Business Communication A Problem-Solving
Approach ,2024 By 1-1 Lentz (Instructor Manual All
Chapters, 100% Original Verified, A+ Grade)
Chapter 1: Solving Communication Problems in the Workplace
Part I: Chapter-by-Chapter Lecture Notes & Exercises
Chapter 1: Solving Communication Problems in the Workplace
Teaching Suggestions
Much of the information you will cover at the beginning of the semester is routine—introduction of
yourself, office hours, course requirements, operating policies, and other business. In addition, you will
probably want to introduce the subject matter of the course. Chapter 1 contains such an introduction,
so you may want to start by summarizing its contents and adding illustrations from your knowledge and
experience. Your overall goals should be to convince the students that workplace communication is
important in business and to their personal advancement in business; to alert them to current
challenges facing business communicators; to convey basic facts about the business-communication
environment; and to bring out that business communication, as a problem-solving activity, requires
analysis, creativity, and judgment (there are no magic formulas).
If you want to add some interest to this first meeting, try assigning a message to be written in class (but
not for a grade). Make the problem a difficult one—a refusal or other bad-news situation requiring
tactful handling. Without instructions on such problems, most of the students will write messages that
are flawed. Save these messages until you cover this problem in the course and then give the messages
back. When the students see their early writing specimens and compare them with their current work,
they’ll see the progress they have made. Also, the exercise is good for a few laughs, especially if you
have some students read their original messages aloud to the class.
Another idea is to present a sample message (perhaps one from a real business) and, going over each
part in detail, discuss the many decisions that went into the writing of the message. For example, the
writer had to decide first even whether or not to write; then the writer needed to decide what genre (or
form) of message this would be, how formal to make it, how to address the reader, what to say, how to
organize the contents, where to put the paragraph breaks, which wording would be best in each place,
and so on. This exercise reinforces the key point that good business communication is good decision
making—as well as the point that preparing any message of importance will require time, care, and
revision.
Still another possibility is the “message makeover” exercise. Present a poorly written message from a
real organization, with identifying details removed. A negative message is often the most relatable and
entertaining to students. (One option is a memo announcing layoffs.) This also gives you the opportunity
to discuss the importance of choosing the correct medium for the message. Ask students what problems
they find with the tone, writing style, and information included and how they would improve these.
Then present a well-written revision, explaining that this is the kind of writing they’ll learn how to do in
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Chapter 1: Solving Communication Problems in the Workplace
this course. This exercise helps students become aware of how much they already know about
identifying good versus bad writing, and also how much they stand to learn from the course.
Connect provides instructors with a variety of ways to customize courses, create assignments,
determine grading policies, and receive student work. One of the tools Connect offers is the ability to
select and add interactive assignments to your course. Explanations of these assignments and how they
support the learning objectives have been integrated into the relevant topics in this instructor’s manual.
The following McGraw-Hill tools are also available to support your business communication instruction:
NEW SmartBook 2.0 personalizes learning to individual student needs, continually adapting to pinpoint
knowledge gaps and focus learning on topics that need the most attention. With SmartBook 2.0,
learning is more productive and takes the guess work out of what to study in a no-fail environment. The
result, students are better prepared for class and coursework. For instructors, SmartBook 2.0 tracks
student progress and provides insights that guide teaching strategies and advanced instruction focused
on a more dynamic class experience.
NEW Video Capture powered by GoReact embedded in Connect makes it simple for students to record
presentations and practice their oral communication skills essential in the business world. GoReact
streamlines instructors’ ability to provide personalized skill coaching anywhere students should
demonstrate their learning. GoReact allows instructors to easily provide feedback, assign grades, and
also share recordings with other students in cases where they evaluate their peers.
NEW Writing Assignment Plus tool delivers a learning experience that improves students’ written
communication skills and conceptual understanding with every assignment. Assign, monitor, and
provide feedback on writing more efficiently and grade assignments within McGraw-Hill Connect®.
Writing Assignment Plus gives you time-saving tools with a just-in-time basic writing and originality
checker.
Learning Objectives
LO1-1 Explain the importance of skillful communication to you and to your employer.
LO1-2 Explain the ways in which communication in the workplace is a form of problem solving.
LO1-3 Describe the communication skills that are needed in today’s workplace.
LO1-4 Define professionalism and its importance to communication in the workplace.
LO1-5 Describe the three main categories of business communication.
LO1-6 Define organizational structure and describe its influence on the organization's communication.
LO1-7 Define organizational culture and describe the main factors that influence an organization's
culture.
LO1-8 Describe the contexts for each act of communication in the workplace.
LO1-9 Describe the steps of a problem-solving approach to business communication.
Key Terms
problem solving
reactive problem solving
proactive problem solving
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Chapter 1: Solving Communication Problems in the Workplace
ill-defined problems
well-defined problems
heuristics
verbal literacy
visual literacy
interpersonal skills
big data
artificial intelligence (AI)
computational thinking
interpretive skills
digital media
social intelligence
cross-cultural competency
corporate social responsibility (CSR)
brand activism
ESG
professionalism
business etiquette
internal-operational communication
external-operational communication
personal communication
grapevine
organizational structure
genres
organizational culture
larger communication context
communicators’ relationship
filters
organizational contexts
professional contexts
personal contexts
intertextual context
recursive process
Text Summary & Lecture Outline
Slides 1-1, 1-2, 1-3
This chapter puts workplace communication in context. It explains the importance of business
communication skills, describes large and small factors that affect workplace communication, identifies
the main types of communication, and describes the problem-solving approach that is essential to
effective communication in organizations.
Problem-Solving Challenge
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Chapter 1: Solving Communication Problems in the Workplace
Students should consider the problem presented— being asked as a new hire to join a task force to find
the best internal communication solution for an environmental services firm to keep all employees
engaged and informed. Let students brainstorm a list of potential answers to the question: What will
you need to know about workplace communicating in business to do a good job on this team? Have
them compare these answers with a list they create after they have worked through this chapter. What
did they learn?
The Role of Communication in the Workplace
Slides 1-4, 1-5
Communication is important to you and to the organization you will work for. For you, good
communication skills can lead to advancement.
Your performance will be judged largely by your ability to communicate. The higher you advance, the
greater your need for communication skills will be.
For the organization for which you will work, communicating is important because it is a major part of
the work of the business. Communication is essential for organized activity. Much of the work done
involves the processing of information.
Unfortunately, many businesspeople do not communicate well. You might share highly publicized
communication blunders that companies have made, or ask students to share stories they may have
about how good or poor communication in a company had a significant result, either for a particular
communicator or for a company in general.
Multiple surveys have found that communication skills are highly prized in job applicants (see the
Communication Matters box, “Take It from Today’s Executives: What You Can Do Is Even More
Important Than What You Know” for more information), along with such related traits as an ability to
work in a team, use critical thinking skills, analyze and interpret data, and apply what they know to
workplace problems in a real-world setting. You can also ask the class in what ways they think the
coronavirus pandemic and the workplace changes it led to may have changed what employers now seek
in a job candidate.
Ask students: Look at the “Preparedness Gap” column in the Communication Matters feature. Ask
students to note where today’s job applicants have been rated as having the largest and smallest gaps
by employers. Then ask them to reflect on what might have led to these gaps and how they might
address the main areas of weakness.
(Note: For online courses, you can create assignments via Connect in which students can respond to
questions posed during class.)
Slides 1-6, 1-7, 1-8
Business Communication as Problem Solving
Almost no workplace problem can be solved without communication. But communication itself—
figuring out what to say or write, and how—is a form of problem solving. This means that, for most
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