Interpersonal communication flows from the social, economic, political and personal relationships among the people in an organization. In turn, these are influenced by the organizational culture, values, mission, vision, leadership, history and teamwork etc. A failure in any of the determinant factors shows up in the nature of the interpersonal relationships and communication, with detrimental implications to the performance of any enterprise or even individual (Putnis & Petelin, 2007). Despite working for the same firm, Jenny, Annie, Daryl and Mike lack meaningful interpersonal relationships and communication, which results in time wastage (in the initial meeting) poor communication, team work and perhaps most crucially, poor knowledge sharing/management.
The organization faces a difficult problem, whose successful resolution would ensure the company’s success or even survival. The four staff members are individually very qualified, and given their collective expertise, the company should be able to create necessary synergies to resolve its issues (Franz, 2012). However, the lack of effective interpersonal relationships and/or communication, results in unproductive meetings according to Jenny. The team’s proposed solution is not only rushed, but fails to take on the inputs from all the members of the team, which is critical especially since the team members have expertise in different fields. Effectively, the fact that Daryl doubts the recommendation, then it should not have been put forward, but his personal difficulties in communicating his disagreement led to the failure (Alle-Corliss & Alle-Corliss, 2009). The unproductive engagement resulted from a lack of an entrenched organizational culture, or a culture that fails to emphasize teamwork, communication, interpersonal relationships and knowledge management.
Haynes (2012) sets forward several stages through which individuals in a group achieve desirable interpersonal communication and relationship, right from the point of contact. Once the members meet, the second stage involves “transition, storming, counter dependency and fight, experimental engagement conflict dominance and rebellion” (Haynes, 2012, p. 10). This is followed by the creation or adoption of group norms, trust-building and group cohesion, which should occur prior to any productive activities can engaged in. The ability of the group to leverage the individual members’ expertise increases through this process, resulting in increasing willingness to share and engage with one another. According to Franz (2012, p.165), “a group with high cohesiveness is more likely to have groupthink because the members don’t want to be ostracized. On the other hand, while Jenny, Annie, Daryl and Mike failed as a team, their individual abilities to relate with one another solve conflicts and persuade others also failed. It is critical to address the social psychological factors that influence interpersonal communication including values, culture, language, common goals (Putnis & Petelin, 2007).
Effectively, in order to bolster the performance of the team, several measures need to be taken. Firstly, it is necessary to ensure that there is a proper organizational culture that would promote interpersonal communication, common values, vision and “codes which human beings use to communicate with each other” (Hartley, 1999, p. 160), coupled by clear formal and informal communication channels across the firm (Alle-Corliss & Alle-Corliss, 2009). In addition, while the expertise held by the four employees is not easily transferable, it is necessary for the firm to ensure that other members of the organization to avoid excessive dependency on individuals share such knowledge (Putnis & Petelin, 2007). This should include the creation of a clear knowledge management policy, technology (databases and social media etc).
However, these strategies are important for the long term. In the interim, training of the members on team-work and communication, leadership, coupled by team-building activities should be promoted by the company (Hartley, 1999). On the other hand, the formation of teams, including this team, should go through the clear processes of interpersonal communication, especially in the absence of the right culture. Help them in “finding adaptive solutions to crisis situations in their own lives” (Alle-Corliss & Alle-Corliss, 2009, p.151). Identify the leadership abilities of the members and put them under a single leader, charged with fostering communication and ensuring that the best possible solution is taken. “Effective leadership facilitates the attainment of the group and individual goals and ensures the maintenance of the group” ,(Alle-Corliss & Alle-Corliss, 2009, p. 53).
References
Alle-Corliss, L., & Alle-Corliss, R. (2009). Group Work: A Practical Guide to Developing Groups in Agency Settings. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Retrieved from http://www.scribd.com/doc/26446309/Group-Work-A-Practical-Guide-to-Developing-Groups-in-Agency-Settings
Franz, T. (2012). Group Dynamics and Team Interventions: Understanding and Improving Team Performance. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Retrieved from http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=K7EdXM7uCzsC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
Hartley, P. (1999). Interpersonal Communication. London: Routledge. Retrieved from http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=HxQkmzOv3JQC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
Haynes, N. (2012). Group Dynamics: Basics and Pragmatics for Practitioners. New York: University Press of America. Retrieved from http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=B6zIjVmGNU4C&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
Putnis, P., & Petelin, R. (2007). Improving interpersonal communication. Brisbane: In QCD210 book of readings, Queensland University of Technology. Retrieved from http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/9395614?q&sort=holdings+desc&_=1373184371117&versionId=10899825
Quotations
- “The second stage in the process of interpersonal communication involves transition, storming, counter dependency and fight, experimental engagement conflict dominance and rebellion” (Haynes, 2012, p. 10)
- “Effective leadership facilitates the attainment of the group and individual goals and ensures the maintenance of the group” (Alle-Corliss & Alle-Corliss, 2009, p. 53).
- “ A group with high cohesiveness is more likely to have groupthink because the members don’t want to be ostracized” (Franz, 2012, p.165),
- “ Crisis intervention is a process whereby clients are assisted in finding adaptive solutions to crisis situations in their own lives”, (Alle-Corliss & Alle-Corliss, 2009, p.151)
- “Perhaps the most important conclusion to draw from this discussion is to emphasize the variety and complexity of codes which human beings use to communicate with each other” (Hartley, 1999, p. 160)
