1、Chapter 1: Fundamental Theories of Business CommunicationThe Role of Communication In BusinessFramework1.1 business communication (BC) defined1.2 the organization & its structure1.3 dynamic & multi-channeled nature of BC 1.4 internal communication (IC)1.5 external communication (EC)1.6 corporate cul

2、ture & internal communication1.7 formal & informal communication (FC & IFC)1.8 summary一群外國(guó)人逛中國(guó)商場(chǎng)，發(fā)現(xiàn)門口有個(gè)牌子，上面寫著“小心地滑”，留學(xué)生們笑了，中國(guó)人真有意思，把這當(dāng)旱冰場(chǎng)了，讓我們小心地（DE）滑！小心滑倒！扁鵲見蔡恒公原文：扁鵲見蔡桓公，立有間，扁鵲曰：“君有疾在腠理，不治將恐深。”桓侯曰：“寡人無疾?！北怡o出，桓侯曰：“醫(yī)之好治不病以為功。”居十日，扁鵲復(fù)見曰：“君之病在肌膚，不治將益深。”桓侯不應(yīng)。扁鵲出，桓侯又不悅。居十日，扁鵲復(fù)見曰：“君子病在腸胃，不治將益深?！被负钣植粦?yīng)。扁鵲

3、出，桓侯又不悅。居十日，扁鵲望桓侯而還走?；负罟适谷藛栔?，扁鵲曰：“疾在腠理，湯熨之所及也；在肌膚，針石之所及也；在腸胃，火齊之所及也；在骨髓，司命之所屬，無奈何也。今在骨髓，臣是以無請(qǐng)矣 。居五日，桓公體痛，使人索扁鵲，已逃秦矣，桓侯遂死。 注釋 ：扁鵲（bin qu）：姓秦，名越人，戰(zhàn)國(guó)時(shí)鄚（m）地人，屬于早期秦人一支。醫(yī)術(shù)高明。所以人們就用傳說 中的上古神醫(yī)扁鵲的名字來稱呼他。關(guān)于扁鵲：有一次扁鵲行醫(yī)到虢（讀音：gu 國(guó)）國(guó)，虢國(guó)的太子死了，正要下葬。扁鵲問明了其病情后，斷定太子未死，先用針刺療法，一會(huì)兒太子醒來，又把藥物敷在太子肋下，一會(huì)兒，太子就站了起來，最后給太子配湯藥喝，僅僅服了

4、30多天，太子就完全康復(fù)了。蔡桓(hun)公：實(shí)指齊桓公田午(前400年前357年，44歲)，田氏代齊以后的第三位齊國(guó)國(guó)君，謚號(hào)為“齊桓公”，因與“春秋五霸”之一的姜姓齊國(guó)的齊桓公小白相同，故史稱“田齊桓公”或“齊桓公午”。因?yàn)楫?dāng)時(shí)蔡國(guó)已亡，而齊國(guó)都上蔡，故說蔡桓公。（齊國(guó)都城是臨淄，田氏代齊之后也不曾遷都，何來“齊國(guó)都上蔡”一說，難道此上蔡非彼上蔡？）。韓非（約前280-公元前233），戰(zhàn)國(guó)時(shí)期重要的思想家，先秦法家學(xué)說的集大成者。韓非子為法家重要著作 1.1 Business Communication (BC)DefinedDefinition: a dynamic, multi-cha

5、nneled process, which covers internal as well as external communication in a given organization1.2 The Organization & Its Structure Concept : An organization refers to an administrative and functional structure ( like a company or corporation ), in which a certain number of people are able to commun

6、icate with each other and are willing to make contribution to a common goal.2.Department by Function3.Department by Region1.3 Dynamic & Multi-Channeled Nature of BC1.Dynamic BC is always changing with the changing business and never remains static.2.Multi-Channeled Business people get in touch with

7、each other in a multi-channeled way: talk to each other vis-vis or over the phone; send either e-mail or faxes etc.1.4.1 Downward CommunicationDefinition: Downward communication refers to the communication which goes from the top to the bottom, from the management to the subordinates. Of the three k

8、inds of Internal communication, downward communication plays the leading role as it often carries instruction, decisions, suggestions, announcements and so on. DC can be carried out in a written way (like memos, bulletins, reports, newsletters, etc.)an oral way (like telephone talks, presentations,

9、speeches, video conferences,etc.) The necessity to send employees the downward informationFirst, shows the recognition of the employees need for information from the management, which will have a strong cohesive impact on the employees for the organization.Second, telling employees the real situatio

10、n the organization faces will clarify some likely doubts and even rumors among the employees.Third, by telling employees the relevant information, the management can get the necessary feedbackpositive or negative they expect from employees, like suggestions, comments, complaints or even criticisms.C

11、haracteristics of DCone-way natureauthoritative and influentialManagers should minimize the uncertainty and vagueness in their downward communication.MBWA (Management By Walking Around) Sometimes, a General Manager may use DC outside his office, like a walking talk or an on-the-site inspection.MBC (

12、Management by Coaching) : A challenge to the traditional way of managing. For a manager, to coach is to develop his subordinates abilities and bring their potential into full play.上下同欲者勝 上下同欲者勝，與民同利者興。在企業(yè)管理中，領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者能引導(dǎo)上下心往一處想，勁往一處使，為實(shí)現(xiàn)特定的目標(biāo)而不懈地努力，企業(yè)就能越辦越興旺。 歷史上很多帝王與民爭(zhēng)利、向民奪利，唐太宗一反這種做法。這位開明的皇帝提出了“與民同利”的有遠(yuǎn)

13、見的思想。 貞觀初年，天下大旱，關(guān)中百姓有的賣兒賣女。唐太宗李世民為了社稷安定，曾祈求上天，可上天仍不賜雨，唐太宗又要開渭河引水灌溉，又遭到大臣們的反對(duì)，大臣們說，開渭河會(huì)像隋煬帝開運(yùn)河那樣累計(jì)百姓，使天下怨聲載道，讓唐太宗慎思。唐太宗李世民慎思之后，再次上朝 隋煬帝開運(yùn)河，修建奢侈的宮殿，圖的是一人私欲，損害的是天下臣民，所以百姓揭竿而起，推倒了風(fēng)行萬里的大隋。今日朕開渭河，為的是百姓，圖的是五谷豐登。朕不敢說與大禹同舉，但朕愿效仿大禹，與百姓同苦同利！”朝臣無言地看著唐太宗。唐太宗對(duì)眾臣說：“今日朕身體力行，親往渭水開河。朕不詔命你們，愿跟從朕的，朕歡迎，不愿跟從的，朕也不責(zé)怪。” 唐太宗

14、這種與“與民同利”的思想與孫子的“上下同欲者勝”。有異曲同工之妙。UC makes it possible for the management to hear the voice of their subordinates, which is beneficial for the managerial level to check the correctness or the appropriateness of their decisions, so as to improve their later-on downward communication.UC is reliable and

15、 valuable on the condition that it is of the subordinates own will.Employees worries cause real problems for the management when they want to make an evaluation of those UC messages. The management cannot be sure whether they can depend on those messages from their employees, and to what extent they

16、 can depend on them.The top management can do something to encourage UC if they really care about it. 1.4.3 Horizontal Communication (HC)Definition: Horizontal communication refers to the communication at the same level in an organization. HC is usually characterized by its informality, closeness an

17、d speed. HC is casual in form, but often serious in its content. HC is often neglected by the management because of its informality.HC is dual-function in nature: it could have a positive role, if appropriately guided, in coordinating each others ideas or behaviors so as to match the internal contex

18、t of a given organization. However, it may also have a negative impact upon the morale of employees at a particular level.Of the three kinds of internal communication mentioned above, DC plays the leading rolenot just in giving directives to the subordinates, but in adjusting and coordinating the th

19、ree kinds of communication as a whole. Indeed, the management of a given organization should try their best to do a better job in building an effective and healthy internal communication system within the organization.1.5 External Communication (EC)Definition:External Communication refers to the kin

20、d of communication between the organization and the outside institution and persons concerned, which involves a lot of activities.In order to do a better job in their external communications, many companies have set up a public relations department (PRD), and some have even further divided it into t

21、wo sectionsone in charge of the domestic affairs and the other of the international affairs.Public relations (PR) function in two ways: Let the public be aware of the existence of the companyGenerate what they have learned from the public to assist the management.The ways of PRadvertisinga good serv

22、ice Advertising is a popular practice for many companies.Advertising does play an important role in building an image either for a product or for a company,which should be accompanied by good service. To make customers satisfied, the quality of the product and the service must match their expectatio

23、ns.Another important aspect of EC is the individuals,i.e. people who do not represent any organizations, just themselves, like customers and shareholders. Now many companies are making “customer satisfaction “ (CS) their target and are striving towards this goal.Many firms find it hard to communicat

24、e with shareholders, and this is especially true when cannot bring enough good news to those shareholders.1.6 Corporate culture & Internal communicationDefinition: Corporate culture refers to the established value, beliefs and principles in a given organization, which enable the organization to move

25、 forward to its goal.As corporate culture sets a framework for an organizations activities, it has a great impact on its internal communication. It is highly necessary for an organization to cultivate a good corporate culture so as to have a sound internal communication.Minicase : MotoralaYueshan ca

26、se (p16)This case shows: corporate culture works on the internal communication.The relationship between culture and internal communication is a causal one without a sound corporate culture, one can hardly expect a sound internal communication. What kind of corporate culture an enterprise should have

27、, this depends solely on the enterprise itself.1.7 Formal & Informal Communication (FC & IFC)Both internal communication and external communication can be further divided into two kinds: formal communication and informal communication, each of which has its own characteristics.1.7.1 Formal Communica

28、tion (FC)Formal communication refers to such communicative activities as a business talk, a speech, a product presentation, a business letter, a memo, etc.Formal communication is characterized by seriousness and exactness. Therefore, it often asks for a good preparation. Formal communicationin an or

29、al way in a written way A written FC differs from an oral one in its form and its feedback.Good designing plus rich collection of figures and facts is essential for a good formal communication.People may have different opinions in the FC, communication skills are very important in solving this probl

30、em.What is essential for FC is its formalnessyou have to weigh each word over before you actually use it, spoken or written. In another word we may say that, in FC, you have to take all the responsibilities for whatever messages you send, and that is the very nature for FC.In order to make FC an eff

31、ective action, a manager should pay enough attention to the way an FC carried out. 1.7.2 Informal Communication(IFC)Definition: IFC, which is often called “grapevine”, exists in almost all organizations and at all levels, it is part of organizational communication.Grapevine follows no set pattern an

32、d moves in all directions in the organization. Grapevine has the following features:UnpredictabilityCross-level involvementThrived by active “messengers”Highly selectiveSpeedinessGrapevine has a small number of activists guiding and influencing the IFC. Besides, grapevine has its members for the spe

33、edy transmission of information. The appropriate way for the management to go is to have more direct contact with their employees, to listen to their opinions and suggestions, and to care about their welfare.Case Study Ikea, a well-known Swedish home improved store opened a Home Furnishings store in

34、 Beijing last year, and has attracted many visitors every day. Li Mei and her husband have just moved into a new apartment and the couple wanted to add some more pieces of furniture in the apartment. As Li Meis husband once lived and studied in Sweden for some time, the couple decided to go to Ikea.

35、 However, they were told that they should pay the total sum of money right there before the furniture was sent to their home. In Beijing, the popular way for the purchase of furniture is to pay 10 percent of the total sum as a deposit, and the remaining is paid upon the arrival of the furniture. Aft

36、er some negotiation, Ikea employees gave up their original request but insisted on a 25 percent deposit for the sofa. In the course of this process, the saleswomans arrogant attitude and her repeated expression “Its Ikeas rule” almost spoiled the transaction. Nevertheless, the couple filled in the order form for the sofa. They asked the saleswoman to tell the d