18 Sep Prepare an individual research paper (7-10 pages of content – exclusive of title and reference pages) on a topic ?’Leadership and Emotional Intelligence’. ?? The paper should be fo

A Winning Concept:

The Benefits of Organizational Communication

Prepared by Student Name

Date

New England College

Course MG5415

Organizational Communication for Leaders

Julie Zink, Ph.D.

Abstract

Communication is a critical and effective medium that conveys information to a recipient or a group. While it is important to convey a message concisely, an effective communicator commands undivided attention. The benefits of effective organizational communication when executed well, cultivates a sense of commitment and loyalty within its employees, as well as instilling that they are an essential component to the overall success of the organization.

Keywords: Organizational communication, strategy, leader, vision, mission, goals, management

A Winning Concept: The Benefits of Organizational Communication

“One of the greatest responsibilities of an organization’s leadership is to communicate with unwavering clarity the values on which the organization has been built (Vern Dosch, 2016).”

Introduction

Communication is a fundamental and essential function of civilization from the cradle to the grave. It is the backbone of the universe’s existence as we know it, creating and cultivating a type of social bondage that occurs between human beings and living things alike. In the business world, it is the absolute nucleus that determines how effectively we will communicate, react, interact, and share information with each other. In fact, if we are to consider organizational communication as a field in its own right, it would be apt to label it as a subcategory of a much larger and broader discipline of communication studies. As a subcategory, organizational communication’s composition comprises analysis, consideration, and criticism of the role of communication in organizational contexts.

Defined, organizational communication is, “the way in which an organization gives the public and its employee’s information about its aims and what it is doing (Cambridge, n.d.).” Organizational communication is also a component of effective management in a workplace environment. The main functions are not only to inform but persuade and promote both support and goodwill. Communication is the lifeline of an organization, always providing the necessary information to ensure effective performance in all business activities. Communication in an organization is fundamental to running a successful business. It also requires active participation that encompasses the Board of Trustees and or Directors, Chief Executive Officer and or President, C-Suite leaders, management, and the teams that report to the managers. While management is the means to achieving organizational goals, efficiency and effectiveness of management depends on effective communication. Every minute aspect of management hinges upon successful communication. Without effective communication, an organization cannot feasibly create and convey its credo: its vision and mission statement, the strategic plan, conveying how one shares or disseminates information, or even actively communicating within the organization, one’s clients, providers, and even vendors.

Factors That Contribute to Successful Organizational Communication

Factors that contribute to successful organization communication include a clear vision and mission statement, a current strategic plan, clear goals and objectives, and a steadfast commitment to the company’s success. In fact there are a number of areas that support successful organizational communication that include processes, structures, and even forms of communication that transpire between the Board of Directors, the leadership, and of course the different layers of management.

In order to set up a safe structure for an organization to successfully promote effective organizational communication, it should be readily adaptable to the situations at hand and responsive to the needs of the outside environment. There should be open and frequent communication within the organization through various mediums, in addition to potentially developing internal/external newsletters, media campaigns, and holding meetings or even conferences depending on the size of the organization. Within the structure itself, there should be clearly defined roles and policy guidelines for the employees. By empowering employees with open decision making at all tiers, members should also share a stake in the organization’s process and outcomes.

Leaders should lead by example which means leadership should begin at the very top. Membership of the Board should exhibit not only mutual respect but understanding and trust as a whole. They should demonstrate a willingness to compromise or collaborate in the best interests of the organization.

Effective Leadership and the Management Paradox

The term “Leadership” is somewhat loosely defined, since there is no clear or consistent language to determine the meaning of leadership. For many, it denotes providing a clear vision, the ability to lead others, completing tasks, or motivating others to succeed within their defined roles and goals. It is important to note that while there are leaders, there are also leaders who are not so effective in their roles. Leaders need to be visionaries who steadfastly steer a course for their organization regardless of the obstacles they will need to overcome. While a leader may not be born with the necessary abilities or skill sets, they may be acquired along the way by learning through experience and through example. In fact, by relying on different types of behavioral traits, a leader may successfully influence others, in addition to executing and accomplishing the organizations goals regardless of the circumstances.

Souba (2006), suggests that there is a clearly defined misalignment between that of leadership and its management. While leadership is focused on change, creating a new strategic vision, and transforming the corporate culture, management’s focus is more aligned with creating and maintaining order, maintaining a level of consistency, standardization, meeting goals and budget, in addition to being ever efficient and effective.

Bernard Bass, a specialist in transformational leadership, once stated that, "Leaders manage and managers lead, but the two activities are not synonymous (Coutts, n.d.).” Paradoxically, this equates to managers not actually making good leaders and good leaders not actually making good managers.

Managers are typically responsible for the planning, investigating, and organization of business processes. Leaders deal with the interpersonal aspect of a manager’s position. To be a good leader, we need to be confident within ourselves.

The Four Stages of Organizational Change (OLC)

The concept of organizational change was first introduced in 1950 by British economist and philosopher, Kenneth Boulding (Nasar, 1993). More than half a century later, Boulding’s concept has been adapted to fit many different disciplines that include, but are not limited to, management, marketing, and public administration. According to Boulding’s concept, the organizational life cycle may be segmented into four stages similar to that of a natural living life cycle: Birth, youth, maturity, and decline/death (Ionescu et al., 2007).

Organizations, like all living things, have a limited lifespan. While some lives span a longer duration than others, each stage of development is both predictable and sequential, from the cradle to the grave. In order for an organization to be successful, it must have a strong foundation in organizational communication. Furthermore, it is important for leaders to truly understand and realize exactly which phase their organization is in, in order for them to adopt strategies that best suits their current situation. It is important to note, however, that both external environmental events and internal circumstances can clearly impact the success of an organization. According to an article by Inc., (n.d.), “The OLC model's prescription is that the firm's managers must change the goals, strategies, and strategy implementation devices to fit the new set of issues. Thus, different stages of the company's life cycle require alterations in the firm's objectives, strategies, managerial processes (planning, organizing, staffing, directing, controlling), technology, culture, and decision-making.”

Organization Stages of Development (Daft E5-6 p.175)

Source: www.unc.edu

The Power of Negotiation

Negotiation is prevalent everywhere throughout our daily lives be it at a personal level or through the daily business communications that we conduct internally or with the outside world. It can be as simple as negotiating with a toddler to get them to do what you want, making a deal with your team if you reach a certain goal, or even contracting a negotiation.

There are three forms of negotiation:

· Soft negotiation

· Hard negotiation

· Principled negotiation

According to Fisher et al., (2011), the soft negotiator is determined to avoid any type of personal conflict at all costs. These individuals will make concessions readily in order to be able to make an agreement. The outcome for this type of negotiation is typically unpleasant and the soft negotiator nearly always walks away feeling completely exploited.

For some individuals, using the hard approach creates a better outcome though potentially at a higher cost, straining the relationship that actually began the negotiation in the very first place. For the hard negotiator, this is a battle of the wills. Neither side is willing to retreat, ultimately resulting in a stale mate, since neither side is willing to give concession to their own demands.

The final type of negotiation is a strategic combination of soft and hard skills. The objective is to look at the mutual gains wherever possible and when there is conflict, ensure that the results are based on some form of fair standard that is “independent of the will” on either side: Hard on merits, and soft on people. This is deemed to be the fairest and most satisfactory form of negotiation and both parties walk away feeling quite successful regardless of the outcomes.

Groupthink

Groupthink is a psychological phenomenon that occurs when a group of individuals actively focus on minimizing any type of conflict. It is the influence to which these individuals have the overall desire for conformity rather than conflict. It is the conscientious ability to reach a consensus decision without any form of critical evaluation or even counter viewpoints. For smaller organizations, the concept of Groupthink may be considered beneficial but for larger organizations which deal with much more complex issues, avoiding Groupthink may be beneficial to their business practices, since it cultivates open discussion rather than conformity (Cain, 2012).

The Manager’s Hot Seat: Problem Solving

Building critical thinking and decision making skills is an integral part of organizational communication. On a daily basis we are faced with distractions and yet it appears that there is never enough time to dedicate to effective problem solving. For many leaders, being able to solve the problem quickly and move on, alleviates the immediate issues at hand. Yet, whether we see the glass as half-full or half-empty, determines how we view problems that are presented to us. For many it is one more obstacle, but for others it is yet another opportunity to improve. Llopis (2014) noted that problem solving is the essence of what leaders do. He further states that, “As leaders, the goal is to minimize the occurrence of problems—which means we must be courageous enough to tackle them head-on before circumstances force our hand. “

The Employee Brand

While a brand is an organization’s identity, an organization does not have the luxury of creating its own brand. Its brand evolves through the product and the type of clientele that it attracts. Furthermore, employee branding actually shapes its employees behavior so that they emulate the brand identity through their everyday work behavior.

A strong brand, not only serves to position the organization at a desired level but invokes trust and loyalty enabling organizations to create long term sustainable relationships with their employees and customers.

Conclusion

Today’s challenges in the workplace include incorporating innovative and engaging ways to involve and motivate employees while at the same time, meeting and enhancing the organization’s bottom line. Organizational communication is a critical element in a company’s success, especially if a leader is to lead and be the perpetrator of change. Valuable skills of organizational communication include interpersonal communication, small group communication, conflict management, inter-cultural communication, writing, and managing organizational change.

Great leadership starts at the top. It is this type of leadership that is indicative in an organization when problem solving appears completely seamless. Such an ability, enables both employee and organization to continually grow and improve, strategically. When problem solving results in chaos, sadly, it is indicative of a serious leadership deficiency.

To stay true, organizations must concentrate on developing organizational leaders who will stay focused on their core mission, maintain effective management practices and communication, drive “program” effectiveness, and hold team members accountable. Effective organizational communication is the backbone of corporate success. It is through this, that employees become more committed and loyal to their organization with the knowledge that they are a valued and essential component of their company’s success.

References

Cain, S. (2012, January 13). The Rise of the New Groupthink. Retrieved September 26, 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/opinion/sunday/the-rise-of-the-new- groupthink.html?_r=0

Coutts, P. (n.d.). Leadership vs. Management. Retrieved September 28, 2016, from http://www3.telus.net/public/pdcoutts/leadership/LdrVsMngt.htm

Davenport, B. T. (2015, February 20). The 4 Stages of the Employee Value Proposition. Retrieved September 26, 2016, from http://www.eremedia.com/tlnt/the-4-stages-of-the- employee-value-proposition/

Dosch, V. (2016). Quotes About Organizational Leadership (73 quotes). Retrieved September 26, 2016, from http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/organizational-leadership

Fisher, R., & Ury, W. (2011). Getting to yes: Negotiating agreement without giving in (p. xxviii). New York, NY: Penguin.

Ionescu, G. G., & Negrusa, A. L. (2007, December). The Study about Organizational Life Cycle Models. The Study about Organizational Life Cycle Models, 8(4), 5-17. Retrieved September 20, 2016, from http://www.rmci.ase.ro/Login/no8vol4/Vol8_No4_Article1.pdf

Kinicki, A, Fugate, M. (2016). Organizational Behavior: A Practical, Problem Solving Approach (p.256). New York, NY. McGraw Hill.

LLopis, G. (2013, November 4). The 4 Most Effective Ways Leaders Solve Problems. Retrieved September 26, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/forbes/welcome/?/sites/glennllopis/2013/11/04/the-4- most-effective-ways-leaders-solve-problems/

Mosley, R. (2015, May 11). CEOs Need to Pay Attention to Employer Branding. Retrieved September 26, 2016, from https://hbr.org/2015/05/ceos-need-to-pay-attention-to- employer-branding

Nasar, S. (1993, March 20). Kenneth Boulding, an Economist, Philosopher and Poet, Dies at 83. Retrieved September 28, 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/1993/03/20/obituaries/kenneth-boulding-an-economist- philosopher-and-poet-dies-at-83.html

Organizational communication Definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary. (n.d.). Retrieved September 28, 2016, from http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/organizational-communication

Organizational Life Cycle. (n.d.). Retrieved September 25, 2016, from http://www.inc.com/encyclopedia/organizational-life-cycle.html

Soci110 module 5. (n.d.). Retrieved September 28, 2016, from http://www.unc.edu/~nielsen/soci410/nm8/nm8.htm

Souba, W. W. (2006, December 30). The Leadership Dilemma. Journal of Surgical Research, 138(1), 1-9. doi:10.1016/j.jss.2007.01.003

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