Organizational communication

Within the realm of communication studies, organizational communication is a field of study surrounding all areas of communication and information flow that contribute to the functioning of an organization . Organizational communication is constantly evolving and as a result, the scope of organizations included in this field of research have also shifted over time. Now both traditionally profitable companies, as well as NGO's and non-profit

organizations, are points of interest for scholars focused on the field of organizational communication. Organizations are formed and sustained through continuous communication between members of the organization and both internal and external sub-groups who possess shared objectives for the organization. The flow of communication encompasses internal and external stakeholders and can be formal or informal.

History

The field traces its lineage through business information, business communication, and early mass communication studies published in the 1930s through the 1950s. Until then, organizational communication as a discipline consisted of a few professors within speech departments who had a particular interest in speaking and writing in business settings. The current field is established with its own theories and empirical concerns distinct from other fields.

Several seminal publications stand out as works broadening the scope and recognizing the importance of communication in the organizing process, and in using the term "organizational communication". Nobel laureate Herbert A. Simon wrote in 1947 about "organization communications systems", saying communication is "absolutely essential to organizations". W. Charles Redding played a prominent role in the establishment of organizational communication as a discipline.

In the 1950s, organizational communication focused largely on the role of communication in improving organizational life and organizational output. In the 1980s, the field turned away from a business-oriented approach to communication and became concerned more with the constitutive role of communication in organizing. In the 1990s, the rise of critical theory garnered influence within the field as organizational communication scholars focused more on communication's ability to both oppress and liberate organizational members.

This shift in thought arose from the French postulations brought about by theorist Michel Foucault. Foucault is often revered as the father of Post-modern thought and has been described as a “radical relativist” by contemporaries such as Camille Paglia.

From the 2000s onward, organizational communications experienced a “discursive turn”. This turn started in the 1980s with the rise of globalization and explains the changed relationship between organizations and governments. After 1980, interpretive and critical organizational communication research expanded rapidly and combined with functionalist research, creating a much more varied and complex landscape. Governments around the world became increasingly interested in multilateral organizations and began supporting their goals and interests; this factor increased the profits for investors who were able to capitalize on the changes occurring. In the early 2000s, organizational communications saw discoveries of illegality and corruption, which led to the bankruptcies of extremely large organizations (Ex. Arthur Anderson). As a result, it changed how people see ethics and corporate social responsibility in organizational communications. Organizational communication became richer and more fragmented as structural-functional perspectives waned. For the future of this field, it is inevitable that diversity will lead to intellectual competition, and that hierarchy will be established among perspectives.

In the most recent history of the last five years, organizational communications have seen huge differences in how public opinion sees mass media. This shift has led to began to move away from traditional news sources like the newspaper and rely more on social media like Twitter for their news sources. With this change, communication is more vulnerable to things like “fake news”; however, it gives all members of the public the capability of sharing their stories. With the rapid advancement of technology, there is no telling how far the field of organizational communications will advance in years to come.

Early underlying assumptions

Some of the main assumptions underlying much of the early organizational communication research were:

Humans act rationally. Some people do not behave in rational ways, they generally don't have access to all of the information needed to make rational decisions they could articulate, and therefore will make irrational decisions, unless there is some breakdown in the communication process—which is common. Irrational people rationalize how they will rationalize their communication measures whether or not it is rational.
Formal logic and empirically verifiable data ought to be the foundation upon which any theory should rest. All we really need to understand communication in organizations is (a) observable and replicable behaviors that can be transformed into variables by some form of measurement, and (b) formally replicable syllogisms that can extend theory from observed data to other groups and settings
Communication is primarily a mechanical process, in which a message is constructed and encoded by a sender, transmitted through some channel, then received and decoded by a receiver. Distortion, represented as any differences between the original and the received messages, can and ought to be identified and reduced or eliminated.
Organizations are mechanical things, in which the parts (including employees functioning in defined roles) are interchangeable. What works in one organization will work in another similar organization. Individual differences can be minimized or even eliminated with careful management techniques.
Organizations function as a container within which communication takes place. Any differences in form or function of communication between that occurring in an organization and in another setting can be identified and studied as factors affecting the communicative activity.

Herbert A. Simon introduced the concept of bounded rationality which challenged assumptions about the perfect rationality of communication participants. He maintained that people making decisions in organizations seldom had complete information, and that even if more information was available, they tended to pick the first acceptable option, rather than exploring further to pick the optimal solution.

In the early 1990s Peter Senge developed new theories on organizational communication. These theories were learning organization and systems thinking. These have been well received and are now a mainstay in current beliefs toward organizational communications.

Robert Craig suggested that there were seven components of communication theory, seven different ways of thinking about how communication works in the world. The seven different domains are rhetorical, semiotic, phenomenological, cybernetic, sociopsychological, sociocultural and critical.

Interorganization communication

Flow nomenclature

Abbreviations are used to indicate the two-way flow of information or other transactions, e.g. B2B is "business to business". Duplex point-to-point communication systems, computer networks, non-electronic telecommunications, and meetings in person are all possible with the use of these terms. Examples:

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In Business
B2B (business-to-business)
B2C (business-to-consumers)
B2E (business-to-employees)
B2G (business-to-government)

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In Governance
G2G (government-to-government)
G2C (government-to-citizens)
G2E (government-to-employees)
G2B (government-to-business)

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In Society
C2B (consumer-to-business)
C2C (consumer-to-consumer)
or (customer-to-customer)
or (citizen-to-citizen)

Interpersonal communication

Interpersonal communication amongst individuals can be expressed both verbally and non-verbally, such as through the use of gestures, facial expressions, and overall body language.

Managers do not need answers to operate a successful business; they need questions. Answers can come from anyone, anytime, anywhere in the world due to the plethora of electronic communication tools at our disposal. This has turned the real job of management into determining what business specifically needs to know, along with the who/what/where/when and how of learning it. To effectively solve problems, seize opportunities, and achieve objectives, questions need to be asked by managers—these are the people responsible for the operation of the enterprise as a whole.

Ideally, the meanings sent are the meanings received. This is most often the case when the messages concern something that can be verified objectively. For example, "This piece of pipe fits the threads on the coupling." In this case, the receiver of the message can check the sender's words by actual trial, if necessary. However, when the sender's words describe a feeling or an opinion about something that cannot be checked objectively, meanings can be very unclear. "This work is too hard" or "Watergate was politically justified" are examples of opinions or feelings that cannot be verified. Thus, they are subject to interpretation and hence to distorted meanings. The receiver's background of experience and learning may differ enough from that of the sender to cause significantly different perceptions and evaluations of the topic under discussion. As we shall see later, such differences form a basic barrier to communication. This is reasonably clear in the case of face-to-face communication. As Virginia Satir has pointed out, people cannot help but communicate symbolically (for example, through their clothing or possessions) or through some form of body language. In messages that are conveyed by the telephone, a messenger, or a letter, the situation or context in which the message is sent becomes part of its non-verbal content. For example, if the company has been losing money, and in a letter to the production division, the front office orders a reorganization of the shipping and receiving departments, this could be construed to mean that some people were going to lose their jobs — unless it were made explicitly clear that this would not occur.

A number of variables influence the effectiveness of communication. Some are found in the environment in which communication takes place, some in the personalities of the sender and the receiver, and some in the relationship that exists between sender and receiver. These different variables suggest some of the difficulties of communicating with understanding between two people. The sender wants to formulate an idea and communicate it to the receiver. This desire to communicate may arise from his thoughts or feelings or it may have been triggered by something in the environment. The communication may also be influenced by the relationship between the sender and the receiver, such as status differences, a staff-line relationship, or a learner-teacher relationship.

Physical and cognitive, including semantic filters (which decide the meaning of words) combine to form a part of our memory system that helps us respond to reality. In this sense, March and Simon compare a person to a data processing system. Behavior results from an interaction between a person's internal state and environmental stimuli. What we have learned through past experience becomes an inventory, or data bank, consisting of values or goals, sets of expectations and preconceptions about the consequences of acting one way or another, and a variety of possible ways of responding to the situation. This memory system determines what things we will notice and respond to in the environment. At the same time, stimuli in the environment help to determine what parts of the memory system will be activated. Hence, the memory and the environment form an interactive system that causes our behavior. As this interactive system responds to new experiences, new learnings occur which feed back into memory and gradually change its content. This process is how people adapt to a changing world. The structure is typically top down, from leaders in various departments and senior staff in the organization, which funnel down to lower level employees.

Informal communication, generally associated with interpersonal, horizontal communication, was primarily seen as a potential hindrance to effective organizational performance. This is no longer the case. Informal communication has become more important to ensuring the effective conduct of work in modern organizations.

Grapevine is a random, unofficial means of informal communication. It spreads through an organization with access to individual interpretation as gossip, rumors, and single-strand messages. Grapevine communication is quick and usually more direct than formal communication. An employee who receives most of the grapevine information but does not pass it onto others is known as a dead-ender. An employee that receives less than half of the grapevine information is an isolate. Grapevine can include destructive miscommunication, but it can also be beneficial by allowing feelings to be expressed, and increasing the productivity of employees.

Additionally, McPhee and Zaug (1995) take a more nuanced view of communication as constitutive of organizations (also referred to as CCO). They identify four constitutive flows of communication, formal and informal, which become interrelated in order to constitute organizing and an organization:

organizational self-structuring
membership negotiation
activity coordination
institutional positioning

Role of organizational communication

Organizational communication refers to exchanging and transmitting information between individuals and groups within an organization. Communication is a central function of organizations, as the success of an organization is reliant on individuals coming together for the benefit of organizational success.

Effective and Ineffective Communication in Organizations

Organizational communication extensively covers what communication techniques are appropriate and effective in specific scenarios with a focus on effective management.

The functional tradition

According to Shockley-Zalabak, the functional tradition is "a way of understanding organizational communication by describing what messages do and how they move through organizations." There are different functions within this process that all work together to contribute to the overall success of the organization, and these functions occur during the repetition of communication patterns in which the members of the organization engage in. Henri Fayol's work on classical management identifies five elements of management suggesting tasks for managers; planning, organizing, command, coordination, and control; and six principles of management suggesting how managers might enact the aforementioned elements of management; scalar chain, unity of command, unity of direction, division of labor, order, and span of control; relative to this approach.

Human relations

The human relation approach is based on several different theorists such as: Elton Mayo, McGregors's Douglas, Abraham Maslow, Mary Parker Follett's and Argyris. The main idea of the human relation approach of organizational communication is that the theory compares organizations to a family. As this theory compares organization to a family, it focuses on workers satisfaction and the relationship within the organizations more compared to the work performance element. The human relation approach emphasizes the importance of employee attitudes, and encourage organizations management team to focus on interpersonal relationships, group dynamics, and leadership styles in achieving organizational effectiveness. It attempts to unearth how directing attention at these areas can helps managers and other organizational actors motivative employees in order to increase productivity and organizational functioning.

Systems

The systems approach to organizing views organizations as complex organisms and sees interaction with the external environmental as essential to survival. Processes of exchange are central to this approach; the concept of input-throughput-output identifies how this process is identified within this system. An organizational constitutive approach views communication processes as a means of forming and maintaining organizations. Ideas of communication have evolved throughout history. As a practical solution to contemporary social problems, the constitutive model is presented. For example, traditional ideas and institutions are eroding, cultural diversity and interdependence are increasing, and democratic participation in social reality is in high demand. Similar to the critical approach, feminist theory highlights power relations in organizational structures and institutionalized male domination as an instrument of oppression against women. The underlying assumption in feminist organizational theory is that women generally adapt to male norms within the workplace but are still subject to female stereotypes. The feminist approach aims to identify structural and cultural barriers in the workplace and how to eliminate them.

Conflict management

Conflict is experienced by all organizations, therefore strategies to mitigate its effects on the wellbeing of organizations have been developed over time by both researchers and scholars alike. Professionals solely aim to diminish any conflicts that may arise within the workplace in the most effective manner as possible. In order to do this, these employees must possess strong conflict resolution skills.

Since conflicts in the workplace typically arise in various magnitudes, it is important that they are dealt with as soon as possible. For instance, if an individual tends to leave their space consistently messy, it can disrupt the entire office and leave for a multitude of other conflicts to arise if not dealt in a timely manner. Another example is if another co-worker tends to be disruptive or raise their voice.

A leaders ability in conflict management is important. It was found that leaders who focus on collaboration have a higher success rate than those who focus on avoidant or dominating conflict behaviour. It is also important that leaders are trained correctly on conflict management before being placed on the floor. Complex contextual situations are easier to understand when using a mixed methods research approach, compared to using a qualitative or quantitative research approach. There are more than fifteen mixed method design typologies that have been identified. Others, have examined the identities of police organizations, prison guards, and professional women workers.

Interrelatedness of organizational experiences, e.g.,

How do our communicative interactions in one organizational setting affect our communicative actions in other organizational settings?
How do the phenomenological experiences of participants in a particular organizational setting effect changes in other areas of their lives?
When the organizational status of a member is significantly changed (e.g., by promotion or expulsion) how are their other organizational memberships affected?
What kind of future relationship between business and society does organizational communication seem to predict?

Power e.g.,

How does the use of particular communicative practices within an organizational setting reinforce or alter the various interrelated power relationships within the setting? Are the potential responses of those within or around these organizational settings constrained by factors or processes either within or outside of the organization – (assuming there is an "outside")?
Do taken-for-granted organizational practices work to fortify the dominant hegemonic narrative? Do individuals resist/confront these practices, through what actions/agencies, and to what effects?
Do status changes in an organization (e.g., promotions, demotions, restructuring, financial/social strata changes) change communicative behavior? Are there criteria employed by organizational members to differentiate between "legitimate" (i.e., endorsed by the formal organizational structure) and "illegitimate" (i.e., opposed by or unknown to the formal power structure) behaviors? When are they successful, and what do we mean by "successful" when there are "pretenders" or "usurpers" who employ these communicative means?

Diversity, Equity, and inclusion (DEI) in organizational communication.

Research in this area covers a range of principles and practices aimed at fostering an inclusive organizational environment by leveraging effective communication strategies. DEI in the workplace encompasses a variety of personal and social bases of identity, including race-ethnicity, gender, age, socioeconomic status, religion, sexual orientation, country of origin, etc.

Research focus under DEI organizational communication includes;

The application of different communication theories to better understand and address the diverse perspectives, backgrounds, orientations, and experiences within the workforce. - Research has focused on analyzing the composition of employee dynamics to first identify the diverse perspectives and second to understand them.
How effective communication is pivotal in creating inclusive policies ranging from employee recruitment, retention, compensation, benefits, and retirement. - Scholars have reviewed the wording of organization policies and communicated messages to identify loopholes qualifiers that might have hindered DEI in the past.
How implicit bias is embedded in organizational culture and practices. - Research focuses on helping employees and organizational leadership to identify their bias against minority groups through their verbal and non-verbal communication.

Research focus of race-ethnicity under DEI in the workplace includes;

The underrepresentation of minority races in the workplace.
Challenges that hinder underrepresented minority group members from advancing to leadership positions in the workplace.
The emotional, social, psychological, and physical effects of the challenges that minority group members face in the workplace.

Research focus of Gender under DEI in the workplace includes;

Challenges that women face in organizations.
Factors that hinder women from rising to leadership positions at work.
The stereotype against women leaders and how they have managed to succeed with workplace challenges.
Understanding the pressure on women to work more than men to prove themselves in the workplace.
The bias against women of color during hiring processes.
Contrast in annual remuneration between men and women holding the same position in organizations.
Challenges of mentoring women in organizations and how to improve.
How effective communication can align leadership messages with organizational values and goals during the implementation of DEI.
Challenges minority groups encounter while trying to progress in organizations.
How effective communication strategies can foster an increase in the representation of underrepresented groups.

Further research has also focused on introducing and applying different communication theories to analyze diversity problems in the workplace and proffer solutions on improvement.

The inclusion of DEI in organizational communications research because it can lead to significant improvement in the world by proposing viable solutions to difficult problems within important social contexts.

References

External links

European Public Relations Education and Research Association
International Communication Association
National Communication Association
Association for Business Communication
International Association of Business Communicators

Organizational communication

History

Early underlying assumptions

Interorganization communication

Flow nomenclature

Interpersonal communication

Role of organizational communication

Effective and Ineffective Communication in Organizations

The functional tradition

Human relations

Systems

Conflict management

See also

Associations

References

Further reading

External links