Communication in a Business Setting - Softcover

Tofanelli, Dave

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1449020437 ISBN 13: 9781449020439

Verlag: AuthorHouse, 2009

Inhaltsangabe

In the 1970s, employees worked in offices. Communication was primarily face-to-face, by telephone, and through the mail. In the 1980s, we moved out of offices and into cubicles, and began using computers. As we entered the 1990s, computers became more portable, PDAs were born, and we began working from home. By 2008, 60 percent of the world's population had a mobile device capable of voice and data communications. The future of business communications is a fully interconnected world where every employee will access, create and use content from anywhere. Mobile communications is the fastest growing technology in history and is also the most effective technology known to enable individuals to participate in the global economy. There are cell phones, PDAs, e-mail, instant messaging, virtual meetings, text messaging, and now even digital video. At the same time, companies want to keep their employees connected anytime or anywhere. This requires interoperation with various wireless devices. Employees are no longer tied to their desktops, and they want the same communications options on the road or from home that they have in the office. Face-to-face communication is quickly becoming a lost art in this age of e-mail, texting and voicemail. But ultimately, when it comes to engaging an audience or making a compelling sales presentation, business is still driven by personal communication. High technology sets the stage, but speaking face-to-face seals the deal. Lack of communicative ability plagues many corporations, and the professionals that rise to the top are overwhelming those that develop communication approaches that achieve results. But, communicating with influence takes work and requires constant attention. This text will assist you in defining business communication, examine types of communication, explain how successful communication takes place, and suggest ways of improving communication in the busine

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Dave Tofanelli is a senior executive within a company ranked number 33 on the Fortune 500 list of the nation's largest companies. In that role, he originates, leads, implements and supports projects with global impact. Throughout his career, Mr. Tofanelli has had wide-ranging responsibilities for management of complex projects critical to improved economic management. He is an expert in virtual communication, having developed the first true virtual contracting team within his organization. Additionally, Mr. Tofanelli is responsible for the oversight and direction of senior level projects, and provides frequent presentations to senior level staff through a variety of communication mediums. Mr. Tofanelli's experience includes positions as the administrator of the largest Kaiser Permanente medical center on the East Coast and he has held significant development and management positions with large regional health care systems. Mr. Tofanelli also has significant experience with federal systems, having retired from the United States Air Force in 1994 as a senior officer responsible for procuring and managing the health insurance benefit for the United State Air Force's three million beneficiaries. Mr. Tofanelli holds bachelors' degrees in economics and business administration, a master of business administration, and a master of science in system management, as well as postgraduate fellowships in financial management and health policy. He is also a Certified Healthcare Executive and Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. Mr. Tofanelli serves on the University of Maryland's Regent's Advisory Board, and is an adjunct professor of business on the active faculties of California Lutheran University, the University of Maryland at College Park, George Mason University and Central Michigan University. He is also the author of numerous articles on leadership, communications theory and health care policy

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COMMUNICATION IN A BUSINESS SETTING

By Dave Tofanelli

AuthorHouse

Copyright © 2009 Dave Tofanelli
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4490-2043-9

Contents

Overview...........................................................................ixIntroduction.......................................................................xvChapter 1 Communicating at Work..................................................1Chapter 2 Communicating in Groups and Teams......................................27Chapter 3 Listening and Non-Verbal Communication.................................45Chapter 4 Communicating Across Cultures..........................................59Chapter 5 The Technology-Driven Workplace........................................85Chapter 6 Business Writing.......................................................101Part I: Preparing to Write.........................................................102Part II: Organizing and Writing....................................................109Part III: Revising.................................................................113Chapter 7 Communicating Through E-Mail and Instant Messaging.....................121Chapter 8 Routine Letters........................................................131Chapter 9 Sales and Persuasive Communications....................................143Chapter 10 Conveying Negative News................................................151Chapter 11 Business Reports.......................................................163Part I: Preparing To Write Business Reports........................................164Part II: Organizing and Writing Typical Business Reports...........................198Part III: Proposals and Formal Reports.............................................204Chapter 12 Preparing an Oral Presentation.........................................211Chapter 13 Employment Communications..............................................229Chapter 14 Press Releases.........................................................253Chapter 15 Interviewing Skills....................................................261Chapter 16 Negotiation Process and Techniques.....................................283Chapter 17 Conducting Effective Meetings..........................................297Chapter 18 Business Ethics........................................................315Chapter 19 Communicating Tomorrow.................................................331Glossary...........................................................................341About The Author...................................................................349

Chapter One

COMMUNICATING AT WORK

You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can't get them across, your ideas won't get you anywhere. (Lee Iacocca)

The workplace is undergoing profound changes. As you enter the business world, there is no way to avoid the effects of these transformations. Some of the most significant changes are: heightened global competition; flattened management hierarchies; and team-based management. Other changes include new types of communication technologies, new types of work environments, and the growing diversity of the workforce.

Changes Affecting the Workplace

Heightened Global Competition

Companies are increasingly finding themselves competing in global rather than local markets. Improved systems of telecommunications, better transportation systems, and saturated local markets have all combined to encourage companies to move beyond their familiar territories. PepsiCo is fighting Coca-Cola for new customers in India. FedEx is learning how to service South America. Burger King is challenging McDonald's for fast-food leadership in Europe, and Kentucky Fried Chicken is entering China. Doing business in faraway countries means dealing with people who are very different from you-people who have different religions, engage in different customs, live different lifestyles, and rely on different approaches in business. Add the complications of time zones, vast distances, and different languages, and it's no wonder global communications can short-circuit. For example, when FedEx offered a money-back guarantee in South America, this was such an unfamiliar concept that people automatically thought something must be wrong with FedEx's service. Successful communication in a new market requires the development of new skills and attitudes. These include cultural knowledge and sensitivity, flexibility, patience, and tolerance.

Flattened Management Hierarchies

In response to intense competition, as well as other pressures, businesses have for years been cutting costs and flattening their management hierarchies. This flattening means that fewer layers of managers separate decision makers from line workers. In traditional companies, information flows through many levels of management. In flattened organizations, where the lines of communication are shorter, decision makers can react more quickly to market changes. Toymaker Mattel transformed itself from a money loser into a healthy money maker by tightening its organization and cutting six layers from its organizational hierarchy. As a result, when Mattel's developers came up with the idea for a toy firehouse that required no assembly, the idea could be rushed into production. It didn't languish, drowning in multiple layers of management.

Progressive organizations are changing from "command and control" to "coordination and cultivation" management styles. This means that the work is organized to let people use their talents more wisely. But today's flatter organizations also bring greater communication challenges. In the past, authoritarian and hierarchical management structure did not require that employees be skilled communicators; managers simply passed along messages to the next level. Today, however, front-line employees, as well as managers, participate in decision making; everyone's input and communication are necessary for the organization to be successful. What's more, all employees need to become better writers. Nearly all employees now have computers and must write their own messages, and secretaries were long ago replaced by administrative assistants who are no longer tasked with "cleaning up" their bosses' writing. In fact, many of today's executives do not have assistants at all.

Expanded Team Management Companies are also expanding their team-based operations. Nearly 80 percent of employees in all industries have adopted some form of quality circles or self-directed teams. At the Frito-Lay plant in Lubbock, Texas, workers who were formerly responsible only for loading bags of potato chips into cartons are now organized into work teams that are responsible for everything from potato processing to equipment maintenance; they even interview new hires and make quality control decisions. At Cigna Corporation, a large national health insurance company, three organizational layers were flattened and teams were formed, to reduce backups in processing customer insurance claims. The formation of these teams forced technology specialists to communicate constantly with business specialists. Suddenly, computer programmers had to do more than code and debug; they had to listen, interpret, and explain. All members of the team had to analyze problems and negotiate solutions.

When companies form cross-functional teams, individuals must work together and share information. What's tough is that these individuals often...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: AuthorHouse
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2009
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1449020437
• ISBN 13: 9781449020439
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 376
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: KreGa Onlinehandel GmbH; 4950000000000; info@krega-onlinehandel.de; ; Birkenweg 31; Brakel; 33034; Deutschland