There are two major types of small groups, primary and discussion groups. The primary group is more informal in nature. Members get together daily or very regularly. The primary group is less goal-oriented and often there is conversation on general topics and not discussion on specific topic. Primary groups are not bound by any rules and are highly flexible. Discussion groups are highly formal. These are characterized by face-to-face interactions where group members respond, react and adapt to the communication of other participants. A discussion group has one or more leaders. Members of discussion groups have common characteristics-geographic location, social class, economic level, life style, education level, etc. finally, members of a discussion group have a common purpose or goal. The strength cohesiveness and longevity of the group depends upon the type of goal. One important type of discussion groups is the problem-solving group. Such groups are of four types Continue reading
Communication in Business
Cultural Influence on Communication Processes
A country may be classified as either a high-context culture or a low-context Culture. The context of a culture is either high or low in terms of in-depth background information. This classification provides an understanding of various cultural orientations and explains how Process of communication is conveyed and perceived. North America and northern Europe (e.g. Germany, Switzerland and Scandinavian countries) are examples of low-context cultures. In these types of society, messages are explicit and clear in the sense that actual words are used to convey the main part of information in communication. The words and their meanings, being independent entities, can be separated from the context in which they occur. What are important, then, are what is said, not how it is said and not the environment within which it is said. Japan, France, Spain, Italy, Asia, Africa and the Middle Eastern Arab nations in contrast, are high-context culture. In Continue reading
Normative Theories of Mass Media
Normative theories are theories that seek to locate media structure and performance in the milieu (environment) in which they operate, they are observation of situation within which the press operate. The basic assumption of the normative theory is that, “the press always take on the form and coloration of the social and political structure within which it operate” (Siebert, Peterson and Schramm, 1995). They are theories that explain the expected operation of media under political and economical circumstance The origin of normative theories of the press seen from two opposing view points, (1.) Radical libertarian (first amendment absolutist) and technocratic control, the first amendment absolutist takes the idea of “ free press” as literal and oppose government regulation while the technocrats do not trust the media and believes in use of regulators to act in the public interest, and (2.) Propaganda and mass society theories are used to justify media Continue reading
Business Report Writing – Meaning and Features
Report writing is an essential skill for professionals in almost every field. Each kind of report has its characteristics. An enquiry report or a survey report is essentially a fact-finding report and should bring out the facts clearly. A Directors’ Report, on the other hand, is the detailing of the developments or the progress relating to the business organization during a particular period. A committee report may not only bring out facts and figures, but also cover the alternative viewpoints expressed by the members and final recommendations. Notwithstanding these features specific to the reports, there are certain essential features of good business report writing: Issue in perspective: The first essential for any good report is to bring out the issue in its proper perspective emphasizing the pros and cons. Be it a progress report; a survey report, an analytical report or an enquiry report, the subject should be presented in Continue reading
Effective Communications in Investor Relations
Corporations worldwide work daily to increase the value of their stock for the investing public. In order to exploit this value, businesses must constantly make every effort to extensively communicate to their investors and potential investors. In view of this, investor relations are a vital part of business strategy, principally in the area of communication. Corporate departments involved with investor directions must make a necessary connection between efficient communication and company goals. Since communication is starting to play such an important role in investor relations, corporate communication programs are being created not only to participate in financial areas, but also to take part in media relations and other public communication. Ultimately, the best way for corporations to understand communications for investor relations is to look at an overview of the investor relations function, know how to organize investor relations, learn about investor relations programs and be informed on investor relations Continue reading
Written Communication in Business
Need for Written Media of Communication The old style of communication did not have public relation, advertising, technology and many aspects of modern day communication. They would converse almost daily and instruction was given verbally to people who worked together in an organization. Also the number of people working together in any organization was less and so they could easily inspect, direct and judge the work of the employees. But today, organizations have a team of qualified person to carry out assignments. These specialists and experts have to communicate their ideas to one another and also to the management. This flow of information is necessary to be maintained through written medial because of the complexity of all these activities. The written media is like the human sensory organs and memory power, which receives analyses and records the information for the purpose of decision making in the future. Written media helps Continue reading