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individuals have in composing such correspondence. Many companies, however, have taken a proactive stance inaddressing the latter issue. Mindful of the large number of workers who struggle with their writing abilities, somefirms have begun to offer on-site writing courses or enrolled employees in business writing workshops offered by

professional training organizations, colleges, and community education programs .

Written communication is an excellent way of transmitting the information across the organizational level. The

documents that contain the rules and regulations and procedures or the policy manuals are the example of writtencommunication. Besides, the written communication, through email or memos or in the form of letters, is usedwhenever the superiors need to advise or instruct their subordinates to carry out particular tasks.

Employees need to be well informed about the policies and the procedures of the organization so that they may actaccordingly. The written communication through policy manual and procedure written on the related documents,such as, loan application form, leave application form etc., serve the purpose.

Written communication serves as an evidence of the events or the actions that have been taken. There are situationsthat call for the letters or memos, as supporting documents, on whose basis certain action has been taken. In thisway, written communication is important to clear the discrepancies and facilitate understanding. Aside from these,whenever there is urgent need to convey the message to various persons, written communication can be of great helpand assistance, which can save the time and effort that is taken to conduct a meeting for that particular purpose.

Written communication is the best way for advertising and promoting the business as well. Advertisements,magazines, catalogues or leaflets are good examples of written communication. In this way, developing writtencommunication skills is of great importance and value to create and maintain professional work environmentthroughout the business organization.

Importance of Effective Written Communication

Why is written communication so important? Let us see.

Record: Written communication within the organization serves as a record of its daily proceedings.Evidence: Written communication at the workplace can also play the role of legal evidence in court cases.Delegation: Intradepartmental communication helps in the delegation of work within the different departments of the organization.

Contact: Communication such as emails, etc., are an important means of maintaining contact with clients,employees, suppliers, etc.Advertising: Different forms of written communication are used to attract prospective buyers/customers. Hence,written communication as an advertising tool is also important.

Types of Written Communication

Contracts and Agreements: This is the most important form of written communication within any organization. Itinvolves everything from contracts to licenses to different types of letters, like a letter of offer to a prospectiveemployee, a letter of intent, confidentiality agreements, terms and conditions, business introduction letter, etc. Thesewritten documents are to be preserved very carefully by both the parties mentioned therein, as they are importantlegal documents.

Emails: Today, emails have almost entirely replaced handwritten letters. Though the medium may have changed, thesame basic letter writing and other skills for writing apply even for writing emails. In fact, there are specialdepartments that take care of this. These people are specially appointed to monitor and ensure the smooth flow of correspondence within and outside the organization. They also keep an eye out for any unethical emails that may becirculating around the office. Emails as workplace communication can also be used as evidence in a court of law.

Intranet: Intranet can be used for both, vertical and horizontal communication. Vertical is from the top managementto the employees. Horizontal communication is within a single department on the same level. Instead of usingtelephones or personally visiting another colleague's workstation, companies use the intranet which gives them thefacility of being connected via a network to the workstations of their colleagues. Different instant messaging


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services (within the office) are also used by many companies.

In-house Newsletters/Magazines: Many corporate houses are adopting the idea of having an in-house magazine or newsletter published. This serves two purposes: it helps employees explore their hidden talents and everyone gets toknow everyone better when they see them in the journals.

Others: Other small forms of written communication within a workplace include notices, circulars, rosters, posters,memos, etc. These are seen all across the office and can be changed frequently. They have a very limited validity butcan sometimes be very crucial forms of written communication.

3. Examples

3.1. Intonation

Intonation is the way that the senders pitch of voice rises and falls when speaking. For example, it shows theinterpreter whether the speaker expresses his or her message in the form of a question or statement. In the first case,the voice rises at the end of the phrase or the sentence and in the second case, it falls. At the same time, intonation

indicates the end of an entity of information, which in written communication is shown by means of a comma,semicolon, point, exclamation mark or question mark. Another function of intonation is to lay emphasis on a

particular word or idea, a detail that the interpreter must not fail to be aware of.

3.2. Tone of voice

The tone of voice is a means by which the speaker implies his or her attitude to the message. It is also a means bywhich he seeks a reaction from the hearer. In a political debate, for instance, the tone of voice is likely to be rousing,whereas on television the daily news is communicated in a more factual tone. Other examples of tone of voice are:aggressive, critical, nervous, disappointed, monotonous, friendly, enthusiastic, vivid, persuasive, etc.

3.3. Vocally produced noises

Spoken discourse can be accompanied by vocally produced noises that are not regarded as part of language, thoughthey help in communication for the expression of attitude or feeling. Such non-lexical expressions differ inimportant respects from language: They are much more similar in form and meaning, i.e. universal, as a whole incontrast to the great diversity of language. Vocally produced noises include laughter, shouts, screams of joy, fear,

pain, as well as conventional expressions of disgust, triumph, etc., tradi tionally spelled ugh!, ha ha!

3.4. Body posture

Body posture is the bearing or the position of the speakers body. It is a more or less stable state and thus not to beconfused with body gestures which are movements. Body posture can be characteristic and assumed for a special

purpose or it can correspond to the normal expectations in the context of a particular si tuation. Obviously one can belying down, seating, or standing. Normally, these are not the elements of posture that convey messages. However,

when the speaker is slouched or erect, his or her legs crossed or arms folded, such postures convey a degree of formality or relaxation. Once more, they can also transfer symbolic messages on the orators attitude or intentionwith regard to the message.

3.5. Body gestures

A body gesture is a movement made with a limb, especially the hands, to express, confirm, emphasize or back upthe speakers attitude or intention. This non -verbal activity is regularly used in oral discourse. If a body act requiresno verbal accompaniment, it is called an emblem. Examples are: hand signals such as waving good - bye, the V


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for victory sign or the high five signalling victory. While some emblems, for example a clenched fist, haveuniversal meaning, there are others that are idiosyncratic or culturally conditioned. The use of the zero shape made

by the fingers, for instance, does not mean the same thing in different cultures. Standing for OK in the UK, it may be a vulgar expression in South American cultures, sometimes embarrassingly so Body gestures are alway s perceived and interpreted together with facial expressions.

3.6. Facial expressions and eye movement

Facial expressions are dynamic features which communicate the speakers attitude, emotions, intentions, and so on.The face is the primary source of emotions. During oral communication, facial expressions change continually andare constantly monitored and interpreted by the receiver. Examples are: a smile, frown, raised eyebrow, yawn or sneer.

Eye movement is a key part of facial behaviour because the eyes are invariably involved in facial displays. Thedifferent forms are observed to be cross-cultural. The frequency of eye contact may suggest either interest or

boredom or may even betray dishonesty. The direct stare of the speaker can show candour or openness. Downwardglances are generally associated with modesty; eyes rolled upwards are conveyed as a sign of fatigue. Researchershave discovered that certain facial areas reveal our emotional state better than others. For example the eyes tend toshow happiness, sadness or even surprise. The lower face can also express happiness or surprise; a smile, for

instance, can communicate friendliness or cooperation. As for the lower face, brows and forehead are known toreveal mostly anger.

3.7. Pause

A pause can have two different functions:

1. It can be a brief suspension of the voice to indicate the limits and relations of sentences and their parts. A pausethen assumes a similar function in oral discourse to intonation (see chapter 3.1.).

2. It can consist of a temporary vocal inaction revealing the speakers uncertainty, hesitation, tension or uneasiness.In this context, a pause can also be judgmental by indicating favour or disfavour, agreement or disagreement.Consequently, the non-verbal cue of a pause can give rise to problems when interpreting it because its meaning canvary considerably. It can have a positive or negative influence on the process of communication.

Benefits

Business owners can gain from learning about nonverbal communication and its potential benefits. Nonverbalcommunication can increase the opportunity to interact with colleagues, competitors, clients and potential clientsthrough avenues outside of explicit word choice. Posture, vocal tone and eye contact can deliver subtle messagesthat reinforce whats being said to convey consistency and trustworthiness. Another benefit is that nonverbalcommunication can help demonstrate confidence, enthusiasm and professionalism through attire choice, activelistening cues and the ability to present a message. Nonverbal communication can play a special role in international

business settings, where even with the aid of translators there may be a natural wariness about the accuracy of intentions, details or offers revealed.

Uses

Knowledge of nonverbal communication in business plays two roles. Managers use nonverbal communication toeffectively lead other employees and team members. And team members in the business, whether they realize it or not, use nonverbal cues to communicate information to individu als outside the business, whether theyre clients,competitors or colleagues in a complementary industry.

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