Basics of Business

Communication

Accenture
January 2014

Participant Guide
Basics of Business Communication

Table of Contents
Training Objectives........................................................................................................................................................ 3
Effective Business Communication ............................................................................................................................... 4
Need for Effective Communication ........................................................................................................................... 4
Role of Communication in Business .......................................................................................................................... 5
When is Communication Successful? ....................................................................................................................... 6
Barriers to Effective Communication ........................................................................................................................ 7
Forms of Communication.......................................................................................................................................... 9
Verbal Communication ............................................................................................................................................... 10
Draw the Words! ..................................................................................................................................................... 10
The Three Musketeers: Words, Language and Expressions ................................................................................... 11
Be a Good Listener to be a Good Leader ................................................................................................................ 12
Attributes of a Good Listener.................................................................................................................................. 13
Hearing vs. Listening ............................................................................................................................................... 15
Articulating Your Thoughts ..................................................................................................................................... 16
Challenges of Communicating in Conference Calls................................................................................................. 18
Structuring a Conference Call ................................................................................................................................. 20
Ensuring a Smooth Conference Call ........................................................................................................................ 22
Checklist and Purpose for the Meeting................................................................................................................... 24
Conducting the Meeting ......................................................................................................................................... 26
Successful Public Speaking ...................................................................................................................................... 28
Delivering a Successful Presentation ...................................................................................................................... 30
Non-verbal Communication ........................................................................................................................................ 32
Yes, We Can Revisited!............................................................................................................................................ 32
Components of Non-verbal communication .......................................................................................................... 33
Just a minute Activity .................................................................................................................................................. 36
Just a Minute! ......................................................................................................................................................... 36
Using Verbal and Non-verbal Communication Effectively ...................................................................................... 38
Written Communication ............................................................................................................................................. 39
Pick up a Card! ........................................................................................................................................................ 39
Elements of Effective Written Communication ...................................................................................................... 42

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Basics of Business Communication

The Pyramid Principle for Structuring Communication .......................................................................................... 43

The Inverted Pyramid of Communication ............................................................................................................... 44
Communicating Through Emails ............................................................................................................................. 45
Writing Effectively ................................................................................................................................................... 46
Formal Business Communication ................................................................................................................................ 47
Preparing a Report .................................................................................................................................................. 47
Developing Formal Communication ....................................................................................................................... 48
Organizing and Synthesizing Information ................................................................................................................... 50
Preparing for the Presentation ............................................................................................................................... 50
Identifying the Key Message ................................................................................................................................... 51
Structuring and Communicating the Information................................................................................................... 52
Presentation Skills ....................................................................................................................................................... 53
Presenting to Your Team......................................................................................................................................... 53
Being a Better Presenter ......................................................................................................................................... 54
Summary ..................................................................................................................................................................... 56

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Basics of Business Communication

Training Objectives

Communication is one of the important aspects of management. Effective communication is the process
of accurately articulating a message, conveying it in the most appropriate manner, and it being
completely and correctly understood by the intended recipients. However, this poses challenges because
a team and other stakeholders are different individuals coming from varied backgrounds. It can be
achieved by understanding various aspects of effective communication including verbal, non-verbal, and
written forms of communication.

At the end of this session, you will be able to:

❖ Identify the framework for effective communication
❖ Apply techniques for effective verbal communication with different groups
❖ Identify the components of non-verbal communication
❖ Apply guidelines for structuring written communication
❖ Develop formal communication for different audiences

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Effective Business Communication

Need for Effective Communication

Observe how Obama uses simple yet powerful words to garner the audience's attention.

What can you note about the way Obama is using verbal communication in the campaign?

Effective communication is the process of framing a message accurately in the sender’s mind, conveying
it to the recipient, making sure that it is being correctly and completely understood by the recipients

Need for effective communication:

• The ability to communicate well is a quality every good leader should have. You need to communicate
effectively to be able to manage your projects effectively, be a good motivator, a team player, a
consultant to your client, and to inspire your team.
• Effective communication drives a healthy environment at the workplace.
• It provides a clear view of objectives, necessary tools to accomplish those objectives and a carefully
crafted action plan to follow. Clear directions about tasks increases employee satisfaction, thus
motivating them to work more efficiently. This creates a strong organization culture based on mutual
trust.
• It aims to drive consensus in every negotiation by ideas being conveyed clearly and succinctly, thereby
building harmony, in spite of difference of opinions.
• A conscious approach to communicate effectively allows the concerned people to focus on the
problem or issue at hand.

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Role of Communication in Business

What are the different things that you communicate for both internal and external purposes?

Role of communication in business:

• Communication is used in business for both internal as well as external purposes.

• Any message sent within the company is referred to as internal communication. It plays the role of
passing on information, providing guidance and communicating the overall requirement.

• External business communication is any message sent to an outside recipient. It serves the role of
promoting, persuading, and maintaining a positive image for the business.

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When is Communication Successful?

Communication is considered successful when the receiver:

• Receives the message undistorted,
• Understands the message as intended by the sender, and
• Is able to provide feedback to the sender.

In scientific terms, communication is nothing but the shifting of a piece of information from one part of
space to another. The information can be in the form of an object, a written message, a spoken word, or
simply an idea.

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Barriers to Effective Communication

What kind of communication barriers have you faced while communicating with both internal and
external stakeholders?

Anything that prevents understanding of the intended message is a barrier to effective communication.

A few physical and psychological barriers:

• Noise:
Noise associated with faulty equipment or surroundings obstruct clear communication. Choose a quiet
location for face-to-face as well as telephonic communication to enable both the sender and the
receiver to concentrate on the messages being exchanged.

• Interference:
Frequent interference due to people entering or leaving a room, vibrating or ringing mobile phones
and people struggling to make themselves heard in the midst of a conversation cause frequent
disruption of the flow of the conversation, making it difficult for others to grasp the key message from
the entire conversation.

• Culture, Background, and Bias:

We often infer the meaning of the message based on our past experiences, our culture, and biases.
However, we also need to be aware of what certain words can mean while dealing with people from a
cross-cultural background. Cultural differences are a key aspect to keep in mind while dealing with
people from diverse backgrounds.

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• Prejudice:
Our preconceived notions or attitudes about people and/or circumstances also affect our ability to
listen and communicate effectively.

• Being Self-oriented:
Focusing only on ourselves may lead to confusion and conflict. Factors that may cause this are
defensiveness (feeling like someone is attacking us verbally), superiority (feeling like we know more
than anybody else does), and ego (always wanting to be the center of the activity).

• Appropriate Context Setting:

Too often, we believe that certain piece of information is not important for others or they already
know the facts. This prevents us from sharing that information, which otherwise could have been
useful to somebody.

• Message:
We often get distracted when we focus more on the words rather than the idea to be passed on.
Semantic distractions are the ones that happen when a word is used differently than how you use it.

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Forms of Communication

There are three main ways to communicate:

• Verbal Communication: While use of words is important in verbal communication, intonation of voice
as well as non-verbal cues play a crucial role in verbal communication, and can work to emphasize or
contradict the message. Verbal communication can take the form of conversations and presentations.
• Non-verbal Communication: Non-verbal communication involves the use of facial expressions,
gestures, posture, eye contact, and body language to transmit an idea. Inferring correct meaning from
non-verbal communication is often dependent on the context or verbal communication accompanying
it.
• Written Communication: Written communication is a critical part of our work lives. We use emails,
project status reports, and client communication as part of written communication. Any written
communication must be succinct, clear, and appropriate for the intended audience.

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Verbal Communication

Draw the Words!

The appointed leader has to describe the pattern on the paper while sitting away with his back to his
team in such a way that they should be able to draw it on their papers. You have to recreate whatever
your leader tells you to draw.

What did the successful groups do differently?

What could have worked well and helped you achieve your target?

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The Three Musketeers: Words, Language and Expressions

To ensure effective conversation, you should consider the following:

• Make the intended recipient understand your message.
• Receive or understand the intended message for you.
• Try and steer the flow of the communication back to the agenda whenever it digresses.

The following three components need to be used in conjunction to make any business communication
effective.
• Words we use
• Language and vocabulary we use to articulate those words
• Expressions
➢ Facial (in case of face-to-face interactions)
➢ Tone and punctuation (in case of written communication)

Guidelines to Ensure Effective Communication

• Avoid Ambiguity: Words may not always mean what the dictionary says they do, but they mean what
the speaker intends. It helps to have a pragmatic view of the words, rather than a philosophical one.
In everything that is said or heard, look out for possible misunderstanding and clarify the ambiguity
immediately. The greatest difficulty is faced when there are words with different meanings depending
upon context and/or culture.
• Be Positively Assertive when the Situation Demands: Choose your words intelligently to be assertive
without being aggressive. While being positively assertive may win you a professional rapport with
client, being overly aggressive may even cost you the future prospect of working with the same
client.
• Confront Difficult Encounters: Avoiding difficult encounters does not address the underlying
problems, which may surface later in greater proportions. Be professional and confront the problems
without losing self-control.
• Seek Additional Information: Phrase open-ended questions and ask them politely to seek additional
information on the requirement or the topic of conversation. Reflective listening (paraphrasing your
understanding of what was said and leading to further discussion on the topic) will help you to
understand the requirements better.

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Be a Good Listener to be a Good Leader

There are many situations at the workplace when you as a leader need to solicit key information. For
example, monitoring project status, addressing and solving work-related problems, and finding out
reasons for performance discrepancies are some of the situations when you need to obtain key
information from your team members. Similarly, understanding project scope and requirements at the
start of a project is an example of eliciting information from a client. Such situations require you to listen
intently and patiently. Hence, one of the attributes to be a good leader is to be a good listener.

Just like good writing or good speaking, good listening is also an important skill that requires knowledge
of the technique and ample practice. It is a common myth that good listening skills need to be inherent.
However, the difference is that poor listening skills are often not as obvious to other people. It is often
observed at many occasions that two or more people start talking to each other or to the group at the
same time, and none wants to wait for the other to finish. However, you cannot talk and be an effective
listener simultaneously. Good listening skills can be acquired by following some techniques.

Basic listening modes:

• Attentive Listening:
This is when a person is interested in knowing the other person's point of view.
• Combative Listening:
This is when a person does not want to hear any explanations, but wants to promote theirs.
• Reflective Listening:
This is when a person takes an active role in the communication process and thinks critically about
the topics or messages he receives.

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Attributes of a Good Listener

What are the attributes that would make a good listener?

Attributes of a good listener:

• Concentration: Focus on the main ideas or points being put forth by making an effort to not get
distracted by surroundings, examples or any comments made during the discussion.
• Attention: Avoid checking your mobile phones or emails when someone is talking; leaning forward a
little and focusing your eyes on the speaker (not staring) communicates close attention, which in turn
conveys the speaker that you are concentrating.
• Eye Contact: Maintaining eye contact with the speaker is essential because it prevents getting
distracted. It also enables lip reading and picking up non-verbal cues, thereby helping us understand
verbal messages clearly.
• Receptive Body Language: Interpretation of different body postures and movements differs across
cultures. Therefore, avoid certain postures that suggest that you are no longer interested in the
conversation.
• Understanding Communication Symbols: Concentrate on the context of the usage in order to
correctly understand the message, as some words may have several meanings as per the context.
Therefore, a leader must have a good command over the language being used for conversation.
• Objective: As a leader, you may have to listen to and understand a wide range of opinions on
sometimes-controversial subjects. Respect these differences and listen objectively to what the
speaker wants to convey, keeping your biases and preferences aside.

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• Restating the Message and Clarifying Your Doubts: Restate the key message as clearly and
objectively as possible to enhance the effectiveness of communication. Ask for more information
after allowing sufficient time for explanations if you are unsure about the intent of the message.
• Empathy (not sympathy): Try to put yourself in the other person’s situation to understand their
frame of mind to get a better understanding of what he or she is trying to arrive at.
• No Interjecting in Between: Wait for the speaker to finish first, and then start with restating the
message or asking questions to confirm your understanding.
• Leave the Channel Open: Always leave the possibility of additional messages open. A brief question
or a nod often encourages additional communication.
• You cannot Listen while You are Talking: Speak up only when you have a query or doubt or when
you are not clear about something. Save your talking to the end as much as possible, as active
listening cannot happen when you speak often.

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Hearing vs. Listening

What is the difference between listening and hearing?

We can define hearing as a physical process in which sound waves hit your ear.

On the other hand, listening is a psychological process. It involves hearing, interpreting, analyzing, and
decoding the message that the speaker is trying to put across.

While listening, we all use personal filters. Therefore, when we have to relate the same message to
someone else, there is a good chance that we will communicate the message a little differently.

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Articulating Your Thoughts

You are conducting a team meeting wherein your team members are asking you to repeat a point.

What could be the possible reasons for this?

The meeting has run past its scheduled end time and you feel that team members are not focusing on
what you are explaining. You even spot them looking repeatedly at their mobile phones.

Why do you think this is happening?

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Just being an active listener is not sufficient. It is also important to articulate your thoughts well. Being
articulate portrays you as a strong person with an educated and cultured mind. As a result, people are
more likely to listen to you and respect you. Here are some guidelines to articulate your thoughts better:

• Be More Concise:
Make content as crisp and concise as possible without leaving out essential information. State your
point upfront to let people know what the discussion is about and where you are trying to get.
• Eliminate Verbal Pauses:
Verbal pauses in the form of words such as um, a, and like, not only distracts team members and
clients from what you are trying to say, but also disturbs the flow of a sentence and makes the
audience detached. A non-verbal pause is a much safer option.
• Speak Slowly:
Speak slowly to ensure clarity. Think about what you are going to say, take the time to speak slowly,
and pronounce your words carefully in a way that would not confuse your team members. Pausing in
between sentences gives the required time to think and prepare the next sentence.
➢ Use Your Hands: Keeping your hands in your pockets may cause you to stutter, forget what you
have to say, or may even give out an inappropriate non-verbal message. Instead, get your whole
body involved into the speaking process. Use hand gestures to support your words, which will
help you explain what you mean better. Keeping your hands out of your pockets also makes you
look more confident, adding the required strength to what you are saying.
➢ Limit Distractions: Stay in the moment and focus on what you are saying when you are saying it.
This will help you deliver the message with more confidence and in an articulate manner. Keep
distractions, such as vibrating phone, non-punctuality, or thinking about a later meeting to a
minimum.
➢ Use Interesting Techniques: Using stories or analogies helps in keeping your team members
interested and focused on the message. It reduces distractions and keeps the meeting lively and
interesting.

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Challenges of Communicating in Conference Calls

In today’s fast-paced global business environment, where working in ‘virtual teams’ is the way of life,
conference calls have become the norm. Like business meetings, conference calls are a platform where
you can exchange ideas, share updates on projects, and remain connected to virtual teams.

What kind of challenges do you face when you are dealing with virtual teams or clients across
locations in a conference call?

The biggest challenge probably is not having the luxury of seeing the other person, and not being able to
use facial expressions and gestures. You only have words and your tone to make an impression. Here are
a few common issues that arise during conference calls:

• Poor Time-keeping: It is important for all the people required in a conference call to join in on time.
Even if a single participant is late by a minute or two, it ends up taking up everyone else’s time, which
may affect their schedule. Have a clear agenda and stick to it throughout the call to keep the
duration of the call in control.
• Technology Issues: Starting or joining a conference call is quite simple as long as people follow the
instructions and are sure about what to do. To pre-empt or resolve issues of technology, make sure
you check the equipment for any faults before the call. In addition, ensure you send out clear and
accurate dial-in instructions.
• Noise or Echo Problems: Background noise during a conference call can be extremely annoying,
distracting, and frustrating to the participants. If the meeting is interrupted by the sound of others
talking or laughing on the floor or other disruptive sounds, it indicates a lack of planning. A common

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mistake that some conference call users make is to place their phone on hold; the hold music that
follows can get annoying for everyone else listening.
• Lack of Direction: With many different people struggling to put forth their points, you need to take
control of the situation and make sure the relevant topics are addressed and issues are resolved as
quickly as possible. If you miss or fail to steer the call in the right direction, it can quickly turn into a
chaos with everybody talking over each other or drifting away from the topic at hand. This will not
only increase the cost of the call, but will also reduce productivity.

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Structuring a Conference Call

What steps do you take while preparing for a conference call?

Guidelines for structuring an effective conference call:

• Have an Agenda: Share the agenda before the call so that participants can prepare accordingly. In
case you have not initiated the call, appoint a moderator to steer the call in the right direction. Begin
with a “roll call” of attendees and their location to make everyone aware of who is on the line and
remember to announce when new members join in. Continue with a short overview of the purpose
and objective of the call, followed by the agenda. Ensure that everyone sticks to the items in the
agenda.

• Keep a Check on the Duration: Some participants speak slowly during the call, some talk elaborately,
while some do not participate. This makes the call last longer than scheduled. You should therefore
set the tone of the conference call right at the beginning by speaking at a regular rate with good
modulation and intensity. You should prompt the audience to share their opinions and make sure
that the conversation focuses on the topic of discussion. In case someone moves away from the
topic, intervene and politely steer the conversation back to the topic of discussion.

• Manage the Voice Traffic: Limit the number of people attending the conference call to only the
concerned team members. The participants should state their names each time they speak, enabling
others to know who is giving what inputs. As far as possible, questions should be directed to specific
individuals rather than generic ones. It is your responsibility to ensure that everyone gets the
opportunity to participate and give inputs in the call.

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• Take a Poll: When there are critical moments in the meeting, it is a safer bet to poll the participants’
inputs. Call out the name of each participant and ask for his or her opinion, comment, or
vote. Though this is time-consuming at times, especially for larger groups, it is still worthwhile where
the team has to make a decision to move forward over a critical issue.

• Share Quantifiable Data Prior to the Call or Use Handouts: Whenever possible, share the
information required during the conference call with the participants prior to the call.

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Ensuring a Smooth Conference Call

What measures do you think would help ensure a smooth conference call?

Tips for a Successful Conference Call

• Choose a Quiet Location for the Call: Background noises often make it difficult for people on the
other side to clearly hear and comprehend what you are trying to say. Make sure you are in a quiet
location where you will not be disturbed by ambient noise
• Use Appropriate Equipment: Try using a phone with a handset that is hard-wired into the phone
lines and make sure it is working. Avoid using cellular phones or cordless phones as they may cause
static or other distracting noise and are more likely to pick up background noise, and may cause
“clipping” due to the limitations of the equipment. If no one in your room needs to speak, switch on
the ‘Mute’ button to prevent the background noise from getting picked up.
• Arrive on Time or Earlier: The host who initiated the call should arrive a few minutes early to greet
each of the participants as they join in, and let them know whether everyone is ready to start or they
should wait for others to join in. Being a few minutes early also helps you to deal with any
discussions the participants might begin with before you are ready.
• Introduce Yourself when You Begin Speaking: As there are multiple attendees in a conference call, it
is often difficult to make out who is speaking at which moment. As a rule, always introduce yourself
before you begin speaking. Do not put your phone on hold to do something else. This will play your
‘Hold’ music into the conference call.
• Try to Stay on Schedule: Stick to the agenda and the assigned minutes per topic laid out in it.
Deviating from the schedule will not only make the call less productive, but also waste other’s time.

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• End the Call Clearly: Before ending the call, clearly state the action points and get confirmation on
the next steps. Also, discuss if there is a need for a follow up call. In case it is required, set the date
and time for the same after confirming everybody’s availability. When the meeting comes to an end,
thank all the participants for the participation and make sure everybody knows that the meeting is
formally over.

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Checklist and Purpose for the Meeting

You wish to call a team meeting to brief your team members about a new project.
What aspects would you consider while planning this meeting?

Organizing information and structuring a meeting is part of your responsibility as a leader. However,
organizing any meeting is a huge task to accomplish in itself. Thus, planning a meeting with a pre-
meeting checklist assures that you are on the right path.

Here is a small checklist to help with the task:

• Every Meeting Should have a Purpose:
➢ There should be a valid reason for a team meeting needs to be held.

• Deciding meeting logistics

➢ Set a date, time, and venue that is convenient for all the attendees.
➢ In case of a face-to-face meeting, choose a venue appropriate to accommodate the required
people.

• Set the Agenda:

➢ Create an agenda for the meeting and share with the participants before the scheduled meeting.
➢ List all the topics that you want to discuss in the order in which you want to discuss them and
write an estimated amount of time next to each topic.
➢ In case there are multiple members contributing in the meeting, decide the order in which people
will talk.

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➢ Also, assign the task of recording the discussions to one of the team members, which can be
referred to later to create minutes of the meeting or for reference.

• Set Meeting Rules:

➢ Set rules regarding how the meeting is to be conducted from start to finish.
➢ Establish punctuality codes for your team members and the do’s and don’ts for meetings and
discussions.

• Communicate with All the Concerned Members:

➢ Send emails with date and location details as well as the agenda in advance to all the
stakeholders required for the meeting.
➢ In the meeting, draw all the participants in the discussion to gather everyone’s inputs.

• Invite Only Those Who are Required for the Meeting:

➢ A meeting is not productive when too many people are involved.
➢ Invite only those team members whose active involvement is required in the meeting.
➢ Send an email containing minutes of meeting to all other team members who “need to know”
about it.

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Conducting the Meeting

What measures would you take to ensure a successful team meeting?

Guidelines for conducting a successful face-to-face meeting:

• Share the Purpose and Agenda with Team Members or Client

➢ Sharing both the purpose of the meeting and the agenda in advance allows your team members
or client to come prepared for the meeting.
➢ Revise the agenda as per the inputs received from your team members or client, if any, and share
it again.

• Assign tasks
➢ As the discussion proceeds, decide on the action points and assign the tasks accordingly to your
team members.
➢ Set a due date for the completion of each task in consultation with your team.
➢ Note down these task assignments clearly and mention them clearly in the minutes of meeting
with the name of the team member responsible for it.

• Retake Control of the Meeting if it Digresses:

➢ As the team leader and moderator, it is your responsibility to keep the meeting on track.
➢ Exercise your power as the meeting leader in case it goes off track at any point. Politely remind
the concerned participant about the purpose for the meeting and explain that other things can
be discussed later.

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• Conclude the Meeting on Time:

➢ Do not allow the meeting to continue past its scheduled end time, as many of the attendees may
lose their focus past the scheduled end time and may start thinking about other tasks to be done
that day.
➢ If the allotted time is up and you still have a few items to be discussed, schedule them to a later
date after taking into consideration everybody’s availability
➢ Thank your team members or client for attending the meeting and providing valuable inputs.

• Share Minutes of Meeting after the Meeting:

➢ Ensure that you mail the minutes of the meeting within 24 hours of the end time of meeting.
➢ When you assign any tasks during the meeting, include a polite reminder to your team members
to follow through with the assigned items.

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Successful Public Speaking

As team leaders, there must have been instances when you had to conduct face-to-face meetings either
with your team members or clients. Typical examples of such meetings are to share project
requirements, present project approach or status, build rapport with your team, offer constructive
feedback on their performance, discuss sensitive issues or conflicts, make presentations about a specific
technical area or foster teamwork.

What kind of challenges do you face in public speaking while conducting such face-to-face meetings
with your team members or clients?

Successful public speaking is the key to conducting effective face-to-face meetings with your team
members or clients. These face-to-face meetings offer you an opportunity to be heard, to persuade and
influence your team members, managers, clients, and to get your ideas across to a captive audience.
Here are few tips for effective public speaking during face-to-face meetings:

• Focus on Your Core Message:

➢ Have a maximum of three key points, all of which should contribute to a key central message.
➢ Emphasize these points as you speak and phrase your speech around them.

• Find Out the Background of the Attendees:

➢ If it were a team meeting, you would already know your team members and that should diminish
some nervousness. Try to find out how much they already know about what you are going to
discuss in the meeting.

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➢ If you are speaking to the client, do not explain basic business terms unless asked to. But, at the
same time, do not use any technical jargon or complicated expressions. Try to find out more
about their preferences and edit your speech accordingly.

• Avoid Rushing or Leaving Things Out:

➢ Maintain the pace of your speech at a comfortable tone and speed to avoid rushing or leaving
things out.
➢ Distribute your time according to the material.

• Use Anecdotes, Examples and Analogies:

➢ Include anecdotes and examples in the speech to keep people interested and engaged.
➢ Use analogies to help people understand difficult concepts.

• Keep Cue Cards Handy:

➢ Cue cards or note cards are a great way to stay on track. Use them as a guide while you speak.
➢ You can also have a printed copy of your notes to make you feel more comfortable and
confident. However, avoid looking at the notes often; cue cards prove to be better option for
quick referencing.

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Delivering a Successful Presentation

Your manager has asked you to present the first version of the newly developed tool to the client.
How should you prepare for this presentation?

What measures will you take to deliver a successful presentation to the client?

Guidelines for conducting a successful presentation or demo:

• Have a Purpose:
➢ Just like a meeting, a presentation should also have a clear purpose.
➢ A purpose should have key points for a clear understanding with the attendees.

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• Consider Your Audience:

➢ An effective presentation is one that engages its audience.
➢ Depending upon whether the audience is your team, your manager or the client, tailor your
presentation according to their interests and preferences.
• Introduction:
➢ Introduce yourself professionally if dealing with a client for the first time; explain what you will be
presenting.
➢ Irrespective of who the attendees are, never use jokes, apologies or questions as part of your
introduction.
• Speak Clearly:
➢ Speak clearly and loudly to ensure you are audible across the room or on the call
➢ Using note cards to help your memory is a good practice; however, use them only for referring to
the key points while presenting; do not read directly from them.
➢ Maintaining eye contact, enunciating your words, and speaking in a strong yet inviting tone will
keep the attendees focused on your presentation.
• Visual Aids:
➢ Visual aids such as PowerPoint presentations with photographs and charts, handouts, or a short
video help grabbing the attention of your team or managers or client.
➢ Make sure that the visual aids used are engaging. The slides should only contain key words or
phrases and verbal communication should be used to explain the details. Handouts should also
be in the form of an outline, rather than an elaborative text to follow along.
➢ Making slides with a lot of text and reading diminishes the overall impact of the presentation.
➢ Present visual aids in direct correlation with your speech at the presentation.
• Show Interest and Knowledge:
➢ Prepare well for the presentation and sound like an expert in the topic you are going to speak
about.
➢ Anticipate the questions that might be raised at the end of your presentation and be prepared to
answer them.
• Practice for Perfection:
➢ Before the final presentation, demonstrate in front of your colleagues, mentors, or managers to
get their feedback and note down the questions they may have after you have finished. This will
help you to be prepared for questions you might have to answer after the actual presentation.
➢ You can also practice in front of a mirror. Look at your own reflection while talking and do not
read directly from your notes.
➢ Record your presentation as a video, so you can review it later and make changes to improve it.
➢ Look for any awkward hand gestures, and judge whether your presentation makes sense to you.
➢ Ensure that the language used is appropriate and professional for addressing your team or
managers or client and without any long pauses.

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Basics of Business Communication

Non-verbal Communication

Yes, We Can Revisited!

Observe the different nuances of non-verbal communication that Obama uses in his speech.

What are the different elements of non-verbal communication that Obama used in the video?

How did these elements contribute to deliver the message effectively?

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Basics of Business Communication

Components of Non-verbal communication

The message that you wish to convey to a group of people is not just about the words you speak; it is
also about the associated body language. These non-verbal signals suggest your attitude and your
understanding of the topic.

Can you share some examples from your work-life where the body language was contradictory to the
message being conveyed?

A single non-verbal signal cannot convey a complete message. Body language is about a few non-verbal
clues that convey the message in conjunction with the verbal context. Here are a few components of
effective non-verbal communication:

Gestures
• Posture:
➢ Posture is one of the most important aspects of body language.
➢ For example, slouch suggests lack of enthusiasm and disinterest. Standing straight with your
weight balanced on each foot suggests confidence and relaxed posture.

• Facial expressions:
➢ Our expressions also play a significant role in sending the desired message.
➢ For example, a smile or a grin is considered a universal signal for happiness. A smile is also
associated with agreement and pleasure, while a frown usually indicates displeasure. Similarly,
raising eyebrows after a statement would mean disbelief, questioning stance, or simply shock.

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➢ Similarly, there can be instances when a team members’ face may be expressionless. It suggests
disinterest in that particular topic.

• Eye Contact:
➢ Eyes are the most expressive part of a face and can reveal moods, feelings, intentions, as well as
interest.
➢ For example, you are talking to a team member and he is looking around frequently while
speaking or listening and not at you. This suggests that he is probably concerned about
something else.
o Sideways glance of eyes – Suspicion
o No eye contact – Disinterest
o Half-raised eyebrows – Worry
o Half-closed eyes – Boredom
o Avoiding eye contact – Dishonesty or deception
o Constant gaze or repeated mutual eye contact – Intense love or affection

• Mannerisms:
➢ Use candid and open gestures when you are meeting a client.
o Outward and upward movements of the hands – Positive attitude towards the meeting
o Positioning fingertips of one hand against those of the other hand (steepling) – Confidence
o Clasping your hands behind your head and leaning back in a chair – Arrogance and
overconfidence, inappropriate for professional settings.
o Placing hands on each side of the waist (standing at the ready position) – Confidence and
attracts others.
o Unbuttoning a suit jacket in front of a prospect – An open attitude suggesting that you are
willing to talk and negotiate.
o Taking off your jacket and rolling up sleeves of the shirt – You are getting down straight to
business and are ready to get down to the final price
o Fidgeting – Nervousness

➢ Before jumping to conclusions, pay attention to the non-verbal signals that the listener or
speaker may be giving.
o Crossed arms – Being defensive or a comfortable position
o Touching the nose in a meeting – Being doubtful about what he or she is hearing or a
response to an itch or soreness from a recent cold
o Unbuttoning of jacket – Openness and cooperation or an overweight person trying to fit into
an old jacket

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• Self-image:
➢ Be more conscious about how you will be perceived by others around you.
➢ Dress suitably as per the Accenture Corporate Dressing Policy.

Tone
• Tone of human voice conveys emotions and can add a dramatic effect to some parts of a sentence. A
person’s tone can be happy, sad, excited, and sarcastic. The variations in the human voice occur are
generally due to variations in feelings or emotions.
• It is important to know the meaning behind the tones used in everyday speech and use them to
avoid any misunderstandings during a conversation.

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Just a minute Activity

Just a Minute!

Choose a topic from the following list and talk about it for a minute in front of the class:
• My happiest moment
• My childhood dream
• My favorite book or movie
• My dream destination
• My favorite superhero

Assess the presentations with respect to following pointers:

• How is the presenter communicating?
• Is the messaging clear?
• Are they able to articulate well?
• Is their communication engaging?
• What is their body language?
• Are they maintaining eye contact?
• How is their tone?
• Do they appear confident?

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Basics of Business Communication

Using Verbal and Non-verbal Communication Effectively

Verbal communication strategies help improve verbal communication skills and their effectiveness.
• Ask Questions:
➢ Questioning is a powerful communication strategy that ensures clarity and accuracy of the
messages being exchanged.
➢ Questions give way for additional information and more conversation.
➢ Questions can also help initiate a conversation.
➢ Frame the questions carefully without using any jargons and practice the use of simple words.

• Premeditate:
➢ Think about what you’re going to say before you say it.
➢ Attempting oral communication without thinking through the words often results in an
unorganized and unclear message.
➢ Take factors like the audience, mode of delivery and word usage into consideration for an
effective verbal communication that is more accurate, precise and condensed, and thus more
effective.
➢ Pre-meditation works well for public speaking or a presentation.

Tips for conducting meetings:

• Know the room
• Know the audience
• Know your material
• Relax
• Visualize yourself giving your speech
• Realize that people want you to succeed
• Do not apologize
• Concentrate on the message and not the medium
• Turn nervousness into positive energy
• Gain experience

Tips for participating in calls:

• Share the purpose and agenda with attendees
• Decide action points and assign tasks
• Retake control of the meeting if it goes astray
• Conclude the meeting on time
• Share Minutes of Meeting (MoM) post meeting with all those who are associated with the project

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Written Communication

Pick up a Card!

• Where do you use written communication in your work life?

• What are the different formats that you use?

Written communication is one of the oldest means of communication and forms a crucial part in our
everyday lives. You probably use written communication for communicating via emails, sending status
reports, and presenting project overview decks. These documents need to be created in a succinct yet
precise manner to meet the stated objective and to communicate the message clearly. These documents
also become a permanent record and can be stored for future reference.

Activity: Pick up a Card!

Pick up and study the scenario given on the card of written communication and present your
suggestions.

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Basics of Business Communication

Scenario 1 (Email): There is going to be a major scope change on the current project.
1. You need to convey this news to the internal stakeholders and conduct a meeting with them as soon
as possible. Draft an email for the internal stakeholders that contains the following:
• Short summary of the discussion you had with the client on the scope changes
• Time, Location, and Agenda for the meeting to discuss the scope changes
2. Draft an email to the client to convey the plan of action to accommodate the changes

• What elements of written communication did you use while working on the scenario?
• What structure did you follow while creating the document?

Scenario 2 (Status Report): You are the Team Lead on a complex project. To ensure that your Manager is
well informed on the status you have to create a report on a monthly basis.

• What elements of written communication did you use while working on the scenario?
• What structure did you follow while creating the document?

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Scenario 3 (Project Overview Document): You need to provide the project overview to the new team
members. Create a project overview document specifying the following details:
Client specifications/requirements
Project stakeholders
Processes followed
Tasks description
Project quality standards

• What elements of written communication did you use while working on the scenario?
• What structure did you follow while creating the document?

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Elements of Effective Written Communication

➢ Purpose or Objective: Every piece of written communication should have a clear and definite
purpose or objective mentioned at the very beginning. This helps the readers in understanding
why they need to go through the entire email or document or report. The first thing that
everyone does on receiving any email is checking its subject. Hence, writing a clear subject for
emails make the reader aware of what it refers to immediately.

➢ Background or Context: Many a times, all the recipients may not be aware of the background to
the present communication. Hence, it is advisable to have a short contextual description. This will
make sure that all the recipients have a similar understanding on the subject.

➢ Structured content: Structured content is easier to grasp and remember. A well-structured piece
of content contains information in its descending sequence of importance and is divided into
short logical sections that make the best sense to the readers.

➢ Conclusions: Adding a conclusion will restate the main message or point of view presented in
response to the topic, it is implications and the possible results.

➢ Action items or Next steps: This section will provide the follow-up plan if any.

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The Pyramid Principle for Structuring Communication

The Pyramid Principle

• The Pyramid Principle concentrates on the thinking process that should precede writing. It structures
the thought process, which gets reflected in the way we communicate. The Pyramid Principle helps in
structuring a thought in a way that is easy to comprehend by the reader or listener. The pyramid rests
on two principles:
➢ Every document or presentation can and should be reduced to a single key message.
➢ It is essential to state the key message as soon as possible, immediately after a short and suitably
structured introduction.
• The key message is what the recipient would be interested in. For example, you are sending a
document to client for approval and you need the approval urgently. If you do not communicate the
reason for urgency in the mail, the client may not take it seriously and may simply revert back as and
when they get time to review and approve it. Here, the key message is not the document itself, but
the duration for approval.
• The structure of the document or presentation should be formed accordingly. The recipient can
absorb information and ideas, and draw the desired conclusions much more easily if they know why
all this material is being shared with them. In other words, they handle details better within the
context of the big picture, which is established by the key message.
• A pyramid may include any number of levels with the key message or idea representing the largest
part of the pyramid. The rest of the pyramid exists to build the case needed to explain and convince
the client of the wisdom of the main message. Boxes should get smaller at descending levels,
reflecting the intellectual progression from big ideas to supporting details.
• Grouping or chunking is the intellectual process of recognizing relationships or patterns among ideas.
Grouping makes information easier to absorb.
• Summarizing is the process of drawing conclusions from the above grouping step. This iterative
process of grouping and summarizing continues until we draw the conclusion of all the answer to the
problem at hand.
• Conclude the document or presentation by restating the key message as a reminder of the big
picture.

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The Inverted Pyramid of Communication

The Inverted Pyramid of Communication

• The approach followed in the inverted pyramid model is to address the most important facts first and
then providing supporting information.
• The topmost section contains the most important information, and then the remaining information
follows in decreasing order of importance, with the least important at the bottom.
• The information is built on the importance of the facts presented. It objectively looks at the various
pieces of information focusing on the value they add to the recipient.

Advantages of using this approach:

• Most people have short attention spans and are reluctant to spend their time going through a lengthy
piece of information in communication such as email, searching for the key takeaways and action
points for them. Through the inverted pyramid approach, they can easily get to the point immediately
and locate their action points.
• Moreover, the pyramid also allows the top section to be rewritten or updated as and when needed
without changing the less important pieces of information.
• It is also an extremely useful tool for thinking and organizing because it forces you to sum up the point
of the story in a single paragraph.
• It can be followed for writing any piece of information, from regular emails to your team to project
reports to be submitted to the client.

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Communicating Through Emails

Sumit, a team leader located in Mumbai, is enrolled for a training being conducted in two days’ time.
However, because of project pressures, he will be unable to attend the training, and needs to find a
replacement. Sumit sends an email to TL_All, a distribution list that covers TLs pan-India. He has also
marked all the relevant managers in the CC field.

What do you think is inappropriate in this scenario?

General guidelines while communicating effectively through email

• Address the right recipients: Make sure only the intended recipients are listed in the ‘To’ field and the
recipients who need to be kept informed should be listed in the ‘Cc’ field. Use the ‘Bcc’ field in case of
bulk emails. As the other usage of ‘BCC’ is less straightforward it is recommended to avoid using ‘Bcc’
to foster trust and transparency in communication. Also, it is necessary to use ‘Reply All’ carefully as it
might be overused in some cases.
• Do not send heavy attachments that consume a lot of space in the inbox and block other emails from
coming in. In case you have to share heavy files, use alternative method to share documents such as
Subversion and SharePoint.
• Always set up an automatic “out-of-office” reply to set expectations with clients and team, so that
people would know when not to expect a reply from you.
• Do not send personal messages and forwards on official email address. This may conflict with the
organization’s policies.
• When you need some time to think and respond in detail, send an acknowledgement of the email and
inform the person that you would get back to him or her later. Do mention the time by which you
would reply back.

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Writing Effectively

Guidelines for structuring language and phrasing sentences:

• To bring Clarity to your written communication make sure the information is correct, concise, specific
(without jargon), and complete.
• Adopt a neutral and direct tone: Use a neutral and direct tone while writing that gives away the
required facts without sounding artificial.
• Vary your tone depending on how well you know your recipient: You may adopt a polite and formal
tone as opposed to a friendly tone depending on how well you know the person you are addressing.
• Keep the messaging simple: Keep the language simple, comprehensive, and easy to grasp for all the
targeted recipients.
• Avoid stilted phrasing: Certain phrases will make your writing sound pretentious. Avoid using the
words and phrases listed in the left column and instead use the ones listed in the right column.
• Eliminate unnecessary words: Long sentences make it difficult for the reader to quickly understand
and remember what is being conveyed. Eliminating unnecessary words will make the sentences short
and crisp.
• Use specific nouns: Use words that will identify people as specifically as possible making sentences
more direct.
• Avoid using clichés: Clichés may not go well with a diverse group of recipients. One person’s cliché
may prove to be another’s striking figure of speech.
• Replace negative words with neutral or positive words: Negative words or words which make a
negative impression demotivate the reader from taking the expected action. Using positive language
or actionable phrases ensures that the reader will take some action on the subject being addressed
through this piece of written communication.
• Use bias-free terms: Use the following terms to keep your writing bias-free:
➢ Businessperson vs. Businessman
➢ Supervisor vs. Foreman
➢ Mail Carrier vs. Mailman
➢ Police Officer vs. Policeman
➢ Sales Representative vs. Salesman
➢ Flight Attendant vs. Stewardess
• Eliminate unnecessary adverbs: Adverbs are often used to emphasize a message however, may not
add value to the information. Unnecessary adverbs clutter information and weaken the message
being conveyed. Avoid or eliminate these adverbs from your written communication: extremely,
definitely, truly, very, and really.

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Basics of Business Communication

Formal Business Communication

Preparing a Report

Go through the Project Briefing Document to understand the requirements. Prepare a crisp Executive
Summary Report to be presented to your Practice Manager and also write a cover email to accompany
the report asking for the right resources for the project.

What are the different steps that you follow while creating any business document?

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Basics of Business Communication

Developing Formal Communication

Follow these steps while creating any formal document:

1. Establishing the Aim:

• Every document has to have a specific reason for being written, that is, aim for its creation.
Decide exactly what you want to achieve with the document.
• After finalizing the aim, pick out the relevant facts from the available information and state them
precisely and concisely.
2. Keeping the Document Audience-centric:
• Every document is meant to convey something to its audience. Write a report in a way that is
appropriate for your intended audience for maximum impact.
• The three considerations for deciding what to include in a document and how to include it are:
➢ Whatever the audience already knows – Do not include
➢ What the audience need to knows – Must include
➢ What the audience wants to knows – Determines the order and emphasis of information in
the document
3. Structuring the Approach:
• Structuring a document helps to present the information in a way that is more accessible to the
reader.
• Breaking down the document into distinct sections, which can be composed (and read) separately
will help to structure a document. Break down these sections into even smaller subsections and
sub-subsections until you arrive at simple, small units of information, which can be expressed as a
paragraph, or a diagram.
• Every piece of information in a document should justify itself with a purpose.
• Maintain “One paragraph: One idea” concept followed by:
➢ A development of the idea
➢ An explanation or analogy to highlight it
➢ An illustration if any
➢ Supportive evidence
➢ Contextual links to reinforce the structure
• Diagrams or visual representations convey information more effectively. They are often helpful in
easier analysis and interpretation of the presented data. Add informative labels and titles, and
highlighting any key entries.
4. Draft, Revise and Edit:
• Create a rough draft and go through it to check clarity and effectiveness.
• Check and correct the following in the self-review:
➢ Layout

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Basics of Business Communication

➢ Style
➢ The Beginning
➢ Grammar and punctuation
➢ Spelling
➢ Sentence formation, jargons and verbosity
• Edit the document and review it again before sending it to the intended recipient.

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Basics of Business Communication

Organizing and Synthesizing Information

Preparing for the Presentation

Prepare for a short presentation to on-board the rest of the participants to your current project. Include
the following in your presentation:
• Background of the project
• Technology solution that is being implemented
• Rationale for choosing that particular technology solution

What aspects should you focus at while editing the first draft of your presentation?

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Identifying the Key Message

Identify the key message:

• For your presentation to be successful, you need to hold the interest and attention of your team
members till the end of your presentation.
• One effective way of doing this providing just enough information in the presentation so as to get the
message through. Too little information would result in too many unanswered questions in the
minds of your team members, while too much of it would cause loss of interest and focus towards
the end.
• Think carefully and identify the key points that you want to get across and build your presentation
around them.
• A good and effective presentation should ideally have around 3 to 5 key points.

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Structuring and Communicating the Information

• Structure the information supporting your key points into three categories by finding answers to the
questions “What?”, “Why?” and “How?”
➢ What: Focus on the key message that you wish to communicate to your audience in terms of
what your audience will gain from it, how they will be benefitted and where they should apply
this information.
➢ Why: Explain to your audience why they should be going through the message or why you are
writing to them.
➢ How: Explain how your audience should go about doing what they are expected to achieve from
this information.
• Organize the content of the presentation in descending order of importance, starting with the most
important details to the least. Commence with the strong points that will grab and hold your
audiences' attention throughout the presentation and include a summary of the content at the end.
• Keep the time factor in mind and structure your presentation to the time allocated for it. Set aside
time for question and answer session to address queries from the team members.
• Depending upon whether you are presenting before your managers, your team members or the
client, the structure of the communication needs to be modified accordingly.
➢ Managers:
o Probably the experts in the topic you are presenting
o Can understand acronyms, abbreviations and technical terms used
o Require minimal background information and detailing about standard business procedures
➢ Team Members:
o May be familiar with the topic you are presenting without the details
o Prefer definitions of acronyms, abbreviations and technical terms
o Require brief background information and detailing about standard business procedures
➢ Clients:
o May or may not be familiar to the topic you are presenting
o May not understand acronyms, abbreviations and technical terms; either avoid using them or
define them thoroughly
o Require profound background information and extensive detailing about standard business
procedures

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Presentation Skills

Presenting to Your Team

On-board rest of the participants to your current project through the short presentation prepared in the
last activity.

• What aspects of the presentations did you find appealing and why?
• What are the aspects that could have been better?

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Being a Better Presenter

Among all the presentations you attended so far, which one appealed to you the most? Why?

A successful presentation is one that is delivered with memorable information that people can use in the
future. A successful presentation is the one that gives information to the audience, helps the presenter in
clarifying doubts, and ends with clearly defined next steps.

A good presentation has the following structure:

1. Introduction:
• Introduce yourself, if required and then inform the attendees what you are going to talk about.
• Start with an interesting opening followed by explaining the need for the presentation and
objectives.
2. Body:
• Present the content.
• Include the key messages, supported by other facts woven around it and documents.
3. Summary:
• Revisit the key points covered in the presentation and draw conclusions based on them.
• Define the next steps and action points clearly before moving on to an impressive closing
statement that sums it all.
• Clarify any doubts or misconceptions that the attendees may have in an interactive Question and
Answer session after summary.

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Tips on improving presentation skills:

• Introduce Yourself:
➢ Make eye contact and smile cheerfully while introducing yourself at the start of the session. This
will help your listeners to feel at ease.
➢ Appear confident; do not let the audience sense your nervousness.
• Voice:
➢ Your voice should be loud enough for everyone to hear clearly.
➢ The pace of speech should not be too fast or too slow; it should be comfortable for the audience
to grasp the key points.
➢ Break monotony by voice modulation and inflection.
➢ Use pauses appropriately during your presentation to allow your audience to absorb what has
been said.
• Body Language:
➢ Use body language effectively to convey a positive attitude.
➢ Maintain a steady eye contact with the audience.
➢ Avoid shifting your balance from one foot to the other or other gestures like pacing, rocking, and
swaying, which may convey nervousness.
➢ Use smooth hand gestures to avoid being static for too long.
• Visual Aids:
➢ Create a visual presentation, since people are more likely to remember information that is
accompanied by visuals.
➢ Avoid displaying a lot text on the screen. Only a few key points should be displayed in a concise
manner accompanied by verbal explanation.
➢ Choose a font big enough for your audience to be able read the slides from a distance.
➢ Use colors intelligently and coordinate them well.
➢ Use charts and graphs to present important figures and trends. Label the charts and graphs
clearly and provide citations for the references.
➢ Create handouts to be distributed at the end of the presentation to help your audience recollect
the key points.
• Perfecting the Art of Presenting:
➢ Practice and time your presentation using a stopwatch to ensure that it fits within the allotted
timeframe.
➢ Practice each presentation multiple times before actually delivering it in front of your team to
build confidence.
➢ Obtain feedback after every presentation to sharpen your skills for the next one.

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Summary

• Effective communication is a very important aspect of team management. However, communicating

your ideas to your team poses a challenge as a team generally consists of different individuals coming
from varied backgrounds. However, it is possible to address all the team members at once by applying
various communication techniques and strategies through verbal, non-verbal, and written forms of
communication.
• Though words are the most important tool for verbal communication, intonation of voice, choice of
words and appropriateness of the language are some of the factors that influence verbal
communication. Verbal communication with your team can be in the form of conversations and
presentations.
• In addition to verbal communication, certain non-verbal cues also play a crucial role in either
emphasizing or contradicting your intended message. Non-verbal communication involves use of facial
expressions, gestures, posture, eye contact, and body language to transmit an idea accurately.
• Unlike verbal or non-verbal forms of communications, written communication requires a medium such
as paper or word-processing documents. Written communication within your team can be in the form
of emails, presentations, project status reports, blogs and websites.
• The Pyramid Principle is an effective way of structuring thoughts prior to the written form of
communication. The pyramid rests on the following two principles:
➢ Every document or presentation should be reduced to a single main message. In the context of
issue-based problem-solving, this message is the answer to the recipient’s problem.
➢ It is essential to state this answer as soon as possible, immediately after a short and suitably
structured introduction.
• The inverted pyramid model follows the approach of addressing the most important facts first and
then providing supporting information. The top-most broad section of the pyramid contains the most
important information, followed by the remaining information in decreasing order of importance, with
the least important at the bottom.
• Formal communication generally involves assimilating information, structuring it into some other form
and creating a business document out of it. To develop an effective formal document, start with
establishing the aim for it, then think from the viewpoint of the intended reader to decide on the
content that must be or should not be included into it. Structure it as per “one paragraph: one idea”
dogma, fill in the gaps, and lastly, review and edit to refine into a final formal document.

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