communication skills handbook

COMMUNICATION SKILLS

A Student’s Handbook

MAKUMBA S ARNOLD

EAST AFRICA UNIVERSITY

+252907573659, [email protected]

Twitter: @arnomak

[GAROWE,SOMALIA] Welcome to the next module of your course of study in English and Communication skills. The purpose of this module is to familiarize you with some key issues underlying the notions of communications – a very important aspect of any successful business.

mailto:[email protected]

Communication Skills Makumba S Arnold

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION 4

UNIT 1 5

BUSINESS COMMUNICATION SKILLS

1.1 THE IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNICATION:

1.2 BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION

1.3 OVERCOMING BARRIERS

1.4 TEN COMMANDMENTS OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

1.5 NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION

1.6 VARIETIES OF NON VERBAL COMMUNICATION

1.7 CHARACTERISTICS OF COMUNICATION:

1.8 USING COMMUNICATION NETWORKS

1.9 FACE TO FACE COMMUNICATION

UNIT 2 16

PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION

2.1 CLARITY

2.2 COMPLETENESS

2.3 CONCISENESS

2.4 CONSIDERATION

2.5 COURTESY

2.6 CORRECTNESS

2.7 THE PURPOSE AND VALUE OF COMMITTEES

UNIT 3 25

EFFECTIVE MEETINGS

3.1 TYPES OF MEETING

3.2 VIRTUAL MEETINGS

3.3 PLANNING A PROBLEM SOLVING MEETING

3.4 SETTING AN AGENDA

UNIT 4 31

DEVELOPING THE PRESENTATION

4.1 INTRODUCTION

4.2 ANALYSING THE SITUATION

4.3 ESTABLISHING A PURPOSE

4.4 DEVELOPING THE THESIS

4.5 ON GIVING A SPEECH

4.6 PROFILE OF A GOOD SPEAKER

4.7 PLANNING TO SPEAK


INTRODUCTION

Welcome to the next module of your course of study in English. The purpose of this module

is to familiarize you with some key issues underlying the notions of communications – a very

important aspect of any successful business.

The first unit is about understanding ‘business communication skills’. We will see why good

communication is important in business. We will examine some of the barriers to

communication and how can they be overcome. We will also look at what is meant by non-

verbal communication, networking and face-to-face communication skills see why they are

they so important in today’s world.

The second unit is about the principles of communication. They are those scientific aspects

which must be taken into account in all media of communication. These aspects are clarity,

completeness, consciousness, consideration, courtesy and correctness, courtesy and

creativeness. These principles help to make various forms of communication e.g. letters,

memoranda, reports, representations etc, more effective. Although these principles are of

fundamental importance and relevance to all media, they are of utmost importance in written

communication.

The third unit explores the meaning of an ‘effective meeting’. We will see the different types

of meeting that occur in the business sector. We will also examine a modern phenomenon –

the virtual meeting and see in what ways people can meet ‘virtually’. We will conclude by

showing how you should go about planning a problem solving meeting and setting an

agenda.

The fourth unit is about how to develop a presentation, or – quite simply – give a speech.

Whatever your field, whatever your job, speaking to an audience is a fact of life for instance

sales representatives and account executives deliver presentations to potential customers.

Most people who work in organisations eventually find that their effectiveness and success

depends on their ability to organise their ideas and present them effectively. That is what this

unit will show you.

The fifth, and final, unit concerns ‘the art of writing’. Just as your style of dress and

grooming creates a first impression when you meet others in person, the appearance of your

written messages makes a powerful statement to readers who are likely to consider them a

reflection of your other qualities. Among other things, we will look at memos, letters and

report writing.


UNIT 1

BUSINESS COMMUNICATION SKILLS

This unit is about understanding ‘business communication skills’. We will see

why good communication is important in business. We will examine some of

the barriers to communication and how can they overcome. We will also look at

what is meant by non-verbal communication, networking and face-to-face

communication skills see why they are they so important in today’s world.

1.1 The Importance of Communication:

Virtually every one communicates at work. No matter what the field and no matter how

much you know about the job; or have specialized skills, communication skills are also vital.

Research validates the importance of communication related skills including working on

teams, teaching others, serving customers, leading, negotiating, working with cultural

diversity, interviewing, listening, conducting meetings and resolving conflicts.

The need for communication skills is important in every career not just those that are

traditionally regarded as people oriented. Most successful people recognize the role

communication skills have played in their careers, most people rate communication skills as

having very important for performing their jobs.

The Nature of Communication

It is easier to recognize the importance of communication than it is to determine why people

try to communicate and offer clues about why some attempts succeed while others fail.

The Process of Communication

No matter what the setting or number of people involved, all communication consists of a

few elements. Although the communication process is more than the total of these elements

understanding them can help. It explains what happens when one tries to express an idea to

others.

Key terms in communication theory

Sender The communication process begins with the sender, the person who transmits the message. A

sales manager making a presentation to the client, a computer programme explaining a new

program to a programmer.

Message

A message is any signal that triggers the response of the receiver. Some messages are

deliberate while others are unintentional. Messages are not spontaneous with meanings.


Encoding

The sender must choose certain words or non-verbal methods to send an intentional message.

The activity is called encoding. The words and channels can make tremendous difference in

how that message is received. Consider a simple act of a manager offering feedback to an

employee. Whether the words are respectful or abrupt or whether the message is delivered in

person or in a memo can make a big difference on how the feedback is received.

Channel

The channel is sometimes called the medium. It is the method used to deliver the message.

As a communicator you can often choose whether to put your message in writing as a letter

or a memo. You can deliver it by hand or send it via a regular mail or use an overnight

delivery service. You can send a fax or electronic mail or you can communicate it orally

either over the phone or in person.

Receiver A receiver is any person who notices and attaches some meaning to a message. In the best

circumstance a message reaches the intended receiver with no problems. In the confusing and

imperfect world of business however several problems can occur. The message may never

reach to the receiver. It might be delivered on the recipient’s desk. If the message is oral, the

listener might forget it. Even worse a message intended for the receiver might be intercepted

by another one. Also the receiver might overhear your critical remarks or see a copy of your

correspondence to a customer.

Decoding

Even if a message does get to its intended receiver intact, there is no guarantee it to be

understood. The receiver must still decode it attaching meaning to the words or symbols. As

we have already seen decoding is not always accurate. Your friendly voice might be taken as

a deliberate offence or a suggestion might be decoded in accurately.

Feedback

Receivers don’t just absorb message like sponges they respond to them, consider audience,

questions during a talk or the way a customer glances at the clock during a sales presentation.

Imagine the tone of voice an employer might use while saying something to superiors.

“Behaviours like these show that most communication is a two way affair. The described

response of the receiver to a sender message is called feedback. Some feedback is non-

verbal, smiles, signs and so on.

Noise

It might seem that with enough feedback, the mental images of the sender and receiver will

match. The message received will be identical to the message sent. One of the greatest

sources of communication factors is noise. These include; sounds that destructs

communicators such as the babble of voices in the next room or annoying ring of some ones

cell phone.


Communication Model

Noise Noise Noise Noise

Noise Noise Noise Noise

1.2 Barriers of Communication

Communication is purposeful exchange of meaningful information between two parties, the

sender and the receiver. It is the interpersonal, inter-organizational interchange of integral

information. Interpersonal communication is the process of exchanging information and

transmission between two people or in a small group of people. Organizational

communication, on the other hand is the process by which managers develop a system to give

information and transmit it to numbers of people within the organisation and to relevant

individuals and institutions outside it. Communication is very important because;

1. Managers spend most of their time communicating;

2. Communication is needed for managerial effectiveness,

3. Communication leads to power, and

4. Communication leads to organizational effectiveness.

But many a time managers say something and the subordinates understand a different thing.

This distortion may be due to some barriers to communication. Barriers to effective

communication are presented in the figure below.

Filtering

Selective perception

The message Language The message

Sent by Emotions interpreted

The sender Information by the receiver

Overload

Non-verbal cues

Time pressures

Communicator

Sends & Receives

Encodes

Decodes

Communicator

Sends & Receives

Encodes

Decodes

Management


1. Filtering

Sometimes the information is filtered by the sender himself. If the sender (for

example, manager) is hiding some meaning and disclosing in such a fashion as

appealing to the employee, then he is “filtering” the message deliberately. A manager

in the process of altering communication in his favour is attempting to filter the

information.

2. Selective Perception

The receiver, in the communication process, generally resorts to selective perception

i.e. he selectively perceives the message based on the organizational requirements, the

needs and characteristics, background of the employee etc. perceptual selection, may

sometimes lead to perceptual distortion. Perceptual fallacies and distortion in

communication may be endemic and vitiate the entire system. Perceptual distortion is

one of the distressing barriers to effective communication. People interpret what they

see and call it a reality. Some people interpret information in terms of the stereotype,

which is misleading normally.

3. Emotions

How the receiver feels at the time of receipt of information influences effectively how

he interprets the information. For example, if the receiver feels that the communicator

is in jovial mood, he interprets that the information being sent by the communicator

to be good and interesting. Extreme emotions and jubilation or depression are quite

likely to hinder the effectiveness of communication.

4. Language

Communicated message must be understandable to the receiver. Words mean

different things to different people. Words also vary in degree of abstraction.

Language by its very nature is incomplete and semantics create communication

problems. Language reflects not only the personality of the individual but also the

culture of the society in which the individual is living. Language also creates a social

reality. In organisations, people come from different regions, different backgrounds

and speak different languages. People will have different academic backgrounds,

different intellectual facilities and hence the jargon they use varies. Often,

communication gap arises because the language the sender is using may be

incomprehensible, vague and indigestible. Even if the sender uses very simple

language there may be semantic problems. For instance, when the production

executive enquires about an employee Mr. Y in the marketing department around

4:30pm, he was told on phone that the employee has ‘left the office’. The executive

was under the impression that the employee has left the office early that day.

Actually, what happened was that the employee has resigned and left the office some

days back. The trouble here is with semantics. Such occasions are not rare in day-to-

day life. In organisations, language barriers are quite common.


5. Information Overload

Managers are flooded with information from various corners. But there is no

automatic thermostat to control and regulate the flow of information. Modern

technology makes it possible for the managers to have the veritable mine of

information on their fingertips, on doubt. The effectiveness of communication is

likely to be hampered when managers allow themselves to be inundated with wealth

of information. Perhaps, that is the reason why managers are forced to ignore or just

give a cursory review of too many messages. In this process, inevitably, many of the

messages are either overlooked or misinterpreted.

6. Non-verbal Cues

Non-verbal communication is an important way in which people convey messages to

others. Normally, non-verbal communication is accompanied by oral communication.

For instance, a boss before giving a memorandum to the subordinate, fires at him. But

sometimes, non-verbal cues are inconsistent with the oral message and the receiver

gets confused. Here the clarity of message suffers. To take an example, the manager

may tell the subordinates that he like to hear about subordinates’ problems but

proceeds to read this personal letter when subordinate talks to the manager. In this

case, he is sending conflicting signals to the subordinate.

7. Time Pressures

Managers are often subjected to time pressures; because decisions must be made

within specified deadlines. Such time pressures can create communication problems.

Formal channels get short circuited in the process of expediting matters, leaves some

important people in dark, or messages transmitted may be incomplete, rendering

communication ineffective.

1.3 Overcoming Barriers

To make communication effective, managers must attempt to remove the barriers. Though

there are no prescribed techniques or ways of overcoming barriers. The following ways

represent one ways of overcoming barriers to communication.

1. Regulate the flow of information

The principle of management by exception is advocated to alleviate the overload of

managers so that they can concentrate on the messages of high priority. Another

sound approach could be that incoming communication may be condensed or edited.

Yet, another logical approach is to arrange the messages in order to merit, what and

when the actions are to be taken. Such prioritizing reduces the likelihood that a

critical communiqué will get overlooked or just ignored.


2. Feedback

One easy way of overcoming barriers to communication is to have a feedback. The

manager immediately after communicating a message can ask the receiver ‘Did you

follow what I said?’ then the receiver’s response is feedback. Feedback need not

always be verbal. Actions speak, many a time, louder than word. For example, a

lecturer when lecturing a lesson can watch the eyes of students for ‘non-verbal cues’

to see whether they really understand the lesson.

3. Simplify Language

Language is perhaps the biggest barrier to communication. Effective communication

is achieved when a message is both received and understood. As far as possible

managers should try to avoid complicated jargon and use simple language that

subordinates understand. More essentially a manager should speak the subordinate’s

language.

4. Listen Carefully

Communication problems arise because of poor listening. Listening is different from

hearing. Many of us are poor listeners. While listening, one should stop talking, is

patient, hold his temper, ask questions, remove distractions, and should immensely

concentrate on what speaker is saying. Good listeners remove communication

barriers.

5. Constrain/Control Emotions

Many a time emotions severely cloud and distort the transference of meaning. When

either the subordinate or the manager is mentally upset over an issue they are quite

likely to misconstrue the message. The plausible solution is to defer from further

communication until he has regained composure and coolness.

6. Watch Non-verbal Cues

In the case of oral communication, the sender observes the actions of receiver to find

whether they go along with the understanding of the message. It is because many a

time actions speak louder than words. A manager is therefore to watch non-verbal

cues carefully. In organisations grapevine cannot be totally eliminated. A manager

should make best use of grapevine. He should be careful when dealing with grapevine

because it can carry damaging rumours that adversely affect the effectiveness of

communication. It is better for the manager to make use of formal channels of

communication to lessen this potentially destructive force.


1.4 Commandments of Effective Communication

How do you communicate effectively? This is a question encountered by many managers,

non-managers, and others. Communication is in an art. The following are some important

points to consider where one can improve their communication skills.

1. Listen attentively; find areas of common interest; listen for main ideas.

2. Plan; be prepared; avoid awkward situations if possible; and keep the message brief.

3. Avoid stereotyping and the assignment of individuals for ideas to right categories.

4. Distinguish between the desire to know and the need to know.

5. Distinguish among facts, reference and conclusions.

6. Avoid attributing motives to others

7. Attend to behavioural cues as well as language or diction.

8. Say enough, but leave some things unsaid.

9. Do not shun all conflict, but avoid the unnecessary conflict.

10. Withhold value judgments about context or delivery, until strategically

Appropriate.

1.5 Non-Verbal Communication

It is an uncommon form of communication that supplements verbal communication. It refers

to all communications that occur without words (body, touch, vocal, space)

The following are some of the differences we can point out between verbal and non-verbal

communication:

1. Non-verbal communication is less structured which makes it more difficult to study e.g.

one cannot master the vocabulary of all gestures and expressions that are common in our

different culture.

2. Non-verbal communication is a reflex action and cannot be learnt or taught. It is an

unplanned form of communication.

Importance of Non Verbal Communication

To provide information either consciously or unconsciously

To express emotions

To qualify, complement or contradict and expand non-verbal messages

To control or influence others. This is because non-verbal communication strings

meaning.

In business non-verbal communication helps to establish credibility and leadership

potential.

It facilitates specific task e.g. in football

Understanding fellow co-workers non verbal messages interpret their underlying

attitudes about a particular situation


1.6 Varieties of Non Verbal Communication

Facial expressions

A face is a powerful source of non-verbal message. It is primary site for expression of

emotions revealing both the type and the intensity of a person feeling.

Eye contact movement

Eyes indicate attention, interest and confidence. Eyes can influence others and regulate

interactions.

Gesture and postures

Moving of bodies can help people express both specific and general messages of which are

voluntary and some of which are involuntary.

Vocal characteristic/paralanguage

E.g. speaking loud enough for people to hear, varying the pitch rate and volume while

talking, speaking too fast.

Personal appearance

An individual appearance helps to establish his or her identity.

1.7 Characteristics of Communication:

The communication model is not yet complete. It is like a still picture of a live event. All the

elements are present except action. Several characteristics describe the dynamic nature of the

communication process.

Communication is unavoidable: A fundamental axiom of communication is “one cannot

communicate” The impossibility of not communicating means that we send messages by be

our absence failing to show up at an event or leaving the room suggests meaning to others.

Because communication us unavoidable. It is essential to consider the unintentional messages

you send.

Communication operates at two levels. Every time two or more people communicate. They

exchange two kinds of the messages. The most obvious ones are content messages

information about the topic under discussion. But at a less apparent level, the communication

also exchanges relational messages – signals indicating how they feel against one another.

Communication is irreversible: At one time or another, we have all wished we could take

back the words we regretted uttering. As the old saying goes people may forgive but they

don’t forget. This means that you should weigh your words carefully. An offhand comment

or a critical remark uttered in the way of conflict can haunt you afterward.

Communication is a process. It is not accurate to talk about an “act” of communication as

an isolated event. Rather every communication event needs to be examined as part of its

communication context.


Communication is not a Solution. Although communication can smooth out the bumps and

straighten the roads to success, it would always get you what you want. If the quality of

communication is poor, the results are likely to be disappointing. This explains why some

problems grow worse the longer they are discussed.

Communication often presents ethical challenges. One writer observed, “The trouble with

business ethics is that many people think the phrase is an oxymoron, they hear it giggle and

say things like “you mean like military intelligence, eh!! Despite this cynical attitude, there is

a growing recognition that behaving ethically is an essential part of being an affective,

promotable employee as it is impossible to avoid facing ethical questions on communication

through communicating at work.

1.8 Communication Networks

When people communicate in all but the smallest organisation they use a system for

managing the flowing of information. With the degree of complexity in communication,

there is some system for structuring who will communicate with whom. These systems are

called communication networks – regular patterns of person to person relationships through

which information flows in an organisation.

Formal Communication Network

Are systems designed by the management to dictate who should talk to whom to get a job

done? In small organisations networks are so simple that they may hardly be noticeable in

large organisation they become more intricate. The most common way of describing formal

communication networks is with organizational charts. Organizational charts show that

communication can flow in several directions upward, downward and horizontally.

Downward communication:

It occurs whenever superiors initiate message to their subordinates; there are several types of

downward communication:

Job Rationale: Explanation of how ones tasks relates to other tasks.

Procedures and practices: Information about rules, regulations, policies and benefits.

Feedback: Information about how effectively a person is performing.

Indoctrination: Information aimed at motivating employees by impressing the

organization’s mission upon them and specifying how they should relate to it.

Upward Communication

Messages’ flowing from subordinates to superiors is called upward communication. Virtually

every organisation claims to seek out upward messages but many are not as open to

employees opinions as they claim. In some organisations, questioning the boss can be a

recipe for professional suicide. “The disconnection between rhetoric and reality is so real.


Upward communication can convey four types of messages:

What subordinates are doing

Unsolved work problems

Suggestions for improvement

How subordinates feel about each other and the job.

The message can benefit the subordinates and superiors and this explains why one finds

upward communication to be the most important and satisfying kind of communication.

Horizontal communication (lateral)

It consists of messages between members of an organisation with equal power. It serves five

purposes:

Task coordination

Problem solving

Sharing information

Building report

Informal communication networks:

These are patterns of interaction based on friendship, shared personal or career interests and

proximity. Personal friendship also creates connections that can lead to increased

communication; physical proximity increases the chances of interaction.

Functions of informal networks

Within organisation, as the following examples show not all informal messages are idle

rumours. Informal communication can serve these useful functions;

Confirming: Some informal communication often confirms formal messages.

Expanding: Information communication can fill in the gaps left by incomplete

formal messages.

Expediting: Informal networks can often deliver message more quickly than

official channels can.

Contradicting: Sometimes-informal networks contradict official messages.

Circumventing: Informal contacts sometimes help you by pass official channels

that are unnecessary and time consuming.

Supplementing: sometimes even the management realizes that informal

communication can get the job done better than more formal variety can.

Cultivating Personal Networks 0n the Job And Beyond

Although everyone is part of the informal network, smart communicators work deliberately

to cultivate personal relationships. This activity is usually called networking. The process of

strategically meeting people and maintaining contacts to get career information, advice and

leads to developing a strong informal communication network is not all coincidence.


These steps can help you to develop these important links:-

View everyone as a networking prospect.

Get referrals

Seek a mentor

Become a bridge

Ask questions

Don’t show off informal shortcuts.

Choosing the Optimal Communication Channel

As a business communicator, you often can choose to deliver a message. Deciding which

communication channel to use is not a trivial matter. Sometimes a written message succeeds

where an oral one fails; at other time talking to the recipient will produce results that printed

word cannot match. An understanding of these two channels will help you make the best

choice about how to deliver your important messages.

1.9 Face to Face Communication

Face to face communication comes in many forms. Some are: one on one meeting either

scheduled or spur of the moment. Others involve small groups of people, gathering

spontaneously or in informal meetings. Still other face-to-face communication occurs in large

groups where one or more speakers make presentations to an audience. Whatever the setting

and the number of people; face-to-face communication possesses the same qualities.

Its advantages are-

Its faster

Control it gives you as the speaker.

Interaction in its personal quality

It permits immediate feedback.

Although it has many advantages, face-to-face communication isn’t always the best

approach. The biggest drawback of personal contacts is the difficulty in arranging them.

Even when communicators are in the same building scheduling a meeting can be difficult and

frustrating.

Teleconferencing

Face to face, meetings may be desirable, but a distance often makes them impractical.

Teleconferencing is like meeting in person. This technology allows participants in two or

more locations to see and speak with each other.

Telephone and Voice Mail

The telephone lets you contact the receiver who would be impossible to reach in person. A

telephone conversation does lack the visual feedback that often reveals how your message is

getting across, although vocal cues, tone of voice give you a good idea of the other person’s

reaction to your message.


Written Communication

Written communication comes with a variety of forms, letters, memos and reports are

familiar fixtures in almost every body’s career.

Written communication has a variety of advantages and setbacks than their spoken

counterparts.

Advantages

Written communication is permanent

Written communication can be easier to understand than the speech.

It can be composed in advance

The messages are less prone to errors.

Other forms of written messages include-

1. Electrical mail

2. Computer conferencing

3. Instant messaging

Which Channel To Use

New technologies have given business people a wider range of choices for communication

than ever before and each channel has its uses. The question then is not which

communication channel to use; but when to use each one most effectively. In general, for

example, oral communication is best for messages that require personal dimension and

written communication (with exception of e-mail) works best when you want to create

relatively a formal tone.

REVIEW QUESTIONS

1. Explain the importance of communication to an organisation

2. Explain the communication process with a help of a diagram

3. What are barriers to communication and their solutions?

4. Explain the importance of non-verbal communication

5. Briefly describe the following;

a) Downward communication

b) Upward communication

c) Horizontal communication


UNIT 2

PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATION

This unit is about the principles of communication. They are those scientific

aspects, which must be taken into account in all media of communication. These

aspects are clarity, completeness, consciousness, consideration, courtesy and

correctness, courtesy and creativeness. These principles help to make various

forms of communication e.g. letters, memoranda, reports, representations etc,

more effective. Although these principles are of fundamental importance and

relevant to all media, but; they are most important to written communication.

2.1 Clarity

It refers to clarity of thought and expression.

Clarity of Thought

The communication cycle begins with the generation of an idea in the mind of the

transmitter. A great deal of clarity is needed at this stage, for if the beginning is fuddled it is

likely to mar the entire communication process. The communication must be clear about

three points.

1. What is the objective of communication?

2. What is to be communicated?

3. Which medium will prove to be the most suitable for this purpose?

Clarity of Expression

The receiver learns about the idea in the transmitter’s mind through the coded message. If

encoding is faulty, the message may be misinterpreted. Therefore, it is important to be

careful while encoding the message. Since most of the messages are transmitted with the help

of words, the transmitter should be careful about the meanings and organizations of words.

The following points about the choice of words deserve attention:

Use simple words: Remember that simple and short words are more effective than

pompous and heavy words. It is better to use “tell” or “inform” for “Acquaint”

Use concrete expression Concrete expressions create visual images that are easy to

register. Therefore, instead of vague, generalized statements give definite facts unless

you can derive a particular advantage from being general and other such words. These

may be described as opinion or contextual words, for many and a few are a matter of

opinion or context. Ten students absent in a class of thirty are many. Ten members

absent in a group of five hundred are a ‘few’

Prefer active constructions for they are easier to understand: If you deliberately

want to create an impersonal style, you may be justified in using passive

constructions. However, in ordinary circumstances it is better to use active

construction.

Avoid excessive use of the infinite: The use of infinitive (to-verb-to give, to learn)

tends to make the style impersonal and formal.


Avoid Jargon ‘Jargon’ refers to the special language of a trade, profession, or field of

study. It may refer to words as well as the style of writing. In the medical field, jargon

will be mostly confined to the choice of words. Legal jargon is primarily stylistic

jargon and creates difficulties of understanding, and it makes the style formal and

stiff, so better avoid jargon. In the business field, jargon consists in the use of words

like ‘instant’, ultimo’ proximo’, ‘as per’, ‘we beg to’, and oblige’, same etc. It is

better to give the date instead of sign words like ‘instant’ and ultimo’. We bet to and

oblige can be easily omitted.

Avoid Ambiguity If your message cannot make sense, it is ambiguous. Ambiguity is

very often caused by a careless use of personal pronouns.

Use short sentences: Whether your communication is oral or written, use very short

sentences. Long sentences tend to be complex and demand greater concentration. In

addition, nobody has time or patience for long sentences. As a rule if a sentence runs

beyond thirty words, it is better to break it up into two sentences.

2.2 Completeness

In business communication, completeness of facts is of absolute necessity; incomplete

communication irritates the reader, for it leaves him baffled. If wrong, actions follow an

incomplete message, they may also prove expensive. Let us suppose you are ordering shirts

by mail. Your communication must include all the relevant facts size, colour, catalogue

number, mode of payment, mode of dispatch, the date by which you need the shirts, etc. In

the absence of any of these details, your order may not be filled to your satisfaction. You

should organize your message in such a way that the receiver is not in doubt about anything

contained in it. In this regard, the following aspects should be taken into consideration.

While answering a letter make it sure that you have answered all the questions If

your customer has four queries and you answer only two of them, it will not bring the

desired answer. While answering the letter, devote a paragraph each to all his

questions and number the paragraphs. This practice will save your answer from

getting lost in a jungle of words.

Checking for the “five W” questions – who, what, where, when and why and any

other essential points like how also helps to make your message complete. While

announcing a meeting, specify when the meeting is to be held, where it is to be held,

why it is being held, what is to be discussed in the meeting, who is to attend the

meeting and may be how members are expected to reach the venue.

2.3 Conciseness

A reader’s time is invaluable. Do not make him feel that he is wasting his time in going

through your unnecessary lengthy letter. Be as brief as possible. Brevity in expression

effectively wins the attention of the readers. However, brevity should not be affected at the

cost of appropriateness, clarity, correctness, completeness or courtesy.


In fact, there is no hard and fast rule for the length of a letter. A letter should be as long and

as short as is necessary to tell the story effectively. A two-page letter may seem short, while a

ten-line letter may seem all too long. There are two tests to ascertain whether a letter is too

long. Ask yourself these two questions. “Does it say more than need be said?” Does it take

too many words for what it must say?”

The following simple rules will help you to achieve consciousness in your messages;

Include only relevant facts: Make sure your message is not overloaded by

unnecessary details.

Avoid repetition: Repetition induces monotony or irritation. You might repeat

information or a requesting order to stress it. The reader would naturally expect you

are saying something additional. However, when he discovers that you are repeating

something, he feels cheated.

Avoid commonplace and wordy expressions: In other words, know what you want

to say beforehand and say it well.

Organize your message well: Use simple and short words as well as sentences.

Ensure that your message is coherent.

2.4 Consideration

In our letter, we must show consideration for the reader. This can be done in the following

ways;

Adopt the (YOU)-attitude: It is known that we are primarily interested in ourselves.

Naturally, every other person is interested more in himself than in a third party. It

follows, therefore, that when we write letters to others, they are effective and the

readers respond to out- letters well only when we write from their point of view. It is

an accepted truth that one of the most pleasant sounds to the average individual is his

own name or self. To make our letter more effective, we must avoid I’s and we’s and

have as many yours as possible. In any case we should not forget the reader’s point of

view in the whole of our letter.

Emphasize positive, pleasant facts: on many occasions, you may have to refuse, say

no, regret, disagree, complain or say sorry. Saying sorry in plain words and a

straightforward style is not difficult, but not saying it has effects on the readers mind

and the repercussions on the firm are bad and far-reaching. We swallow sugar coated

pills without any grumble.

Impart integrity to your messages: Showing integrity is perhaps the best way of

showing considerations integrity involves the observance of ethical principles of

sincerity and fair treatment. These values should not be discarded as redundant to the

modern materialistic world they are the staple food to nourish growth. Nothing will

impress the receiver of your message than these two simple virtues.


2.5 Courtesy

In business, we must create friendliness with all those to whom we write. Friendliness is

inseparable from courtesy. In addition, courtesy demands a considerate and friendly

behaviour towards others. The following principles help to promote courtesy.

Answer the letters promptly: in business, it is general practice to answer a letter the

same day it is received. Sometimes you might need a back reference, or may have to

refer to different departments for clarification of certain points or may need the

consent of higher authorities. In all these cases, you should at least acknowledge the

letter received and intimate the probable time you require to send a full reply.

Omit irritating expressions: Some words and expressions are negative in

connotation and irritate the readers. Particularly, when used with ‘you’ they become

provocative. Expressions like ‘you forgot, you failed, your irresponsible approaches

are bound to irritate or hurt the reader. So thoroughly avoid them.

Apologize sincerely for an omission/thank generously for a favour: If you have

overlooked or failed to do something, express your regrets promptly and sincerely

and make up for the omission at the earliest opportunity. If omission is on the part of

someone else and they regret it, promptly tell them that you do not mind and a sort it

out to ensure the normalcy of situation has been restored. If someone does a favour to

you, acknowledge it promptly and thank the person generously for being kind to you.

2.6 Correctness

Give correct facts: Business communication often leads to expensive operations. So

you should be sure that you are using correct facts and expressing them in correct

language. In fact, you should not transmit any message unless you are absolutely sure

of its correctness. If you are not you should immediately verify it from an

encyclopaedia, an office file, a colleague, a dictionary, or even a grammar book. If

your message involves any legal matter, you should know the correct legal position

before you commit anything.

Send your message at the correct time: All messages must be transmitted and

responded to at the most appropriate time. Outdated information is useless in fact

since communication is an expensive process; transmitting outdated information

involves wastage of time, money and human resources. The principle of correct

timing also stipulates that you communicate your message at a time when it is likely

to prove most effective.

Send your message in the correct style: This may also be described as the principle

of adaptability. You must adapt your message to the needs of the receiver. You must

consider his educational background, the width of his vocabulary, specialized

knowledge of the subject, his psychological makeup etc. If he is a layman, all jargon

must be excluded and facts should be explained in a simple language. If he is an

expert in a subject, you may perhaps go into the subtleties of the issue. While

adapting your message to the needs of your receiver, you must so change it that your

preserve it’s factual as well as emotional content


2.7 The Purpose and Value of Committees

Managers find that now most of their time is spent in attending various kinds of meetings

than in past, for their organisations are now making an increased use of committees to solve

the various management problems they have to face.

Interpreted literally, a committee is a person or persons to whom certain powers are

committed by a parent body. But now the term committee’ is used to cover the activities of

any group of people who deliberate about certain matters with a view of taking action. Thus

deliberation or discussion on certain issues leading to decision making is the essence of all

committees. We could say that a committee consists of certain people who get together to

exchange views on some issues of common interest.

People get together to exchange views in conferences also. But a conference is far more

informal than a committee. A committee is more specific; a conference is more general. A

conference has wider scope than a committee. In a conference the emphasis is on discussion

(though it might later on lead to decisions) but in a committee the emphasis is on taking

decisions and solving problems.

If a managing director invites his departmental heads to discuss some problems, we just call

it a meeting. It should be clear that the dividing line between committees, conferences and

meetings is very thin and in practice the distinction is almost blurred. Therefore some of the

remarks given below with reference to committees should hold good for conferences and

meetings also.

Types of Committees

1. Executive Committee: The executive committee of an organisation is generally

elected from its members at its annual general meeting. Its powers are specified by its

parent body and it is required to give an account of its activities at regular intervals.

The executive committee is empowered to take decisions in day-to-day matters in the

light of the broad organizational goals.

2. Advisory Committees: These committees consist of experts or people representing

different groups or interest. Their sole function is to advise and they do not have any

say in taking or implementing decisions. Nor do they enjoy any right to vote.

3. Standing and adhoc committees: Standing committees are permanent committees

empowered to take management decisions. Finance committee, Bonus and salary

committee and product committees are some of the standing committees. A

committee constituted for a specific purpose and dissolved when the purpose has been

achieved is called an adhoc or temporary committee. A firm may appoint an adhoc

committee on the restructuring of the office or for exploring the possibility of

diversification in a particular line. As soon as this committee has completed its study

and submitted its report to the board of directors, it will be dissolved.


4. Formal and informal committees: Various committees cited above are all formal

committees. They are formally constituted and their duties and responsibilities are

specified. They function in a regular fashion. But sometimes committees are formed

merely for the purpose of collective thinking. They have no fixed agenda, no formal

authority. Their recommendations are not a formal decision; they are more in the

nature; advisory. Such a committee may just meet over a cup of tea or lunch and

informally discuss some problems.

5. Line and staff committees: The staff committees are a kind of advisory committee

that appraises the management on the views of the employees. The line committee

has the power to take decisions with regard to the employees who are responsible to

it. The line committee is a kind of executive committee.

The Advantages Committees

1. They offer expert opinion

Since a number of experts are represented on the committees, they can bring to bear

on the problems a much greater variety of knowledge and experience than could

possibly be possessed by one man. When a committee meets, much useful knowledge

and experience is pooled.

2. They help to generate new ideas

When a group of people discuss a problem new ideas may spontaneously occur to

them. But for the meeting of the committee, these ideas may never have come to their

mind. Such ideas can have considerable repercussions on the future activities of the

organisation.

3. Feedback is available

Committees enable managements to find out the response of the employees to

proposed policies. This proves extremely useful, for having known the reaction of the

employees at an early, formative stage, the managements can avoid action that might

provoke resentment among their employees.

4. Employer-employee relationships are improved

Since the employees are associated with the decision making process, they feel

exalted and their relationships with the employers are considerably improved and

they develop a sense of loyalty towards the organisation.

5. The employees’ interest can be safeguarded

Since the employees can put their case to a representative body rather than to an

individual, there is a greater possibility that their interests will be safeguarded.

6. Committees draw out latent talent

Committees give a chance to the various employees to make significant contribution

to the many facets of the organisation in modern conditions. In this way, the talent of

a large number of people which would otherwise have lain dormant is brought into

active display.

7. Committees promote coordination

If a committee consisting of departmental heads meets at regular intervals, it will

definitely promote better understanding and coordination among the various

departments. Decisions will be taken with a spirit of understanding and cooperation

and their implementation will be made easier.


8. Committees give valuable training to junior executives

If junior executives are made to serve on committees, it exposes them to a rich

treasure of creative ideas and helps them to view things in a wider perspective so that

they can later tackle problems with greater confidence and effectiveness.

9. Committees help to check authoritarian trends

Committees prevent the concentration of authority in one man and tend to distribute

power in many hands. There is a kind of democratization which proves good in the

interest of the organisation.

10. Committees achieve consolidation of authority

Sometimes there may be matters which concern more than one department. It may be

impossible for the manager of any one department to take a decision. In such cases, a

committee consisting of the heads of the concerned departments may be appointed

under the chairmanship of the general manager and this committee may be authorized

to take decisions. Thus authority is consolidated in a committee instead of an

individual.

11. Committees transmit information uniformly

When information is given in a committee consisting of various departmental heads

or other representative members, it ensures that there is uniform transmission of

information.

Disadvantages of Committees

In spite of the numerous advantages of the committees pointed out above a number of people

are often sceptical of the functioning of committees. It must be such a sceptic who said that a

committee comprises a group of the unfit people appointed by the unwilling to do the

unnecessary. Another critic says that a meeting (of a committee) is a meeting to decide when

the next meeting will be held implying that nothing very useful is accomplished in the

meetings of the committees. Still another critic says that a committee is a place where the

loneliness of thought is replaced by the togetherness of nothingness’. And indeed it is

undeniable that committees do suffer from many disadvantages.

1. Delay

If committees are appointed to take decisions, it definitely causes delays. When the

meeting of a committee is being called, it is necessary to give due notice of the

meeting to ensure that attendance of a representative section of members. It means

that the decision, which could have been taken immediately by the manager, were he

authorized to do so, has been put off for some time. Even otherwise, it is a matter of

common experience that taking decisions is not an easy task in committee meetings.

There is a tendency to prolong discussion and the decision is put off.

2. Irrelevant discussion

All of us who have attended the meetings of various committees must have observed

that a great deal of valuable time is wasted in irrelevant discussion. Members often

tend to drift into trivialities and irrelevancies and nothing significant is achieved.


3. Expensive

Committees prove to be very expensive. The deliberations of the committees take a

very long time often spreading over months and years. Sometimes committees branch

out into sub- committees. This involves a considerable loss of time and increase in

expenditure.

4. Undesirable compromises

Since committees work in groups, their deliberations are often a sort of compromise.

The decision finally arrived at may not be that decision which is in the best interest of

the organisation but a decision that accommodates the interests of all members.

5. Minority tyranny

Committees suffer from what may be termed as minority tyranny. In an effort to seek

consensus or unanimity they may have to yield to the wishes of a minority group

whose thinking may be opposed to organizational interests.

Reasons for the Failure of Committees

Committees are in vogue these days. It has become a common practice to refer everything to

a committee. But just as the number of committees in an organisation is going up, so is

people’s disillusionment with them. An impression is gradually gaining ground that nothing

worthwhile is achieved in committee meetings. Members assemble, talk at random, let off

some steam, take tea and snacks, and disperse. There does seem to be some truth in this

belief. We discuss below some of the factors responsible for the failure of committee

meetings.

1. Poor leadership

Very often the meeting of a committee misfires because of poor leadership. The

chairperson fails to effectively control the meeting and give a direction to the

discussion. The members get distracted from the main subject and lose themselves in

a maze of irrelevancies.

2. Overbearing leadership

This is exactly the opposite of poor leadership. Here the chairman behaves in an

authoritarian manner and does not allow the members to express themselves freely.

Communication is choked and idea-production is stifled. Members start under

estimating the worth of their own ideas and try to shape their contributions according

to what the chairman wants to hear. Besides the chairman unconsciously cultivates an

ear for only those comments that echo his personal preferences and prejudices. This

makes the entire functioning of the committee counterproductive.

3. Lack of compliance with formal procedures

Sometimes, on account of the negligence of the secretary, formal procedures are not

fully complied with. Let us suppose a proper notice badly affected if it has a small

membership, it ceases to be representative and adequate variety of opinion is not

available. On the other hand, if a committee is crowded with members, there is such a

diversity of opinion that it becomes difficult to take any decision.


4. Undesirable or incompetent membership

For successful functioning of committees, it is very essential that right people are

asked to serve on them. If the members do not know their job well, they will simply

reduce the committee to an organized pooling of ignorance. If they are volatile and

explosive or rigid and unaccommodating, they will wreck the working of the

committee and just make it collapse.

How to Make Committees Work Effectively

Despite obvious drawbacks, committees have come to stay. Whether on account of ours

being an age of democratization or the needs of modern commercial and industrial units

being different, it is no longer possible to go back to the past of one man organisations and

dispense with committees. All that we can do is to take certain precautions to ensure that they

work smoothly and successfully.

1. Properly defining the scope of the committee

The terms of reference (TOR) of a committee should be clearly defined. They should

be neither too broad nor vague. A senior manager should periodically review the

working of each committee to ascertain if the terms of reference need re-defining.

2. Competent membership

The success of a committee depends upon its members, so they should be chosen with

care. They should be competent and well informed people with the right kind of

temperament. They must not be aggressive or domineering nor meek and submissive.

They must be neither too rigid to make any decisions possible nor too yielding to

reduce decision making to a farce. They should be people with positive outlook on

life, capable of clear thinking and cogent expression.

REVIEW QUESTIONS

1. Write brief notes on each of the following principles of communication:

a. Clarity

b. Completeness

c. Conciseness

d. Consideration

e. Courtesy

f. Correctness

2. State and explain different types of committees

3. What are the advantages of forming a committee?

4. Why do committees misfire or fail?


UNIT 3

EFFECTIVE MEETINGS

This unit explores the meaning of an ‘effective meeting’. We will see the

different types of meetings that occur in the business sector. We will also

examine a modern phenomenon – the virtual meeting and see in what ways

people can meet ‘virtually’. We will conclude by showing how you should go

about planning a problem solving meeting and setting an agenda.

3.1 Types of Meetings

People meet for many reasons, in most businesses and professional settings, meetings fall

into three categories: (I) information sharing, (II) problem solving and (III) ritual activities.

1. Information Sharing Meeting

In many organisations, people meet regularly to exchange information. Police officers

and nurses for example begin every shift with a meeting in which the people going

off duty brief their replacements on what has been happening recently. Members of a

medical research team experimenting with a new drug may meet regularly to compare

notes on their results. In many office groups, the Monday morning meetings is an

important tool for informing group members about new developments, emergency

trends, and the coming week’s tasks.

2. Problem Solving/ Decision Making Meeting

In other meetings, a group may decide to take some action or make a change in

existing policies or procedures which supplier should we contact? Should we

introduce a new product line? Should we delay production so we can work out a

design flow in our new typewriter? When can be done if sales don’t improve this

year? How can we best schedule vacations?

Problem solving of one sort or another is the most common reason for a business

meeting. Because problem solving and decision making meetings are the most

challenging type of group activity, the bulk of this chapter discusses how to conduct

them effectively.

3. Ritual Activities

In still other meetings, the social function is for more important than any specific

task. These meetings take place in a local bar and to an outsider look like little more

than a T.G.I.F party.

These meetings serve several important purposes; first, they reaffirm the member’s

commitment to one another and to the company. Choosing to socialize with one

another instead of rushing home is a sign of belonging and caring. Second, the

sessions provide a chance to swap useful ideas and stories that might not be

appropriate in the office. Who’s in trouble? What does the boss really want? Finally,

ritual meetings can be a kind of perk that confers status on the members. “Progress

review committee” members change expenses to the company and leave work early

to attend. Thus, being invited to join the sessions is a sign of having arrived in the

company.


3.2 Virtual Meetings

These are meetings, made possible by advances in telecommunications.

The term meeting conjures up images of people seated around the table, transacting business.

But technology has made meetings possible even when the participants are half a world apart

virtual meetings can take several forms.

Teleconferences

These are essentially group conference calls in which members talk via telephone.

Intra organisation phone systems usually have a teleconferencing capability and

most telephone companies provide a similar feature for a modest monthly fee. With

the approach, the person who calls the meeting taps the hang up butter and calls

other numbers. When all parties have come on line, the caller sends another signal

and everyone is able to talk freely with one another.

Online meetings

These allow computer users to use the Internet to create their own private chat room,

in which they exchange and type messages in real time. As with teleconferences, in

house computer networks can make chat sessions easy. Internet service providers

also offer this feature to their subscribers. Sophisticated online meetings include a

document sharing capability, which allows users to view and add to the same

computer file.

Video Conferences

These allow users in distant location to see one another. The number of locations

with videoconferences is surprising large, over half a million sites worldwide by one

estimate.

Virtual meetings have many advantages when compared to the face-to-face variety. Most

obvious, they allow people to interact for more quickly, easily and affordable than would

otherwise be possible.

Virtual meetings are easier to schedule and they take less time than in person sessions since

participants don’t have to worry about getting to and from the meeting site. The relative ease

of holding virtual meetings makes it possible to include people who otherwise wouldn’t be

able to attend.

Finally, the less personal nature of meetings encourages lower status members to participate

in discussions more freely and stand their ground on controversial issues.

Along with these advantages virtual meetings have some important drawbacks when

compared to the in-person variety. Participants have less access to one another’s nonverbal

feedback, increasing chances of misunderstandings. Just as importantly, they may exclude

participants who don’t have access to the necessary technology. Even when they do have all

the technology, some participants who don’t use teleconferencing or videoconferencing

regularly may be uncomfortable or clumsy when using technology.


3.3 Planning a Problem Solving Meeting

Successful meetings are just like interviews, presentations, letters and memos. They must be

planned.

When to Hold a Meeting

Given the costs of bringing people together, the most fundamental question is whether to

hold a meeting at all.

There are many times when a meeting probably isn’t justified.

The matter could be handled just as well over the phone.

You could send a memo, email or fax to achieve the same goal.

Key people are not available to attend.

There isn’t enough time to handle the business at hand.

Members aren’t prepared

The meeting is routine and there is no compelling reason to meet.

The job can be handled just as well by one or more people without the need to

consult others.

Keeping these points in mind, a planner should call a meeting or (appoint a committee) only

when the following questions can be answered ‘yes”

Is the job beyond the capacity of one person?

A job might be too much for one person to handle for two reasons. First, it might call

for more information than any single person possess. For example, the job of

improving health conditions in a food processing plant would probably require the

medical background of a physician or other health professional, the first hand

experience of employees familiar with the work, and a manager who knows the

resources available for developing and implementing the program.

Second, a job might take more time than one person available. For instances, even if

one employee were capable of writing and publishing an employee handbook, it is

unlikely that the person would be able to handle the task and have much time for

other duties.

Are individuals’ tasks interdependent?

Each member of a committee should have a different role. If each member’s share of

the task can be completed without input from other members, it’s better to have the

members co-acting under the supervisor of a manager.

Consider the job of preparing the employee handbook that we just mentioned. If each

person on the handbook team is responsible for a separate section, there is little need

for the group to meet frequently to discuss the task. Meetings would be little more

than show and tell sessions. A more efficient plan might be for the group to meet at

the outset to devise an outline and a set of guidelines about style, length and so on and

for a manager or group leader to see that each person completes his or own section

according to those guidelines.


Is there more than one decision or solution?

Questions that have only one right answer aren’t well suited to discussion in

meetings. Whether the sales force made its quota last year, overtime used to meet a

schedule, for instance, are the questions answered by checking the figures, not by

getting the regional sales managers or the department members to reach an

agreement.

Tasks that don’t have fixed answers however are appropriate for committee discussion.

Consider the job facing the members of an advertising agency who are planning a campaign

for a client. There is no obvious best way to sell products or ideas such as yearly physical

examinations, office equipment or clothing. Tasks such as these call for the kind of

creativity that a talented well-chosen group can generate.

Are misunderstandings or preservations likely?

It’s easy to see how meetings can be useful when the goal is to generate ideas or solve

problems. But meetings are often necessary when confusing or controversial

information is being communicated. Suppose for instance that changing federal rules

and company policy require employers to document their use of company cars in far

more detail than was ever required before. It’s easy to imagine how this sort of

change would be met with grumbling and resistance. In this sort of situation, simply

issuing a memo outlining the new rules might not gain the kind of compliance that is

necessary. Only by talking out their complaints and hearing why the new policy is

being instituted will employees see a need to go along with new procedures

3.4 Agenda

An agenda is a list of topics to be covered in a meeting. A meeting without an agenda is like

a ship at sea without a destination or a compass. No one aboard knows where it is or where

it’s headed; smart organisations appreciate the importance of establishing an agenda. At

computer chip giant Intel, company policy requires meeting planners to circulate agenda

several days in advance so participants can react to and modify them.

How to set an agenda:

1. Determine the matter or matters that need to be discussed in relation to the

organization objectives and annual calendar.

2. Decide whether the matter needs to be discussed or whether it is am mere

announcement.

3. Consider the length of the meeting.

4. Consider how the matter being discussed concerns the people invited to the meeting.

5. Decide whether there any additional matters that should be discussed.


A notification is simply informing someone or people that something will be taking place and

in this case a meeting.

A notification of a meeting should answer these basic questions:

1. Who will attend the meeting?

2. Where will the meeting take place?

3. When will the meeting be?

4. What will be discussed in the meeting?

Basically the notification should indicate the following:

The Purpose of the meeting

The Venue of the meeting

The Time of the meeting

Example of Meeting Notification and Agenda

NOTICE

There will be a meeting of the Students Association of East Africa University at New Rays

Hotel Conference Room One on Friday 10th May at 4:00 PM.

The Agenda is as follows:

1. Opening Remarks by the Chancellor

2. Adoption of the new rules on the Code of Conduct

3. Election of office bearers

4. Arrangements for a trip to Bossaso University College

5. Report on last year’s students association expenditure

6. A.O.B

Mr. Omar Hassan Farah

N/B If you post an agenda on the web, it is possible to attach a notation, even entire

documents to supplement items.


REVIEW QUESTIONS

1. What is an ‘effective meeting’?

2. List the different types of meetings that occur in the business sector.

3. What is a virtual meeting? In what ways can people meet ‘virtually’?

4. How would you go about planning a problem solving meeting?

5. How should one set an agenda?


UNIT 4

DEVELOPING THE PRESENTATION

This unit is about how to develop a presentation, or – quite simply – give a

speech. Whatever your field, whatever your job, speaking to an audience is a

fact of life for instance sales representatives and account executive deliver

presentations to potential customers. Most people who work in organisations

eventually find that their effectiveness and success depends on their ability to

organise their ideas and present them effectively. That is what this unit will

show you.

4.1 INTRODUCTION

Different kinds of presentations makes different demands on the speaker for example, a sales

presentation to one customer may often seem more like a conversation because the customer

may interrupt with questions, while a speaker addressing an audience of several hundred

people may delay questions until the end. In spite of the differences, all presentations make

many of the same demands on the speaker, planning, structure, supports and strategy of each

of them are very important and a good speaker follows approximately the same steps in

planning and developing almost any presentation.

4.2 ANALYSING THE SITUATION

Before you plan even one sentence of the actual presentation, you have to think about the

situation in which you will speak. A presentation that might fascinate you could bore or

irritate the audience; you can make sure that your approach is on target by considering three

factors: the audience, yourself as the speaker and the occasion.

Analysing the Audience

The saying “Different strokes for different folks” is never more true than when you

are delivering a presentation. Having good ideas is not enough you have to present

those ideas in a way that your listeners will understand and appreciate

Asking yourself a number of questions about your listeners will shape the way you

adopt your material to fit their interest, needs and back grounds. For example what

are their positions, their personal preferences etc.

Analysing yourself as the Speaker

No two presentations are like while you can learn to speak better by listening to other

speakers, a good presentation is rather like a good hair style or a sense of humour;

what suits someone else might not work for you. One of the biggest mistakes you can

make try to use a carbon copy of some other effective speakers. When developing

your presentation, be sure to consider these factors:

Your purpose

Your knowledge

Your feelings about the topic


Analysing the Occasion: Even a complete understanding of your audience won’t give you everything you need; to

plan an effective presentation you also need to adopt your remarks to fit the circumstance of

your presentation. Several factors contribute to the occasion.

Facility (will you be speaking in small or big room)

Time (two considerations here are: time of the day, length of time)

Context (events surrounding your presentation)

4.3 ESTABLISHING A PURPOSE

An absolutely essential step in planning is to define your purpose. A statement of purpose

describes what you want to accomplish. Then after you have spoken, the same statement

helps you know whether you have achieved your goal. These are two kinds of purposes to

consider:

General

Specific

General purpose

As the name implies a general purpose is a broad indications of what you are trying to

accomplish. Developing the purpose is essential and they are three general purposes.

- To inform (expand your listener’s knowledge)

- To persuade (changing Audience thinks or does)

- To Entertain (sometimes speaker’s goal is to help the Audience have

good time)

Specific purpose

This one describes the outcome you are seeking. If you think of a speech as a journey

your specific purpose is your destination. Stating the specific purpose tells you what

you will have accomplished when you have arrived.

4.4 DEVELOPING THE THESIS

The thesis statement sometimes called Central Idea or Key Idea is a single sentence that

summarises your message. Once you have a thesis, every other part of talk should support it.

The thesis gives your listeners a clear idea of what you are trying to tell them.

Organising Our Ideas

1. GATHERING IDEAS AND MATERIAL

2. ORGANIZING THE BODY

- Identify main points and sub points

- Choose the best organisational pattern

- Rules for main points


3. PLANNING THE INTRODUCTION

- Functions of the introduction

- Types of opening statements.

4. PLANNING CONCLUSIONS

- Functions of the conclusion

- Types of closing statements

5. ADDING TRANSITIONS

- Function of transitions

- Characteristics of effective transitions

A substantial body of research indicates that organising your remarks clearly can make your

massage more understandable, keep your audience happy and boost your image as a speaker.

Despite the benefits of good organisation, most presentations suffer from a variety of

problem in this area:-

Taking too long to get to the point many speakers ramble, gush, or drone on about

their topic long.

Including irrelevant materials. Remember your Audience may not take care of your

topic as you do.

Leaving out necessary materials (information)

Getting ideas mixed up take your time to decide how to present.

1. GATHERING IDEAS AND MATERIALS

Once you have figured out your thesis you are ready to develop the information that

will get your audience to accept it. It requires research if for example, you want to sell

potential customers on your product, you will want to find out which competing

products they are using now and how they feel about them

2. ORGANISING THE BODY

Inexperienced speakers make the mistake of starting to plan a talk by beginning at the

beginning, by just writing an introduction. This is like trying to landscape a piece of

property before you have put up a building.

Organising the body of a talk consists of two steps.

Identifying the key points that support your thesis.

Dividing what organisational plan best develops those points.


Identify main points and sub points:

The list of ideas you have complied by research and brain starting probably contains more

material than you will want to use in your talk, so the next step is to figure out which key

points best support your thesis and help you a chive your purpose.

On the basis of this analysis, you might decide that the major reason that would convince

listener to sign up to use mercury are:-

- Mercury is more reliable

- Mercury is more convenient

- Mercury is more economical

None of the these points was on the brain storming figure list, but they emerge as thesis from

that list

Choose the best organisational pattern

There are five ways to organise the body of presentation. You should choose the one that best

develops your thesis and helps you to achieve your purpose.

a) Chronological: Chronological pattern arranges its points according to their sequence

in time; you can use it to explain a process such as the steps in putting an order

through order fulfilment and shipping department;

b) Spatial: This pattern organises material according to how it is put together or where it

is located physically;

c) Topical: A topical pattern groups your ideas around some logical thesis or divisions

in your subject, for example you might organise a proposal for simplifying the

expense accounting procedures around the reason for the change or a sales

presentation for photo copiers around the three major types of copiers;

d) Cause effect: This one shows that certain events have happened or will happen as a

result of certain circumstance for example you might show prospective life insurance

customers how certain clauses will provide extra coverage if they are hospitalised or

demonstrate how new advertising programme will help a product reach wider market;

e) Problem solving: It is usually used when the speaker is proposing some kind of

changes. When you use this pattern, you describe the problems and then show how

your plan will solve it. You might use a problem solution pattern to show a customer

how your service contract will keep her from losing time and paying for expensive

repairs when her personal computer breaks down.

Rules for main points

Whichever pattern of organisation you use, your main point should meet the

following criteria.

Main points should be stated as claims: A claim is a statement asserting a fact or brief

by stating your claim in full, they will probably satisfy the test and be remembered.

All points should develop the thesis.

Consider the following outline.

- Flexible scheduling is a relatively new idea that improves morale

- Flexible scheduling improves morale

- Flexible scheduling reduces absenteeism


A presentation should contain no more than five main points: your main points are, after all,

what you want your listeners to remember and people have difficulty recalling more than five

pieces of information when it is presented orally.

Each main point contains only one idea.

Combining ideas or over lapping them will confuse audience consider this outline:

- Business discrimination on the basis of ethnic background.

- Business discrimination on the basis of disability.

- Business discrimination on the basis of age and sex.

3. PLANNING THE INTRODUCTION

The body of the representation is important, but the introduction that precedes it needs just as

much attention. Your introduction should take between 10 and 15 percent of the speaking

time where your listeners initiate impression of your topic

Functions of the Introduction

As you have already learned, an introduction should have two parts:-

- An attention getter and a thesis

- Preview

Those two parts should access and polish five things:

I. Capture of the listener’s attention. As you learned previously audience always

approach a presentation ready to listen.

II. Give your Audience a reason to listen. The best way to grab and hold your listeners

attention is to convince them that your massage will be important or interesting to

them.

III. Set the proper line for the topic setting: if you want potential customers to buy more

fire insurance, your opening remarks should prepare them to think seriously about the

problem they will encounter if they had a fire in the house.

IV. Establish your qualification. If the audience already known that you are an expert on

the subject, if a previous speaker has given you an impressive introduction or when

the authority makes it clear that your qualified establishing credibility is not

necessary.

V. Introduce your thesis and preview your presentation. In most cases, you need to state

your main idea clearly at the beginning of your remark.

Accomplishing those five goals in less than I minute is not difficult as it might seem.

Types of opening statements

Of all parts of presentations the opening words are the hardest for many speakers. You have

to be interesting, you have to establish the right tone, and your remarks have to relate to the

topic being discussed.


The following are the seven of the most common and effective ways to begin a presentation.

1. Ask a question. It is a good way to involve your listeners in your topic and establish

its importance.

2. Tell a story. Most people enjoy stories. Beginning with one can be an effective way to

get audience attention.

3. Present a question these one have two advantages

- Someone else probably already said what you want to say in every clever

way

- Lets you use a source with high credibility to backup your message.

4. Make a startling statement is an excellent way to get listeners attention is to surprise

them.

5. Refer to the audience. Mentioning your listener’s needs concerns, or interests,

clarifies the relevance of your topic immediately and show that you understand your

audience.

6. Refer to the occasion the event itself provides a good starting point

7. Using a joke can be an effective way to get attention.

4. PLANNING THE CONCLUSION

The conclusion of your presentation should be even shorter than the introduction. Not more

than 15 percent of your total time.

Functions of conclusion

Generally it should have two parts.

- A review

- Closing statement.

Review

It should contain the restatement of your thesis and the summary of your main points. Your

review can also be a subtler rewarding of the same information.

Closing statement

A strong closing will help your listeners to remember you favourably.

Types of closing statements

The several techniques used for getting attention in your introduction will also work well as

closing statements.

I. Ask a question

II. Tell a story

III. Give a question

IV. Make a startling statement

V. Refer to the occasion

VI. Use humour


In addition, there are several other types of closing statements you might use.

Return to the thesis of your opening statement coming back to the place you started

gives a sense of completion to your presentation.

Appeal for action. When your goal involves getting audience to act in certain way

you can sometimes close your presentation by asking for your deserved result.

End with a challenge. Where as an appeal asks for done action, challenge almost

demands it.

5. ADDING TRANSITIONS

Transitions are words or sentences that connect the segments of a presentation.

Functions of transition

They serve three basic important purposes:

1. They promote clarity especially in a one way speech like presentations: it is more

difficult to archive than clarity in writing.

2. They emphasize important ideas: transmissions within the presentation high light

important information the way italics bold type emphasize it in print.

3. They keep listeners interested. It gives momentum to a presentation. They make

listeners want to find out what comes next.

4.5 GIVING A SPEECH

The spoken word wields great power. It can stir people to mutinies and rebellions; it can also

make people dis-spirited and downcast. It can turn a hostile mob into a friendly gathering it

can also turn a friendly gathering into a hostile mob. It can build tension and it can relax

tension. The key to the success of many political leaders, industrialists, businesspersons and

salesperson lies in their capability of making an effective speech.

In the commercial world, a salesperson has to make hundreds of mini speeches a day to

persuade his customers to buy certain goods. The greater his speech-making ability, the

better salesperson he will be. A touring agent booking orders for his parent firm is also a kind

of speaker. There are small, informal speeches as well. Managers, businesspersons and

industrialists are often required to make speeches at company meetings, inaugurations,

seminars and discussions. It needs considerable skill to prepare a speech and give it

effectively before a gathering. But whether it is salesman selling a pair of nylon socks or a

bank manager persuading his listeners to accept certain proposal, they organize their

speeches on identical fundamental principles. Our major purpose in this chapter is to spell

out these principles and to illustrate them.


Characteristics of a Good Speech

1. It is clear

Clarity is the first major characteristic of a good speech. Your speech should be successful

in conveying to the audience the ideas or emotions, facts or arguments, you want to

express. If your audience does not instantaneously grasp your point, you have failed as a

speaker.

2. It is like an informal talk

A good speech is closer to a personal and informal chat between two intimate friends.

When you speak, there should be a perfect rapport between you and your audience.

3. It is vivid and concrete

Abstractions kill a speech. So make your speech vivid. Include in it concrete facts easy to

comprehend and visualize. Somebody wanted to say India’s population is growing fast! He

used a very concrete image “see, how fast our population grows! Three Ugandans are

added to the population of India every year! Nobody missed his point.

4. It is brief

The concentration of an average audience does not last more than fifteen to twenty minutes.

Ideally, your speech should not be longer than this, unless the audience is motivated to

know more.

To achieve brevity, it is desirable to include only a few points in your speech and elaborate

them at some length. If you say right in the beginning: “I am going to present to you the

four major problems being faced by the sugar industry”, and briefly discuss these problems,

your speech will be both brief and clear.

5. It is interesting

Quotations, anecdotes and humorous touches often make a speech interesting. Quotations

should be from accepted authorities. They should be familiar but not worn out. Anecdotes

should be new, brief and in good taste. Humour should be topical, original, spontaneous

and gentle.

6. It is audience-oriented

A good speech is always tuned to the wavelength of the audience consider the following

points carefully.

i. Is the audience a general or specialized one? This will help you to determine the

depth of the subject that you can touch.

ii. How large is the audience? With a small audience, the speech will be more like a

chart. In a large gathering you will have to be rhetorical.

iii. What is the age-group of the listeners? Your references and illustrations should

conform to the tastes of the particular age group.

iv. What are the social, religious, political and economic views and prejudices of the

listeners? What is the expected audience response?


4.6 PROFILE OF A GOOD SPEAKER

In Write better, Speak Better (Reader’s Digest Publication) the following nine qualities of a

good speaker are mentioned.

1) “A good speaker is lively, interested, enthusiastic, and vital”. He treats his audience as

a group of living people. He makes sure that he is keenly interested in the subject he

is speaking about and he is taking pains to make his audience equally interested in it.

2) “A good speaker is earnest”. He does not speak just for the sake of speaking-in order

to show off, to impress his audience with his intellect or his authority.

3) “A good speaker has a sense of responsibility to his listeners”. He realizes that time is

precious and tries to say something worth the time being spent by his audience.

4) “A good speaker has a sense of responsibility to others on the programme”. He does

not take more time than what is allotted to him.

5) “A good speaker has a sense of responsibility to his subject. He does not bite off more

than he can chew. He does spread it thin”.

6) “A good speaker has a sense of leadership; he stands up tall; he talks eye to eye; he

speaks responsibly and with authority, as a leader should”.

7) “A good speaker keeps his head”. He is not carried off by his over enthusiasm or over-

confidence.

8) “A good speaker tries to be balanced”.

9) “A good speaker keeps his sense of humour”.

4.7 PLANNING TO SPEAK

A good speech appears to be spontaneous and effortless. But it needs a lot of planning and

labour, preparations should always start well in advance.

1. Research your topic thoroughly. Don’t include many points for discussion. Clearly

spell out your points and decide what you have to say about them.

2. Plan your speech in three parts

a. The beginning should arouse the interest of the audience.

b. The middle should be devoted to the discussion

c. The conclusion should summarize the main points. If some action is to be

taken it should clearly tell the audience what they are required to do

3. Time your speech to make sure it is neither too long nor too short.

4. Look for some suitable quotations or anecdotes, if possible.

5. Arrange your points in such a way that strong points are kept at the beginning

6. Tailor your speech to the intellectual level and general taste of the audience.

7. Make sure that your delivery is going to be good. It is always desirable to rehearse the

speech.

If a tape-recorder is available, tape your speech and then listen to it carefully. Watch out for

any awkward sounding phrases or words. See if there are sound clusters that are likely to fall

heavy on the listeners’ sensibility. If some words have not been pronounced clearly, say them

a loud over and over again till you have got them all right. Critically examine the distribution

of emphasis and then alter your tone accordingly.


REVIEW QUESTIONS

1. Why is it important to plan for a speech you are asked to give?

2. What is meant by ‘analysing the situation’?

3. What is meant by ‘establishing a purpose’?

4. How do you ‘develop the thesis’

5. Outline the profile of a good speaker

6.Write a two minute speech explaining why you choose to study at Maakhir University.

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