Interpersonal and Organizational Communication
Abstract
Communication represents a significant component of institutions. Effective communication is mandatory for a particular business to meet its objectives. Communications among the employees as well as other stakeholders keep the business on track. It is essential for the management of an institution to be aware of the barriers to effective interpersonal as well as institutional communication. Besides, the managers must also understand the various communication modes that are appropriate to the business entity. Effective communication is a crucial ingredient in the success of a business entity. Therefore, a proper understanding of institutional and interpersonal communication is necessary.
Keywords: Communication, barriers, interpersonal communication
Interpersonal and Organizational Communication
Communication is an essential element to all business entities regardless of size and type. It helps in maintaining and sustaining relationships. Communication between employees as well as the management is crucial in ensuring achievement of institutional objectives. It is essential for an institution to have a clear line of communication between management and employees. Communication forms an important role in management. This paper is set to explore interpersonal and institutional communication.
Apart from planning, coordinating, as well as controlling, communication forms another core task of management. The leadership of an institution must ensure that communication within the business entity is effective (Winkler & Zerfass, 2016). Communication should be systematic, possess continuity, as well as integrated into the structure of the company. For achievement of the institutional objectives, institutions need to encourage a healthy exchange of ideas or views. Management should have expertise in the different ways of communication. Interpersonal communication has been regarded as the lifeblood of institution (Hwang & Lee, 2015). The core elements of interpersonal communication include message, sender, channel, response, as well as the background.
Interpersonal Communication
Interpersonal communication refers to the transmission of mutual understanding or information from an individual to the other. Interpersonal communication, in any entity, has a significant role to accomplish in the success. Therefore, it needs to be handled with great care to ensure the goals of the institution are attained (Bylund, Peterson, & Cameron, 2012). The complexity or simplicity of a business entity's interpersonal communication heavily depends on the company. It stresses on how communication is perceived by the management of an institution. Additionally, it provides ways of reaching other individuals with concerns, thoughts, values, as well as ideas.
Certain elements are required for interpersonal communication to be complete. These have been developed into a single model known as interpersonal communication model (Vertino, 2014). The design ensures that there is a receiver, sender, message, feedback, as well as a channel of communication. Human interaction is presented as a process that requires all the elements of communication. Interpersonal communication within an institution is continuous and flexible (Cooren, Fairhurst, & Huët, 2012). The exchange of ideas, values, as well as information, is a constant process in a business entity.
In communication, there must be more than one person; sender and the recipient. The sender is often regarded as the source of the information. The source can be one person, a particular group of people, or the entire institution (Vertino, 2014). It may also be a group of departmental heads interested in communicating policy changes. The primary functions of the source are to ensure the message is transmitted, determine a particular meaning to be conveyed as well as encoding of the meaning into specific words. In an institution, a single individual often conducts these three functions of the source. It is essential for the source to select and communicate messages that can be understood by both the receiver and sender (Winkler & Zerfass, 2016). The individual who acquires the message from the source is referred to as the receiver. The receiver can also be an individual or group of the entire institution. S/he has to receive, decode, as well as respond to the message.
For effective communication, it is essential for both receiver and recipient to understand the experiences and background of each other. It is crucial for a manager to have a better understanding of the staff for effective communication. Both the receiver and the recipient need to ensure they are effective in their roles (Berger, 2014). The primary cause of problems in an institution is poor interpersonal communication. Apart from the receiver and the sender, feedback or response is an essential component of the communication model. Once the receiver has decoded the message, s/he needs to respond. Responses can be non-verbal or verbal. In communication, feedback is crucial (Farahbod, Salimi, & Dorostkar, 2013). For instance, communication between a manager and an employee requires feedback from both sides. The manager is often keen on the response by the worker to judge the failure or success of the message.
The main aims of interpersonal communication include the development of interpersonal relationships, gaining understanding, as well as compliance. These goals have an enormous impact on the development and success of a business institution (Cooren, Fairhurst, & Huët, 2012). Every interpersonal communication should include the three goals. The interpersonal relationship in institutions is critical in ensuring unity and achievement of objectives. Developing healthy interpersonal relationships with colleagues enables an individual to have a good working relationship with co-workers as well as the supervisor. Besides, humans communicate in an attempt to influence others to gain their compliance (Bylund, Peterson, & Cameron, 2012). Compliance is essential when a particular change is needed. For instance, an employee seeking vacation should communicate in a convincing manner that would enable the manager to grant him or her permission.
Communication can also be done to gain understanding. Every individual needs to understand and know whatever happens around him or her. Information is necessary for the acquisition of knowledge. Interpersonal communication is essential to get the information. Employees make inquiries and clarifications to understand certain aspects of the institution. Additionally, the managers communicate to individual employees to enquire about the daily activities. The goals of interpersonal communication are often achieved dependently. Achieving one goal requires the other two goals. For instance, in the development of an interpersonal relationship between workers and a new employee, the first idea is to understand the individual (Bylund, Peterson, & Cameron, 2012). The interested party must enquire more about the employee through interpersonal communication to gain that knowledge.
The context of communication must also be considered in communication. The situation in which a message is passed is important since different individuals can communicate at the same time in different circumstances (Vertino, 2014). A change in context during a communication process is likely to modify the message. In an institution, certain issues can be discussed among workers without reaching the supervisors. Additionally, the communication rules often change with variations in the communication partners (Ramaju, 2012). The interpersonal communication model highlights that communication is a dynamic and ongoing process. Adapting to the context of the communication is essential for proper communication of the message.
Barriers to Effective Interpersonal Communication
Communication being a process may experience certain hitches. These restrictions can lead to distortion of a message as well as a misunderstanding between the source and the recipient (Hull, 2012). Sending of unnecessary information regarding a single subject may affect the quality of the message. For instance, when twenty emails are sent on the same topic and each email has a different aspect of the subject matter. The source needs to present the message in a manner that is understandable to all parties involved (Farahbod, Salimi, & Dorostkar, 2013). It is not necessary to overload a message with information.
The cultural difference between the sender and the recipient may act as a barrier to effective interpersonal communication. There is a need to understand the background of each other during a communication process (Okoro & Washington, 2012). The message may be misunderstood if an individual does not understand the culture of the recipient or company. Additionally, filtering of the message may be a barrier. When a message is filtered by the source before it is sent, it may be deceiving upon reaching the intended target. Filtered message may send a different signal to the receiver.
These barriers can be overcome through various ways. Some of the most common ways of avoiding communication barriers include language simplification, proper listening, controlling emotions, as well as the use of feedback (Ramaju, 2012). An individual can be able to communicate easily to the receiver by using clear, precise, as well as uncomplicated languages. On the other hand, the receiver can decode the message. Integrating emotions into messages may lead to distorted information. It is imperative to ensure that messages are free of emotional constraints. Sending a neutral message allows the recipient to digest the message then gives feedback (Berger, 2014).
Good listeners can send and receive complete messages. Proper listening is an essential part of the communication process. At times, the receiver can hear the message but fail to understand. This might be because of poor listening abilities from the sender and the receiver. Additionally, feedback helps individuals engaging in interpersonal communication to avoid the barriers (Bylund, Peterson, & Cameron, 2012). Through feedback, the sender may find out if the message has been understood. Additionally, the receiver may ask for clarifications.
Importance of Organizational Communication
There are several functions of communication to an institution. The major functions are to inform, persuade, manage, integrate, socialize, as well as regulate. These features are interdependent of the context of communication (Spaho, 2013). Communication provides information to the managers and employees about the activities of the business. It enables individual workers in performing their duties efficiently or effectively. Employees must be informed about any changes in the policy as well as procedures affecting their work. The function can be accomplished when people at different levels communicate. Most of the informative function of communication is often done in written format.
The managers may also convene meetings to inform the employees of any changes. Such meetings help the employers to disseminate information or inquire about the operations of the business from the employees (Hull, 2012). Besides, the regulative role ensures that the regulatory policies are communicated within the business entity. This platform is essential for informing the employees of certain rules and regulations that need to be taken into account. They can also be used in notifying the employees as well as the supervisors that they have broken certain company rules and regulations. Most regulatory communications are often unpleasant (Lovejoy & Saxton, 2012). However, they are essential for the achievement of the objectives of a given company.
One of the core functions of management is coordination. It involves assigning responsibilities to individuals within the institution. Coordination can only be possible when there is effective communication. Communication for coordination forms the integrative function of communication (Madianou & Miller, 2013). All the resources are channelled towards meeting specific goals and objectives. This kind of communication is aimed at ensuring that people work together for the benefit of the business entity.
The management function of communication has particular goals. They include focusing on ensuring workers perform their job as required and learning of the workers to understand their work-related behaviours. Additionally, communication is essential in the development of interpersonal relationships with the employees. Through interpersonal relationships, managers can thoroughly understand their employees (Madianou & Miller, 2013). The knowledge is essential since it assists in the proper management of the workers. Communication should be persuasive to achieve the goals of the institution. The supervisor should influence others into doing a particular task essential in the growth or development of an institution. The powerful approach enables the employees to feel like they are also part of the business entity (Lovejoy & Saxton, 2012). Besides, it is crucial in the development of strong ties between the workers and their supervisors.
The socialization function of communication enables an institution to maintain certain levels of respect. It helps in the passing of information on the relationship among workers as well as supervisors. In most cases, the socialization function is often neglected in several institutions. However, it is a crucial part of institutional communication (Gainforth, Latimer-Cheung, Athanasopoulos, Moore, & Ginis, 2014). The function also determines the success or failure of an individual in a given business entity. Every single employee needs to be integrated into the communication networks of the business. This ensures that all employees can relate to each other in a fruitful manner. Proper communication involving socialization motivates the employees to perform to the best of their abilities. In the contemporary business world, the value of socialization has been realized. New recruits are often assigned to older ones to ensure they integrate into the socialization circles of the institution.
Channels of Organizational Communication
Large institutions are often complex thereby requiring sophisticated communication channels. However, it is essential for the management to ensure that the channels are simplified in a way that can be understood by all the stakeholders in the business entity. These channels are classified as upward, horizontal, diagonal, as well as downward. Upward communication involves communication of information to the higher levels. All needs, as well as wants, are often communicated upwards for action. Decisions are made at the higher levels and communicated back to the subordinates. In downward communication, the manager delivers information to the employees. This type of communication is regarded as the traditional form of communication. It is essential in the coordination of activities at various levels of the institutional hierarchy. Besides, various departmental heads interact through horizontal communication. They discuss issues affecting the company at their level. Once the discussion is completed, the information is passed upwards to the next hierarchical level (Gainforth et al., 2014). In diagonal communication, managers often interact with workers as well as managers from other departments. The individuals interacting are often at different levels of the institutional hierarchy in this form of communication. Such kinds of connections are crucial to the smooth running of an institution. Diagonal interactions are often informal in most cases. This form of communication enables individuals from various departments to mingle together as one people. Additionally, it fosters the spirit of unity.
Apart from the formal forms of communication, others are informal. For instance, grapevine communication is regarded as one of the most commonly employed informal forms of communication. It flows haphazardly among individuals regardless of hierarchy. In most cases, it involves more than three people at a given point in time. It is often predisposed to error due to less accountability on the part of the source (Neves & Eisenberger, 2012). Moreover, the distortion of information is often deliberate. It is essential for the managers to understand the operations of the grapevine form of communication since it is one of the most common types of communication.
Factors Affecting Organizational Communication
Poor communication has been one of the most common problems affecting several institutions particularly the larger ones. It is essential for information to be passed accurately from the upper to lower levels and vice versa (Gainforth et al., 2014). However, in most complex business entities, information takes a lot of time to reach the lower levels. This results in the breakdown of communication and eventual failure of the institution. With an increasing number of employees, the business finds it hard to communicate to all workers. Some of the causes of poor communication in the large institutions include spatial distance involved, the existence of various cultures, different structural systems, as well as constant changing of the institutional composition or environment.
Different subcultures exist in the large institutions. The members of the groups often swear allegiance. The groups have different values and systems of communication. It is crucial to understand their operations to communicate to the various sub-cultures (Neves & Eisenberger, 2012). As a result, a particular message from the management can be distorted to meet the demands of the group. The message can only be adopted if it favours a particular institutional sub-group. Additionally, the different structural relationships, as well as systems, are a problem in institutional communication. An institution chart gives how individuals relate to each other in terms of responsibilities. Depending on their level of the structure, people are often required to adhere to the communication rules in the business entity. The institutional environment is constantly changing (Okoro & Washington, 2012). Therefore, the communication channels should also change. However, the complex institutions are unable to change drastically with the shifts in the business entity.
Organizational Communication Modes
The clarity of a particular message heavily depends on the communication method used. Communication experts agree that the directness of the message plays a crucial role in its clarity and preciseness (Spaho, 2013). For instance, if several individuals are involved in the filtration of the message, it is highly likely that the message will be distorted. It is essential for the manager to evaluate all the modes of communication individually and select the most appropriate (Cooren, Fairhurst, & Huët, 2012). Communication modes differ depending on the context of the message. Some of the most common modes of institutional communication include written, face-to-face, non-verbal, and telephone communications. The advantage of written communication over the other method is that it allows for easy documentation as well as identification. However, the written communication methods consume a lot of managerial time.
In face-to-face communication, the receiver has an advantage of seeking clarity. Additionally, the source can assess the success or failure of the message (Berger, 2014). The main disadvantage of this mode of communication is that it can reach few individuals within the institution. Non-verbal communications include the use of facial expressions, tonal variations, gestures, as well as body movements. The misinterpretation of information is the main demerit of the mode of communication (Hwang & Lee, 2015). The use of telephone communication mode allows for rapid communication of messages. However, it does not permit the utilization of some non-verbal messages.
In selecting a communication mode, the management must be aware of the limitations as well as the advantages of each mode (Okoro & Washington, 2012). Additionally, any method selected should be in line with the institutional objectives and culture. These communication modes can also be used together to ensure the message reaches the intended target. For instance, verbal communication can be reinforced with written communication such as electronic mail.
In summary, institutional as well as interpersonal communications are essential in ensuring the companies objectives are met. It is essential for the managers to understand the barriers to institutional communication. This knowledge would help him or her in selecting the best communication mode for the institution. Additionally, it is crucial for an institution to have a straightforward and clear communication channel and mechanism.
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