COMMUNICATION SKILLS--- HANDOUT 1

There are 7 C’s of effective communication which are applicable to both written as well as oral
communication. These are as follows:

1. Completeness - The communication must be complete. It should convey all facts

required by the audience. The sender of the message must take into consideration the
receiver’s mind set and convey the message accordingly. A complete communication has
following features:
 Complete communication develops and enhances reputation of an organization.
 Moreover, they are cost saving as no crucial information is missing and no
additional cost is incurred in conveying extra message if the communication is
complete.
 A complete communication always gives additional information wherever
required. It leaves no questions in the mind of receiver.
 Complete communication helps in better decision-making by the
audience/readers/receivers of message as they get all desired and crucial
information.
 It persuades the audience.

2.Conciseness - Conciseness means wordiness, i.e, communicating what you want to convey in
least possible words without forgoing the other C’s of communication. Conciseness is a necessity
for effective communication. Concise communication has following features:

 It is both time-saving as well as cost-saving.

 It underlines and highlights the main message as it avoids using excessive and
needless words.
 Concise communication provides short and essential message in limited words to
the audience.
 Concise message is more appealing and comprehensible to the audience.
 Concise message is non-repetitive in nature.
3. Consideration - Consideration implies “stepping into the shoes of others”. Effective
communication must take the audience into consideration, i.e, the audience’s view points,
background, mind-set, education level, etc. Make an attempt to envisage your audience,
their requirements, emotions as well as problems. Ensure that the self-respect of the
audience is maintained and their emotions are not at harm. Modify your words in message
to suit the audience’s needs while making your message complete. Features of considerate
communication are as follows:
 Emphasize on “you” approach.
 Empathize with the audience and exhibit interest in the audience. This will
stimulate a positive reaction from the audience.
 Show optimism towards your audience. Emphasize on “what is possible” rather
than “what is impossible”. Lay stress on positive words such as jovial, committed,
thanks, warm, healthy, help, etc.
4. Clarity - Clarity implies emphasizing on a specific message or goal at a time, rather than
trying to achieve too much at once. Clarity in communication has following features:
 It makes understanding easier.
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 Complete clarity of thoughts and ideas enhances the meaning of message.

 Clear message makes use of exact, appropriate and concrete words.
5. Concreteness - Concrete communication implies being particular and clear rather than
fuzzy and general. Concreteness strengthens the confidence. Concrete message has
following features:
 It is supported with specific facts and figures.
 It makes use of words that are clear and that build the reputation.
 Concrete messages are not misinterpreted.
6. Courtesy - Courtesy in message implies the message should show the sender’s
expression as well as should respect the receiver. The sender of the message should be
sincerely polite, judicious, reflective and enthusiastic. Courteous message has following
features:
 Courtesy implies taking into consideration both viewpoints as well as feelings of
the receiver of the message.
 Courteous message is positive and focused at the audience.
 It makes use of terms showing respect for the receiver of message.
 It is not at all biased.
7. Correctness - Correctness in communication implies that there are no grammatical errors
in communication. Correct communication has following features:
 The message is exact, correct and well-timed.
 If the communication is correct, it boosts up the confidence level.
 Correct message has greater impact on the audience/ readers.
 It checks for the precision and accurateness of facts and figures used in the
message.
 It makes use of appropriate and correct language in the message.

Awareness of these 7 C’s of communication makes you an effective communicator.

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Communication is a process beginning with a sender who encodes the message and passes it
through some channel to the receiver who decodes the message. Communication is fruitful if and
only if the messages sent by the sender is interpreted with same meaning by the receiver. If any
kind of disturbance blocks any step of communication, the message will be destroyed. Due to
such disturbances, managers in an organization face severe problems. Thus the managers must
locate such barriers and take steps to get rid of them.There are several barriers that affects the
flow of communication in an organization. These barriers interrupt the flow of communication
from the sender to the receiver, thus making communication ineffective. It is essential for
managers to overcome these barriers. The main barriers of communication are summarized
below.

Following are the main communication barriers:

1. Perceptual and Language Differences: Perception is generally how each individual

interprets the world around him. All generally want to receive messages which are
COMMUNICATION SKILLS--- HANDOUT 1

significant to them. But any message which is against their values is not accepted. A
same event may be taken differently by different individuals. For example : A person is
on leave for a month due to personal reasons (family member being critical). The HR
Manager might be in confusion whether to retain that employee or not, the immediate
manager might think of replacement because his teams productivity is being hampered,
the family members might take him as an emotional support. The linguistic differences
also lead to communication breakdown. Same word may mean different to different
individuals. For example: consider a word “value”.
a. What is the value of this Laptop?
b. I value our relation?
c. What is the value of learning technical skills?

“Value” means different in different sentences. Communication breakdown occurs if there is

wrong perception by the receiver.

2. Information Overload: Managers are surrounded with a pool of information. It is

essential to control this information flow else the information is likely to be
misinterpreted or forgotten or overlooked. As a result communication is less effective.
3. Inattention: At times we just not listen, but only hear. For example a traveler may pay
attention to one “NO PARKING” sign, but if such sign is put all over the city, he no
longer listens to it. Thus, repetitive messages should be ignored for effective
communication. Similarly if a superior is engrossed in his paper work and his subordinate
explains him his problem, the superior may not get what he is saying and it leads to
disappointment of subordinate.
4. Time Pressures: Often in organization the targets have to be achieved within a specified
time period, the failure of which has adverse consequences. In a haste to meet deadlines,
the formal channels of communication are shortened, or messages are partially given, i.e.,
not completely transferred. Thus sufficient time should be given for effective
communication.
5. Distraction/Noise: Communication is also affected a lot by noise to distractions.
Physical distractions are also there such as, poor lightning, uncomfortable sitting,
unhygienic room also affects communication in a meeting. Similarly use of loud speakers
interferes with communication.
6. Emotions: Emotional state at a particular point of time also affects communication. If the
receiver feels that communicator is angry he interprets that the information being sent is
very bad. While he takes it differently if the communicator is happy and jovial (in that
case the message is interpreted to be good and interesting).
7. Complexity in Organizational Structure: Greater the hierarchy in an organization (i.e.
more the number of managerial levels), more is the chances of communication getting
destroyed. Only the people at the top level can see the overall picture while the people at
low level just have knowledge about their own area and a little knowledge about other
areas.
8. Poor retention: Human memory cannot function beyond a limit. One cant always retain
what is being told specially if he is not interested or not attentive. This leads to
COMMUNICATION SKILLS--- HANDOUT 1

communication breakdown.

How to overcome these barriers of communication?

1. Eliminating differences in perception: The organization should ensure that it is

recruiting right individuals on the job. It’s the responsibility of the interviewer to ensure
that the interviewee has command over the written and spoken language. There should be
proper Induction program so that the policies of the company are clear to all the
employees. There should be proper trainings conducted for required employees (for eg:
Voice and Accent training).
2. Use of Simple Language: Use of simple and clear words should be emphasized. Use of
ambiguous words and jargons should be avoided.
3. Reduction and elimination of noise levels: Noise is the main communication barrier
which must be overcome on priority basis. It is essential to identify the source of noise and
then eliminate that source.
4. Active Listening: Listen attentively and carefully. There is a difference between
“listening” and “hearing”. Active listening means hearing with proper understanding of
the message that is heard. By asking questions the speaker can ensure whether his/her
message is understood or not by the receiver in the same terms as intended by the speaker.
5. Emotional State: During communication one should make effective use of body
language. He/she should not show their emotions while communication as the receiver
might misinterpret the message being delivered. For example, if the conveyer of the
message is in a bad mood then the receiver might think that the information being
delivered is not good.
6. Simple Organizational Structure: The organizational structure should not be complex.
The number of hierarchical levels should be optimum. There should be a ideal span of
control within the organization. Simpler the organizational structure, more effective will
be the communication.
7. Avoid Information Overload: The managers should know how to prioritize their work.
They should not overload themselves with the work. They should spend quality time with
their subordinates and should listen to their problems and feedbacks actively.
8. Give Constructive Feedback: Avoid giving negative feedback. The contents of the
feedback might be negative, but it should be delivered constructively. Constructive
feedback will lead to effective communication between the superior and subordinate.
9. Proper Media Selection: The managers should properly select the medium of
communication. Simple messages should be conveyed orally, like: face to face interaction
or meetings. Use of written means of communication should be encouraged for delivering
complex messages. For significant messages reminders can be given by using written
means of communication such as : Memos, Notices etc.
10. Flexibility in meeting the targets: For effective communication in an organization the
managers should ensure that the individuals are meeting their targets timely without
skipping the formal channels of communication. There should not be much pressure on
employees to meet their targets.