Cammunication Channels Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Cammunication Channels - Essay Example Communication channels refer to modes of transfer of information from a sender to a receiver. Some examples of communication channels are face-to-face communication, telephone, meetings, and letters. This paper explores communication cases to determine the most appropriate communication channel for each case. Situation 1 A company’s competitor has acquired it and 15 percent of its employees will be laid off in the next three months. Best communication channel The best communication channel for the case is the use of internal memo that is selected on the following criteria. Formality Poor feedback potential Poor interpersonal warmth It is economical Justification A memo formal and develops a general perception of an organization’s official position because any employee who reads it knows that it is a communication from the organization’s authority. The legal scope of the case also requires formal communication to facilitate implementation of the acquisition. Anoth er reason the channel is its poor feedback potential. While the case requires immediate delivery, any form of feedback is not necessary and should be discouraged because they do not add value to the adopted position. Adopting a channel with a poor feedback capacity such as a memo would therefore benefit the organization’s management (Robbins and Coulter, 2007). The nature of the message, being a bad message to the employees, also requires a communication channel that is generally associated with unfriendly types of information. Memos, for instance, is poor on â€Å"interpersonal warmth† and this prepares the recipient of the possibility of some bad news (Robbins and Coulter, 2007, p. 295). This is therefore beneficial to recipients who are emotionally unstable as it allows them to prepare and adjust before receiving the exact news. Memo would also be suitable because of its relatively low cost that makes it economical to the management (Robbins and Coulter, 2007). Situ ation 2 A customer has sent an email to complain about an employee. Investigations have proved validity of the customer’s claim and the issue must be communicated to the employee. Best communication channel The best communication channel is face-to-face communication and is selected based on the following criteria. Efficient room for feedback Confidentiality Ease of encoding It is friendly Justification Face-to-face communication has efficient feedback ability and therefore allows for the employee’s response to the customer’s complaint. This is because in as much as the claim is believed to be true, a good decision making or conflict resolution requires hearing both parties to a case. Confidentiality of the communication channel that leads to protection of human resource factors such as the employee’s motivation and confidence in work also makes face-to-face communication the best channel. This is because the case could have been an isolated instance of a mistake and a personal approach would identify the mistake to the employee without causing embarrassments. The ease of encoding information in the communication channel will also ensure that the employee understand the concern and will lead to corrective measures. The involved friendliness of face-to-face communication also has a positive effect of offering leadership to the employee who may need training and guidance in the course of duty (Robbins and Coulter, 2007; Guffey and Loewy, 2012). Situation 3 The company’s founder, who is popular among members of the organization, has died of a chronic disease and information about his death needs to be communicated to the members. Best communication channel Group meeting of all members of the organization would be the best communication channel as illustrated by the following criteria. Involved time Cost Instant feedback Ease of encoding Justification The ability of group meetings to deliver a message instantly ensures delivery o f the message as soon as possible. This is because its limited time constraint makes it suitable for the situation that