Introduction.
Communication is a process that we humans put into practice every day; The human being, being social, has the need to express his ideas, feelings, experiences, etc. It is important for people to establish a relationship with others so that they achieve the acceptance of another and in this way satisfy that desire to feel important.
Within organizations, communication must be involved in each and every one of the activities that each collaborator carries out, as well as, it is something that concerns all departments and areas of the company.
Without communication within companies, many of the processes would be affected and problems would arise that could affect the organization. On the other hand, regardless of whether communication is efficient, there are many barriers that can affect the content of the messages that are emitted.
The communication process must be really good, both outside (with other organizations) and within the organization, thus giving way to different ideas that can be taken into account.
We must not forget that communication is an important point for companies to achieve success, as well as in establishing an adequate organizational culture.
Basic concepts to understand organizational communication.
Some basic concepts are described below:
- Communication: it is the activity by which information is exchanged in a conscious way between two or more individuals, in order to send or receive messages and meanings through signals, signs and semantic rules (Wikipedia, 2017). Organization: "administrative structures created to achieve goals or objectives through human organisms or the management of human and other talent" (Wikipedia, 2017).
It can be said that organizational communication is the process by which two or more collaborators of a company exchange information through different means, in order to streamline processes within the organization and meet the stated objectives.
Importance of communication in the organization.
The communication process within organizations is a key element for their development and success. Most activities and processes are first planned and then executed; receiving the information correctly favors the company in the sense that the orders are clearly captured and therefore, the activities carried out with a high degree of efficiency. This contributes to the company generating greater productivity.
Within organizations, communication helps to strengthen the relationships between its collaborators and can motivate them, creating a stable organizational culture. On the other hand, poor communication will only worsen the work environment, causing many activities to be obstructed by lack of information.
The different barriers that communication can run into give rise to distortions and misunderstandings, which can cause problems among the same personnel; This can affect the mood of the collaborators to the point that they feel out of place and on the other hand create discrepancies between them. It is necessary to detect what communication problems may be present and solve them correctly.
The communication process.
Because communication is a process, there needs to be someone who produces the message, that is, who originates it, this being the sender; On the other hand, there must also be someone who receives it, in this case, a receiver.
For Gordon (1997), good communication is characterized by having two senses, where it flows from one subject or group to another and vice versa, offering feedback from both parties, which gives rise to a cycle that can repeat an infinity of times; In this way, both parties benefit from the information that they wish to transmit.
In the communication process there is a sender who is in charge of formulating the message, then encrypts it; in other words, it expresses it as it is understood. The channel through which the message is filtered is the channel, which can be formal or informal (voice, television, radio); followed by this, a decode is used, which is the medium (telephone, ear, e-mails) through which the message reaches the receiver. Finally, the feedback is used to corroborate that the communication was successful and that the message was understood as it was originally transmitted. Figure 1 shows the communication process.
Figure 1: The Communication Process. Source: own elaboration, based on Robbins (2004)
The functions of communication in the organization.
When talking about communication in organizations, it is necessary to know the main functions with which it is used within companies:
- Expression of emotions.Transmit information.ControlMotivation (Robbins, 2004).
Within the organization, most of the collaborators have working groups, where they interact with each other; this being its main source of socialization within the company. The existing communication in the work groups fosters camaraderie and it is there where the staff can express their feelings, be they of satisfaction or failure.
In another instance, communication is used to transmit information; Depending on the information, it is the reaction that the recipient will have. There are cases in which the information offered to collaborators facilitates decision-making in which cases are required and, on the other hand, the specification of the activities to be carried out.
Motivation within the organization is carried out through communication. Within the execution of the activities of the collaborators, many of the times it is necessary to encourage them to improve their performance in the event that it is not adequate. The way to motivate each of the workers will depend on the needs of each one; There has to be good communication to understand what the worker needs.
Last but not least, the control activity in the organization involves communication, since it is used to express what managers want employees to do and in some way control their behavior.
The directions of communication in the organization.
Communication can take different paths, that is, it can flow up or down (vertically) and horizontally.
Downward communication (downward).
This direction of communication is characterized by moving from a high-level individual or group to their subordinates; that is to say, the president of the company passes transmits information to the vice president, this to the managers and these to the bosses; finally, the bosses to the supervisors and these to the employees. In short, communication goes from the highest level in the organization's hierarchy to the lowest level of it.
Each top-down level uses communication to convey orders and direction to workers, assign goals, inform policies and procedures, define problems that plague the organization, and receive performance feedback.
The high positions, look for different methods to get the information to their subordinates. Communication between them can be face-to-face (work meetings are usually held); Other means by which information is sent is through telephone calls, e-mails, letters sent by mail, establishing newsletters in the work areas or visiting the entire workplace.
Upward communication (upward).
Upward communication is characterized in that information flows from the lowest level to the highest level in the organizational hierarchy, that is, it is the information that employees send to their superiors; They also send information to their bosses and bosses to managers. Lastly, managers often send the communication to the highest level managers or, failing that, to the company president.
This communication direction is useful for giving feedback to senior positions, publicizing progress towards planned goals, as well as reporting problems that arise at lower levels.
The good use of bottom-up communication facilitates the collection of data for senior positions and which, based on the information received, can plan improvements. Some means of information transmission used in upstream communication are the following:
- Suggestion boxes Surveys Workgroup meetings.
Horizontal communication.
Horizontal communication is one that occurs at a single level of the organizational hierarchy, that is, it occurs at a single level, which may be that of workers, bosses, managers or higher levels; This only includes the transmission of information between individuals or groups at some of the levels mentioned above and does not interfere with others. (Favaro, 2015)
Forms of communication in the organization.
Communication has two types, depending on the transmission channels used and the speed thereof, these types are:
- Formal: this type of communication, the content of the information is related to aspects of the organization. The channel that is most used to send information is the written one, that is, memoranda, emails, among other official channels that the company has established, are used. The information transmitted is reliable since it contains established models and rules. Some of its advantages are:
- Accurate information. Prevents alteration and lack of information. o Improves control, reinforces internal culture. (LRH, 2016)
- External: communication is established with entities external to the organization; the company gives messages to different audiences to maintain contact with them, on the other hand, it promotes its products or services and transmits a favorable image of itself.
- Internal: this type of communication occurs within the organization and includes all collaborators, maintaining the relationship between them; Likewise, using the communication channels, the activities, goals and objectives achieved are reported. (Cruz Nieves, 2006)
- Written: communication through writing is characterized by having clear, well-defined and concrete messages; The information that is sent by the sender is captured by the receiver as it was captured. The most common means of written communication are the following (Perez & Candale 2010, cited by King Nuñez, 2012):
- Internal bulletin. o Memorandum. oo Surveys.Circular.
- o Meetings. o Telephone.
- Non-verbal: non-verbal communication is used as a complement to oral communication. Face and body expressions can be supportive, but sometimes they are not; being able to transmit insecurity, lack of knowledge of the subject or too much credibility. Other non-verbal means of communication may be:
- Signage. O Notice poster.
Barriers to communication in the organization.
Communication in the organization, as well as outside it, is not without flaws in the content to be transmitted. These failures often create organizational problems; activities may be affected by missing information.
The barriers or walls that the communication encounters can originate from the sender, the receiver, the same message, the channel or the feedback. Some barriers in communication are the following:
- Little or no planning of the message, rumors or imprecise facts, alteration of the message and / or semantics, little clarity when expressing the information, information lost due to restricted retention, communication in an impersonal way, mistrust, excess information. (Villareal Toral, 2013)
Organizational communication
Within companies, communication has always been an important factor to consider. This tool results in the transmission of information within organizations. Through communication it is possible to manifest what is required, the goals and the wishes of the collaborators.
Organizational communication allows a deeper understanding of the company's human capital, the development they have and the productivity they provide; this because the human being is social and always seeks understanding with his fellow men.
Knowing that communication is a process, organizational communication is the "process" in which messages are sent and received within an organization; in other words, it is the amount of information that is transmitted between the different collaborators of the company, its audiences and the environment that surrounds it.
The context of communication and information that you want to transmit within companies depends on hierarchical levels, since this can be translated into orders, acceptance of policies, questions, among others.
As is well known, the effectiveness and good performance of the company depend on it having excellent organizational communication, since it is essential to achieve the objectives that the company sets itself and allows a good image projection to the external public.
Organizational communication is typical of companies; This is useful for managing knowledge and correcting actions that may affect production processes. Within the company it is essential that there are no communication barriers that pose a risk to the interaction of the organizational structure.
Conclusion.
Communication within companies is an essential issue for the proper functioning of it. Good communication encourages the organization as a whole to meet its stated objectives. It is also a key factor for business success, because with proper communication from management to its employees and vice versa, the company will know what to do and the objectives to be met.
The correct flow of information gives rise to the fact that all the entrusted activities are carried out as planned and that there are no problems in carrying them out. It is important that the communication barriers that may exist in the organization are eliminated, since these hinder the content of the messages and in turn the productivity of the collaborators. Likewise, the transmission of unreliable information or rumors has to be avoided, as this usually brings problems among the company personnel and in general.
On the other hand, good communication between employees and managers gives rise to understanding each person's needs and thus knowing how to motivate them and, above all, to continue advancing in what the organization plans. A company without communication is like a ship adrift, because without a voice to guide it, it will never know where to go.
Gratitude.
I am deeply grateful to the Technological Institute of Orizaba for contributing to my professional training to this day, to the National Rabbit for Science and Technology (CONACyT) for the financial support that it gives me to continue with my master's studies, to the teachers of the Master's in Administrative Engineering for giving me the opportunity to enter the program and lastly to Dr. Fernando Aguirre y Hernandez for promoting the culture of writing and reading articles.
References.
- Cruz Nieves, F. (06 August 2006). Gestiopolis. Obtained from https://www.gestiopolis.com/conceptos-de-comunicacion-organizacional/Favaro, D. (2015). Organizational Communication: Planning communication in groups and organizers. Buenos Aires: Creas.Gonzales, L. (March 29, 2013). bibliopos. Obtained from https://www.bibliopos.es/canales-formales-e-informales-de-comunicacion/Gordon, JR (1997). Organizational behavior. Mexico: Prentice - Hall Hispanoamerica. King Nuñez, KI (March 29, 2012). Gestiopolis. Obtained from https://www.gestiopolis.com/comunicacion-organizacional-tipos-flujosbarreras-y-auditoria/LRH. (February 28, 2016). Human Resources.com. Obtained from http://www.losrecursoshumanos.com/canales-formales-de-comunicacionventajas-y-desventajas/Robbins, SP (2004). Organizational behavior.Mexico: Pearson Educacion.Villareal Toral, AC (October 29, 2013). Gestiopolis. Obtained from https://www.gestiopolis.com/comunicacion-elemento-de-exito-en-lasempresas-y-organizaciones/Wikipedia. (June 10, 2017). Wikipedia. Obtained from https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/CircularWikipedia. (September 12, 2017). Wikipedia. Obtained from https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comunicaci%C3%B3nWikipedia. (September 14, 2017). Wikipedia the free encyclopedia. Obtained from https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organizaci%C3%B3nWikipedia. Obtained from https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comunicaci%C3%B3nWikipedia. (September 14, 2017). Wikipedia the free encyclopedia. Obtained from https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organizaci%C3%B3nWikipedia. Obtained from https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comunicaci%C3%B3nWikipedia. (September 14, 2017). Wikipedia the free encyclopedia. Obtained from
Circular: “Document prepared to communicate an identical message to a group (circle) of people or to the general public” (Wikipedia, 2017).
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