Chapter 9

Communicating in Teams and Organizations

McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2013 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Communication at Zappos

Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh values

open communication with staff,

such as sending Twitter tweets,

writing blogs, and having an office

with no door.

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Communication Defined

The process by which information is transmitted and understood between two or more people

Effective communication• Transmitting intended meaning

(not just symbols)

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Importance of Communication

1. Coordinating work activities

2. Vehicle for organizational learning

3. Critical ingredient for decision making

4. Influencing others – changing their behavior

5. Employee well-being

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Receiver

Encodefeedback

Formfeedback

Sender

Formmessage

Encodemessage

TransmitMessage

TransmitFeedback

Noise

Communication Process Model

Decodemessage

Receiveencodedmessage

Decodefeedback

Receivefeedback

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Improving Communication Coding/Decoding

1. Communication channel proficiency Sender/receiver have motivation and ability to use the

communication channel

2. Similar codebooks Both parties generate similar meaning from symbols,

language, etc

3. Shared context mental models Parties have a common understanding of the environment

4. Experience encoding the message Sender is experienced at communicating the message

topic

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Atos Origin Replaces Email with Social Media CommunicationEuropean information technology company Atos Origin plans to replace email completely with other Internet-based communication tools within the next couple of years.

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How Email has Altered Communication

Now preferred medium for coordinating work

Tends to increase communication volume

Significantly alters communication flow

Reduces some selective attention biases

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Problems with Email

Communicates emotions poorly

Reduces politeness and respect (flaming)

Inefficient for ambiguous, complex, novel situations

Increases information overload

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Communicating Through Social Media

User-generated content• Users, not professionals, create the content• Usually interactive -- viewer can respond• Includes social sites -- Facebook, blogs, wikis,

tweets Serves diverse functions

• Presenting individual’s identity, enabling conversations, sharing information, sensing others’ online presence, maintaining relationships, revealing status, supporting interest communities

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Nonverbal Communication

Influences meaning of verbal symbols Less rule bound than verbal communication Most is automatic and nonconscious

Courtesy of Microsoft.

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Emotional Contagion

The automatic process of sharing another person’s emotions by mimicking their facial expressions and other nonverbal behavior

Serves three purposes:1. Provides continuous feedback to speaker

2. Increases emotional understanding of the other person’s experience

3. Communicates a collective sentiment -- sharing the experience as part of drive to bond

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Choosing Channels: Social Acceptance

Do others support use of that communication channel for that purpose?

Depends on:

1. Firm/team norms for using the channel

2. Individual preferences for using the channel

3. Symbolic meaning of the channel

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I Love Rewards GetsMedia-Rich Quickly

Every day at 11:15 am, employees at I Love Rewards Inc. meet face-to-face for 10 minutes to communicate priorities and coordinate their efforts. These quick meetings provide a personal connection and highly interactive feedback.

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Choosing Channels: Media Richness

The channel’s data-carrying capacity needs to be aligned with the communication activity

High richness when channel:

1. conveys multiple cues

2. allows timely feedback

3. allows customized message

4. permits complex symbols

Use rich communication media when the situation is nonroutine and ambiguous

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OversimplifiedZone

OverloadedZone

Nonroutine/Ambiguous

Rich

MediaRichness

Situation

Hierarchy of Media Richness

Routine/clear

Lean

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Computer-Mediated Exceptions to Media Richness

Media richness theory less applicable to computer-mediated channels because:

1.Able to multi-communicate through lean channels

2.More varied proficiency levels

3.Lean channels have less social distraction than do media rich channels

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Persuasive Communication

Changing another person’s beliefs and attitudes.

Spoken communication is more persuasive because:• accompanied by nonverbal communication• has high quality immediate feedback• has high social presence

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Communication Barriers

Perceptions Filtering Language

• Jargon• Ambiguity

Information Overload

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Information Overload

Information Load

Episodes of information overload

Employee’s information processing

capacity

Time

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Managing Information Overload

Solution 1: Increase info processing capacity• Learn to read faster• Scan through documents more efficiently• Remove distractions • Time management • Temporarily work longer hours

Solution 2: Reduce information load• Buffering• Omitting• Summarizing

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Cross-Cultural Communication

Verbal differences• Language• Voice intonation• Silence/conversational overlaps

Nonverbal differences• Some nonverbal gestures are universal, but others

vary across cultures

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Gender Communication Differences

Men consider more power, status, functionality• Report talk• Give advice quickly• Dominate conversation

Women consider more interpersonal relations• Rapport talk• Indirect advice/requests• Sensitive to nonverbal cues

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Getting Your Message Across

1. Empathize

2. Repeat the message

3. Use timing effectively

4. Focus on the problem, not the person

Courtesy of Microsoft.

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ActiveListening

Active Listening Process & Strategies

Sensing• Postpone

evaluation• Avoid interruptions• Maintain interest

Evaluating• Empathize• Organize information

Responding• Show interest• Clarify the message

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Communicating in Hierarchies

Workspace design

• Open offices – consider noise, distractions• Clustering people in teams

Web-based organizational communication• Wikis -- collaborative document creation• E-zines -- rapid distribution of company news

Direct communication with management• Management by walking around (MBWA)• Town hall meetings

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Organizational Grapevine

Early research findings• Transmits information rapidly in all directions• Follows a cluster chain pattern• More active in homogeneous groups• Transmits some degree of truth

Changes due to internet• Email, social networking, tweets are becoming the

main grapevine media• Social networks are now global

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Grapevine Benefits/Limitations

Benefits• Fills in missing information from formal sources• Strengthens corporate culture• Relieves anxiety• Associated with the drive to bond

Limitations• Distortions might escalate anxiety• Perceived lack of concern for employees when

company info is slower than grapevine

Chapter 9

Communicating in Teams and Organizations