“Good Communication is the Bridge

between Confusion and Clarity”

• Communication - Meaning
• Business Communication - Definition
• Importance & Significance
• Process
• 7 C’s of Communication
• Types – One-way/Two-way, Verbal/Non- Verbal, Oral/Written, Formal/Informal,
Upward, Downward, Lateral, Intrapersonal, Interpersonal, Organizational,
Mass Communication
• Models – SMCR, Shannon Weaver
• Language Skills-Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing
⚫ Derived from the Latin word "communis," meaning to

share.
⚫ Communication is the exchange of thoughts, messages,

or information by speech, visuals, signals, writing, or

behaviour.

⚫ It is the transmission of an idea or feeling so that the

sender and receiver share the same understanding.

“Communication is a process involving the selection,
production and transmission of signs in such a way as
to help a receiver perceive a meaning similar to that in
the mind of the communicator.”
-Fotheringham
⚫ Business communication is the sharing of information
between people within an organization that is
performed for the commercial benefit of the

organization.
⚫ In the professional world, communication and related

skills decide a person’s career curve - better the

communication skills, higher are the chances of touching
the zenith of success.

⚫ The new global and diverse workplace requires excellent

spoken and written communication skills!

⚫ Communication is a process whereby information is

encoded, channeled and sent by a sender to a receiver

via some medium.

⚫ All forms of communication require a sender, a

channel, a message, a receiver and the feedback.

⚫ A hindrance in the communication process is called

noise
Components of Communication
 Sender - Initiates the communication process by
developing an idea into a message known as encoding.

 Channel - The sender transmits the message through

a channel, or a method of delivery; eg. e-mail, phone

conversations, instant messages, face-to-face discussion

or even a text message.

 Receiver – This message then moves through the
channel to the receiver, who completes the

communication process by interpreting and assigning

meaning to the message known as decoding.
 Feedback - This is a critical component in the
communication process as it ensures a message was
properly received and interpreted.
 Clear
 Concise
 Concrete
 Correct
 Coherent
 Complete
 Courteous

-by Scott M. Cutlip and Allen H. Center in 1952 in Effective Public Relations
•One-way , Two-way
•Verbal(Oral & Written), Non-verbal
•Formal, Informal(Grapevine)
•Upward, Downward, Lateral
•Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Organizational,
Mass Communication
⚫ One-way communication involves the transfer of
information in one direction only, from the sender to the
receiver.
⚫ There is no opportunity for the receiver to give feedback
to the sender.
⚫ Eg. weather report on television, newspaper, recorded
music on the CD, billboard messages
⚫ Two-way communication is a form of transmission in

which both parties involved, transmit information.

⚫ Two-Way communication has also been referred to as

interpersonal communication.
⚫ Eg. Chat rooms and Instant Messaging, Telephone

conversations, classroom lectures etc.

 In this type of communication the professional uses
language as a vehicle of communication.

⚫ Oral communication – A face-to-face interaction

between the sender and the receiver.

Eg. Making presentations and appearing for interviews

 Written Communication – The sender uses the written
mode to transmit his/her messages.

Eg. Writing reports and emails.

When a message is communicated without using a word,
the process requires non-verbal cues to be transmitted
and received.

Eg. facial expressions, posture, eye contact, walk,

person’s voice, sign language, body language volume,
pitch, voice modulation etc.

Communication includes both verbal and non-verbal

forms.
⚫ Communication takes place
through the formal channels
of the organization structure
along the lines of authority
established by the
management.
⚫ Such communications are
generally in writing and may
take any of the forms; policy;
manuals: procedures and rule
books; memoranda; official
meetings; reports, etc.
⚫ Communication arising out of all those channels of
communication that fall outside the formal channels is
known as informal communication.
⚫ Informal communication does not follow lines of authority
as is the case of formal communication.
⚫ Such communication is usually oral and may be covered
even by simple glance, gesture or smile or silence.
⚫ Eg. Talking with friends
Formal Informal
Official Channel Unofficial Channel
Planned & Systematic Cuts across formal
relationships

Goal and task oriented Individual Goal and

need oriented

Impersonal Personal & Social

Stable and rigid Flexible and instable
Slow & Structured Fast & unstructured
Authentic – little chance of Non- Authentic - bigger
distortion chance of distortion
⚫ It is an informal type of
communication and is called
so because it stretches
throughout the organization in
all directions irrespective of the
authority levels.
⚫ It exists more at lower levels of
organization.
⚫ Thus, grapevine spreads like
fire and it is not easy to trace
the cause of such
communication at times.
⚫ Communication in the first
place, flows downwards.
⚫ All information in this
medium is usually in form of
instructions, directions and
orders.
⚫ This direction of
communication strengthens
the authoritarian structure of
the organization.
⚫ Upward Communication is
the process of information
flowing from the lower levels
of a hierarchy to the upper
levels.
⚫ The function of upward
communication is to send
information, suggestions,
complaints and grievances of
the lower level workers to the
managers above.
⚫ This type of communication takes place between persons
at the same level or working under the same executive.
⚫ The main use of this is to maintain coordination and review
activities assigned to various subordinates.
⚫ Interpersonal
communication is an exchange
of information between two or
more people.
⚫ It is the process by which people
exchange information, feelings,
and meaning through verbal and
non-verbal messages.
⚫ It is the communication which takes place within one’s
own self.
⚫ This implies individual reflection, contemplation and
meditation.
⚫ A process by which activities of a society are collected
and coordinated to reach the goals of
both individuals and the collective group.
⚫ It is a subfield of general communications studies and is
often a component to effective management in
a workplace environment.
⚫ It is a means of conveying messages to an entire
populace.
⚫ This is generally identified with tools of modern mass
media, which include books, the press, cinema,
television, radio, internet etc. It also includes speeches
delivered by leaders to a large audience
⚫ The Shannon–Weaver model of
communication has been called the "mother of all
models.“
⚫ It embodies the concepts of information
source, message, transmitter, signal, channel, noise,
receiver, information destination, probability of
error, encoding, decoding, information rate, channel
capacity, etc.
⚫ Sender : The originator of message or the information
source selects desired message
⚫ Encoder : The transmitter which converts the message
into signals
For example: In telephone the voice is converted into
wave signals and it transmits through cables
⚫ Decoder : The reception place of the signal which
converts signals into message. A reverse process of
encode
⚫ Receiver : The destination of the message from
sender
⚫ Noise: The messages are transferred from encoder
to decoder through channel. During this process the
messages may distracted or affected by physical
noise like horn sounds, thunder and crowd noise or
encoded signals may distract in the channel during
the transmission process which affect the
communication flow or the receiver may not receive
the correct message
⚫ When there is a problem which might cause our
communication to be distorted or problematic, it is
known as a barrier to effective communication.
There are 4 types of barriers to communication
1. Physical barriers
2. Psychological barriers
3. Semantic blocks
4. Organizational Barriers
⚫ Distance: – communication is found obstructed in long
distance. Like communication between America and Nepal.
⚫ Noise: – it is from external sources and affects the
communication process. Noise negatively affects the
accuracy
⚫ Perception: – it is the process of accepting and
interpreting the information by the receiver. People
receive things differently for a various number of
reasons.
⚫ Filtering: –In this process, knowingly or unknowingly
some valuable information may be disposed.
⚫ Emotions: – emotion also creates barriers to
effective communication like anger, hate, mistrust,
jealousy etc.
⚫ Viewpoint: – it also creates
barriers to effective
communication. It the receiver
doesn’t clear the message and
ignore without hearing, the
message may create obstructions.
⚫ Defensiveness: – if the receiver
receives the message as threat and
interprets that message in the same
way, it creates barriers to effective
communication.
⚫ The use of difficult and multiple use of languages,
words, figures, symbols create semantic barriers.
⚫ Language: – A meaning sent by the sender can be
quite different from the meaning understood by the
receiver. Long and complex sentences create
problem in communication process.
⚫ Jargons: – Technical or unfamiliar language
creates barriers. The message should be simple
and condensed as far as possible so that no
confusion is created.
⚫ It is raised from the organizational goals, regulations,
structure and culture.
⚫ Poor planning: – Refers to the designing, encoding,
channel selection and conflicting signals in the
organization.
⚫ Structure complexities:- Difficult organizational structure
is a barrier for free flow of information
⚫ Status differences: – Superior provides information
to the subordinate about plans and policies. Different
information is provided by different subordinates who
create barrier in communication.
⚫ Organizational distance:- Distance between sender
and receiver.
⚫ Information overload: – If superior provides too much
information to the subordinate in short period receiver
suffers from information overload which creates barriers to
effective communication.
⚫ Timing: – Communication can be obstructed if the
information is not provided in time.
⚫ Listening is an everyday affair.
⚫ We spend more time to listening than speaking
⚫ It is a skill which is often taken for granted
⚫ It is considered as a stressful task
⚫ Successful listening is challenging and requires a lot of
practice
⚫ Effective listening is a dynamic activity that seeks out
the meaning intended in the messages sent by the
speaker.
⚫ Hearing is an involuntary act that happens
automatically. Eg. A truck rolling by on the road
in front of our house.
⚫ Listening –
 voluntary activity,
 demands perfect coordination between the ears & the
brain
 very creative
 Interactive and interpretive process.
⚫ You should have an open mind.
⚫ You should sit alert and look the speaker in the eye with a
view to establish your interest in him/her.
⚫ Do not prejudge the speaker or his message.
⚫ Summarize what the speaker is saying
⚫ Take down notes
⚫ Link what you are listening to what you already know.
⚫ Do not interrupt the speaker unnecessarily.
⚫ Ask relevant questions to yourself for clarity in your
understanding.
 Skimming
⚫ Skimming is used to quickly gather the most important
information, or 'gist'.
⚫ Run your eyes over the text, noting important information.
⚫ Use skimming to quickly get up to speed on a current
business situation.
Examples of Skimming:
⚫ The Newspaper (quickly to get the general news of the day)
⚫ Magazines (quickly to discover which articles you would like
to read in more detail)
⚫ Business and Travel Brochures (quickly to get informed)
 Scanning
⚫ Scanning is used to find a particular piece of information.
⚫ Run your eyes over the text looking for the specific piece
of information you need.
⚫ Use scanning on schedules, meeting plans, etc. in order
to find the specific details you require.
⚫ If you see words or phrases that you don't understand,
don't worry when scanning.
Examples of Scanning
⚫ The "What's on TV" section of your newspaper.
⚫ A train / airplane schedule
⚫ A conference guide
 Extensive reading
⚫ Extensive reading is used to obtain a general
understanding of a subject and includes reading longer
texts for pleasure, as well as business books.
⚫ Use extensive reading skills to improve your general
knowledge of business procedures.
⚫ Do not worry if you understand each word.
Examples of Extensive Reading
⚫ The latest marketing strategy book
⚫ A novel you read before going to bed
⚫ Magazine articles that interest you
 Intensive reading
⚫ Intensive reading is used on shorter texts in order to
extract specific information.
⚫ It includes very close accurate reading for detail.
⚫ Use intensive reading skills to grasp the details of a
specific situation.
⚫ In this case, it is important that you understand each
word, number or fact.
Examples of Intensive Reading
⚫ An insurance claim
⚫ A contract of employment
 Critical reading
⚫ This is a form of language analysis that does not
take the given text at face value, but involves a
deeper examination of supporting points and
possible counter arguments.
⚫ Critical readers thus recognize not only what a text
says, but also how that text portrays the subject matter.
⚫ What a text means – interpretation — analyze the text
and assert a meaning for the text as a whole
Tone
⚫ The tone of voice we use is responsible for about 35-
40 percent of the message we are sending.
⚫ Tone involves the volume you use, the level and type
of emotion that you communicate and the emphasis
that you place on the words that you choose.
Pitch
⚫ Pitch refers to the rise and fall in human voice. It plays a
crucial role in communication.
⚫ Questions, for example, should end on a higher note.
⚫ Affirmative statements should end in a level or slightly
lower pitch. The ending of statements on a high pitch can
create doubt in your listeners.
⚫ Vary your pitch throughout your presentation to establish
and reinforce your message.
Rhythm
⚫ Rhythm is the pattern of the sounds you produce.
⚫ Stressing and de-stressing syllables and words gives us
rhythm in English.
⚫ Rhythm is the music of English Language –
the ups and downs and the linking of words, which
together, change how we say sentences.
⚫ Use rhythm to carry meaning.
⚫ Slow the pace to emphasize certain ideas.
⚫ Quicken the pace to show excitement or humor.
⚫ Pause to give listeners time to absorb a complex idea.
Pause also when you're about to transition to another
idea.
⚫ Stressing means to emphasize a sound and make
certain syllables and words:
⚫ louder
⚫ longer
⚫ higher in pitch
⚫ Every word in English has at least one syllable with a
primary stress or emphasis.
⚫ It is not only essential to stress certain syllables and
words, but we must also de-stress other syllables and
words.
Examples:
⚫ English –> [ING glish] (1st syllable is stressed; 2nd
syllable is slightly de-stressed)
Intonation
⚫ Correct intonation and stress are the key to
speaking English fluently with good
pronunciation.
⚫ The entire variation of pitch while speaking is called
intonation.
⚫ Words that are stressed are key to understanding
and using the correct intonation brings out the
meaning.
⚫ English spends more time on specific stressed words
while quickly gliding over the other, less important,
words.
⚫ A sentence can be spoken differently, depending on the
speaker's intention.
⚫ Look at the following sentences. Speak them out loud
and especially stress the word that is in bold writing.
⚫ I did not read anything about the disaster.
⚫ I did not read anything about the disaster.
⚫ I did not read anything about the disaster.
⚫ I did not read anything about the disaster.
⚫ I did not read anything about the disaster.
⚫ I did not read anything about the disaster.
⚫ Effective writing is not a gift that you’re born with, rather it
is a skill that you cultivate. Clear writing means clear
thinking.
⚫ Think before you write: Before you put pen to paper or
hands to keyboard, consider what you want to say.
⚫ Ask yourself: What should my audience know or think
after reading this email, proposal, or report?
 Be direct
⚫ Make your point right up front.
⚫ By concisely presenting your main idea first, you
save your reader time and sharpen your argument
before diving into the bulk of your writing.
⚫ If your opener is no good, then the whole piece
of writing will be no good.
⚫ Business writing is full of industry-specific
buzzwords and acronyms.
⚫ And while these terms are sometimes unavoidable
and can occasionally be helpful as shorthand, they
often indicate lazy or cluttered thinking.
⚫ You should also avoid using grandiose words.
⚫ Writers often mistakenly believe in using a big word
when a simple one will do.
⚫ Put yourself in your reader’s shoes.
⚫ Is your point clear and well structured?
⚫ Are the sentences straightforward and
concise?
⚫ Don’t be afraid to ask a colleague or friend to edit your
work.
⚫ Welcome their feedback; don’t resent it.
⚫ Writing is a skill, and skills improve with practice.
⚫ Read well-written material every day, and be attentive
to word choice, sentence structure, and flow.
⚫ Most importantly, build time into your schedule
for editing and revising.
⚫ Coherence in writing is the "logical glue" that allows
readers to move easily and clearly from one idea to
the next.
⚫ Coherence in writing is much more difficult to sustain
than coherent speech because writers have no
nonverbal clues to inform them if their message is clear
or not.