PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION

REVIEWER
BY: Rye ♡˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

adversely affect the work culture of an organization and

hamper its development.
CHAPTER 5
Communication for Work Purposes
Visual Communication
● Is a form of communication, which depends on
Effective communication is an important tool in achieving interaction and visual skills of employees.
productivity and maintaining rapport at all levels of a ● Visual communication in the workplace comprises
company. presentations, display charts, figures and graphics
posted on the bulletin board.
An organization is composed of a workforce that comes from ● Important information could also be disseminated
different backgrounds, cultures, nationalities, traditions and through the presentation of an audio-visual material
beliefs. To enable employees to understand each other, a on the topic.
common communication system should be put in place.
Written Communication
Organizations invest money and time to establish clear lines ● In an office set up, written communication is the
of communication across all levels in the company that could more popular type of communication being used.
build trust among its workforce, which could result in ● It is considered to be the most primitive form of
enhancing productivity, work outcomes and morale among communication in an office setting.
them.
Eventually, handwritten communication has been replaced by
On the other hand, poor communication in the workplace typewritten memoranda. Formal written communication
could result in a workforce with poor motivation, as well as comprises electronic or office memoranda, emails, training
doubt their own confidence in their capabilities and in the materials and documents. On the other hand, text messages,
company too. email and instant messaging etc. are some of the informal
written communications in the office.
General Categories of Office Communication
Verbal Communication Other Strategies of Communication in the Workplace

The most common form of communication in the workplace is

Team building - a strong team is one whose team members
verbal communication. This form of communication can be
communicate and collaborate. For purposes of improving
categorized into two classifications, as follows:
morale and the satisfaction of the workforce, the following
may be done:
Formal
● Conferences, meetings, seminars, address, training
1. Increase employee engagement
etc. are the common formal verbal communication in
● The satisfaction of the workforce can be promoted,
the workplace.
by ensuring that their voice is being listened to, both
● Meetings or conferences may be done in a small
in terms of ideas or their concerns.
group communication set up like team meetings,
● Thus, lines of communication should be established
board meetings, and departmental meetings or could
to afford all employees, regardless of their position
be done at an institutional level.
and rank, the means to interact and communicate
● formal communication can take place or face to face
with their peers and senior leaders.
or exchange of ideas could be done through the use of
2. Innovation
technology like video conferencing
● An atmosphere, in which the workforce is enabled to
express their ideas openly in a non-threatening
The facilitator usually starts and manages the proceedings.
manner, encourages them to open up their ideas.
Participants usually attend the meetings with their own agenda
● This leads to creativity and innovation.
and opinions.
3. Growth
● development projects hinge much on strong
Informal or Grapevine
communication among the workforce and all
● This type of communication does not follow the
stakeholders.
conventional rules of communication in the office.
4. Strong management
● It is deployed in all possible directions downward
● Senior leaders should be effective communicators,
(management to employee), upward (employee to
for them to manage their teams.
management), across (within peers), and diagonal
● The main functions of a leader, such as delegation of
(within departments) etc.
tasks, conflict management, motivation and
relationship building (all key responsibilities of any
Usually, this type of communication has become the source of
manager) are all much easier performed, if he/she is
all rumors and gossip in the workplace. Thus, this type of
an effective communicator.
communication should be controlled effectively, or it may
 ● Effective communication is not only the competence Minutes of the meeting are a vital source of information for
to speak to your workforce, but also to empower those who were unable to attend and helpful tools to remind
them to interact and communicate among themselves. employees of their responsibilities and the time frame for
● Promoting effective communication channels is a doing them.
crucial factor in the success of an organization.
EXAMPLE
Improving Communication in the Workplace

STRATEGIES

1. Define goals and expectations

● Senior leaders should involve the employees in
formulating clear and achievable objectives, by
clearly defining the requirement for any project, and
ensuring that all the staff are knowledgeable of the
goals of the project, the unit and the institution.
2. Clearly deliver your message
● A manager should ensure that his/her message is
clear and accessible to the intended recipients.
● It is important that a senior leader speak clearly and
politely - to put his/her message across clearly
avoiding confusion or offense.
3. Choose your medium carefully
● Once the message is completed, it should be
delivered using the best possible medium and format.
● It is true that face-to-face communication may be the
best way to build trust among employees; however, it
is not always applicable. Thus, a decision whether
information delivered in a printed copy would work
better than an email or a general memo should be
done.
4. Keep everyone involved
● Participation in major decisions develop the feeling
of ownership among the workforce.
● The sense of ownership among the workforce would
make them accountable for the decision and thereby
encourage active support and involvement in
realizing any project in the office, even as it could
promote effective communication therein.
5. Listen and show empathy
● It is believed that no company or individual could
succeed, if it does not listen to its workforce and
encourage dialogue among them.
● Listening demonstrates respect and enables
employers to learn about important issues to address.

Communication Materials in the Workplace

In various settings, like health care, education, business and

trade, law, media, science and technology, communication in
the workplace could be facilitated through the use of tools.
Some of these useful tools are as follows:
Minutes of the meeting includes:
● date and time of the meeting
1. Minutes of meetings
● list of attendees
● A record of what transpired in the meeting could
● meeting agenda
keep the workforce updated on the recent and most
● summary of the topics discussed
important activities in the office.
● approval of minutes from last meeting
● The minutes of the meeting features the decisions
● action items assigned
adopted and actions identified.
● time of adjournment

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2. Memoranda 4. Business letters
● In an office set up, important policies, activities and ● Professional communication sent from a company or
reminders are communicated through memoranda. individuals to another, or from a company to its
● Traditionally, memoranda are contained in brief and customers, personnel and stakeholders are called
formal letters, written in a businesslike and serious business letters.
manner. However, recently, emails have become a ● Effective business letters conform to accepted rules
common way of issuing memos. Below is a sample of of grammar and format.
a memorandum: ● A business letter should state your contact
information and your recipient, salutation, the body
EXAMPLE of the letter, closing and the signature of the writer.
● An important tip to follow is, your recipients read a
substantial number of letters, thus: would prefer well
written letters that are clear and grammatically
correct. The following is a sample business letter
(note the format and the parts)

EXAMPLE

3. Letter of request
● If employees would like to ask something from the
management, such as a proposal for approval of a
project or a raise in salary, they make use of a letter
of request.

EXAMPLE

5. Presentation of a Product
● One very important communication task is the
presentation of a product. If you are in sales or even
in other career paths, you will one day be required to
present a product, a proposal or a brief/report. Your
success as a communicator could be facilitated by
considering important factors, before your
presentation.

Justin Croxton in Marketing Presentations, suggests

presentation tips that could be used by marketing teams.

The most important factor is the goal of your

presentation. Being clear about your goal could lead
you eventually to the success of your presentation. To
set the goals for your presentation, Croxton suggests
considering the following:
● Objectives of your product
Your goal ● Problems you are addressing or the issues
you are trying to resolve.
● You can use the SMART model in writing
your goals. Make your goal specific,
measurable, attainable, realistic and
time-bound.

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 The next important thing to consider is the type of
audience you will be talking to. Study the culture, the
Study your likes and dislikes of your audience. Say things, which
are acceptable and pleasant to your audience. Present
audience
ideas, which could appeal to the interest of your
audience.

It would be good to keep a written presentation plan

reflecting your - objectives, the contents of your
presentation and the strategies or techniques that you
will see to convince your audience.

It is said that the beginning part of the presentation is

the most crucial part. The initial challenge is how you
could attract the attention of your audience.
Identify your ● So it is advisable to begin with a striking
presentation statement, an anecdote, a challenging
strategies question or a relevant story.
● Then, some humor could be injected at
certain points of the presentation.
● The use of audio-visual presentation is a
very helpful strategy to enable your
audience to better appreciate your product
or ideas, even as it would make the delivery
of your presentation easier for you.

If you are presenting the latest brand of a car, be able

to cite the best features of your car that appeals most to
your audience. For a Filipino audience generally, for
example, the best selling point may be the low cost and
Be clear about
fuel efficiency of a car. So, focus your goal on
the selling
convincing your audience about the price of the car, in
points of your comparison with other brands and the number of
product/ideas kilometers it can run per liter of gas. You need some
simple research to gather these pieces of information.
Thus, it would be a good tip to know your
competitor.

After identifying the best features (the value

proposition) of your product, you have to use those
Promoting value propositions to your advantage. Croxton calls
this positioning. It is how your audience will think of
your brand
your product in comparison to a competing product.
and strategic
Maximize this opportunity by pointing out the striking
positioning differences and advantages of your product versus a
competing product.

The concluding part of your presentation should lead

The road to your audience to a positive decision to buy your
the closure of product or accept your proposition. As the saying goes
"carpe diem" seize the day, never leave your audience
the deal
hanging, lead them to an affirmative answer and get
their clear yes! before leaving