General Comm and Business Comm

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Module – I, UNDERSTANDING COMMUNICATION IN BUSINESS

Module– I : Understanding Communication in Business
by Dr. Anubha Ray

Dept. of English, CUTM

Page 1

Module – I, UNDERSTANDING COMMUNICATION IN BUSINESS

Chapter-1

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GENERAL
COMMUNICATION AND
BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

Objective:
 To know the difference
between General
Communication
Chapter-1& Business
Communication.

11. Introduction
Communication may be broadly defined as the process of meaningful interaction among
human beings. Communication means to inform, tell, show or spread information.
Information here is referred to as ideas, feelings, emotions, and opinions etc. that are
communicated from one individual to another. When a person communicates, he/she tries to
establish a common ground of understanding either at the same level or at different levels.
However, there is a difference between general communication and business communication.
Communication that goes on in ordinary day-today life is called general communication
whereas communication related to business and economic activities of human beings is
referred to as business or professional communication. Business communication centres
around the world of business, of trade and commerce. Communication plays different roles
and can take place in different situations; business communication is concerned only with
well-defined business activities.
Business communication is a specialized branch of communication; there is no basic
difference between general and business communication. Whatever is true of general
communication is also true of business communication; the process and rules of
communication are same. Because of globalization and spread of business activity across the
world, people have realized the significance of communication as an essential tool and an
urgent need in the professional world than what it was two decades back. Problems and issues
may be unnoticed in general communication but it can have serious consequences in a
professional or business world. Therefore, the difference in general communication and
business communication lies in its degree; degrees of formality and style.

Dept. of English, CUTM

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Module – I, UNDERSTANDING COMMUNICATION IN BUSINESS

In business organization, group of people constitute to achieve certain objectives. The
achievement of these objectives largely depends upon proper co-ordination between people
working in and out of the organization. So, the term business communication is used for all
messages that are sent and received for all official purposes. Meetings, emails,
teleconferencing, video conferencing etc are examples of business communication. Business
communication has well-defined purpose. The main purpose of business communication
leads to some action; some results. It also aims at a specific audience. Purpose and audience
have the strongest influence in business communication. Therefore, business communication
is marked by degrees of formality and style that distinguishes it from general communication.
In general communication, when you write a letter to a friend, you are personal and
subjective. Your language is informal and tone is personal. On the other hand, when you
write a letter or submit a report to your boss, you are impersonal and objective. You are
formal and plain in language and impressive in tone appropriate to the business context.
Style is a major consideration. ‘Style’ in communication refers to the way something is said
rather than only what is said. It is the manner and approach of expression that separates
business communication to general communication.

1.2. Difference in Style
‘Style’ in business communication depends on who the receiver is. The audience plays a
significant role here. The same message when addressed to a superior will be different from
when addressed to a junior. With the superior, one will convey the message diplomatically
and politely, whereas with the subordinate, one can be more direct and commanding. In
general communication, when one is engaged in casual or social conversation to expresses
one’s feelings, emotions, or concerns, the language and tone is personal and informal.
Communicative context and the purpose of communication influence the style in business
communication. One conveys routine information, makes requests, conveys good will or tries
to persuade someone to do something. These can be the professional communicative contexts
whereas chatting, friendly gossips, letters between friends and families, reading out a poem
for one’s own entertainment or telling story for one’s pleasure are examples of general
communication.
Accuracy in expression makes business communication distinct from general communication.
It demands that grammar, spelling, punctuation are checked in written business
communication. People engaged in professional world must be precise in words and
expression. In general communication people during social or personal conversation do not
bother for precision of words nor for grammar or accent. One cannot use abstract, vague or
unfamiliar expression in business communication. One has to have purpose, clarity of
thought, and effective use of language to secure an action from the receiver.
Communication in a social set up can become wordy whereas brevity in expression is a key
feature in business communication. You must try to be as brief and concise as possible. In
general communication, people tend to be repetitive, use unnecessary details and may use
powerful & emotional words whereas all the above are to be avoided in business
Dept. of English, CUTM

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Module – I, UNDERSTANDING COMMUNICATION IN BUSINESS

communication. In addition, in business communication, written documents are to be revised
thoroughly and exaggeration is always avoided. In general communication, there is scope for
artificial eloquence, ornamentation, indirect expression whereas there is use of direct
language and no run-about expression in business communication. There is no use of
obscure, abstract and vague words in the world of business.

1.3. Degrees of Formality
General communication is subjective and personal whereas business communication is
objective and impersonal. Personal elements, pronouns are avoided in business
communication. There is more use of third person and passive voice, but emphasis is on the
subject matter. There is an appropriate use of linguistic device to make business
communication factual and objective. To achieve objectivity in business communication, you
should use passive construction in sentences, avoid personal pronouns and expressions. You
must use factual information. Avoid racist or sexist language such as chairman, police or men
and women etc. Language used in general communication is relaxed with informal elements
of the language. Language used in professional contexts is always formal. The degree of
formality varies from position to position in the organization.
Communication is not effective if people do not maintain appropriate formality and style in
verbal and non-verbal communication while communicating with people belonging to their
professional world. It is for this reason; future professionals and managers are required to
take courses and training on communication.

Dept. of English, CUTM

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Module – I, UNDERSTANDING COMMUNICATION IN BUSINESS

PRACTICE
Long Answer Type Questions:
1. Everything that is true of general communication is also true of professional
communication except in the degrees of formality. Discuss.
2. What do you understand by accuracy, brevity and formality in professional
communication? Write your answer with examples.
3. Write short notes ona. Accuracy in Professional Communication
b. Precision in Professional Communication
c. Objectivity in Oral Communication
d. Clarity of Expression in Professional Communication
4. ‘Style’ in communication refers to the way something is said rather than what is said.
Elaborate the statement.
5. What is objectivity in communication? How can you achieve objectivity in
Professional Communication? Write your answer with examples.

Short Answer Type Questions:
1. Tick true or false against each statement.
a. The use of impersonal language makes writing objective and failure.
b. The use of concrete and specific words and phrases bring ………. and clarity.
c. Including personal elements and personal pronouns may help in achieving
objectivity.
d. While presenting a technical paper in a seminar, the speaker should try to be
as subjective and as possible.
e. In order to be objective, racist language should be avoided.
2. Fill in the blanks with appropriate words.
a. Communication can turn into __________ if one uses wrong style.
b. Formal or professional communication should be __________ free.
c. ‘Hi buddy!’ is __________ communication.
d. Reading poetry for one’s pleasure is __________ communication.
e. In professional communication set up, __________ language is used one’s
wordy language.

Dept. of English, CUTM

Page 5

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