Solution Manual For Managerial Communication Strategies and Applications 8e Jennifer R. Veltsos, Geraldine E. Hynes Chapter 1 -15 Chapter 1 : Communicating in Contemporary Organizations Teaching Notes Chapter 1 reviews the evolution of managerial communication from recordkeeping to participatory employee engagement. There are two major ideas in this chapter that should be emphasized in class lectures: 1. Over the past 120 years, the importance of managerial communication has increased as the role of the manager has evolved. Contemporary managers are much more likely to be successful if they have strong communicati on competencies. This concept can be explained by reviewing the history of the managerial role in the 20th century and early 21st century and by identifying the communication behaviors that managers used in each era. Ask students to describe the communicat ion patterns they have observed among their current managers and supervisors. Compare and contrast these with earlier patterns. 2. The contingency model of communication means that managers adapt to the conditions in front of them rather than try to use a “o ne size fits all” approach . Chapter 1 describes some of the external factors that affect their decisions: diversity , the drive for improved product and service quality , and e thics . Trends imply that communication will become more frequent, intense, and i ntercultural as it grows in importance. The strategic model will be introduced in Chapter 2 to guide students as they respond to situations. Learning Objectives Describe the evolution of managerial communication from ancient times to today. Define the contingency approach to managerial communication. Explain how diversity affects approaches to communication within organizations. Discuss the role of effective communication in developing a culture of quality and ethics in the workplace. Chapter Overview Managerial communication has evolved from recordkeeping in ancient times to an autocratic, one-way practice in the industrial revolution to a modern participatory approach that empowers employees to contribute to decisions and solutions. Managers must consi der the purpose of their messages and the audiences with whom they are communicating to select a strategy that will achieve their goals. Several contemporary dynamics create external factors that affect the way managers communicat e with their staff, customers, and stakeholders . The workplace is becoming more divers e as people from different culture s and ethnicit ies, gender s, sexual orientation and gender identity, disabilities, age s, and levels of education work together . Globalization and lower barri ers to entry have increased competition, making product and service quality more important than ever. T ime cycles are reduced and room for error is shrinking . Ethics is another contemporary dynamic that must be considered. In spite of these challenges, management ethics should guide difficult communication decisions . Organizations can assist employees with training programs and codes of ethics . Class Exercise --Communication Channels The following exercise will help students u nderstand the broad range of communication channels available for the transmission of messages in contemporary businesses and organizations. Divide them into small groups and ask them to brainstorm examples of channels to write in each of the cells in the following matrix. To get them thinking, examples are provided in several cells. Internal External Formal --Oral Meetings Formal --Written Corporate a nnual reports Informal --Oral Social event such as inviting a client to a professional baseball game Informal --Written Email Questions for Class Discussion 1. Discuss the statement, “Most attempts to improve management communication are really attempts to improve manipulation of employees.” Since the goals of improving management communication and employee manipulation both result in an improvement in the efficiency and effectiveness of the employee, it could be said that there is little difference between the two. However, open and honest communication between management and subordinates achieves these results without t he use of manipulation, which can produce poor relations and resentment. 2. Because you are reading this book, you are probably taking a course at a university. Does the university use the gangplank theory to any extent? Explain. The majority of U.S. univer sities will use the gangplank theory to a significant degree. It would be extremely difficult to channel all communications to the university‘s president and then back down to various employees. There would not be enough hours in the day for a university p resident to handle the flow of such numerous communications. For this reason, subordinates must have the freedom to communicate within their departments and between the diverse schools in the university system. 3. How does the behavioral approach differ from the contingency approach to management communication? The contingency approach matches different communication strategies with different situations. It recognizes that one communication method may be effective in one situation and ineffective in another. Thus , it is a pragmatic approach. The behavioral approach draws from several psychological theories to explain managerial behavior. Unfortunately, the theoretical explanations are extremely complex, often confusing and difficult to learn, making the conti ngency method the better choice of the two in the majority of business problem situations. 4. Provide an example in which you have seen a manager attempt to empower employees. Any situation in which management delegates some of its authority to subordinates would qualify as an example. For example, if a company manager gives their administrative assistant the power and knowledge to schedule appointments for that manager, or if all of the information known by the company CEO is shared with their subordinates, then empowerment has taken place . Example s of companies that support a culture of employee engage ment and empower ment are Google, Disney, Tesla, and Virgin . 5. This textbook states that it is not possible to review all contingencies. Elaborate on this statement. Since effective communication is dependent upon each situation that may arise, and since each situation may require a different strategy, it would be impossible for anyone to give specific directions on how to handle any problem that might occu r. 6. In which ways do you believe that women communicate differently than men in the workplace ? Research on gender communication shows that women have a tendency to demonstrate more social support and sympathy, to be concerned about relationships and group dynamics, to provide different types of feedback than men normally do, to use different persuasive and writing styles, and to use space and body language differently. Women's language is frequently less powerful than men ‘s—women ‘s sentences are longer, wi th qualifiers, modifiers, and requests for agreement added. 7. Why do you think that men and women may have difficulty communicating with each other? In recent years, many social changes have taken place that have put women on a more equal footing with men. In business, women constitute almost half of the workforce but hold far fewer management positions than do men. The reasons and explanations for this disparity vary widely. Research reveals one possible explanation: Male and female communication behaviors continue to be different. 8. Give a specific example in which a demand for greater quality also increases the demand for more efficient communication. Companies espousing the principles of total quality manage ment, continuous process improvement , and similar business philosophies invariably emphasize the importance of well-developed formal and informal, internal and external communication channels. Teamwork and cooperation are impossible without open communication. 9. Describe a workplace situation that may be stressful for you and how this may alter your communication style. Answers will vary. This is an excellent question for class discussion as it demonstrates that different stimuli will cause stress in different people. What may cause a breakdown in the communication abilities of one individual may have no effect on another. Awareness of the potential stress levels of those we are communicating with is an important ingredient in effective communication.
