Book exercise.
Q.1 What are the basic components of communication?
The basic components are;
- The stimulus
- The Filter
- The medium
- The Destination
- The nature of the conversation
In order to have a successful medium of communication, it is essential that these components
are followed, however not in any particular order.
Q.2 What are the common forms of oral and written communication?
Oral communication refers to communication that is done say face to face, over the phone, via
a webinar, TVs.
Written communication includes emails, newspapers, journals, magazines.
Q.3 What makes up a formal communication network?
There are basically three components that make up a formal communication network. They
are;
 Downward communication
This type of communication refers to information passed from the higher management
to the lower management groups i.e. from the bosses to managers to associates.
 Upward communication
This is the exact opposite of Downward communication. This is where information is
passed to the higher levels from the lower level management.
 Lateral Communication
This is an example of communication between employees of the same level, could be
senior level, could be lower levels as well.
Q.4 What are the characteristics of the grapevine?
 Speed
As compared to formal communication, the speed of grapevine is fast.
 Oral communication
Grapevine uses oral techniques more rather than written or non-verbal techniques. As
oral communication involves less time, grapevine is likely to be dependent on oral
mode.
 Huge Impact
Grapevine links the whole organization very quickly. From top to bottom of an
organization, no body is left from the touch of grapevine.
Q.5 What are the major verbal and non verbal barriers to communication?
The major verbal and non verbal barriers are;
 Inadequate vocabulary
 Language differences
 Different methods of interpretation
 Differences in perception
 Inappropriate emotions
 Distractions
Such barriers can become a hindrance when the people communicating are in different
countries where there is different culture, different approaches to communicating and as a
result, people may misinterpret the actual context of the message and this may cause a lot of
disharmony within a group.
This is possible in organizations, friends and any sort of communication. These are some of the
factors to keep in mind when communication. It is best to keep the message articulate.
Q.1 Identify communication components in a current news story.
The main communication components are the audiences, the medium used, the nature of the
conversation.
There should be a certain set of audiences that the messages are targeted to. It is very
important that the message is properly interpreted otherwise there can be chaos. Also, the
nature of the conversation. Is it too aggressive, is it too passive? i.e. the tone. These are certain
factors that play a huge factor in communication.
Q. 12 Choose how to reject a job offer.
If I was in a situation where I had to reject a job offer, I’d prefer to decline it over email first so
that I can stress the reasons why I am doing so and then do a polite phone call where I’d try and
explain it if necessary. The reason for the phone call would be to express my gratitude on being
offered the position. This phone call would be able to speak more than the words can.
Q.15 Write a policy about email use.
The first and most common policy of email is to not send any emails with or without any
attachments to your personal email. This would be in violation of company policy and could
lead to one losing the job.
Also, it would be a good idea if employees were told to not discuss any personal details while
using company provided emails. This would help maintain a professional relationship and the
employees would not need to worry about any leaks that could damage their reputation.