The art of communication is an important part of our everyday living . When the cock crows, we are reminded of a new morning and a new day. When we hear thunder bolts and lightning, we expect rains to fall from the skies and therefore we carry our umbrellas when going to town. These acts of nature display communication to us clearly. We react to these information based on what we see and hear, and that is the foundation of communication.
In businesses and organisations, communication is very essential. Product presentation to customer service requires good communicators to make it successful. Michael Faraday, inventor of modern electricity, was also an effective communicator. According to Nancy Forbes and Basil Mahon’s book, Faraday, Maxwell and the Electromagnetic Field, Faraday’s scientific genius was not only in producing experimental results that eluded everyone but explaining them too. The ability to explain his scientific findings and results to his audience made him one of the outstanding inventors.
Most corporate entities have directed efforts to make communication in their business setting worthwhile. But more efforts have to be made to make them extraordinary in order to drive sales, profits and increase productivity.
Additionally, effective organisational communication produce a strong team since all workers are able to voice out their views and opinions. It provides employees with knowledge, structure and a positive work environment . Open communication channels give employees the opportunity to bring on board creative ideas and innovations that has the ability to propel the business forward. According to the Communication Theorist, Harold Lasswell, openness in communication makes everyone feel involved. Let us look at the case of Google on business communication. Larry Page, Co-founder of Google posted results from pages of Google’s AdWords search engine page in bold letters, “THESE ADS SUCK” in their kitchen. This act by Larry Page may seem embarrassing to many people but Page’s intention was to expect someone else to solve the problem and not only the AdWords team. He created a culture where open communication gave the opportunity to people to solve problems without always looking up to those who the work have been assigned to. This also gives the opportunity to the employees to also remove barriers that appear in the business operations.
Additionally, communication plays a major role in dealing with employer-employee relations. Bad communication practices is the root cause of problems within most organisations. If appropriate information is not given out to the employees, information through grapevine becomes common and may have damaging results for the company. In order to avoid such problems, it is the duty of management, in fact, everybody, to supply all the relevant information through appropriate media at the right time. A great deal of communication systems and designs have to be put in place in order to facilitate efficient communication in the organisation.
When communication channels and processes are laid out and made known to all employees, it encourages performance and job satisfaction; employees understand their jobs better and feel more involved in them. It is through communication that an executive ultimately gets work done by others. It is the means by which change is effected and goals are achieved. In fact, one major executive function is to develop and maintain a system of effective communication. Confucius quoted, “If a language is not correct, then what is said is not what is meant. If what is said is not what is meant, then what ought to be done remains undone. “This means effective communication increases productivity.
Furthermore, effective communication outside the confines of an organisation cannot be downplayed. The ability of an organisation to design efficient communication strategy to cater for prospective clients or customers can lead to a boost in sales. Some customers may be oblivious to the business, services and other vital information that a company has to offer. Therefore, sending the right information to customers and making sure that information is properly decoded can ensure a strong and lasting customer relationship. An organisation must clearly define their goals and expectations, choose medium carefully and keep everyone involved in delivering an effective communication system.
Just like the way nature communicates to us in various ways which makes us do what we do, so is communication necessary to achieve organisational success.
By: By Charles Mensah
