On Communication

1. DAIS 1
HRM
2.3 Organization structure and communication

2. DAIS 2
Business
“If you’re not EVERYWHERE,
you’re NOWHERE!”

3. DAIS 3
Value
 Vast majority of problems in business are
caused by ineffective communication in one
form or another
 Businesses are essentially human focused
organisations
 Value of good communication is therefore
inestimable

4. DAIS 4
Business Communication

5. DAIS 5
Communication
 Process:
Sender or
Instigator
Channel Medium Receiver
Change in
payment systems
Finance Dept
E-mail
Feedback

6. DAIS 6
Communication
Transferring information from one part of the
business to another that leads to some outcome,
changed behaviour or changed practice:
 Formal communication – established and agreed
procedures
 Informal communication – channels not formally
recognised – ‘the grapevine’

7. DAIS 7
The Medium
How the communication is to be made?
 Important to select an appropriate medium for the
message:
 Need to consider the needs of the sender, the
nature of the receiver and the aims of the
communication
 Inappropriate medium can be a barrier to effective
communication

8. DAIS 8
 Methods:
 Verbal – face to face
 Written
 Electronic
 Visual
 Audio
 Group meetings
 Notice boards
 Text!

9. DAIS 9
Different approach, different medium
Choice of Medium affected by:
 Direction of the information flow
 Number of people to be reached
 Confidentiality
 Nature of the information – length, complexity, speed of
transfer
 Good news?
 Bad news?
 Information?
 Instruction?
 Cost of the medium

10. DAIS 10
Communication
 Medium:
 Letters
 Memo
 Report
 Notice board
 Faxes
 Telephone
 E-mail
 Face to face
 Body language
 Video/video conferencing
 Internet

11. DAIS 11
To Whom?

12. DAIS 12
To Whom?
 Who the communication is aimed at is an important
factor:
 The nature of the medium and the content may depend
on who it is aimed at
 Necessity of being sensitive to the receiver
 Should communication be formal or informal?

13. DAIS 13
To Whom
 E-mail communication:
 Does it need to adhere to normal rules of spelling,
punctuation and grammar?
 Is it appropriate to use text speak?
 Is this OK 4U or is txt 1 stp 2fr?
 Are there different rules for different situations?
 How do you know what the receiver expects?
 What damage can be caused by inappropriate e-mail
messages?

14. DAIS 14
The Message

15. DAIS 15
The Message
 What is the communication designed to
achieve?
This needs to be considered carefully to judge
the best method of delivery and to judge the
effectiveness of the feedback as to whether
the message has been successful.

16. DAIS 16
Role of ICT

17. DAIS 17
Role of ICT
 ICT has brought many advantages but also
has its limitations:
 It enables speedy communication
 It can be cheap and save on costs (e.g.
videoconferencing)
 It can be expensive in hardware requirements
 It can seem impersonal
 It can be abused

18. DAIS 18
Barriers

19. DAIS 19
Barriers
 Anything that prevents successful
communication from occurring
 Complex and multi-layered
 Can be technical or generated by the medium
used
 Main problem is human behaviour and
psychology

20. DAIS 20
Emotional Interference
 A significant factor influencing
successful communication
 Emotions - anger, frustration,
happiness, enthusiasm, need to
be defensive, desire to be
assertive
 Body language – says far more
about communication than we
ever realise!
An enduring image – the message this
photograph was meant to send out was vital
to Middle East peace – what does the body
language of those in the image suggest is
also being communicated to the world?

21. DAIS 21
Communication
 Drucker’s Fundamentals of Communication:
 Perception
 Expectation
 Communication and information are different,
yet interdependent
(Source: Peter F. Drucker, ‘Management’, 1977)

22. DAIS 22
Communication
 Barriers to Successful Communication
 Ability of the sender – how much the sender understands of
the message s/he is trying to send
 Content – including technicalities and jargon
 Method of communication – including style and body
language where appropriate!
 Skills and attitude of the receiver
 Organisational factors – complexity of the organisation,
scope of the organisation
 Cultural attitudes
 Perceptions, prejudices and stereotypes
 Inappropriate target for the message
 Technical capabilities – ICT!

23. DAIS 23
Communication
 Downward
 New employee
orientation
 Bulletin boards
 Communication
meetings
 Newsletters
 Employee handbooks
 Upward
 Suggestions programmes
 Complaint procedures
 Electronic mail
 Attitude surveys
 Open-door meetings

24. DAIS 24
Global HRM Concerns of US Businesses
 Legislation between countries may differ
 Costs of sending expatriates to other countries due to high % of failed assignments
 Trouble locating skilled labor in some countries
 Adapting the specific management system to new culture
 Training workers in other countries using
 “Translating quality” (maintaining quality standards from one country to another)
 Selection of workers from US facilities (home country) to send to international
locations (host countries)
 Selection of workers in host countries
 Handling the relationship between local-federal relationship (important in some
countries)
 Ensuring the rights of US workers sent on international assignment. Ensuring the
safety of US workers sent on international assignments

25. DAIS 25
Migration - Expatriates
 Firm representatives that are sent to other countries to work short
or longer term.
 High cost to firms!
 20-40% expatriates from US firms never complete their
assignments! This can cost $70,000-120,000 for each premature
returnee!
 Multiple reasons for return including:
 Culture Shock
 Lack of Cultural Training
 Family Issues
 Selection based on “technical” and not cultural knowledge
 Career issues

26. DAIS 26
Issues of Expatriate Return
 Selection:
Only 18% of US firms that do
international business have related
selection practices.
HR should:
Measure areas of cultural sensitivity,
previous international experiences,
languages, spouse interest and ability
when selecting for international
assignment.
Select and hire “foreign born” to
be expatriates in another country. (ex.
IBM has manager born in Singapore
work as an expatriate in Singapore).
Establish a Board of Expatriates who
have already been on international
assignment to select new expatriates
 Family Support:
#2 reason expatriates return. Family
members have to deal with “everyday”
issues.
HR should:
Assess whether spouses/families want
to go to other country.
Provide cultural training to family
Give good information about
supportive services (schools, doctors,
pharmacies, groceries, etc)
Provide transportation back to home
country for expatriates who did not
take families on assignment.

27. DAIS 27
Issues of Expatriate Return..
 Compensation:
To get expatriates to go,
common for companies to
provide: chauffeurs, house
servants, homes in posh
sections of town (a friend
lived next to “Fergie” in
Britain!) and paid taxes on
expatriate income. Firms
are rethinking this practice!
 HR: New “rule” is to pay 15%
increase in pay for
expatriates. Problem?
Trouble to find workers
willing to go!
 Career Advancement:
Research suggests expatriates
often lose out on promotions
and other opportunities
They lose connections to the
headquarters and informal
networks
 HR to reduce: assign HQ
colleagues to keep expatriates
informed, use teleconferencing
for actual meetings, use email
for constant communication

28. DAIS 28
Other issues of International business
Training:
Only 1/3 US firms provide any training to expatriates!
Training Options:
Information-giving- (i.e., “a major unit of currency in Japan is the
Yen”)
Affective Approach-(i.e., cultural acceptance and enjoyment)
Impression Approach-(i.e., business etiquette)
HR should: Provide training in terms of basic language, basic
culture, common business etiquette

29. DAIS 29
Concluding points
 US firms are prohibited from basing International assignment
decisions on race, sex and age. Exception? If host country
prohibits women in certain businesses
 National cultures may contain “sub-cultures” which are important
to consider.
 Cultures vary on notions of child labor and sexual harassment
 Don’t forget the local governments! Unions! As Levis Strauss
found out, one key to success with a host country is to gain
agreement with the local officials for help with local labor.
Likewise, ignoring unions due to “federal” okay is a poor idea!