Communication for a Digital Society

Communicating Effectively

Why It Matters

Communication is of vital importance to every

business. Employees who understand and

apply the communication process can

contribute to a more productive and

successful workplace.

Employers seek individuals who are well

spoken, possess good writing skills, and

demonstrate effectiveness when interacting

with others one-on-one and in groups.

People with excellent technology skills and the

professionalism to use those skills appropriately

in our digital society are essential to workplace

success.

Definitions

Communication is the process of using words, sounds,

signs, or actions to exchange information or express

thoughts.

Professional communication incorporates written, verbal,

visual, and digital communication to provide information

that is usable in the workplace.

The purpose of professional

communication will usually fall into

one of these categories:

Inform*

Persuade*

Instruct*

Make a request

Respond to a request

Tips for Effective Presentations

Start Strongly

Show your Passion and Connect with your Audience

Be enthusiastic and honest, and the audience will respond.

Smile and Make Eye Contact with your Audience

Keep your slideshow simple

Tell Stories

Use your Voice Effectively

Use your Body Too

Relax, Breathe and Enjoy

Pre-test

http://www.g-wlearning.com/communication/1282/ch01/pre.htm

The

Communication

Process

http://www.g-

wlearning.com/careereducation/8267/ch06/vid

eo01.htm

The Communication Process

Sender – the person who sends the message

Encoding – the process of turning the idea or message into symbols that can be

communicated. Most people convert their messages into a language of words or

symbols the receiver can understand.

Message – the sender decides the formation the message will take. They might

choose to use written words, spoken words, pictures, or other visuals such as

YouTube.

Channel – how the message is transmitted, such as face-to-face, telephone, text,

email, etc.

Receiver – the person who reads, hears, or sees the text.

Interpersonal communication is communication between the sender and one

other person

Small group communication involves 3 – 20 people

Public communication involves 20 or more people.

Decoding is the translation of a message into terms that the receiver can

understand (the process of understanding a message). The message is

not received if the receiver does not understand.

Feedback is the receivers’ response to the sender and concludes the

communication process. Tells the sender the person understood the

message.

Formal Communication

Formal communication is sharing information that conforms to specific protocol.

Protocol is a set of customs or rules of etiquette.

Formal communication typically takes place in letters, e-mails, presentations or others messages that are planned and put into words and is used for internal and external communication.

Informal Communication

Informal communication is casual sharing of

information with no customs or rules of etiquette.

Etiquette is the art of using good manners in any

situation.

Informal communication could be text

messaging, telephone calls, or just talking in the

hallway. It is necessary to build teamwork,

cooperation and rapport within an organization.

Text messaging: Informal or Formal??

Convenience, speed and efficiency have turned texting into a

primary form of personal communication for many of us. Text

messages are becoming increasingly common in business for the

same reasons.

While it’s fun and easy to send an abbreviation-filled, emoji-studded

message to a friend, the rules are different when texting clients,

colleagues and your boss.

Types of Communication

Written: Recording words through writing to communicate.

Verbal: Speaking words to communicate.

Nonverbal Communication: often used in conjunction with verbal

communication - is an action, behaviour, or attitude that sends a

message to the receiver. Nonverbal communication can be subtle,

or it can send loud messages in spite of what

is said. It communicates something without the use of oral or

written language. Even if you do not say a word, your silence

can communicate in a non-verbal way.

Research suggests that very little

of our communication is actually

verbal. In fact, about 93% of the

information we give and receive

is actually nonverbal.

So . . . sometimes . . . It’s not what

you say but what you don’t say

that’s really important!

Types of nonverbal communication:

Body language – gestures, facial expressions, posture, and other body actions. Being aware of body language is an essential professional skill.

Eye contact – looking directly at the other person while engaged in conversation, but not staring too intently.

Touch – also known as haptics communication. An example would be a handshake.

Attitude

Behavior

Personal space – the physical space between two individuals.

North Americans generally use a slightly greater distance

between themselves and others than do other cultures.

Attitude – also known as paralanguage in communication, which

refers to the attitude you project with the tone and pitch of your

voice

Example "I'm so excited." or "I'm so excited!!!!"

Positive body language:

Moving or leaning closer to you

Relaxed, uncrossed limbs

Long periods of eye contact

Looking down and away out of shyness

Genuine smiles

Negative body language:

Moving or leaning away from you

Crossed arms

Looking away to the side

Feet pointed away from you, or towards and exit

Fidgeting: rubbing/scratching their nose, eyes, or the back of

their neck

Keep in mind…

A single cue can mean a myriad of things.

For example, crossed arms falls under the category of negative

body language and can suggest that a person is physically cold,

closed off, or frustrated. It can even indicate that they've simply

had too much to eat. It's necessary to pay attention to multiple

behavioral cues as a single one can be misleading. While it will help

to indicate comfort level, to really understand why you need to

look deeper. This means paying attention to other cues as well as

their context.

Barriers to Effective Communication

A Barrier is anything that prevents clear, effective communication.

Barriers may occur in written, verbal, and nonverbal communication.

A Sending Barrier can occur when the sender says or does something

that causes the receiver to stop listening. Sending barriers can

include using poor grammar and spelling, assuming too much or too

little about what the receiver knows, speaking too softly or too loudly.

A Receiving Barrier can occur when the receiver says or does

something that causes the senders message not to be received; most

commonly being the receiver being distracted, not paying attention

or not asking for clarification if necessary.

Diversity in the Workplace

Diversity is having people from different backgrounds, cultures, or demographics come together in a group. Diversity includes, age, race, nationality, gender, mental ability, physical ability, and other qualities that make an individual unique.

A diverse workforce has many advantages including helping organizations be more creative, be receptive to customer needs, inclusive company and find new ways of completing tasks.

Diverse employees can help a company create products and services that may be new in the marketplace.

Diversity can come with challenges – special training, employees may have to adjust way of thinking and daily habits.

Culture is the shared beliefs, customs, practices and social behavior of a particular group of people.

Intercultural Communication is the process of sending and receiving messages between people of various cultures. Not understanding another person’s culture may result in the misinterpretation of verbal and nonverbal communication.

Communicative means being willing to talk to people or share information. Diversity should never be a communication barrier or create situations of stereotyping.

Diversity is not limited to people from other countries or cultures. It includes age, gender, abilities, and ethnicity.

Communicating in a Diverse Workplace

Communicating in a Digital Society

Digital communication – is the exchange of information through

electronic means. Digital communication is comprised of digital literacy

and digital citizenship.

Digital citizen – is someone who regularly and skillfully engages in the

use of technology such as the Internet, computers, and other digital

devices.

Digital citizenship is the standard of appropriate behaviour when

using technology to communicate. Good digital citizenship focuses

on using technology in a positive way rather than using it for

negative or illegal purposes.

Digital literacy – the ability to use technology to create, locate,

evaluate and communicate information. Includes using:

computer or mobile devices

software and applications such as word processing,

spreadsheets, tables, databases

using internet, email

communicating online

Ethics

Ethics are the principals of what is right and wrong that

help people make decisions.

Cyberbullying is using the Internet to harass or threated

an individual through social media, text messages, or e-

mails.

Netiquette, also known as digital etiquette, is etiquette used when

communication electronically. It includes accepted social and

professional guidelines for Internet communication. For example,

using all capital letters in a message has the effect of yelling.

Having poor netiquette can result in legal ramifications.

Slander is speaking a false statement about someone that

causes others to have a bad opinion of him or her.

Libel – is publishing a false statement about someone that

causes others to have a bad opinion of him or her.

Digital Footprint

What you post on the Internet never really goes away. A Digital Footprint is a data record of all an individuals online activities. Even if you delete something you have posted to the Internet, it stays in your digital footprint. Trail of information you leave behind . . . online.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79IYZVYIVLA&t=5s - digital dossier

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GpNhYy2l08 – free wifi

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AU66C6HePfg

Communication in a Digital Society

Pretest:

http://www.g-wlearning.com/communication/1282/ch03/pre.htm

Intellectual Property

The Internet provides countless sources for obtaining text, images, video, audio and software. Even though this material is readily available, this does not make it free to use however you choose. Laws exist to govern the use of media and creative works. Intellectual Property is something that comes from a person’s mind,

such as an idea, invention or process; protects a person’s or company's inventions and artistic works.

Plagiarism is claiming another person’s material as your own, which is both unethical and illegal.

Piracy is the unethical and illegal copying or downloading of software, files or other protected material. Example of protected material include images, movies and music.

Intellectual Property cont’d

Copyright – acknowledges ownership of work and specifies that only the owner has the right to sell the work, use it, or give permission for someone else to sell or use it.

Infringement – any use of copyrighted material without permission.

Public Domain – refers to material that is not owned by anybody and can be used without permission. Much of the material created by federal or provincial governments is considered public domain.

Who “owns” posted content??

True or False:

When you post an image/video to Instagram, Twitter or YouTube they

become the owners of that content.

FALSE

Who Owns the Copyrights on Photo,

Video, and Text?

Whoever originally captured the photo or video, or whoever

originally sent the text. In simple terms, if it’s an original status, photo,

or video by you, you own the copyrights to it.

What are the terms?

Facebook/YouTube gets a “non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-

free, worldwide license” to your content. Let’s break it down.

A “royalty-free worldwide license” means they are free to use your uploaded

content pretty much how they’d like anywhere in the world without paying

you a penny or asking your permission.

“Transferable” and “sub-licensable” means they can either transfer the license

to another entity or just sub-license it, again without your permission.

Finally, “non-exclusive” means that you’re free to license your photo to anyone

else you want. For example, just because you’ve uploaded a photo to

Facebook, it doesn’t mean you can’t share it on Twitter, or do whatever else

you want with it.

Patent – gives a person or company the right to be the sole producer of

a product for a defined period of time. Patents protect an invention that

is functional and mechanical. This means ideas cannot be patented.

http://mentalfloss.com/article/51467/19-things-you-might-not-know-

were-invented-canada

Trademark – a recognizable sign, design, or expression which identifies

products or services of a particular source from those of others, although

trademarks used to identify services are usually called service marks .

They protect taglines, slogans, names, symbols or any unique method to

identify a product or company.

They do not protect a product, only the way in which a product is

described.

Communicating Effectively Essential to

Workplace Success

help a company/work place grow

everyone will feel comfortable

customers understood and satisfied

receptive to customer needs

more productive, efficient and successful workplace