OFFICE COMMUNICATION, DRAFTING AND

MINUTING
 LEARNING OBJECTIVES

At the end of this session, Participants will be able to:

 define communication;
 state the purpose of communication;
 discuss the steps involved in the communication
process;
 state limitations to effective communication ;
 recommend better ways to communicate,
especially in organizations.
 INTRODUCTION…

 Communication is the network that binds all

members of an organization together;
 The nervous system or life blood of every
organization;

 It breeds life into( planning, organizing, directing,

staffing, motivating, controlling and budgeting by
coordinating the effort of others).

 Without it, survival of human beings, would be very

difficult since are than 75% of their working hours
 INTRODUCTION
 Organisational success demands more than good
products or services, attractive policies, effective
management of resources etc ;

 Companies must communicate with present and

potential stakeholders and the general public;

 Question is not whether to communicate or not

but rather what, where, to whom ,when and how
to say it;
 It is about asking the right questions through the
use of questioning skills.
No group activity can take place without
communication;
-

 Effective Communication is said to occur

when a message sent has been received as
intended by the sender.
 WHAT IS COMMUNICATION ?

 “The imparting, sharing or exchange of ideas,

knowledge, skills”.

 “The flow of information from a source to a

receiver so that it can be understood and acted
upon” .

 A relationship, exchange, interaction, sharing of

perspectives, etc
 WHAT IS COMMUNICATION ?
“
 … is the act of passing on something, exchange
of information, news, ideas, etc.
Oxford Advanced Learners
Dictionary

 … is “the act of transmitting information, ideas

and attitudes from one person to another”. Agee
et al

 Not just the giving of information, it is the giving

of understandable information and receiving and
understanding the message (E. C. Eyre, 1983:1).
 WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF
COMMUNICATION?

 to inform, educate and create awareness;

 to develop a caring, supportive and healthy work

environment;

 You must communicate to get things done, pass and

obtain information, reach decisions, achieve joint
understanding, develop lasting relationships, and
enhance productivity.

 to influence behaviour, change attitude, work

methods and practices including building of
THE PURPOSE OF
COMMUNICATION
 to set standards, evaluate, give
feedback, enhance performance;

 to reduce conflict; Conflict cannot be

avoided but can be managed through
effective communication;

 to build effective interaction and human

relations at work in an organization.
 THE PURPOSE OF
COMMUNICATION

 Creating awareness, interest, desire for a

company’s market offerings and educating on
uses and benefits;

 Informing the clientele about products, prices,

distribution and changes in service delivery;

 With a good communication strategy , attitude

and behaviour towards a company’s products
and services can be influenced;
ELEMENTS OF COMMUNICATION

 Source – Sender

 Content – Message

 Channel – Medium used

 Receiver – Recipient

 Feed back – response

THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS

message message
Sender Medium Receiver

Feedback
 LINES OF COMMUNICATION

 Upward: Sent to Management in form of

request, complaints, feedback or suggestions

 Downward: From Management to

subordinates, e.g. orders, policies, delegated
instructions etc.
 Horizontal: Takes the form of interaction
between peers of same authority and status,
and between Departments for example.

 Inter-Departmental Exchange of Information

 TYPES /CHANNELS OF
COMMUNICATION

 Written Means: Circulars, minutes, letters,

reports, e-mail, opinion surveys, manuals,
newsletters, journal, bulletins etc.

 Oral Means: Personal Interviews meeting, retreats,

telephone calls. On the spot visit, conversation
speech, toast etc.

 Para language: Body, voice, dressing, gestures,

carriage, eye contact, facial expression, voice tone;
etc.


 Intrapersonal communication – This is the
process of information transfer which goes on
within an individual. We know very well that ideas
and thoughts are not transmitted as soon as they
are conceived or generated in us because each
idea or thoughts that develop is first weighed.
 Interpersonal Communication – This is face-to-
face communication. It is the exchange of views
and information between two people either by
phone or other gadgets of communication.
COMUNICATION AND INTERPERSONAL
RELATIONS

 Interpersonal Relations is concerned with the

interaction and behavior of people at the work place.

 Communication takes place at the personal

(intrapersonal) interpersonal, group and
organizational levels;

 between organizations, its publics, communities,

shareholders, government and the general public.
COMPUTER-AIDED COMMUNICATION

 Electronic mail (E-mail): It uses the internet to

transmit and receive computer generated text and
documents. It has dramatically reduced the number
of memos, letters, and phone calls that employees
historically used to communicate among themselves
and with suppliers, customers, or other outside
stakeholders.

 Instant Messaging: It is now rapidly moving into

business. It is essentially real-time e-mail.
Employees create a list of colleagues and friend with
whom they want to communicate. Then they just
click on a name displayed in a small box on their
computer screen, type in a message, and the
message instantaneously pops up on the recipient’s
COMPUTER-AIDED COMMUNICATION

 Intranet and Extranet Links: Intranets are

private, organization-wide information networks
that look and act like a website but to which only
people in an organization have access.

 Video-conferencing: It is an extension of
intranet or extranet systems. It permits
employees in an organization to have meetings
with people at different locations. This technology,
in effect allows employees to conduct interactive
meetings without the necessity of all physically
being in the same location.
Class activity
 Provide ANSWERS TO THESE OFFICIAL ABBREVIATIONS
 F&R
 FUA
 IDC
 SFS
 WEF
 XX
 XXX
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CLASS ACTIVITY

WHAT ARE THE

ADVANTAGES/DISADVANTAGES
OF THE DIFFERENT FORMS OF
COMMUNICATION
ADVANTAGES OF WRITTEN
COMMUNICATION

 Writing is a permanent means of storing

messages and sharing thoughts. Books,
articles and letters written thousand years
ago can still be found with their messages
intact.
 Written messages tend to be more accurate
because more time is normally spent to think
about and compose them.
ADVANTAGES OF WRITTEN
COMMUNICATION

 The receiver of written communication can

read it over and over again to clarify doubts
and ensure full understanding of the
message.
 Thus, written communication is far more
efficient than any other medium in
transmitting long and complex messages.
 Identical reproductions can be made by any
of the many reprographic processes, and
disseminated far and wide.
 ADVANTAGES OF WRITTEN
COMMUNICATION

 Written messages as a more formal means of

communication than the spoken word carry a
weight of authority not often conveyed
through the spoken word

 In business, written communication helps us

to confirm our transactions and commitments
made orally
DISADVANTAGES OF WRITTEN
COMMUNICATION

 Facility in writing on the part of the encoder and

ability to read on the part of the decoder are
required before communication through this
medium can take place.

 Business correspondence and technical reports are

often difficult to read; and except in a case of grave
necessity, many people gloss over them without
extracting the message they convey.

 A written document can be an evidence against the

writer, as happens in cases of libel or agreement.
ADVANTAGES OF ORAL
COMMUNICATION

 Immediate feedback
 Reinforcement
 Message clarification
 Interpersonal relationship – it serves to
reduce tension in offices, homes and in a
number of sensitive situations.
DISADVANTAGES OF ORAL
COMMUNICATION

 Impression – Oral Communication situations do

not allow us enough time to eliminate all errors
before we speak.

 Distortion – Oral communication has no

permanence since we do not record it.

 Impractical – It is often not practical nor

convenient to reach and converse with high
level officials in a face-to-face encounter.
 LOOK AT THESE KEY TERMS

 Noise in Communication: Anything that

obstructs or disrupts meaning.

 Harrold Barret (1973) defines it as “any

problem or condition which appears as an
obstacle to communication.

 Anything that interferes with the fidelity of the

message.
 THERE ARE 3 TYPES OF NOISE IN
COMMUNICATION

 External or physical Noise

 Internal or Psychological Noise

 Linguistic or Semantic Noise

COMMUNICATION GAP

 Break in communication leading to

misunderstanding, misinformation,
misinterpretation and
misrepresentation.
BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE
COMMUNICATION

 Poor listening habit

 Omission
 Distortion resulting from tall
organizational structure
 Too little information
 Information overload
 Poor Organizational culture (conflict
between mangers & Departments,
authoritarian tendencies)
BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE
COMMUNICATION

 Lack of policies or policy inconsistency

 Source credibility
 Individual differences (education, training,
experience, needs, values etc.)
 Cultural difference (values, norms religious
difference)
 Emotional state of listener
 Hoarding of information
 BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE
COMMUNICATION

 Inadequate use of feedback

 Low rating of the other person
 Poorly defined purpose
 Mutual suspicion and resentment among
mangers
 Lack of team spirit
 Prejudice
 Legibility
CONDITIONS FOR EFFECTIVE
COMMUNICATION

 The 6Cs of Communication must be

observed; thus communication must be:
 Clear
 Concise
 Correct
 Courteous
 Comprehensive
 Coherent
 CONDITIONS FOR EFFECTIVE
COMMUNICATION

 Carefully select words free from emotionally

loaded terms
 Relationship should be goal directed
 Shared decision making/problem solving
 Courtesy: Be sincerely tactful, thoughtful and
appreciative
 Delegate effectively.
 Grant and apologize good naturedly

 CONCLUSION

 Effective Communication means being

aware of the process of communication as
well as possible barriers that may lead to
communication breakdown and deliberately
seeking ways to improve them.

 Effective communication prevents

unnecessary conflict and
 motivates people to work together
productively and co-operatively.