Essentials of Communication

Meaning & Definition Communication

-Term ‘communication’ derived from the Latin word Communis which means to share, I. e. sharing of ideas, concept, feelings and emotions.

 - Literally communication means to inform, to tell, to show, or to spread information.

The term business communication is used for all messages that we send and receive for official purposes like running a business, managing an organization, conducting the formal affairs of a voluntary organization and so on. Business communication is marked by formality as against personal and social communication.

Various Definitions:

George vardman – “purposive interchange, resulting in workable understanding and agreement between the sender and receiver of a message”.

Robert Anderson – “communication is interchange of thoughts, opinions, or information, by speech, writing, or signs”.

Allen Louis – “communication is the sum of the entire things one person does when he wants to create understanding in the mind of another; it involves a systematic and continuous process of telling, listening, and understanding”.

Keith Davis – “The transfer of information and understanding from one person to another. It is a way of reaching others with facts, ideas, thoughts and values. It is a bridge of meanings among people so that they can share what they feel and know. By using the bridge, a person can cross safely the river of misunderstanding that sometimes separate people”.

Koontz and O’Donnell – “The transfer of information from one person to another whether or not it elicit confidence”.

George Terry – “communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or emotions by two or more persons”.

The American Management Association – “communication is any behaviour that results in an exchange of meaning”.

D. E. McFarland – “communication may be broadly defined as the process of interaction among human beings. More specifically it is the process by which meanings are perceived and understandings are reached among human beings”.

Peter Little – “communication is a process by which information is passed between individuals and/organizations by means of previously agreed symbols”.

Process of Communication

                As communication is two way process there is an exchange of ideas. It includes five key components.

1.       Sender/encoder/speaker

2.       Message

3.       Medium/Channels

4.       Receiver/decoder/Listener

5.       Feedback

Let’s see it briefly,

1. The sender has an idea - The intent of this phase is to start the process at a time when a sender intentionally decides to send a message to someone else. So, the sender has an idea.

2. The Sender encodes the idea - When encoding one’s idea, one has to pick the code that will fit the message and that will allow the receiver to understand. Humans use a multitude of symbols to represent their ideas. Some symbols are linguistic (verbal or written) code developed into complex languages. Languages are many: the Morse code, the Braille language, the American Sign Language, and all the spoken and dead languages of the world. Other symbols are also in use to communicate: mathematical formulas, paintings, pictographs, hieroglyphs, traffic signals, zip codes, baseball gestures signaling instructions from managers to players.

3. The sender transmits the message - In order for the sender to transmit the encoded message, the sender has to choose a channel, a medium through which to send the message. Senders can send information verbally or nonverbally. In nonverbal communication, messages are sent through gestures, tone of voice, use of space, etc. In verbal communication, messages are sent through speeches or through documents.

-    A good medium is one that (1) can convey a message using more than one type of clue (visual and verbal and vocal), (2) can facilitate feedback, and (3) can establish personal focus. The richest medium is a face-to-face conversation

4. The receiver gets the message

5. The receiver decodes the message: The receiver always decodes the message using his or her knowledge of the code used to encode the message.

6. The receiver send feedback to the sender - Using the same phases as the sender, the receiver send a message back to the sender providing information on his or her level of comprehension of the message.

7Cs of Effective Communication

In any business environment, adherence to 7Cs helps the sender in transmitting the message with ease and accuracy. The qualities, which are essential for a good communication, are collectively called the Cs of communication because most of them begin with letter C. The powerful 7Cs of communication govern the composition of all messages, whether spoken or written. We cannot escape their influence. If we ignore them, we are trapped by the inability to encode and process our message composition. Message to be turn out either harsh or incomplete or incorrect.                        

    Credibility: This implies that the sender of the message gives importance to the receiver and composes the message keeping in mind various factors like price, delivery date, specifications and other benefits from the receiver’s side. If the sender can establish his credibility, the receiver has no problem in accepting his statement. It is a long-drawn process in which the receiver through constant interaction with the sender understands his credible nature and is willing to accept his statement as being truthful and honest.

     Courtesy: Once the credibility of the sender has been established, attempts should be made at being courteous in expression. As the word suggest, it expects the speaker/writer to be aware of the listener’s/reader’s feeling. In business communication, we not only pass on information but we also share and try to create harmonious understanding for business to grow and develop and retain goodwill. Courtesy expressing sincere and genuine expression that stems out of respect and care for others. In the business world, almost everything starts with and ends in courtesy.

Ex. “Please sign here” said the counter-girl quite surely (being impolite)

      “Sir/Madam, would you please sign here?” (being polite)

      “Why you ask me to ring you up when you are not free to receive my calls”  

                                                                                                                   (anger/rudeness)

      “I don’t mind ringing you up if you tell me when I can do so?” (being courteous)  

Clarity: Absolute clarity of ideas adds much to the meaning of the message. The first stage is clarity in the mind of the sender. The next stage is the easier transmission of the message in a manner which makes it simple for the receiver to comprehend. The message of the letter must be clear at the first reading. Clarity written messages avoid misunderstanding and save time. Absolute clarity of ideas adds much to the meaning of the message. As far as possible, simple language and easy sentence constructions, which are not difficult for the receiver to grasp, should be used. Clarity depends on four factors: short and simple sentences; proper punctuation; giving definite and concrete details; and logical sequence of ideas.

     Correctness: correct use of grammar, message composition and appropriate words and adapting the right level of communication to suit the receiver’s level, determine the correctness of communication. Adapting the right tone for conveying a message is basic to the success of communication. At the time of encoding, the sender should ensure that his knowledge of the receiver is comprehensive. The level of knowledge, educational background and status of the decoder help the encoder in formulating his message. In case there is any difference between the usage and comprehension of terms, miscommunication can arise. Use of figures, facts, names, examples and vivid nouns add a special touch to expressions. Concrete and specific expressions are to be preferred in favour of vague and abstract expression. Ex,

“I will send the goods to the upper floor by noon.” (but how)

“The goods will be sent by the conveyer belt to the upper floor.”

5    Consistency: The approach to communication should, as far as possible, be consistent. There should not be too many ups and downs that might lead to confusion in the mind of the receiver. If a certain stand has been taken, it should be observed without being situations in which the sender is left groping for the actual content or meaning. If the sender desires to bring about a change in his understanding of the situation, he should ensure that shift is gradual and not hard for the receiver to comprehend.

     Concreteness: concrete and specific expressions are to be preferred in favor of vague and abstract expressions. In continuation of the point on correctness, the facts and figures presented should be specific. Abstractions or abstract statements can cloud the mind of the sender. Instead of stating: “there has been tremendous escalation in the sales figure”, the

receiver is more apt to listen and comprehend the factual details like “there has been an escalation in the sales figures by almost 50% as compared to last year.”

7   Conciseness: conciseness means expressing much in few words. In business writing it means keeping to the point, using few words as possible without sacrificing clarity or courtesy. It does not necessarily mean being brief; it means making every word count. This is a prerequisite to effective business communication. Time is money in business. A long winding message is a time robber and business people rebuff such message in no time. Conciseness is achieved by eliminating all redundant words. Only relevant words and phrases are permitted in conciseness. The message to be communicated should be as brief and concise as possible. Weighty language definitely impressive but people would be suitable impressed into doing precisely nothing. As far as possible, only simple and brief statement should be made.

Cs	Relevance
Credibility	Builds trust
Courtesy	Improves relationship
Clarity	Makes comprehension easier
Correctness	Builds confidence
Consistency	Introduces stability
Concreteness	Reinforces confidence
Conciseness	Saves time

Objective of communication

                The objectives and purpose of communication are inter-related. Some of the major objectives of business communication are as follows:

To inform – the first and foremost objectives of any communication is to inform. In today’s world, information is power. Communication brings power through information. People within the organization have to be kept informed about the organizational goals, objectives, process, systems, plans and priorities.

To educate – another objectives of communication is to educate. Ex. To spread knowledge and develop skills and attitudes among the peoples working in the organization. There is also a need to familiarize them with the systems, procedures and processes. This process of education may extend to customers as well. This may be done through product publicity, presentations and demonstrations.

To train – business organizations need to train people to achieve proficiency in specific skills. They have to provide working knowledge through training programs to employees. Training session involve teaching, instruction, demonstration, practice and discussion.

To motivate – in any organization people should be motivated to pursue goals and achieve higher level of performance. Talk, lecture, films, meetings, workshops, and non-verbal messages are among the means used to motivate people.

To integrate – large business organization have different business units, departments and territorial divisions. Each of them has their different goals, sub goals and target sections. So communication merged these approaches in pursuing organizational goals. People working in different functional and geographical areas are combined into well-knit teams, and continue to achieve organizational goals as imagine.

To relate – good business relationship are must for the continued success of any organization. So through the communication organization can connect with others, and create beneficial relationships. These relationships are both external and internal. They may be between employees, supervisory staff, top management, customers, suppliers, press and other media.

To promote – promotional efforts is must for any organization to fully achieve its objectives. For encouragement there are many activities like, advertising, publicity etc. The aim behind these type of activities are to provide information and education about the products or etc.

To entertain -  Every business is not necessarily a serious business. Whatever may be the nature of business, there is a time for entertainment. It helps in releasing tension, raising friendship, and clears the negative feelings. When humor used effectively, it can play a vital role in raising positive behaviour in business organization.

Merits and Demerits of Oral & Written communication 

1. Oral Communication

                Anything comes from the mouth is referred to as Oral. Oral communication is more natural and immediate. In natural and informal situations, we speak to communicate. Oral communication occurs in situation like conversations, telephone talk, interviews, and

presentations and meetings. The use of language is primarily in speech. Writings come afterwards. In any organization, as in everyday life, both formally and informally we communicate more orally than in writing.

1. Listening:

                Oral communication cannot be effective without proper listening. It has been found that generally people keep only one-fourth of what they hear after two days. In this way listening becomes the weakest link in oral communication. So it’s very important to improve the ability to listen. It requires serious effort on the part of the listener to engage what he is being told. It is largely a matter of mental condition. We listen carefully only if we want to listen. Mostly people become lazy and listening requires serious work.

2. Speaking:

                In speaking Face-to-face conversation, Telephone, Presentation, Public speech, Interview, Meeting are counted.

Oral

Merits	Demerits
it can be readily used	It is not very effective when the target group is spread out
It is instantaneous (immediate)	It is constrained by language, accent and vocabulary
It is persuasive and cost effective	It is also constrained by noise and other physical barriers
It facilitates effective person-to-person exchange	It is not normally recorded or documented
It can be supplemented by non verbal messages	It does not permit repeated references
Less expensive	Easily forgotten
Immediate feed back	Not useful if speaker is poor
Save time	Time consuming
Personal contact It works very well in small groups	No useful for long distance It is often dependent on memory
Useful for all kind of audience	Wide Scope of errors
Adjustable	Misunderstanding
Clarification	No records

Advantage:
Time saving: When action is required to be taken immediately it is best to transmit a message orally. If the executives work load is high then they stop writhing and by oral instructions they complete their message transmission and released their work load and also it saves time.
Cost savings: Cost is involved in any communication. When the communication is needed within the organization and if it and is completed in orally, it has not needed any paper, pen or stamp or computer. So it saves the money of the organization.

More powerful: Speech is a more powerful means of persuasion and control. Therefore, executives often prefer to transmit messages orally. 
Effectiveness: With the help of variations in the tone, pitch and intensity of voice, the speaker can convey shades of meaning. This factor also contributes to the effectiveness of oral communication.  Immediate feedback: The speaker can get immediate feedback on whether it is creating a favorable impression on the receiver or whether the receiver will protest or whether the receiver has receiver has clearly understood his meaning or is feeling perplexed or baffled and he can mold and adjust his message accordingly.  
More suitable: The employees felt more suitable when the message transmits in orally. They get an opportunity for feedback and clarification. 
A relationship develops: Oral communication is mostly carried out helps to promote friendly relations between the parties communicating with each other. 
Flexibility: By the demand of the situations, oral instructions can be changed easily and for these cases maintain the formalities are not necessary. So it is very much flexible and effective. 
Easiness: It is so easy method of communication. It needs little preparation to send a message. No need of pens, pencils and other writing equipment’s which are needed in written communication. 
Correction of errors: If any error is expressed at the time of oral communication. It was possible to rectify at that time or within a very short time.  
Informal communication: In oral communication, no need to maintain such formalities which are needed in written communication. So it is easy and helpful to any organization.  
Motivation: In oral communication system, top executives and sub ordinates staff can sit face-to-face and exchange their views directly, so sub-ordinates are motivated day by day. 
Special applications: Oral communication is more helpful in communicating messages to groups of people at assembly meetings etc.  
Maintaining secrecy: Interested parties of oral communication can maintain the secrecy of messages easily.

Disadvantage: 
No record: In oral communication, messages are difficult to record. So it is impossible to preserve the message for future. 
Expensive: It is also expensive media of communication. Sometimes the audience can be managed by paying T. A and D. A. On the other hand Technological devices that are used in this system are costly. 
Distortion of the word: If distortion of the word occurs in oral communication, then main goals of the organization may be filed. 
Inaccuracy: There is very possibility of inaccurate messages to reach the destination. So, the reverse result of expected plan may be occurred. 
Limited use: The scope of usage of oral communication is limited. It is not suitable for lengthy messages. It should be sued for short message. 
Probability of omitting main subject: Sometimes, main subject may be omitted to express a word for communicating. So, expected result may not be achieved. 
Confused speech: Sometimes the receiver fails to understand the meaning of a message due to habitual productions of the speaker. 
No legal validity: there is any legal validity of the oral message. As, the oral messages are not taped and kept records, so it can be denied easily if the situation goes against the speaker. 
Late decision: It takes time to reach a decision. At the beginning stage, sometime is killed in the discussion of any personal matters. Besides some time is also wasted for irrelevant discussion. In this way decision making is delayed. 
Less important: In oral communication, meaningless speech can mislead the main effects of the communication. But when the information comes out in written, we take it seriously. 
Lack of secrecy: In oral communication, the important and secret information may be disclosed. 
Defective: Oral communication is defective for company’s policy, procedure, programs, law and other important information. 
Creates misunderstanding: The speaker often gives message without having properly organized it earlier. So, it is possible that he may not be able to make himself properly to communicate with the receiver. As a result, misunderstanding May develops.

2. Written Communication

                The word write has been derived from the old English word writan which means to scratch, draw or inscribe. Written communication is the most formal of all types of communication. The writer has to be extra conscious at the time of formulating message. It is creative activity, and it requires conscious and creative efforts. It has an advantage of providing records, references.

1. Writing:

                In writing we can include Letter, Memo, Notice, Circular, Report, Minutes.

2. Reading:

                News paper, Book late, Magazine etc. The barriers of reading is, lack of concentration, lack of interest, inability of understanding sentences, skimming.

Written

Merits	Demerits
It has an extremely wide reach	Take a time in reaching the target
It creates record and is easily documented	Less interactive, Depends on word power
It can be erased and rewritten	Takes more time to get feedback
Take a time in high level of planning and structuring	Depends on the messenger and the mode of transmission
Repeated references	Slow and time consuming
Permanent record	Lengthy and expensive
Legal document	Unsuitable for illiterate people
Suitable for long message	Does not provide instant feedback

Advantage: 
Easy to preserve: The documents of written communication are easy to preserve. Oral and non-verbal communication cannot be preserved. If it is needed, important information can be collected from the preserved documents. 
Easy presentation of complex matter: Written communication is the best way to represent any complex matter easily and attractively. 
Permanent record: The documents of written communication act as a permanent record. When it is needed, important information can be easily collected from the preserved documents. 
Prevention of wastage of time and money: Written communication prevents the waste of money and time. Without meeting with each other the communicator and communicate can exchange their views. 
Accurate presentation: Through the documents of the written communication top executive can present the information more accurately and clearly. As it is a legal document everybody takes much care does draft it. 
Use as a reference: If it is needed, written communication can be used as future reference. 
Delegation of authority: Written communication can help the authority to delegate the power and authority to the subordinate. It is quite impossible to delegate power without a written document. 
Longevity: Written document can be preserved for a long time easily. That is why; all the important issues of an organization should be back and white. 
Effective communication: Written communication helps to make communication effective. It is more dependable and effective than those of other forms of communication. 
Maintaining image: Written communication helps to maintain the images of both the person and the organization. It also protects the images of the company or organization. 
Proper information: It is a proper and complete communication system. There is no opportunity to include any unnecessary information in a written document. 
Less distortion possibility: In this communication system information is recorded permanently. So, there is less possibility of distortion and alteration of the information. 
No opportunity to misinterpret: there is any opportunity to misinterpret the information or messages of written communication. 
Controlling tool: Written communication can help to control the organizational activity. The written document may be used as a tool for controlling.

Disadvantage: 
Expensive: Written communication is comparatively expensive. For this communication paper, pen, ink, typewriter, computer and a large number of employees are needed. 
Time consuming: Written communication takes time to communicate with others. It is a time consuming media. It costs the valuable time of both the writer and the reader. 
Red-Taoism: Red-Taoism is one of the most disadvantages of written communication. It means to take time for approval of a project. 
Useless for illiterate person: It messages receiver is illiterate, written communication is quite impossible. This is major disadvantage written communication. 
Difficult to maintain secrecy: It is an unexpected medium to keep business secrecy. Secrecy is not always possible to maintain through written communication. Because here needs to discuss everything in black and white. 
Lack of flexibility: Since writing documents cannot be changed easily at any time. Lack of flexibility is one of the most important limitations of written communication. 
Delay in response: It takes much time to get a response from the message receiver; prompt response is not possible in case of written communication that is possible in oral communication. 
Delay in decision making: Written communication takes much time to communicate with all the parties concerned. So the decision maker cannot take decisions quickly. 
Cost in record keeping: It is very difficult and expensive to keep all the records in written communication. 
Complex words: Sometimes the writer uses complex words in writing a message. It becomes difficult to meaning out to the reader. So the objectives of the communication may lose. 

Merits and Demerits of vertical & horizontal communication
What does by mean vertical communication?

Vertical communication is a communication that flows both up and down the organization. It takes place managers and their superiors and subordinates. It may involve only two persons or it may flow through several different organization levels. In this communication, transmission of message takes place in two opposite level as per situations. Ex. Just as worker in organization communicating with the manager of his department, at the same time he communicates with his co-workers.

Advantage: 
Conveying message of subordinate: Through upward direction of vertical communication system, the upper level management covey their suggestions, complains and recommendations to the subordinates. 
Maintains a good labor-management relation: There is systematic flow of information under his communication system, so a good relation can be developed between superior and subordinates. 
Maintains organizational discipline: There is a chain of command in vertical communication system. So, a sense of discipline may be developed among the employees. 
Explaining policies and plan: Through vertical communication system, upper level management can send the policies and procedures to the subordinates. 
Effective decision making: Superiors needed various information to take decision making in the organization. With the help of vertical communications, superiors collect information form subordinate. 
Help in decentralization: Duties and responsibilities can be delegated among departments thorough vertical communication. 
Avoid by-passing: Under this communication system superior and subordinates exchange message directly. So there is no chance to by-passing. 
Maintains chain of command: proper chain of commands is easily maintains through vertical communication system. 
Assigning jobs and evaluating performance: Vertical communication facilitates job assignment and job evaluation of the employees. 
Increase efficiency: Necessary instructions are sent to subordinates and they perform their duties and responsibilities accordingly that is help to increase efficiency both superior and subordinate. 
Bringing the people into the communication network: Vertical  communication brings all the people working at various levels of an organization within the scope of communication. 
Informing organizational goals and plans: Vertical communication is the means of informing organization goals, plans, programs, policies etc. to the subordinates. 
Communicating directives of superiors: It also helps in communicating and implementing orders, instructions and advices of superiors. 
Conveying the message of subordinates: Through upward direction of vertical communication channels, subordinates can convey their suggestions, complaints, recommendations and opinions to their superiors. 
Motivating the subordinates: Through downward pattern of vertical communication, the superior can motivate their subordinates. 
Maintaining the chain of command: Established chain of command can be easily maintained through vertical communication. People at levels of the organization somehow come within the scope of vertical communication and communicate among them by following established chain of command. 
Assigning jobs a evaluating performance: Vertical communication facilitates job assignment and job evaluation in the most befitting manner. Through downward communication, superiors assign jobs to their subordinates and subordinates convey their feedback to their superiors through upward communication. 
Identifying the problems of subordinates: Upward pattern of vertical communication helps to know the employees attitudes and to identify their problems. 
Creating better relationship: Free and fair flow of information in vertical communication improves relationships between management and workers. 
Coordinating the efforts: Vertical communication facilitates bringing the efforts of all participants of an organization into a uniform line. As a result, organization can attain its goals.

Disadvantage: 
Delay process: Vertical communication system is a delay process. It maintains long chain of command in large organization to exchange information. 
Disturbing discipline: In this communication, if the boss’s role of direction is seen by doubtful eyes by the subordinates, the chain of command and discipline may be broken. 
Efficiency reduces: Downward direction of vertical communication is commanding in nature. So, there is no opportunity of the workers to become efficient. 
Loss or Distortion of information: Information may be fabricated by the employees to maintain lengthy channel. So, through his communication information may lose its originality. 
Reduces relationships: By this communication system relationship between superior and sub-ordinate may be reduced due to inability and inefficiency. 
Slowness system: Vertical communication is the slowest communication method because it requires passing through the various levels of an organization. For this, it may become ineffective. 
Negligence of superiors: In this communication superiors can neglect to send message to their subordinates. 
Ineffective communication: In many cases, vertical communication becomes ineffective as the sender and the receiver differ in their respective positions or designations. Due to difference in the status or position of the communications, smooth flow of information is blocked and communication becomes ineffective. 
Delayed process: Vertical communication occurs through a series of steps from one level to the next. This causes delay in communication process. 
Reluctance of subordinates: Sometimes subordinates show  reluctance to communicate with their respective superiors due to fear, distrust or threat. This creates communication gap between subordinates and superiors. 
Negligence of superiors: In some cases, the superiors become negligent to send message to this subordinates thinking that closeness with subordinates will hamper their status, dignity and importance. This attitude of the superiors creates barriers to effective vertical communication. 
Possibility of breaking the chain of command: Possibility of breaking the established chain of command is another burning drawback of vertical communication. In vertical communication, someone may communicate by ignoring the immediate subordinate or

superior. This kind of communication will hamper the entire communication process in the organization. 
Authoritarian attitude of superiors: In many cases, downward pattern of vertical communication expresses the authoritarian tone of superiors that leads the communication in vein. 
Distortion of information: When vertical communication takes place through a long organizational hierarchy, information losses its original shape and becomes distorted. Employees at the bottom of a vertical structure may feel less valued than those higher up in the chain. Some employees may not relish the accompanying culture of politics, which places heavy emphasis on pleasing the boss. It can also take a great deal of time for top management decisions to filter down through multiple layers, reducing the organization's ability to react quickly to a rapidly changing business climate. Because of the centralized control of power, weak leadership at the top can hamper the effectiveness of the entire organization.

Merits	Demerits
Conveying message of subordinate	Delay process
Maintains good labor-management relations	Disturbing discipline
Maintains organizational discipline	Efficiency reduces
Explaining polices and plan, Maintains chain of command	Loss or distortion of information
Effective decision making, Assigning jobs and evaluating performance	Reduces relationship
Help in decentralizations	Slowness system
Avoid by-passing, Increase efficiency	Negligence of superiors

What does by mean Horizontal or Lateral Communication?
 It takes place when two people are working at same level in an organization and communicate with each other. Ex. Interaction between production and marketing department. The marketing chief has to be in constant touch with the production chief in order to meet customer orders as per schedule.
This is a communication between persons of same hierarchical level. The main objective of this type of communication is to coordinate the efforts of different but related activities. It helps in coordinating the activities of different departments at the same level.

Advantage 
Saves time: Horizontal channel of communication saves time. Many urgent decisions in the organization may be taken on the spot. 
Co-ordination and co-operation: Horizontal channel of communication is of great help to bring better co-ordination and greater co-operation between the staff. 
Efficiency: Horizontal communication ensures the greater efficiency and better results. 
Increases productivity: Horizontal channel of communication succeeds in increasing productivity and efficiency of the staff. 
Immediate feedback: Horizontal communication is generally oral and personally, the chances of misunderstanding are much less as the feedback is immediate. 
Removes jealousy: Horizontal channel removes jealousy, misunderstanding, etc. among the persons of equal status in the organization. 
Checks grapevine: Horizontal channel brings employees closer. It enables them to discuss matters directly and personally. This checks the growth of informal communication / grapevine (rumors).

Disadvantage 
Jealousy among superior rank: In horizontal communication, if there is jealousy or misunderstanding exists between any two persons of equal status; it will not allow the smooth functioning of organization. 
Disruption if used in excess: If there is too much horizontal communication, both the employees at the junior level and seniors at the higher level are never consulted or even informed. Thus, it is likely to disrupt the organizational hierarchy. 
Feeling of frustration: Horizontal communication is the feeling of frustration and inadequacy that the department heads get when they meet. 
Waste of time in gossiping: Horizontal communication may make employees too friendly with each other and there is possibility that they will waste their time in gossiping. 
Interdepartmental Rivalry: In horizontal communication there may be unhealthy competition among various departments in an organization. Conflicts or rivalries may disrupt the work of the organization. Therefore, an organization prefers vertical communication so that there is an effective line of authority. 

Merits	Demerits
Save time, efficiency	Jealous among superior rank
Co-ordination and co-operation	Disruption if used in excess
Increase productivity	Feeling of frustration
Immediate feedback,	Waste of time in gossiping
Remove jealousy, Checks grapevine	Interdepartmental rivalry

Categorization of Barrier to Communication 
Muddled Messages

Ex. “Please be here about 7.00 tomorrow morning.”

       “Please be here at 7.00 tomorrow morning.”
                 The one word difference makes the first message muddled and the second message clear. Muddled messages are barriers to communication because the sender leaves the receiver unclear about his intent. The sender may be confused in his or her thinking.
Wrong channel: To say ‘good morning’ orally is highly appropriate rather than writing on the chalkboard is less effective. So choosing the appropriate channel is necessary.
Lack of feedback: feedback is the mirror of communication. It mirrors what the sender has sent. Receiver sending message back to the sender, that’s call feedback. It helps sender that message will be properly understood or not. If sender could not get feedback than there is chance that message will not convey properly by receiver.
Language
Poor listening skill
Interruption
                Communication is complete and perfect when the receiver understands the message in the same sense and spirit as the sender intends to convey. But these barriers make the communication incomplete, weak and ineffective. 

Physical and External Barrier:-
                Communication is a two-way process, and distance between the sender and the receiver of the message is an important barrier to communication. Noise and environmental factors also block communication.
Noise: Any disturbance or interference that reduces the clarity and effectiveness of communication is called noise. It may be physical or psychological, written or visual. Loud noise of outside-speaker or machines noise, affects listening process is called physical noise. Mental disturbance and inattentiveness affects the receiver’s listening and understanding the message and also affects in paying attention to the spoken content it’s called psychological noise. Bad handwriting and incorrect typing irritates the reader it’s considered in written noise. The late arrival of employee results in distraction of superior’s attention that’s called visual noise. People talking, traffic or factory noise all are disturb during communication.
Improper time: Improper time of communication also block the process of communication. A phone call at midnight, interrupting sleep, and further it’s also irritates the receiver if message is not urgent.
Distance: The distance between sender and receiver acts as a barrier in the communication process as the sender has to speak loudly to convey the message. Similarly in import-export

transactions because of distance of miles; communication may be ineffective if proper use of fax, telephone is not made.
Overloaded information: Overloaded information distracts the reader’s attention and mix the theme of message. It is essential that information should be sufficient, neither less than desired, nor more than warranted.
Fault in the medium: The telephone, the postal system, the courier services or even electronic media may fail or break down. A partial failure of mechanical equipment is more dangerous than a complete failure, because a partial failure carries an incomplete or destroyed message, which might cause a wrong action to be taken. The only way to overcome this barrier is to postpone the communication or use an alternative medium.
Loss in transmission: While speaking an important point, some part of the message might be lost due to the problems in the medium. Ex, while speaking on the telephone, it might just happen that we wish to communicate an essential part of message and disturbance in telephone line might occur, and receivers miss out an important part of the message.
Tendency to evaluate: Listening primarily with the purpose of evaluating the spoken words will affect the understanding of the message. Part of the observation is lost in analyzing the pros and cons of the spoken words. The time and energy which should have been utilize in understanding the spoken contents of the sender is being used for evaluating the message.

Semantic and Language Barrier:-

    Semantic is the science of meaning. The same words and symbols carry different meaning to different people. Difficulties in communication arise when the sender and the

receiver of the message use words and symbols in different sense. The meaning intended by the sender may be quite different from the meaning followed by the receiver. The use of different languages, different interpretations of different words and symbols, poor vocabulary and poor grammatical knowledge are semantic barriers.
Symbols with different meanings: Sometimes symbols have variety of meanings and we have to choose one meaning from many. In verbal communication, a particular word may have a variety of meanings like, glasses, bat etc.
Difference in language: Employees at organization have no common language. When there is no common vehicle to convey ideas and feelings than it is barrier. This problem is more critical in culturally diversified organization and multinationals. It is often find that technical staff and group tend to develop a special, particular and technical language of their own.
Poor vocabulary: Poor vocabulary blocks the communicator to convey written or verbal message in right sense. The communicator should know the clear and precise meaning of the used words and their appropriate replacement, if needed. If the inappropriate and insufficient words are used, they will not make clear the idea to be communicated.
Words having multiple meaning: sometimes in our conversation we use several words, which have same pronunciation, but having many meanings. Similar sounding words like access-excess, flour-flower, cite-site and sight can cause in misunderstanding in speech.
Even a concrete noun like table may suggest a writing table or a dining table to different persons; chair could be something to sit on or a position to occupy. Semantic barriers arise because words mean different things to different persons. Age, education, cultural background and many other factors influence the meaning we give to words.
Badly exposed message: due to lack of clarity and accuracy, lack of intelligibility, awkward structure etc. messages are badly expressed. Sentences can convey entirely different meaning depending on how they are spoken. More importantly, semantic barriers arise because words mean different things to different persons. It is said, “Meaning is in people, not in words.”
Wrong interpretation: whenever one interprets a symbol, his understanding may differ with others.
Specialist language: when technical language is used in communication process, it creates barriers in understanding the message. It creates confusion and misunderstanding between the sender and the receiver. Technical terms can be barriers to communication. Such terms are limited to the group of persons who work together or work in the same kind of occupation; they needed to use technical terms in their work. Often, these words have other meanings in ordinary language and are differently understood by the people who do not belong to that group. 

Socio-psychological Barrier:- 
                      In order to be skillful in communication you have to watch yourself constantly and make an effort to overcome your deficiencies and problems in communicating. It is useful to understand how barriers develop in persons and what problem prevents communication from being successful. People have personal feelings, desires, fears and hopes, likes and dislikes, attitudes, views and opinions. Some of these are formed by family background and social environment; some are formed by individual’s own intelligence, inherited qualities, education and personal experiences. Factors like the time, the place and the circumstances of a particular communication also influence our understanding and response. Problems of understanding, interpretation and response to communication arise partly from our socially-learnt attributes and partly from our personal attributes. These are called socio-psychological barriers.
Self-Centered attitudes: We see and hear everything in the light of our own interest, needs and desires. We pay attention to messages which are useful to us and do not pay attention to those messages which are not useful to us. Self interests may prevent us from seeing the point of view of others. If we look at everything from the point of our own interests and desires, we miss some useful information and develop new ideas.
Group identification: Our values and opinions are influenced, in some matters, by the group to which we belong. All persons have sense of belongingness to a group like family, people of our locality or city, own religion or language group, age group, nationality, economic group and so on. Many of our ideas and values are picked up from the group. We tend to

reject an idea which goes against the interest of the group. Sometimes it is difficult for parents and children to agree because of the generation gap, same way employees and management cannot come to agreement because the interest are different. It is difficult for persons if one group to understand how persons of another group think and feel. This becomes a barrier to communication.
Selective perception: As already explained we do not see the reality, as it is; but interpret what we see and call it reality.  Because of our selective perceptions, we cannot communicate the whole. And because of neutral words conveying certain positive message convey the opposite meaning as they reach to the receiver. It results into misunderstanding and misinterpretations and makes communication ineffective.
Premature evaluation: It is human tendency that we try to evaluate quickly. We do not listen or read the whole, but try to infer from certain part of the message. The moment we try to evaluate, we stop further message visible to our sensory receptors. As a result, effective communication does not take place because of premature evaluation.
Different comprehension reality: Reality is not absolute concept; it is relative to different persons. Each person has unique sensory receptors and mental filters. As a result, our abstraction and evaluations are different. Abstraction is the process of focusing attention on specific details and ignoring others. Due to abstracting we fail to comprehend the situation as a whole and even fail to understand other person’s point of view as we think ourselves right.
Attitude of superiors: The general attitude of superiors about communication, affects the flow of communication. If the superiors are afraid of delegating authority and lack confidence in them as well as in their subordinates, they will obviously try to conceal colour

or filter the information. They intentionally do so – to twist the situation to their favour or to cover their weaknesses.
Attitude of subordinates: The negative attitude of subordinates also affects the communication flow. Their inferiority complexes, unwillingness to share information and fear of action are the obvious barrier to communication. Under such situations, organizational communication becomes ineffective.
Poor listening: Poor listening is one of the psychological barriers in the effective communication. Most of the people just hear and do not listen attentively. If they listen, they listen selectively; taking the desired part and ignoring the undesired part of the message. They do not listen to what the other person is saying, but they listen what they want to listen.
Egotism: The self-centered persons think that their own ideas are more important and others are wrong. Such people are bad listener. They keep their mind closed and alienate from the people with whom they work. If a person wants other people to understand him he has to understand them. Such level of understanding diminishes with egotism and as a result, the communication process is hindered.
Emotions: Positive emotions such as love, affection and compassion smoothen the flow of communication, whereas negative emotions such as hatred, anger, anxiety obstruct the communication process. Excited, nervous, afraid and perplexed individuals cannot think rationally and consequently transmit their negativity to others. They cannot receive the message as it is. 

Organizational Barriers:-
                     This is a type of barrier which occurs in organization when there is communication between the members of the organization. It is usually happen like, when designing the organizational arrangements for performance of various activities, prescribing various policies, rules, regulations and procedures, laying down the norms of behaviour, instituting a reward and punishment system.
Organizational rules and regulation: Sometimes it happens that important messages are omitted or manipulated. Observance of rigid rules and regulation relating to communication causes delay of message and discouragement to employee in conveying their creative and innovative ideas. On the other hand, where such rules and regulations are flexible and communication is free, employees feel encouraged and motivated to come up with new ideas and option.
Hierarchical relationship: Boss-subordinates relationship in organization structure also restricts the free flow of communication. The greater the difference in hierarchical position, the greater is the communication gap between employee and executives. The employees are expected to contact executives through their immediate bosses. In such type of cases it has been noticed that communication is intentionally distorted and designed with

exaggeration, sometimes with false and fabricated stories. This leads to distrust and disappointment among employees.
Wrong choice of channel: There are many medium and channels of communication available like face to face, oral communication, telephone, e-mails and audio visual. Each channel is not ideal and perfect in every situation. If persuasion is to be made by sales manager, face to face communication is more suitable than talking on phone. Written communication is required in case of formal relations. But while communicating with illiterate people, this channel fails. Illiterate people are to be communicated orally and with the help of pictures.
Filtering: Filtering is the process of reducing the details or aspects of a message according to his/her understanding of the situation. Information which has to be sent up the levels of hierarchy has to be condensed and integrated so that the senior managers at the top are not overloaded with information.
Status block: A boss who is conscious of his status finds it difficult to receive any suggestion from subordinates. People in senior positions often develop the feeling that they know everything about how to run the business. They do not agree that a junior may have some

good ideas. Suggestion schemes are meant to overcome this status block. Good managers personally try to overcome it by developing friendly contact with their subordinates.
Resistance to change: This is a serious psychological barrier. Some people strongly resist new ideas which are against their established opinions or traditions or social customs. They may avoid new ideas because they feel insecure or afraid of changes in methods or situations. People bound by traditions have their own emotions, attitudes, standards and convictions; they not accept anything that goes against their cherished ideas.
Closed mind: persons with a closed mind have limited understanding of human nature; this makes it difficult for them to receive communications with sympathy. This becomes a serious barrier to receiving grievances and appeals. These barriers can be overcome to some extent by organizational procedures like grievance committees, counseling and suggestion schemes. 

     Corporate Communication Barrier: - 
                       In corporate set up, barriers in communication may arise primarily due to superiors or the subordinates. Attitude of superior: The attitude of superiors towards communicator (listener), in general or in particular affect the flow of messages in different direction. Fear of challenge of authority: in the organization a person always tries to get a higher position and prestige to satisfy his needs. So he never communicates freely with his superiors. Lack of confidence in subordinates: Superior generally perceive that their subordinates are less competent and capable, they are not able to advice superiors or they may not have some information coming downwards. Lack of time: superiors feel that they are overburdened with the work and they have little time to talk to their subordinates. Unwillingness to communicate: Sometimes, subordinates do not communicate upward certain information because they are not willing to do so. Lack of proper incentive: the reward and punishment system of the organization is more responsible for this. If suggestion given by a subordinate does not evoke any attention from the organization, he would not convey it. 

     Method of Overcoming Communication Barrier
                           Effective communication is a good business and very essential for the success of an organization. Communication takes place when one person transfers information and understanding to another person. An effective communication is one which is followed by the receiver of the message and his reaction or response is known to the sender. So it is a two way process. 
      Clarity and completeness: In order to communicate effectively, it is very essential to know the audience for whom the message is meant. The message must be absolutely clear in the mind of communicator because if you do not understand an idea, you can never express it to someone. The message should be adequate and appropriate to the purpose of communication. The purpose of communication, itself, should be clearly defined. 
      Proper/appropriate language: to avoid semantic barriers, the message should be expressed in simple, brief and clear language. The word or symbols selected for conveying the message must be appropriate for the understanding of the receiver. The meaning of what is said is

shaped largely upon how it is said. This is true in writing as well as speaking. Many communicators go away with the feeling that they have said what is needed to be said. Lack of conviction in a speaker’s voice may lead the listener to treat lightly. Tone is important in writing too, as there is no chance of instant feedback from the reader. 
Orientation of employee: The employee should be oriented to understand the objectives, rules, policies, authority relationships and operation of enterprise. It will help to understand each other, and minimize conflicts and distortion of messages. 
Empathetic/good listening and avoid premature evaluation: To communicate effectively, one should be a good listener. Superiors should develop the habit of patience of listening and avoid premature evaluation of communication from their subordinates. This will encourage free flow of upward communication. Ability to listen actively and empathetically is essential for one to be a good communicator. Listening provides feedback or vital clues to how the listener is reconstructing one’s message. A good communicator is good listener. Listening in the process helps to be attentive not only to verbal symbols but also non-verbal ones. Many glib talkers fail to deliver the message because their listening is poor. Many quiet, controlled talkers focus on listening, and through it, they manage to be excellent communicators. They are like snipers; they hit the target with very little ammunition and a lot of observation. 
Feedback: Communication is not complete unless the response or reaction of the receiver of the message is obtained by the communicator. The effectiveness of communication can be judged from the feedback. Therefore, feedback must be encouraged and analyze. 
Gesture and tone: The way you say something is also very important along with the message for gestures such as a twinkle of an eye, a smile or a handshake, etc. sometimes it convey more meaning than written or spoken words. Thus, one should have appropriate facial expression, tone, gestures and mood to make communication effective. 
Get to know the people we communicate with: We are too busy with ourselves to work seriously towards knowing others. We have to go well beyond gossip and make a genuine attempt to know others if we want to be good communicators and communicate. Knowing the people we communicate with is a slow continuous process because everyone is a moving target. People change, at times perspective change, their knowledge also changes. We have to keep track of them if we want to communicate effectively. Knowledge changes our perspective on events, people and places. 
Learn to look at things from the other’s perspective: looking at the things from the other’s perspective is the hardest thing to do. When a fifty years old man says that he can’t understand his teenage daughter, the problem is not of language but of perspective. Looking at things from the other’s perspective does not mean that we accept it. Rather, we respect the differences. Once we respect the differences we find it easier to understand the symbols which sender put to communicate with us. Trying to look at the things from other’s perspective prevents us from jumping to unfair and unsustainable conclusion. 
Choose the right medium, the right channel: There are three media for communication – spoken, written and non-verbal. There are several channels – face-to-face (one to one, one to many), telephone, radio, television, and video, Letter, e-mail, newspapers, billboards and so on. Choice of wrong channel or wrong medium ruin communication. Ex, take the medium of speech. The medium is not appropriate when detailed and accurate information, instruction or description have to be transmitted. So the presenters fail to communicate because of choosing a wrong medium. Even a simple instructions or directions can confuse a listener if it is given orally. Some communication needs multimedia involvement to be effective. A notice put up on a board does not convey to the readers same message, as does an individual distributed memo with the same text. 

Internal and External organizational communication

Internal communication:-

                Interaction between members of the same organization is called internal communication. There is a large volume of communication within the organization. The flow of communication within an organization forms a complicated pattern. The volume and the direction are usually determined by the pattern of hierarchy, the levels of authority and by the requirement of tasks. The sharing of information within an organization for business purposes. For example, internal communication within a company can take place via speech, telephone, radio, mail, paging, fax, closed circuit television, electronic mail, Internet connections and computer networks.

 Advantage:

a)      increased productivity

b)      Higher probability of achieving organizational goals

c)       Ability to approach situations, problems or crises proactively

d)      More effective and responsive customer service

e)      Empowered employees who take stock in your organization

f)       A better workplace understanding of organizational values and purpose

g)      Smarter decision-making on all levels, reducing the need for micro-managing

h)      Reduced day-to-day conflict between team members

i)        Exchange of necessary ideas, news and views

j)        Development of communicative skill of employees

k)      Maintenance of link between department and branches

l)        Increasing of employees efficiency

m)    Development of employee morale

Internal communication could be both Formal and Informal.
Formal communication: Formal channel are those, which carry the official messages in the organization. Large organizations with hundreds of people working find it very difficult to have direct interaction with each and everyone. They adopt a number of strategies, e.g. notice, reports to communicate the essential message. Formal communication work many ways like,

Integrates the organization: Formal communication work as linking wires in a big-sized organization, and thus integrate its functioning.

Coordination and control: By providing required information at right time to right places, the formal communication networks greatly facilitates coordination and control in the organization.
Informal communication: Informal communication network is not a deliberately formed network. Here person can talk freely without and rules or regulation. This communication can occur like,

Social gatherings: Organizational gatherings give a chance to people of various ranks to meet and talk.

Management by walking around: here a manager informally walks through the work area and casually talk to employee.

External communication:-

            External communication: it not only takes place among people within the organization but also with people outside the organization. If a company has to survive in the competitive environment, it has to adopt the external communication as well. There are many different ways of external communication. This includes letters, annual, reports, forms, newsletters, advertisement etc. The purpose and objectives of external communication is to:

-          Provide information to consumers about products and services

-          Promote the organization

      Outward communication: message go out of an organization to customer, suppliers, government departments are called outward external communication. They may be in form of faxes, telephone calls, telegrams, advertisements and so on.
      Inward communication: an organization receives letters, telegrams, fax messages, journals, magazines and telephone calls (in short any kind of message) are called inward external communication. 

      Formal and informal channel of communication

Formal communication: Formal channel are those, which carry the official messages in the organization. Large organizations with hundreds of people working find it very difficult to have direct interaction with each and everyone. They adopt a number of strategies, e.g. notice, reports to communicate the essential message. Formal communication work many ways like,

Integrates the organization: Formal communication work as linking wires in a big-sized organization, and thus integrate its functioning.

Coordination and control: By providing required information at right time to right places, the formal communication networks greatly facilitates coordination and control in the organization.

1.Vertical communication: Vertical communication is a communication that flows both up and down the organization. It takes place managers and their superiors and subordinates. It may involve only two persons or it may flow through several different organization levels. In this communication, transmission of message takes place in two opposite level as per situations. Ex. Just as worker in organization communicating with the manager of his department, at the same time he communicates with his co-workers.
Downward Communication: it that flows from higher level in an organization to a lower level is a downward communication. It is used by managers for the following purposes:

                                I.            Providing feedback on employees performance

                              II.            Giving job instruction

                            III.            Providing a complete understanding of the employees jobs well as to communicate them how their job is related to others job in organization.
Downward communication occurs whenever message will send by the superiors to their subordinates. This communication helps the subordinate to know what is expected of them and brings in greater job satisfaction and improves morale of the employees. The main problem with the downward communication is that when the information passes through various channels, there are chance that it gets distorted by the time it reaches to the target person. Since the person giving the message has different level of understanding than that of the receiver, it may also happen that the way receiver interpret the message is not what the sender wants to convey.    
Upward communication: It is a process of information flowing from the lower level to the upper level. It travels from the people at the bottom and reaches the upper levels of the organization structure. It can satisfy the need of the upper levels of management to know specifically about production performance, marketing information, financial data, what lower level employees are thinking and feelings about the whole or part of the business. Message flowing from subordinates to superiors are termed as upward communication.
Let’s see the example,

                ‘The problem with the machine is continuing. It stops working after every hour and has to be restarted’. – subordinate informing unsolved work problem to the superior.

It’s important because it helps the top management in knowing about attitudes, behaviour, opinions, activities and feelings of the workers on the job. On the basis of such knowledge and information, the management may improve its behaviour, introduce motivational plans and improve its controlling function. Subordinates may feel that they are contributing towards the goals of the organization. Upward communication has also disadvantage like, being frank with superiors can be risky, especially when the news is not what the boss wants to hear. It may happen that sometimes busy superior may not pay attention to employees.

2.Horizontal communication:    It takes place when two people are working at same level in an organization and communicate with each other. Ex. Interaction between production and marketing department. The marketing chief has to be in constant touch with the production chief in order to meet customer orders as per schedule.

This is a communication between persons of same hierarchical level. The main objective of this type of communication is to coordinate the efforts of different but related activities. It helps in coordinating the activities of different departments at the same level.

Informal communication:  Informal communication network is not a deliberately formed network. Here person can talk freely without and rules or regulation. This communication can occur like,

Social gatherings: Organizational gatherings give a chance to people of various ranks to meet and talk.

Management by walking around: here a manager informally walks through the work area and casually talk to employee.

1.Grapevine: It is the most widespread and commonly used informal communication. It exists outside the channels. It is used by people to transmit casual/personal and social interchange at work. It is expression of their natural motivational to communicate. Rumors, gossiping are the example of this communication. It is unstructured and informal talk. Its speed is very fast. Grapevine is an informal communication, unorganized and unofficial channel of communication in an organization. When the formal channels fail or do not work properly and some over-smart people spread rumors, false and irresponsible statement or half-truths in all the directions. It is called the communication on the grapevine channel. Grapevine communication, information spreads very fast in all directions as this vine of grapes spreads. Grapevine means a source of secret information. It is kind of horizontal communication, which takes place within a group, between persons of equal status. Grapevine is an integral part of the communication system in an organization. This is the highly sensitive channel as it is a great boon as well as a curse.

Diagonal communication

The sharing of information among different structural levels within a business. For example, diagonal communication could involve higher level management communicating to lower level management a shift in organizational objectives, as well as the ensuing dialog about how best to

achieve the new goals. Organizational communication is the process by which information is shared within organizations such as businesses. Outside of informal social interactions, individuals in an organization typically communicate with coworkers in their departments who have attained the same status they have, or they communicate with their direct superiors or subordinates. Diagonal communication routes depart from these hierarchical norms by engaging individuals who work at different levels and in different departments. Diagonal communications have several important functions; however, they're not without risk.

Supervisor in the credit department communicates directly with the a regional marketing manager, who is not only in a different department but also at a higher level in the organization, they are said to be engaged in diagonal communication. The increased use of electronic mail systems in organization has made diagonal communication much easier. A major problems with its form of communication is that it departs from the normal chain of command.

In brief, diagonal communication may crest difficulties, but it is a necessary in many companies in order to respond to the complex and dynamic organizational environment.