Essential Communications Skills for Managers, Volume I

Walter St. John, Ben Haskell

• Publisher: Business Expert Press
• Year: 2016
• ISBN:
  9781631576553
• Topic: Betriebswirtschaft
• Subtopic: Unternehmenskommunikation

The purpose of this book is to provide practicing and aspiring managers and students of management a practical and comprehensive reference source for communicating on the job with all people in all situations. This "how-to" book provides readers with the essential knowledge, attitudes, and skills to perform the communicating aspects of their routine and special duties. The information is presented in two volumes and each topic is divided into "Things to Know" and "Things to Do."

SECTION 1

TOPIC 1

Overview of the Book

Communication is:

 

        •  The lifeblood of all organizations

        •  Of great importance to all managers

        •  Involved in every thought and action by managers

        •  The difference between success and failure of managers today

        •  A managerial imperative

 

The purpose of this book is to provide readers with a comprehensive reference source for communicating with all kinds of people, in all kinds of situations in the workplace.

This book is designed for practicing managers, new managers, and as a college textbook, for students studying management and communications. It provides managers with the essential knowledge, attitudes, and skills to perform their responsibilities competently.

The 43 topics plus Overview and Index of this “How To” book are practical instead of theoretical, specific instead of general, and offer realistic information about successfully communicating in the workplace.

As a convenience to readers, topics are listed in a detailed Table of Contents. The book is organized into two volumes with six and five sections respectively so that the reader can expeditiously find information of special interest. The reader’s time is saved by the use of bullet lists to present the topics in a concise manner. Each topic is presented in two categories: (1) Things to Know and (2) Things to Do.

The writing style is informal and reader friendly. The information is presented in a straightforward, direct to the point, no-nonsense manner. Plain and simple English is used rather than technical or scholarly language. Common sense and practicality are emphasized and theory de-emphasized. Each topic is complete in itself and can be read in only a few minutes.

Readers of professional books are typically interested in learning about the author’s qualifications for writing on the subject. Therefore, let’s take a moment to provide the authors’ training and experience in management and communications. Both authors:

 

        •  Have served as managers in both the private and public sectors

        •  Have taught management and communications courses at the college/university level for many years

        •  Have served as officers in the U.S. Army

        •  Have had a lifelong interest in communications

        •  Made numerous presentations to prestigious groups

 

Dr. Walter St. John is a semiretired writer who is married and lives on the outskirts of Bangor, Maine. His public sector experience was as an educational administrator, coach, and counselor. His private sector experience was in Human Resource Management with the Hershey Foods Corporation and Director of Management for a national trade association.

Dr. St. John served as a state university administrator and professor of management and communications courses. He is the author of numerous books and articles, including the communications section of The Encyclopedia of School Administration and Supervision. He has presented communications programs for organizations such as The American Management Association. Dr. St. John’s training in management and communications includes a Bachelor’s Degree with a major in Speech Communication from the University of Arizona. He earned his Doctoral Degree from the University of Southern California with a major in Management and a Minor in Counseling.

Ben Haskell is married, the father of two grown daughters, has four grandsons, and lives in Brewer, Maine. He retired in 2014 after serving for twenty-six years as Executive Vice-President and Academic Dean of the New England School of Communications of Husson University in Bangor, Maine.

After finishing college, Ben served as an officer in the U.S. Army with duty in Vietnam where he served as an advisor to the ARVN Military Police. He began his professional career in Maine where he was employed as staff announcer and later as Program Director of two radio stations in the City of Ellsworth.

In 1988 Ben accepted the position of Director of The New England School of Broadcasting in Bangor, Maine where he also taught Radio Announcing and Production courses. The school changed its name to the New England School of Communications in the late 1990s and remained an independent school on campus until 2014 when it officially merged with Husson University.

In his 26 years of serving higher education students, Ben was instrumental in helping the school grow from a one-year certificate program with 30 students, to a four-year degree-granting institution offering three Bachelor of Science degrees in eight different areas of study and with a peak enrollment of 520 students. Although retired, Ben continues to teach select Communications courses at the school. Most recently, he was honored with induction into the Maine Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame for 2015.

His undergraduate training was at the University of Maine where he received a BA Degree in Speech Communications with a concentration in radio/TV and theater. He earned his Master’s Degree in Business from Husson University.

His current activities include sailing, gardening, reading, writing, and becoming a Maine/Florida “Snowbird.” He is active in his church at the state and local levels, and continues to serve on the Boards of Directors of the United Way of Eastern Maine and the BTS Center (formerly Bangor Theological Seminary).

SECTION 2

TOPIC 2

Fundamentals of Communicating

“It is difficult to imagine any aspect of executive work
that does not involve communicating or relating to others”

—Robert Wilson

A. Things to Know

1. Definition of Communication:

• It is the process of passing information and understanding from one person to another person

• An essential part of any correct definition makes it clear that it is a two-way interaction between two or more people

2. Goals of Communicating:

• To convey information and share knowledge

• To increase understanding

• To influence thinking

• To gain acceptance for what is said

• To encourage action

3. Importance of Communication:

• Communicating is the most significant ingredient in any kind of management. Studies indicate that approximately 70 percent of a manager’s work day is devoted to communicating with people.

• The challenge of achieving and maintaining effective communication in an organization is increasingly awesome because the need is great and the barriers many.

• As organizations increase in size and complexity, the amount of communication increases as do the related communication problems (thus more time is needed to deal with them).

4. Key Components of the Communicating Process:

To communicate successfully, managers need to understand the seven components of the communications process. These essential elements are:

1. Sender—from whom

2. Receiver—to whom

3. Message—the what

4. Medium/method—how

5. Channel—where

6. Timing—when

7. Feedback—response

In addition, every communication occurs within an existing climate or situation that influences the receiver’s attitude and reaction to the message.

5. Facts about the Components/Elements:

1. The sender perceives a need to communicate and identifies the specific purpose. The sender next clarifies his/her thinking because no one can communicate anything clearly to anyone else that isn’t first clear in his/her own mind. The sender then selects the receivers for the message.

2. The receiver needs to strive to be receptive to all messages sent to him/her and to view them objectively and with an open mind. Also, the receiver should give 100 percent attention to the message to understand it.

3. The message is the content or subject of a communication.
A message can contain one or more of the following: facts, ideas, feelings, opinions, and perceptions. A message can include both implicit and explicit information. It is imperative that the receiver understands the message as intended by the sender.

4. The medium is the method, way, or technique used to send a message. The message’s purpose, the receivers, and the message content determine the best medium to use. There are two types of media: formal (for example, a letter) and informal (for example, a hand-written note).

• In addition, there are three methods used to communicate a message: (1) verbal (by words), (2) nonverbal (by voice tone), and (3) by body language through facial expressions or gestures.

• It is essential that your words, voice tone, and body language be consistent with each other and that they all send the same message or the person listen...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Section 1
• Section 2
• Section 3
• Section 4
• Section 5
• Section 6
• Index