Business Communication 2 - Activity

Business Communication 2 - Activity

This Activity involves some role-play and also a consideration of what might constitute an effective means of communication for a variety of different business scenarios. As is often the case with such issues, there are not any right or wrong answers, only degrees of appropriateness or inappropriateness.

What you must do is to consider the basic principles of effective communication and try to apply these to the situation you are faced with.

Images: Had enough? All too much? Stressed out? Relaxed and enjoying a break? Disgusted? Pity? The messages we send out with our bodies as well as in traditional types of medium can make a difference how that message is received and interpreted. Copyright: Margarett Rutkaliska, stock.xchng and Glenn Jenkinson, stock.xchng

Activity 1:

This first Activity involves you in transposing a piece of information. A supplier has sent you a document and you want to communicate its main points to a section of your staff. The staff concerned are those working directly with the new machinery that is being discussed in the document. This new equipment is an integral part of a drive to improve efficiency so its successful implementation is seen as being important.

Your task is to summarise the main points in the following document in as few a words as possible. It is a document sent by Supplier X to Company B regarding the delivery of the new equipment ordered by Company B.

This machine is a highly specialised precision built piece and as such needs to be handled with care. The Company (hereafer referred to as the 'Supplier') will not be liable for any damage caused by incorrect usage or failure to follow the guidelines contained in the manual and online help facility provided by the purchaser (hereafter referred to as the 'Buyer').

The machine must be installed by fully qualified IS0 9000 accredited engineers according to the specifications laid down in the contract of purchase. Notwithstanding the liability of the Supplier for any defects in the manufacture of the equipment prior to delivery, the Buyer must ensure familiarity with the conditions of installation and operation at all times.

Installation should be carried out under ambient temperatures - extremes of temperature should be avoided. The equipment must be stored in the eventual location for a period not less than 36 hours prior to unpackaging to allow for the dispersal of any condensation that could affect internal components. Once this has been completed the packaging must be removed in strict order as detailed in the aforementioned manual. The power supply is designed for use in UK and European countries utilising 240v AC supplies. Any variations to such power supplies must be corrected by the use of suitable transformers at the expense of the Buyer. No warranty can be offered for incorrect power supplies and the subsequent damage this could cause.

The unit must be fully earthed and wired in acordance with the regulations laid down by the regulatory bodies dealing with health and safety in the workplace in the relevant country of use as well as any regulations apertaining to member states of the European Union.

The unit needs to be powered up on completing the installation and run for a period no less than 48 hours but no more than 72 hours, before loading appropriate raw materials onto the machine. Introduction of the raw materials must only be carried out following certification of the working order of the machine by the appropriate supervisor who should register the successful trial run with the Supplier.

Periodically, the machine must be shut down and fully cleaned. The period of continued use must not exceed 27 days in any one calendar month but can be less as dictated by the usage of the machine. Maintenance must not be carried out by any site employee from the Buyer; such maintenance will invalidate any warranty on the machine.

Changes to the operational features can be made through amending the software settings. Any person so doing must be fully conversant with M (Mumps) language and the characteristics of distributed cache protocol and the relational capabilities of the language with SQL.

We hope that you enjoy using this machine and that it adds to the efficiency and productivity of the business.

Activity 2:

Below is a list of different business situations that might involve different methods of communication. Choose an appropriate medium and method of communication as well as who might need to be part of the communication and explain the possible problems that might arise in ensuring the communication is delivered successfully.

·  Notification of the intention to increase bonus payments for all full time staff

·  Plans to consider relocation of a section of the business to India

·  Amendments to holiday entitlement for all full time and part time staff

·  Notification about a visit to the business by a minister from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) on a fact-finding mission about small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs)

·  An announcement of the news that the accounts manager is expecting her first child in 7 months time

·  Rumours have been circulating that a member of the admin staff has been seen in a gay club in the town

·  Plans are being discussed to introduce a new appraisal system for all staff within the next 18 months

·  The Technical Support Unit have recommended that all computers move to a Unix platform from the current Windows platform

·  A minute's silence at the firm is to be held in memory of the victims of a natural disaster

·  A meeting is being held to celebrate the retirement of a member of the firm who has been with the company for 30 years.

·  5 members of a team of 15 people in the distribution section of a business have to be made redundant

·  The firm has received a takeover approach from a rival and it looks like the shareholders will accept the bid

·  Several customers are threatening to report the firm to Trading Standards officers after they reported health problems after eating food produced by the firm

Activity 3:

Look at the conversation below - what do you think are the elements of the communication that is going on in the conversation? What can you conclude about the aims and objectives of the two parties in the conversation? Try to look for the subtle as well as the obvious communication that may be going on in this extract.

·  Helen Rofe is the team leader for a sales section dealing with the north west of England. 18 months ago, she returned from maternity leave and has since had some gaps in her attendance following a long-term illness of her daughter.

·  Her section leader, Norman Trubshaw, has asked to see her about the disappointing sales figures the team have achieved in the last quarter - the first time the team has missed its targets in 5 years.

NT: Ah, Helen, come on in, sit down my dear.
HR: What do you want to see me about Mr Trubshaw?
NT: Just a quick chat about the last quarter sales targets.
HR: Really, what's the problem with them? I haven't had chance to study them yet as they were only released to the Section Heads yesterday.
NT: Well, I am afraid they don't make good reading: targets were missed by 20% without any apparent external reasons. I wanted to know what your thoughts on the reasoning might be?
HR: It has been a difficult period - there seems to be a reaction to the interest rate rises and spending seems to have dropped in general.
NT: None of the other regions seem to have suffered like that; are you suggesting that the north west is somehow different to everywhere else?
HR: No, not at all I am just trying to offer a possible answer to your question, as I haven't had any time to investigate this in any detail.
NT: Ah - there, my dear, might lie the problem: time. Things have not been easy since you returned, have they?
HR: No.
NT: Could that explain why these figures are so poor?
HR: I don't think so - the team have worked as hard as they ever do.
NT: Hmm, tell me Helen, how does your husband view you coming back to work?
HR: I am not sure that question has any relevance to the targets, Mr Trubshaw. What are you getting at?
NT: Nothing at all my dear, just trying to understand the situation you find yourself in. My wife has always been a housewife, you see, and I don't know how you manage to do everything.
HR: I manage fine, thank you. What I will do, Mr Trubshaw, is to get hold of the figures if you will give me the appropriate links to the data and I will get back to you by the end of this week - no, sorry, can we make that the start of next week, as I have an appointment at the hospital for a couple of hours with Charlotte on Friday?
NT: Well, OK but make sure it is ready for then, Helen. I don't want this situation to get any further out of hand.