This document provides an introduction to communication. It discusses that communication has been a lifelong skill and habits may need to change for workplace communication. Effective communication is defined as exchanging information so that all understand. Methods of internal and external communication are outlined. Factors like personal characteristics, audience, and purpose affect communication. Effective communication is polite, formal, considers the listener's perspective, and uses natural language. Key stages of communication include encoding and decoding messages. Writing at work follows a process of planning, gathering information, drafting, revising, and editing.

1. INTRODUCTION TO
COMMUNICATION

2. You have been communicating all your
life

3. You have developed habits over the years in –
• the way you speak,
• the way you respond to other people,
• the way you ask for things,
• the way you try to persuade to do
something, and
• the way you react when they refuse.

4. To communicate effectively at work, you may
need to change some of these habits.
• Speaking and writing at work needs a
different approach to what you have been
using at home, and even at college or
university.

5. DEFINITION OF COMMUNICATION
Communication may be defined
• as giving, receiving or exchanging
information, opinions or ideas
• by writing, speech or visual means,
• so that the material communicated is
completely understood by everyone
concerned.

6. Methods of Communication
The main methods of oral and written
communication, both internal and external, are
as below-
Internal communication
• Oral- telephone, messages, meeting/conference,
presentation, face –to-face discussion, messages,
intercom
• Written-memo, report, graphs/charts, email, fax,
notice, form/questionnaire, minutes, staff
newsletter

7. External communication
• Oral- conference/seminar, conversation,
telephone, presentation, meeting
• Written- Letter, fax, e mail, report,
graph/chart, notice, advertisement, customer
newsletter, press release,
forms/questionnaire, invitation,
leaflet/brochure

8. FACTORS THAT AFFECT HOW YOU
COMMUNICATE
• Personal characteristics- age, gender,
education, life experiences, family background

9. 2. The audience- It is important to adjust the
style of speaking or writing according to the
audience (person) we are addressing.

10. In the workplace there could be different types of
people whom the communication has to be
addressed to, like ---
• A colleague whom one is close to
• Co-workers who are not familiar/close
• General Manager/Chairman of the company
• Angry customer/client
• A person from another company
• Persons from other countries/cultures

11. 3. Purpose of communication-There are many reasons
for communicating, such as-
• To inform
• To instruct
• To persuade
• To ask for something(to request)
• To make suggestions or recommendations
• To complain
• To disagree
• To apologize
• To refuse

12. EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
Effective communication at work
2.Is polite
3.Tends to be formal
4.Takes the point of view of the listener/reader
into account
5.Uses natural language rather than stuffy, old
fashioned language

13. Politeness
Politeness is difficult to define, but in general it means a
concern for other people. It includes such things as
• Addressing people correctly, by their right name &
title
• Making polite requests, rather than giving orders
• Giving listeners & readers the information they need
to understand what the communication is about
• Not wasting time
• Using polite expressions
• Showing respect for your listener/reader by using
careful, accurate, error free language

14. Formality & Informality
Much of the communication at work (except
that with colleagues we know very well) is
rather formal, whether it is spoken or written.
Formal language, especially in writing is
characterized by:
• A formal vocabulary without any slang or
casual expressions
• An absence of contractions in writing
• Objectivity or neutrality

15. Listeners/ Readers point of view
When we speak/write, we need to think of the
reader/listener’s point of view and expressing
according to their standpoint emphasizing the
benefits to them.

16. Natural Language
• In the past people were taught to write for
business purposes using a certain style of
language.
• But this style is considered very old fashioned
nowadays; preference is given to simpler,
more natural kind of language which sounds
more like the language that is spoken
commonly by people.

17. KEY STAGES IN COMMUNICATION
Sender
• Conceive the message
• Encode the message
• Select the appropriate channel
Recipient
• Decode the message
• Interpret the message
• Feedback

18. WRITING AT WORK
Most communication at work is in the form of
speech, but important matters are often put
down in writing.

19. The process of writing
• Inexperienced writers tend to assume that writing is all
about producing the final copy. In fact, producing any
kind of document is a process that involves several
stages:
2. Planning
3. Gathering information
4. Writing a draft
5. Revising
6. Editing

20. Planning
• Purpose
• Person
• Subject matter
• Format to be used

21. Gathering Information
• To have all facts ready before beginning
clearly.

22. Writing a Draft
• Organize ideas
• Write a rough outline
• Begin with easiest parts, leaving a gap for the
difficult words and sentences
• Write continuously for 20-30 min.
• Ask a colleague to reread the document and
make comments.
• Put the draft aside for a while before revising it.

23. Revising
• Check if there is any information which is to
be added.
• Any details that need to be cut off
• Are there any grammatical errors
• Has the appropriate format been followed

24. Editing
• Editing refers to making at sentence and word
level, as well as matters related to layout.
• Tone of the message
• Any grammatical/language errors
• Is it systematic written, I terms of numbering,
headings, page numbers, etc