ASSIGNMENT: Set - 1

NAME: Chaitali A. Nayak

ROLL NO.: 520920472

SEMESTER: FIRST (I)

SUBJECT NAME: Business Communication

SUBJECT CODE: MB0023

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Q.1 Describe any situation in your experience where the communication
was a failure. Analyze the barrier(s) which stood in the way of
successful communication. Explain how you would overcome the
barrier(s).

Answer: As an Electrical Engineer, I was a sender for a communication and

intended to be received by my Designers.

I have sent the following communication to my Designers through a notice and

displayed on the notice board:
“Coming Second Saturday to complete our targets for the month a review meeting is
arranged and all should attend. If any Designer is not able to attend should find out
the contents of the meeting from their peers without fail”.

But my communication went wrong and out of 10 Designers, only three Designers
have attended at 4.00 PM who checked-in with me the time of the meeting.

Following were the barriers of communication which stood in the way of my

communication:

• The “Channel” I have chosen did not ensure the receipt of the communication
by “Receivers”
• The communication lacked the “Chronological context” The second Saturday
being a non working day.
• The communication has created a “Psychological noise” by not mentioning
correct time of the meeting and confusion has been created.
• The “social context” also is one of the cause for the failure of the
communication as I have not taken all my executives into confident by giving
any advance information or an intention of the meeting earlier.

The receiver does not always attach the same meaning to a message as the sender.
When the message is wrongly interpreted, the communication is a failure. This may
be due to several reasons, which we will examine later in this unit.

Communication fails when the message received is not identical to the message that
is sent. Several factors could interfere with the exchange of messages. “Noise”
refers to all these factors that disrupt the communication and could be classified
under the following types:

Physical Noise – Distracting sounds, poor acoustics, or just information overload

could interfere with the listening process.

Physiological Noise – Hearing or other disabilities, fatigue, or physical illness could

come in the way of both speaking and listening.

Psychological Noise – Sometimes emotions within the sender or receiver such as

preoccupations, hostility, fear or lack of interest could interfere with the speaking or
listening process.

Context – This refers to the setting in which the communication takes place
and could sometimes determine the success or failure of the communication.
Context could be classified as follows-
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Physical context refers to the physical surroundings - for example a work or
social environment, in which the communication takes place. Asking your boss for a
promotion might be received differently, depending on whether the communication
takes place in your office, your boss’s office, at a company party or over lunch at a
restaurant.

Social context refers to the relationship between the sender and the
receiver. Taking the same example, asking for a promotion is likely to be received
differently, depending on how well you get along with your boss and whether you
are personal friends or not.

Chronological context refers to time related factors that could influence the
communication. For example, is your request made first thing in the morning or at
the fag end of the day? Is it made during or after work hours? Is it made at a time
when the company is going through problems such as a strike in the factory, or
major losses?

Cultural context refers to the similarity of backgrounds between the sender

and the receiver, such as age, language, nationality, religion and gender. These
factors could influence the communication favorably or unfavorably.

Each of the elements discussed above contributes to the success of the

communication. In other words, communication can go wrong if any of the following
elements go wrong -

1. The wrong person sends the message. For example, a junior accountant in a
company writing a letter to a bank, asking for a loan for a project worth
several crores, is not likely to get the bank’s approval.
2. The message is unclear or badly worded. Or there are too many messages,
leading to confusion and information overload.
3. The wrong channel of communication is chosen. Placing an ad for a liquor
product in a religious magazine for example, is not likely to be received
favorably!
4. The message is wrongly interpreted, i.e., the receiver attaches the wrong
meaning to the message.
5. The feedback is not adequate to ensure understanding.
6. Physical, physiological or psychological noise distorts the message.
7. The communication takes place in the wrong physical, social, chronological or
cultural context.

Barriers to Communication:

In the earlier section on the communication process, “noise” was mentioned as one
of the elements of communication. Noise is essentially a barrier to communication
and we distinguished between “physical” noise, “physiological” noise and
“psychological” noise.

There are many other barriers to communication, an understanding and analysis of

which are needed before coming up with ways to eliminate or minimize them. These
barriers may be classified as follows:

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1. Environmental Barriers – This is the same as physical noise, which could be
in the form of distracting sounds, an overcrowded room, poor facilities and
acoustics, all of which may hinder the ability to listen to and understand the
message.

2. Individual Barriers – A major barrier to interpersonal communication is

tendencies to judge, evaluate, approve or disapprove of the views of
another person. This happens particularly in situations where we have strong
feelings about something. In such cases, we tend to block out the communication
and form our own viewpoints.

3. Organizational Barriers – In organizations that are too hierarchical, that is,

where there are multiple “layers”, messages may have to pass through many levels
before they finally reach the receiver. Each level may add to, modify or completely
change the message, so much so that it becomes distorted by the time it reaches
the intended receiver. In other words, there is likely to be loss of meaning and the
message may not reach the receiver in the same way as it was intended by the
sender.

The following example illustrates an organizational barrier to communication. By the

time the message is passed down from the Chief to the lower level Executives, it is
distorted completely, so much so that the original message is interpreted
differently by each level in the organization-

The Chief of the Space Center gets to know about the possibility of seeing Halley’s
Comet and decides that the entire organization should witness this spectacle. He
sends a memo to the Director –

The Director then sends the following memo to various Executive Directors-

The Executive Director sends out memos to the Heads of Departments –

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The Heads of Departments send this message to their Managers-

Finally, each Manager sends the following notice to their Executives -

Another type of organizational barrier is a departmental barrier. This means that

each department in an organization functions in isolation and there is no co-
ordination or communication between them.

4. Channel Barriers – In the earlier section, it was pointed out that communication
can fail due to any of the different elements going wrong. Wrong choice of
channel is one of the main barriers to communication. Using a wrong medium of
advertising, or conveying a message orally when a written letter would be more
appropriate, are examples.

The written channel is more appropriate when the communication is more formal or
for keeping things on record, while emotional messages such as feelings about co-
workers are better conveyed orally.

5. Linguistic and Cultural Barriers – When the sender of the message uses a
language that the receiver does not understand, the communication will not
succeed. Either the sender may be using a different or foreign language, or the
language used may be too highly technical for the receiver to understand.

Linguistic barriers may also occur in cross-cultural advertising and distort the
communication, when translating campaigns or slogans literally from one language
to another.

For example, Pepsi’s slogan “Come Alive with Pepsi”, when translated into Chinese,
read ” Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave!”

Cultural differences refer to differences in values and perceptions, which may

affect the interpretation of the message by the receiver. For example, a joke
about women may be taken in the wrong sense if the receiver belongs to a culture
where women are highly respected.

6. Semantic Barriers – The word “semantics” refers to the meaning of words and
the way in which they are used. For example, different words may have

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different meanings in different cultures. Failure to take this into consideration
could lead to serious blunders.

Example: Saying” The new product launch went like a bomb” in British English
would mean that the new product launch was a success.

On the other hand, saying “The product launch bombed” in American English would
mean that the new product was a disaster.

7. Non-verbal Barriers – This refers to the non-verbal communication that goes

with a particular message. Non-verbal communication includes tone of voice, body
language such as gestures and facial expressions, etc. We will be discussing this in
great length in a later unit. If the tone of voice and body language are
negative, the communication will fail, however positive the spoken and written
message.

For example, if you happen to meet a long lost friend and say “I am delighted to
meet you”, but in a sad tone of voice, the exact opposite message will be conveyed!

Therefore, it is important to avoid giving conflicting signals, through the use of non-
verbal communication.

Overcoming from the Barriers to Communication:

Certain steps can be taken, both at the organizational level, as well as at the
individual level, to effectively deal with the barriers to communication, in order to try
to minimize them, if not eliminate them entirely:

Overcome the Barriers

1. Encourages Feedback – Organizations should try to improve the

communication system by getting feedback from the messages already sent.
Feedback can tell the managers whether the message has reached the
receiver in the intended way or not.
2. Create a Climate of Openness – A climate of trust and openness can go a
long way in removing organizational barriers to communication. All
subordinates or junior employees should be allowed to air their opinions and
differences without fear of being penalized.

1. Use Multiple Channels of Communication – Organizations should

encourage the use of multiple channels of communication, in order to make
sure that messages reach the intended receivers without fail. This means using
a combination of both oral and written channels, as well as formal (official)
and informal (unofficial) channels of communication. The types of channels will
be discussed in detail later, in a separate unit.

Individual Action

1. Active Listening – This means listening to the meaning of the speaker’s

words, rather than listening without hearing, or “passive listening”.
Passive listening is a barrier to communication, whereas real communication

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 takes place when we listen actively, with understanding. Listening is a skill
which can be developed through proper training.
2. Careful wording of messages – Messages should be worded clearly and
without ambiguity, to make sure that the message that is received is the same
as the message that is sent.
3. Selection of Appropriate Channels – Individuals should be competent
enough to choose the right communication channel, depending on the
situation. Channels of communication and the criteria for selection of channels
will be discussed in detail in a later chapter.

Lessons learnt in order to overcome these barriers of communication:

• My communication was unclear by not giving exact time of meeting.

• The media I have used is the placing the notice on the notice board, instead had I
circulated to all the receivers and obtained their signatures by asking their
availability or feedback my communication would not have failed.
• I have chosen a wrong day a holiday though the task was a routine one.
• I could have maintained good relations with my Designers for success of my
communication.

Q.2 Select an article of around 200 words from any business publication.
Analyze the readability of the article using the “Fog Index”. Is the
reading level appropriate for the reader of the publication?

Answer: “Readability formulas” are methods used to find out if documents are
written at the right reading level for their targeted audience. The Fog Index
measures the level of reading difficulty of any document. It assumes that the bigger
the words you use and the more complex your sentences, the more difficult your
document will be to read. The Fog Index level translates into the number of years of
education a reader needs to read the material easily. The “ideal” score is 7 or 8;
anything above 12 is too hard for most people to read. The Fog Index does not
determine directly if the writing is too basic or too advanced for a particular
audience. It does help you decide whether a document is likely to be hard to
understand – and might benefit from editing using “plain English” or “plain
language.”

A third very important rule of business writing is to tailor your writing to your
audience and to make it simple enough for even a layperson to read and
understand.

As pointed out in an earlier, readability is determined by the length of words and

sentences. Robert Gunning developed what is known as the “Fog Index” or a
readability formula to measure the readability of a piece of writing.

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According to this formula, the appropriate reading level in business writing should be
between 8 and 11.

Calculation of the Fog Index involves the following steps –

1. Select a written passage of approximately 100 words.

2. Calculate the average length of a sentence by dividing the total number of
words in the passage by the number of sentences.
3. Find the number of difficult words. A word may be defined as difficult if it
contains three or more syllables ( e.g. “communication”).Determine the
number of difficult words per hundred, by dividing the total number of words
in the passage into the number of difficult words, then by multiplying this
figure by 100.
4. Add the number of difficult words per hundred and the average sentence
length.
5. Multiply the figure obtained in step 4 by 0.4, to calculate the reading grade
level for which the passage was written, or the Fog Index.

Ideally, the Fog Index should be between 8 and 11 for most business writing,
indicating that a reader between the eighth grade and the eleventh grade
should be able to understand it without difficulty.

Using the FOG Index

1. Select a short document or passage and count the number of words (usually
around 100 words). For example:

Article:

The responsive manager tends to succeed by building bonds of respect and trust
with those around him/her. Staff respond positively to responsive managers; they
work more diligently, work to help the manager and the organization succeed, and
will go the extra mile when necessary. That is because responsive managers act
consistent with the principle that their jobs are to help their staff do their jobs. So, a
basic inter-dependence emerges based on behaviors that show concern, respect and
trust.

Responsive managers also influence those above them in the hierarchy. Because
responsive managers have the ability to read and act upon the needs of their
"bosses", they are perceived as helpful and reliable, or in a simple way, very useful.
This allows them to get the "ear" of people above them in the system, and further
helps get things done when needed.

Contrast this with the limited influence of the UN responsive manager. The
unresponsive manager is restricted in influence because those around him/her do
not respect or trust them to look out for their welfare. Influence is more limited to
the use of power coming from the formal position, and fear, a motivational
component that is hard to sustain over time. Unresponsive managers tend to be
perceived as self-interested, or at best uninterested in the needs of those around
them.
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 Number of words : 220

1. Count the number of sentences within the passage.

Number of sentences : 11
2. Count the number of big / difficult words (3 or more syllables). Exclude words
in which “es” or “ed” form the third and final syllable, hyphenated words like
“state-of-the-art”, and compound words like “newspaper.”

Number big or difficult words : 9

3. Calculate the average sentence length by dividing the number of words by the
number of sentences.

Average length of sentence : 220/11

: 20 words
4. Calculate the percentage of big words by dividing the number of big words by the
number of words, and multiplying by 100.

Percentage of big words : (11/220)*100

: 5%
5. Add the average sentence length to the percentage of big words and multiply that
result by 0.4; that’s the Fog Index score.

FOG Index : (20+5) *0.4

: 10

This passage requires 10th class level of reading ability. A 10th class student will
understand this passage without any difficulty.

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Q.3 Imagine that you are the Chairperson of the Board of Studies of the
Department of Management & Commerce of Sikkim Manipal University
Department of Distance Education. You have been asked to call a
meeting of the members of the Board to discuss the launch of new
management programs and new specializations in the existing
management program. What kind of meeting would be required?
Prepare a comprehensive agenda for the participants of the meeting.

Answer:

I require task oriented meetings.

As the name suggests, this type of meeting is a special meeting that is called to
discuss and make arrangements for a specific event like launch of new
management programs.

Comprehensive agenda for the participants of the meeting are as follows:

AGENDA

DATE : November 1st 2009

TO : Names of all meeting participants

FROM : Chaitali A. Nayak

SUBJECT : Planning for the launch of new management programs

TIME : Saturday, November 1st, from 9:00 to 11:30AM

PLACE : Third Floor Conference Room No. 1

BACKGROUND: Planning for the launch of new management programs will take
place on November 7th, as previously scheduled.
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Q.4 Select a corporate ad of your choice from any publication. Analyze the
ad in terms of its specific objectives and type of corporate advertising.
Is it effective? Why or why not?

Advertisement of Tata Consultancy Services

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The above is a corporate advertisement form Tata Consultancy Services.

Specific Objectives:

The main objective of the corporate advertisement is to make the organization

better understood. With this add Tata consultancy services are meeting the objective
that they have presence in the racing car segment. The formula one Ferrari is one of
the most advanced racing cars in the world, packing research in aerodynamics,
style, engine technology, brakes, modeling. It has more in common with a jet plane
than with the performance of high speed car.

Tata consultancy Services worked with Ferrari before, during and in between races
to help their cars go even faster. As one of the world’s fastest growing technology
and business solution providers, TCS ensures that all mechanical and electrical
systems perform at their optimum under levels of extreme stress. Managing
pressure and troubleshooting where every little advantage makes a very huge
difference. And, of course Ferrari to experience certainty.

Type of advertising:

Corporate advertising has not only objectives but has different types of advertising.
It has also become wider in scope, going beyond the traditional image building.

The Ferrari advertisement of TCS comes under the ‘Corporate Umbrella Advertising’.
This type of advertising is aimed at consumers and tries to show the identity of the
company. This highlights the services which they offer to customers. The addition of
customers to this umbrella is added in this type of advertising.

Effectiveness:

This advertisement is very effective especially the automobile segment, where the
customers look for maximum, mileage, good performance of cars with limited
resources.

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Q.5 Write an unsolicited job application letter to a company that you
would like to work for in a specific position. Include a one page profile
about yourself.

Answer:
To,
The HR Manager
Samsung Engineering
A-1, Sector-125
Noida-201301 December 1, 2009

Dear HR Manager,

Sub: Application for the position of Sr. Engineer

I am writing with respect to your advertisement in the Times of India Ascent, dated
November 25, 2009 for the position of Sr. Engineer with specialization in Electrical
Design Engineering.

I believe that my qualifications and experiences will match the need of the above
position. I have completed my BE from Gujarat, with specialization in Electrical
Engineering. In addition, I have worked on a full time basis with Bechtel, Gurgaon
for around three years.

I am also enclosing my resume and experience certificates, along with executive

summary of my project report, for your review. I request you to give me the
opportunity of an interview with you at your earliest convenience.

Thanking You,

Chaitali A. Nayak

Enclosures:

Detailed Resume- 1 Copy

Experience Certificates-1 Copy

Project Report- 1 Copy

Degree Certificates-1 Copy

Chaitali A. Nayak
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36, Chakkarpur

Near Saraswti Vihar

Gurgaon 560 046

Mobile – 9899961250

Email – [email protected]

OBJECTIVE: A middle to senior level position in the area of Design, in an EPC

Company.

EDUCATION: M.B.A. Project Management, the University of Sikkim Manipal, June

2011.

B.E., Electrical Engineering, MANIT College, Bhopal, May 2004.

EXPERIENCE
Sr. Engineer, Bechtel, Gurgaon, October 2007 – present.

Independently handle the EPC Projects of prestigious Oil & Gas Sector Clients, such
as Reliance. Supervise a team of executives.

Engineer, Chemitech, Vadodara, June 2004 - September 2007.

Assisted EPC electrical Design in Refinery Projects.

Went through all-round training in the electrical departments of an EPC companies.

ACTIVITIES: Member, ISTE, New Delhi, 2006 - present

& INTERESTS Member, NEMA Association, Bangalore, 2006 – present

Consulting, Engineering magazine, Bangalore, 2005 - present

REFERENCES Available on request

Q.6 The Power of Nonverbal Communication

a. How could the engineer, the foundry workers and Mr. Vishwanath be
more effective, both verbally and nonverbally?

Verbal communication provides the opportunity for personnel contact and two away
flow of information. Nonverbal communication on the other hand is the
communication without words. It refers to any way of conveying meanings without
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the use of verbal language. This is generally unintentional.
The engineer, the workers and Mr. Viswanath can be more effective both verbally
and nonverbally.

Even though large part of communication occupied by verbal communication; the

nonverbal is having a great power.

Engineer:

The engineer has recently graduated from engineering college, is with full of
enthusiasm and interest to start his career as an assistant to Mr. Viswanath. The
foundry was family owned and it is located in a small town in Tamilnadu. Instead of
introducing himself to the foundry workers after few days he joins, he would have
done it on the day of the joining itself. He has been moving in the foundry and
observing the workers activities without introducing himself. He could have wished
them daily or whenever they happen to see him or he happened to see them.

Nonverbally he might be showing some signs of pride as he is the only person with
technical qualification in the foundry. He might have spent most of his time with Mr.
Viswanath and started to move closely with him. This might have been taken
wrongly by the foundry workers as he is occupying their space and inviting more
trust from Mr. Viswanth than the foundry workers.

Foundry Workers:

The foundry was family owned one. The workers were closely knit with them and
were mostly older men. This means that they have formed an internal circle among
them and they were having good work experience and are working in the foundry for
many years. The sudden entry of a qualified engineer into the foundry and he was
observing their work and advises by him was not getting acceptance from the
workers as the behaviour of the engineer was entirely different form the workers.
They were not able to accept anyone in their circle of influence. They also believe
that technical education adds no values to the business. Instead of policing and
playing tricks with the engineer like taking and laughing behind him etc., they would
have got themselves introduced to the engineer by showing seniority and accept the
engineer into the organization. This would have helped him, gain more knowledge
from their experience and share his technical knowledge with them.

Mr. Viswanath:

He was the president and General Manager of the foundry. The business was a
family owned and is in a small town in Tamilnadu. Most probably he would have
taken workers form the town and trained them in the work. They might have close
relationship with him. He was realized that to cope up with the technical snags in the
foundry, better to hire a technically qualified person.

As he is having a close relationship with workers, he would have consulted them and
when the engineer joins the organization, he could have organized a small gathering
and introduced workers t the engineer and the engineer to the workers, by
explaining his roles clearly and seeking cooperation from workers.
He was warned the engineer verbally about the situation he may face, but not given

15
any advice on how to cope up with it.

b. What do you suggest that the engineer should do, after the hosing
incident?

After facing all sort of problems as result for ineffective verbal and nonverbal
communication like,

- Talking behind him low voices and laughing

- Pointing of water jet behind him and slipping him down on the floor.

The engineer can go and speak to the worker in a cordial manner and explain his
intentions that neither he is not against them nor he dislikes their job. But want to
be friendly with them and want to learn from them as they are more experienced
than him. Instead coming to work and doing his job, he can interact with them
whenever h has time and mingle with them so that they will accept him as a
member of their team.
As the foundry is having some technical problems, he could understand the
problems form them and based on his technical knowledge advice them on how to
do the work in a better way by overcoming the snags.

Most importantly engineer can exchange a sweet smile [not laughing] with the team
on the foundry, as the nonverbal communication is more powerful than the verbal
communication.

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