2) Provide technical and interpersonal skills training. 6. Mental Models. a. Effective teams have accurate and common mental models—knowledge and beliefs (a “psychological map”) about how the work is done. Incorrect or inaccurate mental models will decrease effectiveness. 7. Conflict Levels. a. A low level of conflict can actually improve team effectiveness. b. Relationship conflicts are usually detrimental, but task conflicts in teams performing non-routine activities may actually lead to superior decisions. 8. Social Loafing. a. Individuals can hide within groups. b. They coast on the group's effort because their individual contributions can't be identified. c. Effective teams undermine this tendency by holding themselves accountable at both the individual and team level. V. TURNING INDIVIDUALS INTO TEAM PLAYERS A. In many cultures and companies, employees have been trained to be fiercely individualistic. 1. Teamwork is not a natural state for them. 2. Management's challenge, therefore, is to overcome the individual resistance toward team participation. B. Selection: Hiring Team Players. 1. When hiring team members, in addition to technical skills, candidates should be screened on their ability to fulfill team roles. 2. Creating teams often means resisting the urge to hire the best talent no matter what. C. Training: Creating Team Players. 1. Managers can train individuals to become team players. 2. This may require the use of outside consultants who can help employees improve the employees’ problem solving, communication, negotiation, conflict-management, and coaching skills. D. Rewarding: Providing Incentives to Be a Good Team Player. 1. An organization’s reward system must be reworked to encourage cooperative efforts rather than competitive ones. a. Hallmark Cards, Inc. added to its basic individual-incentive system an annual bonus based on achievement of team goals. b. Whole Foods directs most of its performance-based rewards toward team performance. c. As a result, teams select new members carefully so they will contribute to team effectiveness (and thus team bonuses). 2. It is usually best to set a cooperative tone as soon as possible in the life of a team. a. As we already noted, teams that switch from a competitive to a cooperative system do not share information and make rushed, poor-quality decisions. b. Apparently, the low trust typical of the competitive group will not be readily replaced by high trust with a quick change in reward systems. c. These problems are not seen in teams that have consistently cooperative systems. 3. Promotions, pay raises, and other forms of recognition should be given to individuals who work effectively as team members by training new colleagues, sharing information, helping resolve team conflicts, and mastering needed skills. 4. Don’t forget the intrinsic rewards, such as camaraderie, that employees can receive from teamwork. VI. BEWARE! TEAMS AREN'T ALWAYS THE ANSWER A. Teamwork takes more time and often more resources than individual work. B. Therefore, the benefits of using teams must exceed the costs of having them. This may not always be the case, and there are three tests to determine if a team is necessary in a given situation. 1. Complexity of Work. A good indicator of the need for teams is the complexity of the work and the need for different perspectives for effective solution. Simple tasks, that do not need diverse input, are probably best left to individuals. 2. Common Purpose. For organizational outcomes that require multi-function interaction, the common purpose created by a team may increase organizational effectiveness. 3. Interdependence. Teams make sense when the tasks are interdependent and require a great deal of coordination. VII. IMPLICATIONS FOR MANAGERS A. Effective teams have common characteristics. They have adequate resources, effective leadership, a climate of trust, and a performance and rewards system that reflects team contributions. 1. These teams have individuals with technical expertise as well as problem-solving, decision-making, and interpersonal skills, as well as the right traits, especially conscientiousness and openness. B. Effective teams tend to be small – fewer than ten people, preferably of diverse backgrounds. 1. They have members who fill role demands and who prefer to be part of a group. The work that these members do provides freedom and autonomy, the opportunity for members to use different skills and talents, the ability to complete a whole and identifiable task or product, and work that has substantial impact on others. C. Effective teams have members who believe in the team’s capabilities and are committed to a common plan and purpose, have an accurate shared mental model of what is to be accomplished, share specific team goals, maintain a manageable level of conflict, and show a minimal level degree of social loafing. D. Because individualistic organizations and societies attract and reward individual accomplishments, it can be difficult to create team players in these environments. 1. To make the conversion, try to select individuals who have the right interpersonal skills to be effective team players, provide training to develop teamwork skills, and reward individuals for cooperative efforts. VIII. KEEP IN MIND A. Team composition matters—the optimal way to construct teams depends on the ability, skill, or trait under consideration. B. By matching individual preferences with team role demands, managers increase the likelihood that the team members will work well together. C. Effective teams maintain a common plan and purpose to their actions that guides their actions and concentrates their energies. IX. SUMMARY A. Few trends have influenced jobs as much as the massive movement to introduce teams to the workplace. B. The shift from working alone to working on teams requires employees to cooperate with others, share information, confront differences, and sublimate personal interests for the greater good of the team. Discussion Questions 1. Why is the use of teams in organizations becoming more popular? Answer: As organizations have reacted to external pressures to restructure themselves to compete more effectively and efficiently, they have turned to teams more and more often. The use of teams has increased managerial flexibility and is an effective means for democratizing organizations and increasing employee motivation. 2. What is the difference between a team and a group? Answer: A group is defined as two or more individuals, interacting and interdependent, who have come together to achieve particular objectives. A work group is a group that interacts primarily to share information and to make decisions to help each member perform within his or her area of responsibility. Work groups have no need to engage in collective work or joint efforts, so no positive synergy is created. In contrast, work teams create positive synergy through coordinated effort. Their individual efforts result in a level of performance that is greater than the sum of those individual inputs. The use of work teams creates the potential for organizations to generate greater outputs with no increase in inputs. 3. Describe the four types of teams. Answer: (1) Problem-Solving Teams. These are teams in which members share ideas or offer suggestions on how work processes and methods can be improved; although they rarely have the authority to unilaterally implement any of their suggested actions. (2) Self-Managed Work Teams. These are autonomous teams of 10 to 15 employees who perform highly related or interdependent jobs; these teams take on many of the responsibilities of their former supervisors, such as planning and scheduling of work, assigning tasks to members, collective control over the pace of work, making operating decisions, taking actions on problems, and working with suppliers and customers. (3) Cross-Functional Teams. These are teams made up of employees from about the same hierarchical level, but from different work areas, who come together to accomplish a specific task. This type of team is an effective means of allowing people from diverse areas within the organization to exchange information, develop new ideas and solve problems, and coordinate complex projects. (4) Virtual Teams. Virtual teams use computer technology to tie together physically dispersed members in order to achieve a common goal. They rarely, if ever, meet face to face. All types of teams seem to have embraced this virtual technology. 4. Describe the four main components of effective teams. Answer: (1) Context: effective teams have adequate resources, leadership, and structure, a climate of trust and supportive performance evaluation and rewards systems. (2) Team Composition: effective teams must be composed of people who are able, have the correct personality types, are flexible, and prefer to work on teams. (3) Work Design: effective teams need to work together into a collective responsibility to complete significant tasks so they need freedom and autonomy, skill variety, task identity, and task significance. (4) Process: effective teams need a common purpose, specific goals, team efficacy, moderate non-personal conflict, and a lack of social loafing. 5. How can managers help individuals become team players? Answer: Managers can help individuals become team players by: (1) hiring the correct people (candidates that can fulfill their team roles as well as technical requirements), (2) training people to become team players (perhaps through outside consultants), and (3) ensuring the organizational reward systems are aligned to support good teamwork. 6. When should individuals be used rather than teams? Answer: Based on the three rules for the use of teams, individuals are preferred when: (1) the work is simple and doesn’t need diverse input, (2) there is no need for or benefits from a common purpose, and (3) there is little or no interdependence or need for coordination. Exercises 1. Self-analysis. Are you a team player? Based on the information in this chapter, do you believe you are a team player? Why or why not? How might you improve your ability to function well on effective teams? 2. Web Crawling. Using your favorite search engine, search on the term “team effectiveness.” Find five webpages related to this concept and write up a one-page summary of the common team effectiveness concepts you discovered by visiting these pages. 3. Teamwork. As a team, you are to develop a bulleted study guide for this chapter. The items included in the study guide are to fully represent the chapter content. The items are also to be placed in the study guide in descending order of importance. In other words, the most important content item from the chapter is to be listed first, down to the least important content item. The items chosen for inclusion in this study guide, and their order of importance, must be completely agreed upon by ALL members of the team. No use of voting and majority rules can be employed in determining the content of the study guide. Consensus agreement must prevail within the team. Instructor notes: The purpose of this exercise is to indicate to students the relationship between size and team effectiveness. Divide the class into different sized teams. Make some teams extremely small and lacking in diversity and skills, and some teams extremely large and cumbersome. Give the teams the instructions that they are to come to a consensus on the content of their study guide. You might want to have a quick discussion on team roles, or simply let the teams themselves formally or informally let team roles evolve naturally, and have the teams identify the different role holders after the conclusion of the exercise. Record the time required by each different team to complete its task. Walk around the classroom and listen to the conversations within the different groups—this may provide rich insights as to why some groups completed the task more efficiently than others. When the study guides are done, conduct a discussion on what problems the teams encountered (size, diversity, roles) and how they think the team overcame that particular problem. 4. Analyzing Your Organization (Cumulative Project). If you are currently in an environment of teamwork, interview or discuss with the team leaders some of the variables in this chapter, using the following questions as a guide. a. How do you determine the size of the team? b. What types of conflict occur? How do you resolve conflict? c. Does it take longer to complete tasks in a team environment? d. Do you have “resistors” to teamwork? If so, how do you manage that? e. What happened to cause management to look at teams as a more efficient way of doing work? If you are not in a teamwork environment at your organization, what aspects of your organization would benefit from teamwork? Justify your answer. Suggested Assignment Use the teams structured in the Teamwork exercise. Ask the students to go to Google Docs’ presentation template at https://docs.google.com/present/edit?id=0ASCP6dbp8LXCZGRkMzZoeGpfMTgxY3dicXFoY2M&hl=en&authkey=CP_bsocC and select “Edit” on the actions menu at the bottom. When the edit window opens, ask students to create a new presentation file by selecting File>New>Presentations (this may require that a student have a Google Docs account. If it does, ask one of the students to act as the coordinator and to sign up for a Google Account to manage the presentation set up.) A new presentation document should come up. Ask the students to rename the presentation document to a name they will remember by clicking on the “Chapter 9 Robbins and Judge” title. Ask the students to click on the “Share” button on the right. When its dialog box opens, click on “Change” access. Select “Only those with the address.” And “anyone can edit” (two check boxes). This should set the presentation to access by all students who use the unique address as a web URL. Once this is done and everything is saved, the student creating the presentation for the group should email the address to the other members of his or her group. This is a presentation collaboration site that does not require passwords or other security clearance. Ask the groups to prepare a presentation on the results of the Teamwork Exercise. Assign this task to be done from their home computers or laptops in virtual meeting format. This illustrates the use of “Cloud Computing” for online virtual collaboration on a presentation. The same can be done for reports or spreadsheets. When the presentation is complete, have the students email the presentation address to the instructor, who will then distribute it to the class. Each class member can then view the presentations. Note that creation of this type of stand-alone presentation is different from the typical student outline of a paper that constitutes the slide content. Ask students to rate the presentations on the basis of creativity, information presentation, and achievement of a communication objective. Discuss in class how the presentation could be improved to better present the information about the teamwork outcome. Chapter 11 Communication Chapter Overview In order to be successful, managers must be able to communicate effectively. This chapter describes the communication process and the various ways managers communicate to employees. Additionally, barriers to communication are presented. Chapter Objectives After studying this chapter, the student should be able to: 1. Describe the communication process and formal and informal communication. 2. Contrast downward, upward, and lateral communication. 3. Compare and contrast formal small-group networks and the grapevine. 4. Contrast oral, written, and nonverbal communication. 5. Show how channel richness underlies the choice of communication channel. 6. Differentiate between automatic and controlled processing of persuasive messages. 7. Identify common barriers to effective communication. 8. Show how to overcome the potential problems in cross-cultural communication. Suggested Lecture Outline I. INTRODUCTION A. No individual, group, or organization can exist without communication (the transference and understanding of meaning). II. THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS A. Before communication can take place, it needs a purpose, expressed as a message to be conveyed. B. The message passes between a sender and receiver. The message is encoded (converted to a symbolic form) and passed by way of some medium (channel) to the receiver, who retranslates (decodes) the message. Successful communication results in the transference of meaning from one person to another. C. Exhibit 11-1 Shows the Communication Process’s Key Components 1. Sender: the person who initiates a message by encoding a thought. 2. Encoding: converting the thought into symbols and language. 3. Message: the actual physical product the sender is encoding. It is the encoded thought to be transferred. 4. Channel: the sender-selected medium through which the message travels. There are two basic channels for communication in organizations: a. Formal Channels. The path follows the authority chain of the organization. The messages sent by these channels normally relate to the professional activities of the members of that organization. b. Informal Channels. Spontaneous channels that emerge as a response to individual choices. Messages sent through these channels are often personal or social. 5. Receiver: the person to whom the message is directed. 6. Decoding: converting a message from symbols and language back into thought. 7. Noise: communication barriers that distort the clarity of the message, such as perceptual problems, information overload, semantic difficulties, or cultural differences. 8. Feedback: information sent from the receiver back to the sender to indicate how successful the transference was. III. DIRECTION OF COMMUNICATION A. Communication can flow vertically or laterally. Vertical communications can be upward or downward from a person's position in an organization. 1. Downward Communication. Communication that flows from one level of a group or organization to a lower level in that organization. a. Typically used by leaders and managers to assign goals, provide job instructions, inform employees of policies and procedures, point out problems that need attention, and offer feedback about performance. b. Downward communication can be an effective means for managers to explain the reasons why a decision was made. Such explanations can dramatically increase employee commitment to change. c. Downward communication is one way: from manager to employee. The effectiveness of downward communication can be increased if it includes a request for upward communication (feedback, opinions, or advice) from those they supervise. 2. Upward Communication. Communication that moves upward through the organization's hierarchy. a. Used to provide feedback to organizational superiors, inform superiors of progress toward goals, to relay current problems, and solicit employee suggestions. 1) Effective upward communication requires: a) Reduction of distractions. b) Communicating in “headlines,” not “paragraphs.” c) Supporting headlines with actionable items. d) Preparation and use of an agenda. 3. Lateral Communication. Communication that takes place among members of the same work group, among members of work groups of the same level of the hierarchy, among managers at the same level, or between any horizontally equivalent personnel. a. Such communications help to facilitate coordination and save time. These lateral relationships may be formally sanctioned or, more often, they are informally created to short-circuit the vertical hierarchy and expedite action. b. Such communication can be good or bad depending on whether it conflicts or enhances the formal vertical channels of communication. IV. ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION A. Formal Small-Group Networks. 1. This text will demonstrate three basic types of networks: the chain, wheel, and all-channel. a. Chain. These networks rigidly follow the formal chain of command. This can be seen in traditional, bureaucratic organizations. b. Wheel. These networks rely on a central figure to be the conduit for all of the group's communication. This type of network is often seen in teams with strong leaders, with the leader acting as the conduit. c. All-Channel. In this network, all group members actively communicate with each other with no leader present. An example of this type of network is self-managed work teams. 2. Effectiveness. The effectiveness of each network hinges upon which dependent variable needs to be emphasized in the organization. No single network structure is best for all occasions. B. The Grapevine. 1. In addition to the formal network systems of communication in organizations, there exists an informal one that is just as important: the grapevine. 2. Rumors emerge as a response to situations that are: a. important to us, b. when there is ambiguity, and c. under conditions that arouse anxiety. 3. The fact that work situations frequently contain these three elements explains why rumors flourish in organizations. 4. The secrecy and competition that typically prevail in large organizations—around the appointment of new bosses, the relocation of offices, downsizing decisions, or the realignment of work assignments—encourage and sustain rumors on the grapevine. 5. A rumor will persist either until the wants and expectations creating the uncertainty are fulfilled, or the anxiety has been reduced. 6. Certainly it’s an important part of any group or organization communication network and is well worth understanding. a. It gives managers a feel for the morale of their organization, identifies issues employees consider important, and helps tap into employee anxieties. b. The grapevine also serves employees’ needs: 1) Small talk creates a sense of closeness and friendship among those who share information. 2) Research suggests it often does so at the expense of those in the “out” group. 7. Can managers entirely eliminate rumors? a. No. b. What they should do, however, is minimize the negative consequences of rumors by limiting their range and impact. V. MODES OF COMMUNICATION A. There are three basic methods of communication: oral, written, and nonverbal. 1. Oral Communication. This is the chief means of conveying messages. It may be in the form of speeches, formal one-on-one and group discussions, or talk along the grapevine. a. Advantages. Oral communications are quick and feedback can be received just as quickly, making corrections relatively simple. b. Disadvantages. Oral communications are subject to personal interpretation, and when passed through a number of people, the message received at the final destination may not be the one that was originally sent. (Remember the childhood game of telephone?) 2. Written Communication. This form of communication includes any method that conveys written words or symbols and dates back thousands of years, and since we have samples from these earliest writings, written communication is thus the longest-lasting form of communication. a. Written communication today is usually conducted via letters, e-mail, instant messaging, social media, and blogs. 3. Nonverbal Communication. This form of communication includes body movements, the intonations or emphasis given to words, facial expressions, and the physical distance between the sender and the receiver. a. Forms of Nonverbal Communication: 1) Body Movement. Any movement of the body can have meaning. Such body language conveys two important messages: a) the degree of like or interest in another (or the person's ideas) and b) the perceived status differences between sender and receiver. c) Body language both enhances and complicates verbal communication. 2) Intonation. This is the emphasis given to words or phrases in verbal communication. Changing the intonation of a set of words can completely change their meaning. 3) Facial Expressions. Similar to intonation, facial expressions can change the meaning of the words communicated. Facial expressions allow people to add an emotional component to the words they use. 4) Physical Distance. While highly dependent on cultural norms, the space between people can convey meaning. Typically, the closer two people are, the more intimate they are. Formal relationships and disinterest are often demonstrated by a greater distance between two people. VI. CHOICE OF COMMUNICATION CHANNEL A. Why do people choose one channel of communication over others? A model of media richness helps explain channel selection among managers. B. Channel Richness. 1. Channels differ in terms of their capacity to convey information. Some are rich in that they can: a. Handle multiple cues simultaneously, b. Facilitate rapid feedback, and c. Be very personal. 2. Others are lean in that they score low on these factors. 3. As Exhibit 11-5 illustrates, face-to-face conversation scores highest in channel richness because it transmits the most information per episode – multiple information cues (words, postures, facial expressions, gestures, intonations), immediate feedback (both verbal and nonverbal), and the personal touch of being physically present. 4. Impersonal written media such as formal reports and bulletins rate the lowest in richness. C. Choosing Communication Methods. 1. The choice of channel depends on whether the message is routine. a. Routine messages tend to be straightforward and have minimal ambiguity, so channels low in richness can carry them efficiently. b. Non-routine communications are likely to be complicated and have the potential for misunderstanding. 2. Managers can communicate them effectively only by selecting rich channels. 3. Often, a variety of modes of communication work best to convey important ideas. 4. Channel richness is a helpful framework for choosing your mode of communication. It is not always easy to know when to choose oral rather than written communication, for instance. 5. Experts say oral communication or “face time” with coworkers, clients, and upper management is key to success. However, if you seek the CEO out just to say hello, you may be remembered as an annoyance rather than a star, and signing up for every meeting on the calendar to increase your face time is counterproductive to getting the work of the organization done. a. Your communication choice is worth a moment’s thought: Is the message you need to communicate better suited to a discussion, or a diagram? 6. Whenever you need to gauge the receiver’s receptivity, oral communication is usually the better choice. 7. Also consider the receiver’s preferred mode of communication; some individuals focus on content better over the phone than in person. The pace of your work environment matters, too. a. If your manager requests a meeting with you, you may not want to ask for an exchange of emails instead. A fast-paced work place may thrive on pop-by meetings, while a deadline heavy team project may progress faster with scheduled Skype videoconferences. Sometimes we cannot choose between a face-to-face meeting and a telephone meeting because of distance. Other times, there is an option. 8. Much of what we communicate face-to-face is in the delivery, so consider your speaking skills when choosing your communication method. Research indicates that the sound of your voice is twice as important as what you are saying. 9. Written communication is generally the most reliable mode for complex and lengthy communications, and it can be the most efficient method for short messages, as when a two-sentence text can take the place of a 10-minute phone call. a. But keep in mind that written communication can be limited in its emotional expression. 10. Choose written communication when you want the information to be tangible and verifiable. Both you and the receiver(s) will have a record of the message. 11. People are usually forced to think more thoroughly about what they want to convey in a written message than in a spoken one, so written communications can be well thought out and clear. a. But be aware that, as with oral communication, your delivery is just as important as the content. Managers’ report that grammar mistakes and lack of business formality are unprofessional and unacceptable. 12. Finally, in choosing a communication channel, it’s important to be alert to nonverbal aspects of your communication and consider your body language cues as well as the literal meaning of your words. 13. You should be particularly aware of contradictions between the verbal and nonverbal messages, as a sender and as a receiver. D. Information Security. 1. Security is a huge concern for nearly all organizations with private or proprietary information about clients, customers, and employees. Organizations worry about the security of the electronic information they seek to protect, such as hospital patient data, the physical information they still keep in file cabinets, and the security of the information they entrust their employees with knowing. 2. The recent adoption of cloud-based electronic data storage has brought a new level of worry; 51 percent of managers in a recent survey were considering cloud-based human resource software. a. Early research indicates that fears about cloud computing seem unwarranted, so its business use will likely increase. 3. As we’ve discussed, most companies actively monitor employee Internet use and e-mail records, and some even use video surveillance and record phone conversations. a. Necessary as they may be, such practices can seem invasive to employees. An organization can relieve employee concerns by engaging them in the creation of information-security policies and giving them some control over how their personal information is used. VII. PERSUASIVE COMMUNICATION A. Automatic and Controlled Processing. 1. To understand the process of communication, it is useful to consider two different ways that we process information. Consider the last time you bought a can of soda. Did you carefully research brands, or did you choose the car that had the most appealing advertising images? If we’re honest, we’ll admit glitzy ads and catchy slogans do indeed influence our choices as consumers. 2. We often rely on automatic processing, a relatively superficial consideration of evidence and information making use of heuristics. a. Automatic processing takes little time and minimal effort, so it makes sense to use it for processing persuasive messages related to topics you don’t care much about. The disadvantage is that it lets us be easily fooled by a variety of tricks, like a cute jingle or a glamorous photo. 3. Now consider the last time you chose a place to live. You probably researched the area, gathered information about prices from a variety of sources, and considered the costs and benefits of renting versus buying. Here, you’re relying on more effortful controlled processing, a detailed consideration of evidence and information relying on facts, figures, and logic. a. Controlled processing requires effort and energy, but it’s harder to fool someone who has taken the time and effort to engage in it. 4. So what makes someone engage in either automatic or controlled processing? There are a few rules of thumb for determining what types of processing an audience will use. B. Interest Level. 1. One of the best predictors of whether people will use an automatic or controlled process for reacting to a persuasive message is their level of interest in the outcome. a. Interest levels reflect the impact a decision is going to have on your life. When people are very interested in the outcome of a decision, they’re more likely to process information carefully. That’s probably why people look for so much more information when deciding about something important than something relatively unimportant. C. Prior Knowledge. 1. People who are very well informed about a subject area are more likely to use controlled processing strategies. They have already thought through various arguments for or against a specific course of action, and therefore they won’t readily change their position unless very good, thoughtful reasons are provided. a. On the other hand, people who are poorly informed about a topic can change their minds more readily, even in the face of fairly superficial arguments presented without a great deal of evidence. b. Overall, then, a better-informed audience is likely to be much harder to persuade. D. Personality. 1. Those who are lower in need for cognition are more likely to use automatic processing strategies, relying on intuition and emotion to guide their evaluation of persuasive messages. E. Message Characteristics. 1. Another factor that influences whether people use an automatic or controlled processing strategy is the characteristics of the message itself. a. Messages provided through relatively lean communication channels, with little opportunity for users to interact with the content of the message, encourage automatic processing. b. Conversely, messages provided through richer communication channels tend to encourage more deliberative processing. 2. The most important implication is to match your persuasive message to the type of processing your audience is likely to use. When the audience is not interested in a persuasive message topic, when they are poorly informed, when they are low in need for cognition, and when information is transmitted through relatively lean channels, they’ll be more likely to use automatic processing. a. In these cases, use messages that are more emotionally laden and associate positive images with your preferred outcome. b. On the other hand, when the audience is interested in a topic, when they are high in need for cognition, or when the information is transmitted through rich channels, then it is a better idea to focus on rational arguments and evidence to make your case. VIII. BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION. A. Filtering. 1. Refers to senders purposely manipulating information so it will be seen more favorably by the receiver. 2. Upward communication, especially of bad news, is often filtered and distorted to avoid the possibility of upper management “killing the messenger.” B. Selective Perception. 1. As mentioned earlier, receivers in the communication process selectively see and hear based on their own needs, motivations, experience, background, and other personal characteristics. 2. Human beings don't see reality; they interpret what they see and call it reality. C. Information Overload. 1. Individuals have a finite capacity for processing data, and when that capacity is exceeded, the result is information overload. 2. When individuals are in this condition, they tend to pass over, ignore, select out, or forget information, resulting in lost information and less effective communication. D. Emotions. 1. How a person feels when a message is received will influence how he or she interprets it. 2. When emotions are running high, most people tend to disregard rational and objective thinking processes. E. Language. 1. Despite sharing a common language, words do not always hold the same meaning among members of the organization. 2. Senders tend to assume the words and terms they use mean the same to the receiver as to them. This assumption is often incorrect. F. Silence. 1. It’s easy to ignore silence or lack of communication, precisely because it is defined by the absence of information. 2. However, research suggests silence and withholding communication are both common and problematic. a. One survey found that more than 85 percent of managers reported remaining silent about at least one issue of significant concern. Employee silence means managers lack information about ongoing operational problems. b. And silence regarding discrimination, harassment, corruption, and misconduct means top management cannot take action to eliminate this behavior. c. Finally, employees who are silent about important issues may also experience psychological stress. 3. Silence is less likely where minority opinions are treated with respect, work group identification is high, and high procedural justice prevails. a. Practically, this means managers must make sure they behave in a supportive manner when employees voice divergent opinions or express concerns, and they must take these concerns under advisement. b. One act of ignoring or belittling an employee for expressing concerns may well lead the employee to withhold important future communication. G. Communication Apprehension. 1. Approximately 5 to 20% of the population is anxious when put in a situation where they have to communicate to others. 2. This apprehension may affect all forms of communication, not just speaking in front of groups. H. Lying. 1. The final barrier to effective communication is outright misrepresentation of information, or lying. 2. People differ in their definition of what constitutes a lie. Regardless of the definition, however, lying is prevalent. 3. The average person tells two lies per day, and is more comfortable lying over the phone than face to face, and more comfortable lying in e-mail than on paper. 4. Most people are not very good at detecting deception in others. The problem is that there are no nonverbal or verbal cues unique to lying. 5. Most people who lie take a number of steps to guard against being detected. 6. Many lies are embedded in truths. IX. GLOBAL IMPLICATIONS A. Effective communication is difficult under the best of conditions. 1. Cross-cultural factors clearly create the potential for increased communication problems. 2. A gesture that is well understood and acceptable in one culture can be meaningless or lewd in another. 3. Only 18 percent of companies have documented strategies for communicating with employees across cultures, and only 31 percent require that corporate messages be customized for consumption in other cultures. 4. Procter & Gamble seems to be an exception; more than half of the company’s employees don’t speak English as their first language, so the company focuses on simple messages to make sure everyone knows what’s important. B. Cultural Barriers. 1. Researchers have identified a number of problems related to language difficulties in cross-cultural communications. 2. First are barriers caused by semantics. a. Words mean different things to different people, particularly people from different national cultures. b. Some words don’t translate between cultures. c. The new capitalists in Russia may have difficulty communicating with British or Canadian counterparts because English terms such as efficiency, free market, and regulation have no direct Russian equivalents. 3. Second are barriers caused by word connotations. a. Words imply different things in different languages. b. Negotiations between U.S. and Japanese executives can be difficult because the Japanese word Hai translates as “yes,” but its connotation is “Yes, I’m listening” rather than “Yes, I agree.” 4. Third are barriers caused by tone differences. a. In some cultures, language is formal; in others, it’s informal. In some cultures, the tone changes depending on the context: People speak differently at home, in social situations, and at work. Using a personal, informal style when a more formal style is expected can be embarrassing. 5. Fourth are differences in tolerance for conflict and methods for resolving conflicts. a. Individuals from individualist cultures tend to be more comfortable with direct conflicts and will make the source of their disagreements overt. b. Collectivists are more likely to acknowledge conflict only implicitly and avoid emotionally charged disputes. c. They may attribute conflicts to the situation more than to the individuals and therefore may not require explicit apologies to repair relationships, whereas individualists prefer explicit statements accepting responsibility for conflicts and public apologies to restore relationships. C. Cultural Context. 1. Cultures tend to differ in the degree to which context influences the meaning individuals take from communication. a. In high-context cultures such as China, Korea, Japan, and Vietnam, people rely heavily on nonverbal and subtle situational cues in communicating with others, and a person’s official status, place in society, and reputation carry considerable weight. 1) What is not said may be more significant than what is said. 2) In contrast, people from Europe and North America reflect their low-context cultures. 3) They rely essentially on spoken and written words to convey meaning; body language and formal titles are secondary. b. These contextual differences actually mean quite a lot in terms of communication. 2. Communication in high-context cultures implies considerably more trust by both parties. a. What may appear to be casual and insignificant conversation in fact reflects the desire to build a relationship and create trust. b. Oral agreements imply strong commitments in high context cultures. And who you are—your age, seniority, rank in the organization—is highly valued and heavily influences your credibility. 3. But in low-context cultures, enforceable contracts tend to be in writing, precisely worded, and highly legalistic. a. Similarly, low-context cultures value directness. b. Managers are expected to be explicit and precise in conveying intended meaning. 4. It’s quite different in high-context cultures, in which managers tend to “make suggestions” rather than give orders. D. A Cultural Guide 1. When communicating with people from a different culture, what can you do to reduce misinterpretations? 2. Begin by trying to assess the cultural context. You’re likely to have fewer difficulties if it’s similar to yours. 3. The following rules can be helpful: a. Know Yourself. Recognizing your own cultural identity and biases is critical to understanding the unique viewpoint of others. b. Foster a Climate of Mutual Respect, Fairness, and Democracy. Clearly establish an environment of equality and mutual concern. This will be your “third culture” context for effective intercultural communication that transcends each person’s cultural norms. c. Learn the Cultural Context of Each Person. You may find more similarities or differences to your own frame of reference than you might expect. Be careful not to categorize them, however. d. When in Doubt, Listen. If you speak your opinions too early, you may be more likely to offend the other person. You will also want to listen first to better understand the other person’s intercultural language fluency and familiarity with your culture. e. State the Facts, Not Your Interpretation. Interpreting or evaluating what someone has said or done draws more on your own culture and background than on the observed situation. If you state only facts, you will have the opportunity to benefit from the other person’s interpretation. Delay judgment until you’ve had sufficient time to observe and interpret the situation from the differing perspectives of all concerned. f. Consider the Other Person’s Viewpoint. Before sending a message, put yourself in the recipient’s shoes. Try to see the people in the group as they really are at first, and take a collaborative problem-solving approach whenever potential conflicts arise. g. Proactively Maintain the Identity of the Group. Like any culture, the establishment of a common-ground “third culture” for effective intercultural communication takes time and nurturing. Remind members of the group of your common goals, mutual respect, and need to adapt to individual communication preferences. X. IMPLICATIONS FOR MANAGERS A. Remember that your communication mode will partly determine your communication effectiveness. B. Obtain feedback from your employees to make certain your messages – however they are communicated – are understood. C. Remember that written communication creates more misunderstandings than oral communication; communicate with employees through in-person meetings when possible. D. Make sure you use communication strategies appropriate to your audience and the type of message you’re sending. E. Keep in mind communication barriers such as gender and culture. XI. KEEP IN MIND A. Each communication direction has its own challenge that must be overcome. B. Each form of communication has an optimal purpose and specific limitations—use appropriately. C. Communication barriers often retard or distort communication. XII. SUMMARY A. You’ve probably discovered the link between communication and employee satisfaction in this chapter: the less uncertainty, the greater the satisfaction. B. Distortions, ambiguities, and incongruities between oral, written, and nonverbal messages all increase uncertainty and reduce satisfaction. C. Since everyone’s perspective is different, the more you can understand your employees, the better you can respond. D. Cultural sensitivity is an important organizational component for establishing communications understanding. Discussion Questions 1. Describe the communication process. Answer: The communication process starts with an idea to be conveyed. The idea is encoded (converted into symbolic form) into a message. The message passes between a sender and receiver through a formal or informal channel (media) and may be distorted by noise (communications barriers). The receiver retranslates (decodes) the message. Successful communication is the result of transference of meaning from one person to another and may be evidenced through feedback. 2. Describe the possible directions that formal communication can take in an organization and provide examples of each. Answer: Communication in organizations can be upward, downward, or lateral. Upward communication is used to provide feedback to superiors, inform them of progress toward goals, relay current problems, and solicit employee suggestions. Lateral communication takes place among members of the same work group, among members of work groups of the same level of the hierarchy, among managers at the same level, or between any horizontally equivalent personnel. Lateral communications facilitate coordination and save time, such as discussing the budget request with people in both finance and operations. Downward communication is typically used by leaders and managers to assign goals, provide job instructions, and inform employees of policies. 3. Compare and contrast oral, written, and nonverbal communication. Answer: Oral communication is the chief means of conveying messages. It may be in the form of speeches, formal one-on-one and group discussions, or talk along the grapevine. Written communication includes memos, letters, fax transmissions, e-mail, instant messaging, periodicals, notices, or any other means by which ideas are transmitted through written words or symbols. Nonverbal communication consists of body language, tone and emphasis of words, facial expressions, and the physical distance between sender and receiver. Oral communications are quick and feedback can be received just as quickly, making corrections relatively simple. Written communication can be time consuming, has slow or no feedback, and may not be received and/or read by the intended recipient. Because of the time and effort involved in creating written communications, they tend to be better thought out, more logical, and clearer than oral communications. Nonverbal communication is culture dependent and often difficult to interpret accurately. Written communications are tangible and verifiable. They provide a record of the communication and can be stored, making them available for future reference. Oral communications are subject to personal interpretation, and when passed through a number of people, the message received at the final destination may not be the one actually sent. Nonverbal communication can amplify oral communication. 4. Identify which organizational outcomes (dependent variables) are most effectively achieved by each type of formal small group communication network. Answer: Accuracy is best achieved using the chain network. Leadership development is best facilitated through the wheel network. High member satisfaction is promoted with the all-channel network. 5. Describe the conditions that foster the growth of a grapevine in an organization. Answer: (1) Situation. When employees believe a situation is important to them and they feel that they are getting insufficient information through formal channels. (2) Ambiguity. Grapevines often occur when there does not seem to be a clear understanding of how the organization or managers will react in a given situation. (3) Anxiety. When the situation is important and ambiguous, employees are often anxious about their situation. One of the ways to relieve the tension is to increase communication, which they do through the grapevine. 6. Identify and describe common barriers to effective communication. Answer: (1) Filtering. Refers to senders purposely manipulating information so it will be seen more favorably by the receiver. (2) Selective Perception. Receivers in the communication process selectively see and hear based on their own needs, motivations, experience, background, and other personal characteristics. (3) Information Overload. Individuals have a finite capacity for processing data, and when that capacity is exceeded, the result is information overload. When individuals are in this condition, they tend to pass over, ignore, select out, or forget information, resulting in lost information and less effective communication. (4) Emotions. How a person feels when a message is received will influence how he or she interprets it. (5) Language. Despite sharing a common language, words do not always hold the same meaning among members of the organization. (6) Communication Apprehension. Approximately 5 to 20% of the population is anxious when put in a situation where they have to communicate to others. This apprehension may affect all forms of communication, not just speaking in front of groups. 7. Describe the causes of potential problems in cross-cultural communication. Answer: Miscommunication can occur because of cultural barriers: (1) Barriers Caused by Semantics. Some culture-specific words have no literal translation in another language. (2) Barriers Caused by Word Connotations. Words have culturally accepted meanings (connotations) that do not always reflect the dictionary definitions (denotations). (3) Barriers Caused by Tone Differences. In some cultures, the acceptable tone is linked to the context of the communication. Using the incorrect tone can diminish communication effectiveness. (4) Barriers Caused by Differences among Perceptions. People who speak different languages actually view the world in different ways, making it difficult to find commonality in some cases. Exercises 1. Self-analysis. Have you ever been misinterpreted in an email, TM, or IM because the receiver could not see your facial expressions or hear your tone of voice? If so, describe what happened. Do you think the use of “emoticons” (smiley faces and the like) help reduce this communication confusion? 2. Web Crawling. Using your favorite search engine, enter the phrase “communication tests,” identify and take three of the free communications tests offered. What did the tests tell you about your communication style? Write up your results and compare the tests and suggestions with those of the textbook. 3. Teamwork. a. Telephone I: Line the class up and pass a hard copy of the following message to the first student in line. That student is to read the message silently and then whisper the message into the ear of the student next in line. No questions are allowed during the course of this activity and the message can only be passed on (said) once – no repeating. All on a summer’s day, Candice crammed cranberries into the cask while Paula pruned the purple primroses completely away. -Or- Bob’s budget was bigger than the boss believed and, boy oh boy, was Bill belligerent about being berated about a bollixed budget! Have the last student in line repeat the message aloud and then have the first student re-read the message. Count the number of words correctly passed along, calculate the error rate (100% - [number of correct words over total number of words to have been communicated * 100]) and share the results with the class. Have the class discuss what happened and how to remedy the situation. Their answers should lead to Phase II. b. Telephone II: Use whichever of the two messages was not used in Phase I and pass it along in a similar manner. This time, however, allow each recipient to ask for the message to be repeated (still in his or her ear) before forcing the message on to the next person. (As an alternative, also give the recipient the option of being able to repeat the message back into the sender’s ear for confirmation before passing it on.) End as with Phase I. Compare the results of the two phases. What might account for the differences? 4. Analyzing Your Organization (Cumulative Project). Discuss with various members of your organization where they think the communication breakdowns occur, either in their department or in the organization itself. Analyze their answers in the context of the communications model given as Exhibit 11-1. Where in the process do you feel these breakdowns tend to occur most often? Write up your results and prepare suggestions on “fixing” the process in your organization. If your instructor directs, be ready to share your suggestions in class. Suggested Assignments 1. The Importance of Nonverbal Communication. Ask a couple of student volunteers to participate in a role-playing communication exercise. Print these role scenarios on sheets that can be given to each “actor.” Allow the volunteers five minutes to resolve this issue. Have the class observe the drama and be ready to comment on the communication they observed: verbal and nonverbal. Supervisor: You are a supervisor for an accounting department in a mid-sized manufacturing company. You have an employee, Roger, who is a good employee overall. However, Roger has one bad habit that has continually gotten worse—he is late for work regularly. The lateness has gotten to the level that Roger will be late—fifteen minutes or more—at least three days every week. However, Roger has worked for you for four years, and his work is of quite high quality and completed in a timely manner. In general, Roger is a good employee, and you would like to keep him. However, his lateness is beginning to affect office morale, as other employees are beginning to wonder (and talk about) why Roger is given the preferential treatment of being able to come in late and yet still leave on time. You have called Roger into your office to have a visit with him and indicate that he must come to work on time, or you will be forced to let him go. Your overall nonverbal messages need to convey a professional attitude of concern and authority; you must convey to Roger that his behavior is not acceptable, and must be changed. So how is he to change it? Roger: You have worked for the firm for four years, and you are a good employee (at least you think you are, and your past evaluations have reinforced this opinion), but you have a problem getting to work on time. You are truly trying to be an exemplary employee, but your wife has recently left you (you did not tell anyone at work because you don’t believe in bringing your home problems into the workplace), and you are now a single parent responsible for getting your seven-year-old to school. You must be at work by 8 a.m., but the school where your son attends will not allow him to be in the building until 8 a.m. He cannot ride the bus because you live too close to the school, and he is not eligible to be a bus rider. You have a high school student who is available to pick your son up from school in the afternoon, but she cannot take him in the morning. You have tried, but can’t find a babysitter who could. Now, your boss is angry because you are late, and has called you into her office. You certainly don’t want to lose your job, so you must communicate very openly about your changed home status. The nonverbal messages that you need to convey are a sense of embarrassment about having your wife leave you; a sense of remorse for being late, but you don’t know any other way to get your son to school; a sense of urgency because you do not want to lose your job. Suggestions: be very polite to the boss, sit up straight, sit on the forward part of your chair with your hands folded neatly; be sure that your appearance is as “spit and polished” as possible. 2. The Power of Punctuation. Write the following six words on the board without any punctuation: WOMAN WITHOUT HER MAN IS NOTHING. Ask the students to share what they believe the sentence to mean. Once the discussion has gone on for a while, offer to punctuate it this way. Woman, without her man, is nothing. Resume the discussion and then change the punctuation to read: Woman, without her, man is nothing! Punctuation is the way we place tone and emphasis into writing—can the class see why nonverbal communication can be problematic? 3. Emoticons. To try to overcome the nonverbal communications problems in emails, many people have resorted to the use of typographic faces (or “smiley faces”) to convey the emotion behind their words. How many of these can your class identify? Instructor Manual for Essentials of Organizational Behavior Stephen P. Robbins, Timothy A. Judge 9789332587984, 9780133920819, 9780133973013, 9781292090078, 9781292090184, 9780134523859, 9780132968508