Organizational Communication
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last updated 8/19/2016
Foundational Concepts I.
The Social
Dialectic A. Organizations are the product of the
transactions of individuals, yet B. Individuals only become who they are as a
result of the social environment (organizations) they are a part of. C. Thus, individuals both create and are created by organization, continuously
You
and Org. Comm. Employees, in the modern org, must understand the relations
between effective communication and the successful operation of the
organization (and their personal success within it). Thus, employees must understand how to choose the most
appropriate strategies in different situations. ADAPTATION! i.
Strategic
Communication is the
ability to ii.
analyze the situation - This requires – (1)
a vocabulary which allows
recognition of important features of the organization and its activities & (2)
pattern recognition (including the novel
patterns) – What events, people and structures connect to each other repeatedly iii. select appropriate communication strategies iv. enact those strategies successfully/skillfully
! diagnosis = 2 and
3
! 3 requires a
repertoire of strategy & tactics III. An Overview of Organizational Communication
A.
Defining
“communication” and “Organizational Communication.” 1.
Communication
= people, acting mutually, to manage meaning, (emergent meaning), in
context 2.
Org. Comm. =
a different (often more complex) context, multiple levels relationships
(especially interesting is power), a different shared organizational “culture.” 3. The Central Premise of the course. " The central dilemma organizations face is (1)
the organization's
need for control and coordination of its people is in continual tension with
(2)
the individual's
need for autonomy (ownership), sociability, esteem (respect, acheivement) and creativity." [ Charles Conrad
] (Individuals also need a sense of structure,
stability, predictability in order to know how to go about meeting their own
needs.) This requires:
4.
What do
we mean by “strategic?” a.
Strategy is
a choice, a way of accomplishing work, e.g bureaucracy b.
Often multiple
strategies exist in a signle organization or office. c.
Strategies
have communication implications d.
For
individuals within organizations strategies create (1)
guidelines
for action/communication (2)
constraints
(limits) on their actions (3)
resources for
accomplishing action (a)
When choices
of action are complex and conflicted, paralysis can occur. e.
Individual
choices create and change d1, d2, and d3 above (a dialectic)
Discussion
Questions for Thursday. 1.
What are examples of bureaucratic
management you have seen in your work? At Monmouth College. Were the
effective in meeting organizational goals? individual goals? 2.
Can you identify some specific problems
that bureaucratic and scientific management methods cause for the
organization? for the individuals? for society? 3.
Describe an incident in which an
organization you are familiar with seemed to suffer from lack of effective
downward communication. What happened and why? How were individuals
affected? How was the organization affected? 4.
Describe an incident in which an
organization you are familiar with seemed to suffer from lack of sufficient
upward communication. What happened and why? How were individuals affected?
How was the organization affected?
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