Communication
Why Did Some CEOs Fail?
“But I sure wish I’d done a better job of
communicating with GM people. I’d do that differently
the second time around and make sure they
understood and shared my vision for the company”
[Roger Smith, GM, 1989]
“I did lose contact in some sense with the people of
Citicorp and our customers. I have not been sensitive
to that need” [John Reed, Citicorp, 1989]
WHAT IS COMMUNICATION ?
?!!
What is said?
What was meant?
What is the appropriate action?
Communication is concerned with achieving a shared
understanding in an interaction.
PATTERN OF MANAGERS’ TIME USE
(Mintzberg)
Unplanned
meetings
50%
Dealing with
documentation
work
26%
Telephone
8%
Travel
Planned meetings 4%
12%
PERCEPTION PROCESS
Stimuli
A
B
C
.
.
Behavior
Attention
&
Organization
Interpretation
Retrieval
Judgement
Attitudes
Selective
Perception
Selective
Perception
FACTORS FORMING RECEIVER’S
UNDERSTANDING
Knowledge
Interests
Experience
Prejudice
Mood
Beliefs
ENVIRONMENT
COMMUNICATION MODEL
Receiver
Sender
Idea
Decoded
Encoded
Media
Understanding
COMMUNICATION MODEL
Receiver
Sender
Media
Communication Factors...
Sender’s factors:
- Knowledge and experience
- Attitude
- Methods
- Lingual ability
Environment (e.g., noise)
Receiver’s factors
- Knowledge and experience
- Emotion
- Attitude
- Biases
Language’s vagueness
7 Principles of Communication
1. Problem-oriented, not Person-oriented
2. Descriptive, not Evaluative
3. Validating, not Invalidating
4. Specific, not Global
5. Conjunctive, not Disconjunctive
6. Owned, not Disowned
7. Supportive listerning, not One-way listening
Problem-oriented, not Person-oriented
Problem oriented
“How can we solve this problem?”
People oriented
“Because of you there is a problem.”
What would be the results of Person-oriented
Communication?
Descriptive, not Evaluative

Descriptive
“Here is what happened; here is
my reaction; and here is my
suggetions...”

Evaluative
“You are wrong for doing that!”
What would be the results of Evaluative
communication ?
Conjunctive, not Disconjunctive
Conjunctive means joined to the message of the other to make
the interaction flows smoothly
Conjunctive
“Related to what you said, I
have an idea.”
Disconjunctive
“I have an idea (regarless of
what you’ve said”
What would be the results of Disconjunctive
communication ?
Specific, not Global
Specific
Global
“You are late three times this
week”
“You are always late!”
What would be the results of Global
communication ?
Owned, not Disowned
Owned
“I’ve decided to deduct 10% of
your grades because…”
Disowned
“They don’t like your ideas …”
What would be the results of Disowned communication ?
FOUNDATION OF
CONTROL
16
What Is Control?

Control
–

The Purpose of Control
–
17
The process of monitoring activities to ensure that
they are being accomplished as planned and of
correcting any significant deviations.
To ensure that activities are completed in ways
that lead to accomplishment of organizational
goals.
Why Is Control Important?

As the final link in management functions:
–
Planning

–
Empowering employees

–
Control systems provide managers with information and
feedback on employee performance.
Protecting the workplace

18
Controls let managers know whether their goals and
plans are on target and what future actions to take.
Controls enhance physical security and help minimize
workplace disruptions.
Designing Control Systems

Market Control
–
Emphasizes the use of external market mechanisms to
establish the standards used in the control system.


Bureaucratic Control
–

Emphasizes organizational authority and relies on rules,
regulations, procedures, and policies.
Clan Control
–
19
External measures: price competition and relative market
share
Regulates behavior by shared values, norms, traditions,
rituals, and beliefs of the firm’s culture.
Three Control System

Market control: (Market)
–
–

Bureaucratic control: (Rules)
–
–

If process follows the policies and rules
Need to be supervise all along
Clan control: (Trust)
–
20
If the market accept the products and prices
Measuring the end result, may be too late
–
If people behave according to the (unwritten) values
and norms of the organization
May be cheated
The Planning–Controlling Link
Exhibit 18.2
21
Case: Why My Start-up Failed?
22
How To Make Controlling Easier
Objectives
Measures
Increase
Products/
productivity person per
day
Targeted
Actual
Causes
10
8
Why?
23
The Control Process
24
Xerox Case


25
Draw a figure to illustrate the two appraisal
(control) systems
Compare the two systems and explain why
one system worked better than the other