Managerial communication needs to be effective in the delivery of important messages around the organization everyday to be able to meet and achieve its stated objectives. Thus it is an essential process that managers rely on to carry out planning, leading, organizing and controlling activities for efficient management and for making important business decisions. Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric (“GE”) opted for the “Boudaryless” approach to break down communication barriers to facilitate more “opened” channels of communication between all levels, allowing the entry of new ideas and feedback. His management style turned GE around and earned him the respect of many for his influential yet humanistic leadership approach.
To understand the nature communication, it is helpful to see communication as an all-round process and not just an act of conveying an intended message to another party. Bettinghaus and Cody (1994) define communication at the simplest level as existing whenever “one person transmits a message that is received and acted upon by another individual”. The communication process may be defined by how information flows from the time it is conveyed till the time it reaches its intended recipient and finally garner a response from the recipient. The elements of a typical communication process are as follows (in logical order):
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Sender
The process typically begins with a sender, the person who transmits and conveys a message.
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Message
The message is made up of an idea, a thought or a feeling that is being transmitted. It may be intentional, deliberate or unintentional. A message can be made of either one or a mixed context of ideas, which may be interpreted differently by the receiver.
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Encoding
The choosing of certain words coupled with nonverbal signals that make the message transmittable makes up the part of encoding. The perceptions of the receiver and how the message was delivered may affect its understanding and how the message may be interpreted.
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Channel
The medium of delivering the message is called the channel. The method chosen to deliver the message may dependant on the nature of its contents, its number of target receivers and the time frame involved. It is also dependant on the richness or capacity of the channel, defined as the amount of information that can be passed through that particular medium during a communication episode.
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Receiver
The receiver is any person who notices and interprets the message according to self-perceptions, feelings, background, ideas and beliefs.
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Decoding
Upon receipt of the message, the receiver starts to interpret the message by a process of decoding where words and symbols are attached to the message to give meaning to it. At this point, the message may not be interpreted correctly due to differences in perceptions between the receiver and the original sender.
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Feedback
The response that the sender gets from the receiver acknowledges the receipt of the message and how it was received. A display of certain behaviours shows that the communication process is a two-way all-rounded affair. The feedback may take the form of verbal, nonverbal or written responses. No response can also indicate a form of feedback
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Context
The context or setting in which communication can take place may influence the content and delivery of the message, thus determining the type of responses and interactions that might be expected.
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Noise
Interference or disturbance that might otherwise distort or distract the exchange of message is often referred to as noise. Physical, physiological and psychological noise may mean that the message that was intended may not be the same one received. Perceptual differences, though inevitable, can distort messages and create noise that may give rise to perceptual errors and thus become a barrier to communication.
The communication process is a somewhat chronological sequence of events that enable us to better understand why certain forms of communication are a success or failure. It is apparent that perception greatly influences the how, what and why of communication. Perception is the process by which people select, organize and interpret their sensory impressions to make sense of their environment. Communication forms the basis of most relationships and thus should never be underestimated.
Communication in today’s organizations, is not only used to convey information within or beyond an organization, but also seeks to persuade and influence people. Adler and Elmhorst (2002) define persuasion as “an act of motivating an audience, through communication, to voluntarily change a particular belief, attitude or behaviour.” Great political leaders, such as Winston Churchill and John F Kennedy, have used persuasion skills to win over their nations. Successful business leaders, such as Jack Welch and Lee Ioccoca, have used persuasion skills to lead their companies to succeed. Proposals, goodwill and motivational speeches and debates are persuasive forms of putting forth thoughts and ideas with the intention of behavioural change in the target audience. The key word is “voluntarily”. Persuasive communication has garnered so much bad press over the years that it often conjures images of deceit and forceful cajoling into changing mindsets and involuntary change of attitudes and beliefs, often resulting in unhappy and confused individuals. Persuasion, as this part of the essay will now focus on, seeks to define the process as an ethical, honourable and legitimate form of communication in reality.
Persuasion always involves the basic communication process outlined in the earlier part of this essay. Bettinghaus and Cody (1994) highlight the difference between a “communication situation” and a “persuasive communication” as there being a presence of intent in the source or sender of the message, which was to influence a specific and desired change in behaviour of the receiver. Johnston (1999) further defines persuasion as a “a transactional process among two or more persons whereby the management of symbolic meaning reconstructs reality, resulting in a voluntary change in beliefs, attitudes and/or behaviours.” In citing these definitions, it can be deduced that persuasion is a dynamic and liquid process involving a conscious effort in influencing, motivating, eliciting and provoking the thoughts and action of the message receiver. The element of intent serves as a purposive and directional condition in the process, thus ethical considerations need to be made to ensure that persuasion serves its purpose in the organization without resulting in mere compliance from staff and to distinguish it from other forms of communication.
Persuasion may come in different forms, both ethical and non-ethical and gives rise to several outcomes in a situation:
The party accepts the persuasive argument and does not wish to change or dispute the argument. It may be done willingly or conversely, without any satisfaction.
Due to the application of physical or emotional force, a party is forced to accept a persuasive argument. The party suffers immense stress and perceives no alternative route but to cooperate and accepts the argument due to possible threat and influence. In other words, a party unwillingly gives in during coercion as he or she thinks there is no other way out. Johnston (1999) loosely defines coercion as when “he or she has no choice but to comply”. Infamous leader, Adolph Hitler used coercion through a process of force and threats to influence his people during his reign and to make them accept his leadership style.
Manipulating is a deceptive approach used to cause a party to change his or her mindset by fraudulently deceiving the party into thinking or acting in a desired manner. Dishonest yet often used, this is one classic form of unethical persuasion. Adolph Hitler was a master at this through a process if deception and propaganda used constantly to gain the unanimous support of his people.
This form of persuasion requires the party’s intra-psychic structure to be susceptible to influence and have minimal resistant to change and external influences. It entails getting rid of existing beliefs and perceptions in the party’s mind and infusing new thoughts to mould the change in behaviour.
The key is honesty as the best policy when it comes to influencing and the minds of an audience and shifting existing paradigms. Audience tend to pay attention and trust the advice of a credible speaker at a conference if he or she openly admits to trying to persuade and make a change in views and opinions about the subject matter. In short, ethical persuasion, as Adler and Elmhorst (2002) suggests is “communication that convinces the other person to act voluntarily in the desired way”. Effective leaders use persuasion to influence people, and are patient, persistent and gentle in encouraging gradual acceptance of new ideas and constantly provide support and channels for constant feedback.
Adler and Elmhorst (2002) state that the true test of persuasion is “(1) whether the recipient feels truly free to make a choice, and (2) whether the originator would feel comfortable if he or she were the recipient of the message instead of the sender.” To conclude, good leaders must constantly be aware of their management styles and take prudence in their approaches and not let the slightest inkling of coercion or manipulation to creep into their leadership techniques. As what Peter F. Drucker said:
REFERENCES
Adler. B, Ronald and Elmhorst, Jeanne Marquardt (2002), Communicationg at Work: Principles and Practices for Business and the Professions, 7th Edition, McGraw-Hill College.
Bettinghaus, P. Erwin and Cody, J. Michael (1994), Persuasive Communication, 5th Edition, Harcourt Brace College Publishers.
Daft. L, Richard (2000), Management, 5th Edition, The Dryden Press.
Johnston, D. Deirdre (1999), The Art and Science of Persuasion, McGraw Hill.
Munter, Mary (2000), Guide to Managerial Communication: Effective Business Writing and Speaking, 5th Edition, Prentice Hall.
Welch, Jack. with Byrne A, John. (2001), JACK: What I’ve learned leading a great company and great people, Headline Book Publishing Great Britain.
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