The communication was first presented as an e-mail. As I read the e-mail the message came across
as urgent yet polite I understood the message and I was not offended by it nor
did I feel rushed. The second method was via a voice mail message. Again the
tone of the person leaving the message was polite but direct, and was recited verbatim
to the e-mail. To me, the message seemed to be little more effective since it
associated a real person with the need and out a voice to that person. The last
presentation was in the form of a face to face conversation. The coworker in
need of the report again recited the e-mail verbatim, but did it face to face with
the second coworker. This method seemed to be the most effected as it not only
got the message across, but it put a face and a voice with the request
All three of these messages were informal. Portny et al. (2008)
state that there are two main types of communication; formal and informal. In
formal communication, the content is preplanned and conducted in a standard
format in accordance with an established schedule. They go on to state that
informal communication occurs as people think of the information they want to
share. While the three messages were definitely in a format based on proper use
of the English language and politeness, they were in fact informal as they occurred
as the coworker realized they needed to communicate their requirements,
The
implications of what this means to me as far as how I can use it to communicate
effectively with members of a project team are varied. Effective communication
is and essential skill of any Project Manager (PM). I learned that to be the
most effective I need to communicate in person as much as possible.
References
Portny, S. E., Mantel, S. J., Meredith, J. R., Shafer, S. M., Sutton, M. M., & Kramer, B. E. (2008). Project management:Planning, scheduling, and controlling projects. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
The Art of Effective Communication. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://mym.cdn.laureate-media.com/2dett4d/Walden/EDUC/6145/03/mm/aoc/index.html
Hi Brown,
ReplyDeleteI do agree with you that all three of the communications were informal. I did not mention that in my post but you are right.However, it is still possible to hold one responsible for an email that he has responded to.
There are some individuals who feel intimidated when formal letters are sent to them. The feel far removed from the sender and behave very superficial with the response.When the communication is informal these same people tend to be at ease and respond better. Thus the informal communication has its place.
Hi Clarence,
ReplyDeleteI agree with your final statement that talking in person is the most effective way of communicating, especially in the workplace. I also agree that there was not much difference in any of the ways the message was delivered. I think we would have felt differently about the messages had they contained difference information from one to the next and honestly, I do not think in a real-life situation that the exact same words would have been used as was in this instance.