38874461 communicating-for-success-in-management

COMMUNICATING
FOR SUCCESS
IN MANAGEMENT

Virginia B. Bautista
08.16.2010

COMMUNICATION:
The Manager Style

Meet Manager 1:
His name is Mr. Taylor
He manages the Information
Technology in a division
A communication satisfaction survey
result was communicated to him.
Communicating for SUCCESS in 22
management

The findings:
THE STAFF WAS LESS THAN
SATISFIED.
Mr. Taylor’s reaction:
Defensive, combative

Communicating for 33
SUCCESS in management

Mr. Taylor said:

“Why should I take my time to ensure
that people understand? I send e-
mails because then I know that I’ve
communicated my message. Then I
don’t have to worry about it. They
got my message. Meetings like this
are a waste of my time and the
company’s time.”


Click to edit Master text styles
Mr. Taylor is a Second level
● Third level

manager that ● Fourth level

uses the ● Fifth level

ARROW
approach.

What is effective communication?

“Being able to clearly and
precisely put my thoughts into
words.”
“Speaking with credibility and
authority on topics I know
about.”
“Getting the results I want by
talking to my people.”

The ARROW Manager’s Assumptions
about Communication Effectiveness

“Being able to clearly and precisely put my
thoughts into words.”

¡ What is clear and precise to
one person is clear and
precise to the other.

The ARROW Manager’s Assumptions about
Communication Effectiveness

“Speaking with credibility and
authority on topics I know
about.”
¡ Credibility is something the
speaker possesses and not
something given to the
speaker by the audience.

The ARROW Manager’s Assumptions about

“Getting the results I want by
talking to my people.”

¡ Communication is primarily a
one-way activity.


You are an ARROW manager if:

You focus on accurately encoding your
thoughts into language – much like
selecting, aiming, and firing arrows at
a target.
You see communication as a one-way
activity based primarily on the skills
of the sender.


You are an ARROW manager if:

You view receivers as passive
processors of information who react
appropriately if the words are “on the
mark.”
You think feedback is not only
improbable, but also unnecessary.


ARROW MANAGERS believe that:

Effective X
expression =
Effective
communication


Why do managers adopt this style?

The technical training of many
managers reinforces a
stimulus/response orientation.
They think their “Speech teacher”
style works.
Certain people may have personality
predispositions to communicate in
this way.


Meet Manager 2:

Mark is district sales manager for a national
life insurance company.
His office visits to “touch base” with the
sales agents in his district were met with
eager anticipation.
Why?
Mark conducted his “meetings” in off-site
locations, e.g. golf course or ski village.


For Mark, the meeting agenda was
equally stimulating because the team
rarely talked about business,
production goals, or skill
development.
Mark was a master of rapport ,
camaraderie, and a team
environment.


He assumed that because the agents
“felt good” about working for him, and
hence the company, they would then
be more motivated to produce.
The result?
A happy, cohesive team that improved
on their golf scores more than their
selling skills or sales record.


Everybody loved Mark but few
respected his managerial abilities.

CIRCUIT
Mark is a

manager.



“Effective communication is actively
listening to my coworkers, so I know what
makes them happy.”
“I’m effective as a manager when I am
sensitive to employees’ needs and concerns.
Then I try to commmunicate that sensitivity
by adapting my message to each individual.”



“My communication is effective when
my employees feel included and
understood.”


The CIRCUIT Manager’s Assumptions
about Communication Effectiveness

¡ Job satisfaction is the goal or
organizational communication.
¡ Messages are exclusively
interpreted in the context of
interpersonal relationships.
¡ Openness is useful in all
circumstances.

The CIRCUIT Manager’s Assumptions about

Understanding will lead to
agreement.
Understanding is the primary goal
and is always more acceptable
than ambiguity.


CIRCUIT MANAGERS believe that:

Understanding
X
= Effective
communication


Why do managers adopt this style?

The human relations school of
management has influenced many
leaders.
Some Communication teachers
encourage a Circuit orientation.
Some people have a natural affinity
for the Circuit orientation.


Causes of Communication Breakdown
in both approaches

Arrow Circuit

Arrow managers treat People just “don’t
communication as an connect.”
event, and not as a
Circuit managers spend
process.
vast amount of time in
“reaching an
understanding” and
“building relationships.”


Arrow Circuit

The words “Just read People are poor
my e-mail,” or “Read listeners.
my lips” create an
The Circuit manager
illusion that meaning
believes that
resides in words.
communication
relationships, like
electrical circuits,
can operate only
under certain
conditions.


Communication as a Dance

Dance involves patterns, movements, and
creativity.
There are as many styles of dance as
there are people.
Tastes in dance vary, styles change, and
trends come and go.
It is unrepeatable and irreversible.


The same are true with
COMMUNICATION.


BASIC PRINCIPLES
OF COMMUNICATION

Communication is used for
multiple purposes.
The scientist, politician, salesperson,
philosopher, and preacher may be
using the same language, but with
different objectives or intentions.


BASIC PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION

Communication involves coordination
of meanings.
“Communication is the process by which
persons co-create, maintain and alter
patterns of social order, but… the
coordination of talk through which patterns
of order emerge is not necessarily based on
mutual understanding or a shared social
reality.”– COORDINATED MGMT. OF
MEANING



Communication involves co-
orientation.
Effective communicators can forecast
with some accuracy the actions of
others, their responses, and
interpretations.



Communication is rule-governed.
A wide range of implicit rules govern
conversations, e. g. who has the right
to initiate or terminate a
conversation, and what topic are
appropriate to talk about.


2 Types of Rules in communication

Regulative rules – guide or regulate
action of the communication event.
Example: If a person’s comments are
unclear, then ask for clarification.
Interpretation rules – communicators’
rules for abstracting the meaning out
of a message.


Example of interpretation rules

When a manager says, “Tell me more,” what does he mean?


Remember this:

Understanding is not the goal, but the
means to attain the goals of an
organization.


How can managers use their
knowledge on effective
communication in their jobs?

Explore the Employees’ context.

The more managers know about the
context in which employees interpret
actions and messages, the greater
the likelihood that they can actually
predict the probable interpretations.


MBWA

Management by wandering around
helps managers learn about employee
attitudes, environment, needs and
desires.
This can help managers design their
communication taking into
consideration the bg of the
employees.


Carefully manage employee
expectations

Example: If the employees expect wage
increase, and then the manager
announced that no salary increase will
happen, employees would feel bad
about the announcement.
However, if the employees expect job
losses or retrenchment, then the no-
salary-increase announcement would
still be “good news” for them.


Think about the possible interpretation
and misinterpretation of messages,
events, and symbols.

If communication can fail, it will!
Managers can’t be 100% certain that
their messages will be understood as
intended.


Pay attention to secondary messages.

Listen to what the people are not
saying.
Pay attention to non-verbal cues.
Examine the way people dress, put on
make-up, purchase items, or even the
way they spend their break time or
“idle” hours at work.


Carefully frame messages.

To frame means to hold a particular
meaning over another.
Sharing our own frame with others is
managing meaning with them.


Sculpt the proper context.

Build enough frames and a context emerges.
Skilled managers and companies carefully
craft contexts by artfully accentuating certain
interpretations while chiseling away others.
Example: Put your company mantra all over
the workplace.
Consistently use the company mantra as
bases for the employee development program.


COMMUNICATING
THE CORPORATE CULTURE

CULTURE includes the entire symbolic
environment;
CULTURE defines reality;
CULTURE defines what is, what should be, and
what can be.

CORPORATE CULTURE

The underlying belief and value
structure of an organization
collectively shared by the employees
and symbolically expressed in a
variety of overt and subtle ways.


Does culture matter?

Culture influences how an
organization analyzes and solves
problems.
Culture influences how the company
will respond to changes.
Culture impacts employee motivation
and customer satisfaction.


How can leaders effectively
communicate the culture?

The effective leader teaches employees what
the corporation values, why it is valued, and
how to transform values into action.
Employees, thru the assistance of the
manager, must be able to transform corporate
mantra into personal commitments and
experiences.
Every manager creates a kind of subculture
within the company culture.


Strategies for communicating values:

Craft actionable cultural statements.
The company’s VMG must be
specifically worded, and not too
ambiguous.



Appropriately socialize employees.
When an employee is newly hired, be
sure to let him mingle with the “right”
employees who have the “right” values
consistent with the company’s.
The way employees talk to one another,
the office design, and even the hiring
process are all indicators of the
corporate culture.



Research indicates that the initial weeks
of employment are a critical period for
the manager to exert influence.
Supervisors, to some extent, lose their
power to shape the values, beliefs, and
behaviours of employees after the first
month or so.– THIS IS THE REASON
TRAINING IS IMPORTANT!



Develop symbolic reminders of the
core values.
Symbols reinforce critical values,
acting as continual reminders of what
the organization stands for.
Example: The IQUAME and ISO
certifications are posted in offices.



Link values with specific behaviours
Values are abstract concepts. These values
must be translated to tangible items.
Example: Wal-Mart: 10-foot rule to better
serve the customers. Employees who come
as close as 10 feet with a customer shall
“look him in the eye, greet him, and ask
him if he can help him.”


Other examples:

Imperial Inc. has a “Two rings are plenty”
rule. This means that when a phone
rings, someone has to answer within two
rings. This translates customer service
into tangible behavior.
AUF-IS values strong belief in God, so as
its form of greeting, students say, “Pax et
venia a Deo.”



Filter information through the
values.
Managers use the company values to
structure information.
With all the information available, the
manager should be able to find a
“focus” by highlighting significant
information related to the values of
the organization.


Tell the right stories and create
opportunities to originate stories.
George Gerbner: “The control of any
culture is dependent on those who
control the stories that are told.”
A manager must be able to tell a
story that translates company values
into something easy to relate to.



The book Managing by Storying
Around by David Armstrong
describes how a company use stories:
“Storytelling is a much simpler and
more effective way to manage. I don’t
have to make thousands of individual
decisions. The story gives people
guidelines, and then it is up to them.”



Storytelling promotes
self-management.



Use rewards as powerful reminders.
If you want to know what an
organization values, watch how it
invests its resources.
Rewards may be used to reinforce
values.



Example:
Link pay to key indicators on
company values.
Provide special rewards (monetary
and non-monetary) to employees who
practice values-in-action.
“If you want something to grow, pour
champagne on it.” – Carol Bernick, President of
Alberto-Culver, North America.



Manage conflict through values, not
through hierarchy.
Example: An hourly worker argued
with the manager on how to pack a
semi-trailer with paper product. The
worker argues, “This is how the
customer wants it done…”
A manager uses company values as a
“compass” in making decision, instead
of insisting on his position or authority.


Routinely evaluate progress on
the core values.
Of course, evaluation tools must be
based on the core values of the
company.



Assist in the evolution of the
meaning of values.
A wise manager tries to bridge the
gap between what the company
says, and what the employees
practice.



¡ Example: Johnson & Johnson
practices “Live for life,” by
encouraging employees to eat
right, stop smoking, and exercise
in the gym. However, it turned
out that the company
environment was not smoke-free
until the company values reached
15 years.

Thank
you!
Have a
communic
ation-filled
weekend!

38874461 communicating-for-success-in-management

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