Com12: Business Communications. Week 13: Reflection

During the course of this unit, I have gained an understanding of leadership styles, management roles, hierarchy, communication theories and styles, team dynamics and workplace ethics.

It was therapeutic for me personally to use critical thinking and reflect upon my employment history. I had forgotten many things, i.e., friendships I had formed, good and bad situations I had found myself in, but it helped me understand what is expected of a leader and their team.

I was able to compare my experiences with those of my student peers and it made me realise we all have bad days, bad managers and uncomfortable communication incidents but getting through them helps us grow and develop our own communication skills.

I found the topic of cultural communication very interesting and enjoyed reading stories from my peers about misunderstandings.

Some of my Independent Learning Tasks include replies from student peers. If I felt the replies were relevant to the conversation I left them in so the discussions are evident.

I'd like to say thank you to the teachers and markers for your expertise, support and guidance during this unit. I am confident my business communication skills have improved over the past three months.

Michelle Jenkins

Com12: Business Communications. Week 12: Non-verbal communication challenges

I know we are meant to be discussing three cultures where eye contact is taboo, however all the posts are reading the same. So I'm going to answer this week's task differently and try to get a discussion going. It's over the 100 word count but I found these fascinating...

• the use of a finger or hand to indicate “come here please” in some cultures is very offensive
• pointing with one finger is considered to be rude in some cultures and Asians typically use their entire hand to
• point to something
• while patting a child’s head is considered to be a friendly or affectionate gesture in our
• culture, it is considered inappropriate by many Asians to touch someone on the head,
• which is believed to be a sacred part of the body
• in the Middle East, the left hand is
• reserved for bodily hygiene and should not be used to touch another or transfer objects
• in Muslim cultures, touch between opposite gendered individuals is generally
• inappropriate
• it is common in our culture for adults to admire babies and young children
• and comment upon how cute they are, this is avoided in Hmong and Vietnamese cultures
• for fear that these comments may be overheard by a spirit that will try to steal the baby or
• otherwise cause some harm to come to him or her.


Michelle.


Ideka J & Tidwell C (n.d.) Health Screening Recommendations for Children & Adults : Cultural Differences in Non-Verbal Communication Vermont Department of Health. Retrieved from: http://healthvermont.gov/family/toolkit/tools%5CF-6%20Cultural%20Differences%20in%20Nonverbal%20Communic.pdf

Com12: Business Communications. Week 11: Intercultural and cross cultural communications

During the early 1990s I worked for the NSW Police Service. My role as General Support Officer was to answer the phone, take messages, record incidents, and greet people as they entered the police station. This position, based in the inner west of Sydney, was my first introduction to people from different cultures. Sometimes new Australian's would call the local police station for an emergency, rather than Triple 0 meaning that if I was working at that particular time, it was me who answered their urgent and often distressed phone call.

I remember a particular incident where an Asian woman called to report she had just witnessed a robbery. Fortunately she had noted down the registration plate of the car which was seen leaving the scene. I asked her to describe the car, it's occupants and also to read me the registration plate. Over the telephone there is often noise, interference and distortion so I mis-heard the letters she was reading me. I can't quite recall what the rego plate was, but I mis-heard a T for a P. So in this case the message was decoded incorrectly, and the officers sent to track this car - were looking for an incorrect rego plate.

Nowadays the Police Service offers thorough training to their public servants including learning the phonetic alphabet to prevent accidents like this.

Michelle.

Teacher Resource Page: Western Australia Police (n.d.) Retrieved from: http://www.police.wa.gov.au/YoungPeoplesZone/Teacherresourcepage/tabid/1842/Default.aspx

Com12: Business Communications. Week 10: Visual Design in Business Writing

Graphics are an important component in communication data and the use of text and graphics helps the transmission of the message to the intended audience (Dwyer, 2013, p396). Personally I find plain text mundane so if a presenter adds visual elements, it helps me understand what they are trying to say. And being a visual person, the use of charts, photos, graphs and videos help me learn. As Angell states: “you can use visual images to stimulate audience interest, increase understanding and clarity, summarise or condense and strengthen persuasive messages” (Angell, 2004, Ch 17).

Dwyer, J 2013, Communication in Business Strategies and Skills, 5th edn, Pearson Education Australia, French's Forest, NSW.

Angell, P 2004, Creativity and Visual Design. Business Communication Design: Creativity, Strategy and Solutions. McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. Boston

Com12: Business Communications. Week 9: Executive Summary

Executive Summary

Over the past decade there have been an increasing number of websites being constructed by unqualified web designers and businesses using DIY site builders.

The purpose of this report is to explain the benefits of employing a qualified Web Designer to design professional websites, rather than using DIY site builders available on the Internet. This report has come about due to a recent industry study which proved a large percentage of websites have display issues because they are written in outdated language. The report also illustrated a high volume of websites do not display correctly on the growing number of browsers and mobile devices because they have been programmed in HTML, CSS or Flash which is now obsolete.

The most significant finding was that 77% of businesses use an administrative employee to utilise DIY website builders which are offered free of charge and the problem with this is the these employees have little or no programming experience. In addition to this problem, the DIY website builders offer no upgrade facility once languages have been superseded.

In summary, for a business to portray the utmost in professionalism, it is strongly recommended they hire a professional and qualified Web Designer to build their website.

Com12: Business Communications. Week 8: Audience Analysis

My written document was a procedures manual for a denture clinic. When I began working at the denture clinic, it was a small practice with only the Dental Prosthetist, his wife who came in once a week to do the payroll, and myself as Administration/Accounts/Receptionist. There was no procedures manual and training was conducted on the fly as things were needed.

As the clinic began to grow and more staff were appointed, I felt it in the best interest of the clinic to devise a procedures manual in the case of my termination, or possible accident resulting in my not being available. The receiver of any document wants to understand what should happen, why it should happen and how to make it happen (Dwyer, 2013). I used screenshots of our database, other software and visual examples of how tasks were performed, why they were performed and how often they were performed. The manual was easy to read – simple enough for anyone walking in off the street to take over my role if necessary.

Michelle

Dwyer J 2013, Communication for Business and the Professions, Strategies and Skills edn 5 Pearson Education Australia Chapter 19 Writing for the professions, pg 454.

Com12: Business Communications. Week 7: Impromptu speech

I made an impromptu telephone speech to my local council last month. The main point (P) is that our street does not require No Standing signs. The reason we don't need them is because the bin collectors CAN fit down the street whilst our cars are parked on the kerb, contrary to what the council thinks. They have been fitting down the street longer than the 20 years we have lived here and the street is actually wider now than it used to be. I know the bin collectors fit down the street because (E) I've seen them do it thousands of times without any effort, and I've even spoken to one driver who says our cars are fine parked where they are - there is plenty of room. The ironic thing is the signs say No Standing between 9am and 3pm on a Tuesday (this is bin collection day) but most weeks the bin collectors come before 9am anyway...before we've had a chance to move our cars! And they fit!!! (P) I re-interate - we do NOT need the No Standing signs in our street because they are not necessary and we need to move our cars every week for no reason.

Com12: Business Communications. Week 6: Identifying, surveying and mapping

My post

Drawing a map of a workplace and work groups can indicate physical obstacles to communication (Griffith, 2013).

The last workplace I worked only had 3 employees in the office at the one time as it was a home office and we were all casuals. The office was small so we could not all fit in the office at the same time. The Manager designed our work roster around this issue, but once a week a staff meeting was held and all staff were invited to attend. The meeting had to be conducted in the dining room of the Manager as the office was too small.

The layout of the office was cramped with many obstacles. It was not easy to get to the printer or the filing cabinet due to staff desks and the whiteboard was obscured by other office equipment.

Because the room was so small, it was impossible for two people to be on a phone call at the same time. We used headsets when making calls and customers always complained they could not hear us over the background noise. We had to wait until a co-worker had finished a call before we could make another one.

Cliques did not exist in this workplace because we always worked with the same 2 co-workers for every shift, whether you liked that person or not.

The Manager was in the same room as the admin staff and communication was very relaxed as we could discuss issues with one another at any time. Changes to policies, complaints and company growth issues, however, were always left until the weekly staff meeting.

Author: Dann Bailey

Date: Monday, 30 December 2013 11:11:19 AM EST

Hi Amy - when I started working as a teenager everyone had ashtrays on their desks, which shows progress in that area at least! I couldn't find your reference to "shadow network" on page 48? Our workplace has banned smoking to the footpath which is ironic as the general manager that implemented this policy is a smoker and is often seen out the front "maintaining the smoke screen". I've wondered whether the other smokers have any communication advantages standing out there with him.

Author: Michelle Jenkins

Date: Thursday, 2 January 2014 1:47:06 PM EST

Hi Dan,

In response to the advantage of smokers standing outside with the smoking manager - Bell and Smith (2010) discusses the company grapevine and suggests ways to be including in gossip by standing around the water cooler, or in this case standing outside with the smokers.

Smoking with the managers does have its advantages. For we non-smokers, however, we get excluded from these conversations and left out of the loop unfortunately.

Michelle.

Bell, AH & Smith DM (2010) Communication Architecture for Professional Success: Management Communication, 3rd ed, Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Chapter 1, pp 30-37.

Com12: Business Communications. Week 5: Teams and organisational mapping

In the role I have just left - these are the member profiles:

• The friendly helper was the senior staff member who had been there the longest. She was always approachable, always answered questions willingly and was motivational without being pushy.
• The tough battler was the Manager. Being a black belt martial artist and hard-core business woman, she was assertive, bordering on aggressive. She never took 'no' for an answer and pressured the staff to work harder and faster on a regular basis. She set unrealistic targets which were often impossible to meet.
• The logical thinker was myself. At team meetings I was always the one who sat quietly taking it all in, thinking how proposed changes would affect both me, my peers and the company.

Michelle.

Com12: Business Communications. Week 4: Interpersonal Communication – the 5 basic traits of emotional intelligence

Self Awareness

5/10. I say this because I'm an obvious emotional person. I'm good at knowing my weaknesses but often have to be reminded of my strengths.

Self-regulation

9/10. I am a good and honest person, a hard-worker, loyal and respectable, am conscientious and adaptable. I always maintain honesty and integrity.

Self motivation

5/10. I'm not really achievement driven unless I have a positive connection with my manager. I often lose focus and motivation if I'm not enjoying my job.

Social Awareness

5/10. Sometimes it is easy for me to sense a person's mood, other times I find them difficult to read. I guess it depends on the person to whom I'm speaking.

Social Skills

2/10. You could say I'm socially awkward and only feel comfortable around my family and close friends.

Michelle

Dwyer, Judith 2013, Communication for Business and the Professions, 5th ed, Frenchs Forest, Pearson Australia.

Com12: Business Communications. Week 3: Transmission Model versus Process Model versus Cultural Model and include your own experiences for each

Transmission Model means one-way communication where a reply isn't necessary. It expresses communication as a one way street (Dwyer 2013, p. 9). I do this in my current job as a debt collector where I send text messages to martial arts students informing them they missed a direct debit payment, but it will be caught up this week. No need to reply – it is just a courtesy sms.

Process Model means when a message is sent and received by another person. As a debt collector I am required to send emails to students who are in arrears with their martial arts fees. They are required to call and make arrangements to pay off the debt, make a credit card payment, or attend the martial arts school to make a cash payment. A response is always required, because if the student does not respond, they can be send to Debt Collection – depending on the number of times we have attempted contact. As my peers and myself work odd hours, emails are useful because we don't have to wait until business hours to contact the students. We can send them an email any time for them to read at their convenience (Blundel 2004, p. 184).

Cultural Model means the sender needs to be considerate of the receiver's cultural background and beliefs. As a debt collector my communication skills need to be adaptable depending on who I'm speaking with. I speak with my co-workers, my leader, my manager, martial arts school owners and martial arts students who have a debt. When speaking to students who have a debt - I'm in a position of power where I have access to their credit history and sensitive information. I need to show empathy to them and help them arrange payment plans without making them feel worthless, but also without showing pity.

Michelle

Blundel, R 2004, Letters, E-mails and Text Messages. Effective Organisational Communication: Perspectives, Principles and Practices, 2nd Edition. Essex: Pearson Education Ltd.

Dwyer, Judith 2009, Communication in Business Strategies and Skills, 4th edn, Pearson Education Australia, French's Forest, NSW.

Com12: Business Communications. Week 2: Define the term 'verbal communication', 'non-verbal communication', and 'graphic communication'

My post and replies

To communicate is to impart information. Any behaviour that transmits messages from one person to another person is communicative. Communication is any behaviour – verbal, non-verbal or graphic – that is perceived by another. Meaning is given to this message as the receiver interprets the message. A connection is made between the people communication (Dwyer 2013 p4).

Verbal communication uses the mouth and sound to verbalise words into meaningful sentences for our audience. Verbal also includes singing and humming to get your point across.

Non-verbal communication uses body language, facial expression, tone of voice, physical position and movement and also includes communication in writing, i.e. emails, letters, sms messages, online forums - anything which needs to be read by our audience. Non-verbal communication must be seen.

Graphic communication includes PowerPoint presentations, videos, signs, symbols, shapes, graphs and diagrams which need to be visually or audibly perceived by our audience. Graphic communication is also seen, but can also be heard or even felt.

Dwyer, J 2013, Communication in Business Strategies and Skills, 5th edn, Pearson Education Australia, French's Forest, NSW.

Author: Reginald Stubley

Date: Tuesday, 10 December 2013 11:19:28 AM EST

Verbal communication doesn't necessarily have to be heard. Dwyer states that 'verbal communication is communication between two or more people in the form of spoken or written words' (2013, p. 5). An email or a letter are both forms of verbal communication.

'Non-verbal communication is communication sent by any means other than words or graphics' (Dwyer 2013, p. 5). Examples are facial and hand gestures used in body language.

Graphic communication visually represents ideas, relationships or connections with shapes, diagrams and lines (Dwyer 2013, p. 5). Dwyer also states that 'graphic communication can have both verbal and non-verbal components' (2013, p. 5), so I think you're on the right track with graphic communication. For example, diagrams, lines and shapes in a PowerPoint presentation are often combined with written words or images of people gesturing.

Author: Katrice Baker

Date: Tuesday, 10 December 2013 6:48:23 PM EST

I like the point you made about communication can be felt. I've walked into a room and you can feel the tension in the room. For me, communication is really a very interesting concept and you can see how different people can get an idea really wrong if they interpret something even slightly different from what the intended meaning was...fascinating!

Author: Dann Bailey

Date: Friday, 13 December 2013 1:01:14 PM EST

Hi Michelle, based on your definitions would graphic communications include verbal and nonverbal as sub-categories? For example any of the youtube clips in the Study Guide (the one I'm thinking of is on page 13) would fit into the category of graphic communications yet it you turn the screen off and leave the sound on you still get the verbal communication and if you leave the screen on and mute the sound you still get nonverbal communication. Its hard to nail down hard and fast rules isn't it.

Author: Michelle Jenkins

Date: Friday, 13 December 2013 3:21:25 PM EST

That's interesting, Dann. You are indeed correct. Thanks for that observation :)

Author: Stephanie Bofinger

Date: Saturday, 14 December 2013 2:17:07 PM EST

I really liked it when you said that verbal communication needs to be heard and said. I know the book says that it also can be in form of written words. I find that I will respond much better to verbal communication that is said and heard then seen. Feelings and meaning are too easily mis-understood in the written communication. Hence why people are all to often mis-lead by just words.

Author: Kiersten Symes

Date: Monday, 2 December 2013 8:47:23 PM EST

Verbal communication is when at least two people communicate, whether it be through spoken words or writing (Dwyer 2009). An example of this type of communication is when a leader of an organisation shares knowledge or expertise with a staff member.

Non verbal communication is any communication that doesn't consist of words (Dwyer 2009). For example, a hand gesture such as waving is non verbal communication. This simple gesture allows the sender of the message to communicate without words.

Graphic communication, on the other hand, is a form of communication that uses shapes, lines and diagrams to effectively convey the intended message (Dwyer 2009). For example, an organisation that employs a no smoking policy may use no smoking signs throughout the organisation. Although these signs do not contain words, the image has the ability to effectively advise employees that smoking is prohibited.

Dwyer, J, 2013, Communication for business and the professions: Strategies and skills, 5 Edn, Pearson Australia, Frenchs Forrest NSW

Author: Gabriele Bakker

Date: Monday, 2 December 2013 9:59:38 PM EST

I found your post on communication informative, easy to understand and supported with relevant examples. But is a wave just a wave? You noted for nonverbal communication that a wave is a simple gesture but I believe there can also be complexity to this, for instance is it an enthusiastic wave, hesitant wave, token wave, dismissive wave or another type of wave. What may seem like a simple gesture by one person may have a very different intent or be interpreted differently by another. Like verbal communication, nonverbal communication also consists of sentences and it is important to not interpret a solitary gesture in isolation as this could be taken out of context and misinterpreted (Pease, A 1997 p.14). So next time you get a wave check what the person’s face and rest of the body are doing too and see if they communicate the same thing.

Author: Kiersten Symes

Date: Tuesday, 3 December 2013 10:12:07 AM EST

I appreciate your feedback, and you have raised a very interesting point for discussion. However, when I said "simple" gesture I was referring to the simplicity of performing the action itself, for example a person just needs to lift there hand and move it horizontally to communicate various messages. I wasn't referring to what message is being communicated or whether it is received in the way the sender intended it to. It is ironic, though, that my message was misinterpreted and taken out of context by you (the receiver), and what a perfect example this is.

Thanks again for your feedback.

Author: Gabriele Bakker

Date: Tuesday, 3 December 2013 3:44:05 PM EST

What a great example of misinterpretation we have demonstrated! J How often this can happen in our everyday lives especially since many of us are quick to make assumptions or take things out of context. Thank you for explaining what you meant in your initial posting. I agree the action of raising a hand is such a simple gesture but can communicate many messages such as a greeting, a stretch, as a warning to stop, to make a bid at an auction, to hail a bus or taxi and the list goes on. I find the power of nonverbal communication fascinating.

Author: Michelle Jenkins

Date: Monday, 9 December 2013 4:00:33 PM EST

Hi girls,

This thread has made me think! Written communication can also be misinterpreted - especially across social networking platforms. If you make a statement in jest and don't add the obligatory 'lol' or smilie face - your audience don't know you are joking.

With written communication, there is no emotion on show, no body language or tone of voice, so it is difficult to get the 'tone' of your message across and interpreted by all successfully. In the case above - there will be some members of your audience who totally understand your sense of humour, but those who do not so will take your message the wrong way, and worst still - they may take offence to it.

With Kiersten's comment above (her reply to Gabbie) - her last sentence comes across as sarcastic. However it may be a totally innocent comment. So there you go - here is another message which may also be misinterpreted.

I'm adding a lol and smilie face to show you both that I am commenting in a casual and humorous tone. LOL :)

Author: Gabriele Bakker

Date: Monday, 9 December 2013 9:10:12 PM EST

I agree that written communication can also be easily misinterpreted for instance using capitals for an email could be received as shouting however the sender may have just forgotten to take the caps lock off. With more of our communication seeming to be written, thanks to technology, it is so important that as a receiver of a message we provide feedback and as a sender we confirm our message has been understood as intended to reduce misinterpretation and potentially the problems that arise as a result. The symbols you mentioned are called emoticons which are “a representation of a facial expression (such as a smile or a frown)…used to convey the writer’s feelings in electronic messages” (ed. Moore 2004).

Interesting how you interpreted Kiersten’s last sentence. I did not pick up any sarcasm the first time or when I just re-read it.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts which again shows differences in interpretation.

Moore, Bruce (ed.) 2004, The Australian Oxford Dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford University Press, South Melbourne.

Author: Bridgett Fuller

Date: Thursday, 12 December 2013 8:27:13 PM EST

Really interesting discussion Ladies, I imagine this is exactly what the tutors are hoping for.

Gabbie - using quotations in your reply is really impressive (no sarcasm intended to be conveyed). I think I have commented (positively) on your work before.

Com12: Business Communications. Week 1: Leadership is...

Week 1: Leadership is:

My Post and related peer replies

Leadership is a person's ability to not only direct subordinates, allocate tasks and delegate work, but to influence and motivate those subordinates to reach the common goals of an organisation (Dwyer 2009 p250). The leader initiates the relationship and creates the communication linkages between the involved parties (Northouse 2010 pp3-4). A successful leader, however, encourages their team or group to reach their fullest potential, complete tasks effectively and efficiently, meet deadlines and reach targets, ultimately resulting in the success of the organisation.

Dwyer, J 2009, Communication in Business Strategies and Skills, 4th edn, Pearson Education Australia, French's Forest, NSW. Northouse, P.G. Leadership: Theory and Practice, 2012, edn 5 Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.

Author: Samantha Wallwork

Date: Sunday, 1 December 2013 5:06:05 PM EST

I completely agree with you that a leader should be encouraging and motivating to team members, but I (personally) disagree that a leader should (always) be directing subordinates and delegating work. This is the role of a manager, who should absolutely be a leader in their own right, but not all leaders are or need to be managers. A leader can lead by example and encourage and motivate, but may not have the position or status to delegate tasks.

Food for though :)

Author: Michelle Jenkins

Date: Monday, 9 December 2013 11:44:32 AM EST

Interesting response. In my past positions - my leaders have always delegated, as well as encouraged and motivated. Upon reflection though - maybe they were delegating the requests which the Manager had passed down the line.


Author: Daniel Muirhead

Date: Sunday, 1 December 2013 9:10:50 PM EST

Enjoyed reading your post, it raised some interesting points.

One area, which I thought was interesting, was where you said 'leadership is a persons ability to not only direct subordinates, allocate tasks and delegate work’ (Dwyer 2009 p250). I have had the pleasure of working under certain leaders in the banking industry where employees will go above and beyond to reach the common goal, which the leader has set out. It is amazing to see tasks being done, even before the manager/leader has delegated them. The staff will do it simply because they want to reach that goal. Being able to motivate to a level where that happens is quit incredible, and an invaluable skill for a leader to possess.

Author: Michelle Jenkins

Date: Monday, 9 December 2013 12:02:31 PM EST

Yes I agree. I am in a role now where all staff know what to do without needing to be asked. We also work more than what is required, and don't add the extra time to our time sheets. We all have the same mental attitude and work ethics - and that is to get the job done. None of us like leaving unfinished jobs at the end of the day. I guess you could say our Manager employed staff with the same values. She was skilled at choosing the right people. We only need to occasional motivational speech if we are tired lol