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Communication in the Workplace
What is Communication?
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SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
2
Communication in the Workplace
Types of Communication
There are two main types of communication:
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2. __________________________________________
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Activity 1
A store manager is in his office and wants to get some information about a new product being
advertised by his supplier. He decides he will email the sales representative instead of
phoning. He asks in his email about pricing, and has listed his requirements on an attachment.
An hour later, the sales representative sends a message back thanking him for his enquiry.
However, she says that she did not receive the attachment. The store manager re-sends the
message with the attachment, and the sales representative responds shortly after with a listing
of the varying models of the product that the store manager expressed an interest in, along
with prices and availability. With your understanding of the communication process, and using
the above example, answer the following questions:
a) Who was the sender? ______________________________________________
b) Who was the receiver? _____________________________________________
c) What mode of communication was used? ______________________________
d) What interference did the communication encounter?
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e) What feedback did the sender receive?
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SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
3
Communication in the Workplace
Activity 2
For each of the situations below, select the appropriate type of communication.
You work at a depot where trucks are parked. Your job is to direct trucks into the right
parking space and make sure they don’t hit anything when they are parking.
Which type of communication would you use mostly?
verbal communication
gestures
facial expressions
written communication
You work in a lawyer’s office, and need to pass long and complicated instructions from
one lawyer to another.
Which type of communication would you use mostly?
verbal communication
gestures
facial expressions
written communication
You work on a construction site, and you need to ask the person who looks after
supplies for a hammer, a bag of nails and a length of pipe.
Which type of communication would you use mostly?
verbal communication
gestures
facial expressions
written communication
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
4
Communication in the Workplace
Non-verbal Communication
Body Language
Body language is communication with a part of your body, most usually:
 Eyes
 Face
 Hands (and/or fingers)
 Arms
 How or where you place your body
Activity 3 What can the following body languages mean?
Body Language
Interpretation
Brisk, erect walk
Standing with hands on hip
Sitting with legs crossed, foot kicking slightly
Sitting, legs apart
Arms crossed on chest
Walking with hands in pockets, shoulders
hunched
Hand to cheek
Touching, slightly rubbing nose
Rubbing the eye
Hands clasped behind back
Locked ankles
Head resting in hand, eyes downcast
Rubbing hands
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
5
Communication in the Workplace
Effective Communication - ____________________________________
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ROLE PLAY ACTIVITY:
In groups of 2 or 3 role play the following scenarios:
1. An angry customer has come into your store to complain about a faulty product. As the
customer service manager you are responsible for sorting out this problem. Today you
are in no mood for rude people and just want the problem to go away quickly.
2. A child has become separated from his mother whilst shopping. He is brought to your
work counter until his mother can be found. The child is very upset and needs
comforting.
3. Your boss has come to talk to you about your work performance. He is worried that you
are not meeting your deadlines or sales quotas and wants to know why. You are under
a lot of pressure at home and are finding it difficult to concentrate at work.
Make sure you concentrate on matching your body language with
the situation.
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
6
Communication in the Workplace
Effective Listening Skills
In any business that deals with clients you need to listen correctly in order to find out what the
clients needs are. To become an effective listener there are 4 easy steps to follow:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Hear what the customer is saying. Give them your full attention.
Interpret what they are saying.
Evaluate what they have said.
Respond to what they said.
Tips to help you become a better listener:
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Activity 4
You are working at Springfield Lakes Properties and are finding it difficult to get your daily
tasks complete as there is a lot of friction in the office. You have noticed that the friction
always starts because people don’t listen to other people’s points of view and argue back
before thinking about what it is they are really saying.
In an attempt to solve the problem you have decided to run a training session on ‘Effective
Listening Skills’. Your presentation is 5 – 8 slides and clearly explains to staff how to be an
effective listener. You will need to research further to complete this task.
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
7
Communication in the Workplace
Consequences of Poor Communication
1. Time may be lost as instructions may be misunderstood and jobs may have to be
repeated.
2. Frustration may develop, as people are not sure of what to do or how to do a task.
3. Product may be wasted if it is not handled correctly.
4. People may feel left out if communication is not open and effective.
5. Messages may be misinterpreted or misunderstood causing bad feelings.
6. People’s safety may be at risk.
Activity 5:
A. Can you think of 6 situations of poor communication at work or at school?
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B. How could these situations be avoided?
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SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
8
Communication in the Workplace
Barriers to effective Communication
Many things interfere with or block communication. These might include people using different
languages, cultural differences interfering with understanding, people experiencing physical
discomfort and therefore not concentrating or people having different levels of understanding
about the requirements of a job. Noise levels can also impede hearing and concentration that
could act as a barrier to communication. Additionally, if people do not have a common
language, communication can be impaired.
List 6 barriers to communication:
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Types of Equipment and Methods of Communication
The following is a list of difference methods of communication and the equipment used, which
are common in work places.
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SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
9
Communication in the Workplace
Activity 6
In the table below type the best method of communication with the task.
Method: Telephone, Voice Mail, Facsimile Machine, Memorandum, Letter, Briefing Note,
Overhead projector, Blackboard/whiteboard, Diary or electronic diary, Computer Network,
Face-to-face discussion
Method
Task
A group of 30 Sales people who need to know about your new product.
Your chief executive, who wants to know who the five biggest spending
customers were last year.
A colleague, who wants to know the time and date for a meeting.
Your supervisor who wants to discuss your progress.
A team of colleagues, who want to solve a difficult problem.
An angry customer who has written to complain about a faulty product.
A worried colleague, who is concerned that you are going to miss a
deadline.
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
10
Communication in the Workplace
Business Communication
Communication Skills
Interpersonal Skills
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What are Communication Channels?
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Examples:
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SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
11
Communication in the Workplace
Communication in the Workplace – 2 types
1. ____________________________ :
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2. _____________________________ :
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Practical Tasks – Assessment items
You are to type out the following information into a word document. Please follow the setting
out instructions given. Save, print out and place in your folder.
Display on an A4
page, with page
border, a suitable
style heading and
font size and
include a picture.
Make sure the
information is set
out evenly on the
page.
Daily Duties for Springfield Lakes Real Estate
1.
2.
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5.
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8.
9.
10.
Check all incoming mail and emails for urgent matters
Update signage in the front window for rentals and sale properties
Return all urgent phone messages
Check diary for appointments and note them on your daily planner
Look up calendar and check for property valuations and assessment
Prioritise your clients needs and make a list of duties to do
Work through client needs
Take calls/emails as they occur
Notify Office Manager of any new listings or sales
Ensure your paperwork and filing is up to date
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
12
Communication in the Workplace
Organisational Rules and Requirements
Many organisations have procedures for dealing with instructions and enquiries. These might
be informal, unwritten requirements, or they might be formal, written procedures.
Examples of informal rules:
 “Salespersons should never take telephone calls; the receptionist should direct the
caller first”.
 “Don’t take social calls, emails or other correspondence during working hours”.
Examples of formal rules:
 Manuals on how to complete a tasks
 Rules of employment
Where will organisational requirements be found?
 Employee handbook or manual
 Quality assurance or procedures manuals
 Business plans
 Contract of employment
 Workplace Health and Safety Book
Open Block Punctuation
Written business communication needs to be formatted using “Open Block Punctuation”.
Addresses are formatted as follows:
Name
Position (if known)
Company name
Street Address (no abbreviations)
Suburb_ _ STATE _ _ Post code
Joe Johns
Manager
Best Ever Travel
14 Tip Toe Street
Goodna QLD 4300
Double Spaces
No commas are used in greeting and farewell.
Dear Joe Johns
I am writing concerning……….
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
13
Communication in the Workplace
For the following activities you will require the following information:
The Plains Real Estate Pty Ltd
25 Trinket Road
Redbank Plains QLD 4301
Ph: 3432 5236,
Fax: 3432 5200
www.theplainsrealestate.com.au
info@theplainsrealestate.com.au
Managing Director – Judith Parkinson
Agents – Yourself, Anthony Quince, Penny Atkinson, Brendan Thomas, Katie Seeds
Activity 7
Create a LOGO for The Plains Real Estate Pty Ltd.
“A Logo is a symbol used to help identify an organisation by its customers and the public.”
Activity 8
Create a LETTERHEAD for The Plains Real Estate Pty Ltd. Include the LOGO.
“A Letterhead is used by an organisation to communicate externally. It includes the
organisations name, address, phone number, fax number and website address.”
Activity 9
Create a FAX cover sheet for The Plains Real Estate Pty Ltd. Use your letterhead and add in
fax details from an existing word template. (Copy and paste into your letterhead)
“A fax is used by an organisation to communicate externally. It is done on business letter with
additional information including number of pages being faxed, what the fax in regarding and
what action is required.”
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
14
Communication in the Workplace
Activity 10
Create a MEMO for The Plains Real Estate Pty Ltd. There any many templates in Word that
you can use.
“A Memo is used by an organisation to communicate internally. Internal documents do not
need the organisations details.
Activity 11
You have been asked to write a business letter to be used with clients who list their properties
for sale with our business. Your letter should include the following points:
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Thank the client and let them know they are using a family business that has been
established in the area since 1950.
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Advise them of some of the services they will receive (advertised on the internet and
local paper, personal agent, weekly updates on progress, guide to selling, local sales
information, open house times to suit their lifestyle)
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Advise them of the one low cost fee of $5000 per property and our average listing
time of 3 weeks.
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Finish the letter by encouraging them to contact us if they have any concerns.
Leave form fields for client’s name, address, salutation and agent’s name.
Writing an enquiry correspondence
When writing an enquiry correspondence it is important that you follow the structure given
below. By following this, the reader can clearly understand what is being asked and how and
when to respond.
Paragraph 1 – Provide detail of what you are enquiring about.
Paragraph 2 – Explain why you need this information
Paragraph 3 – Give supporting information, when you need the information by and contact
details.
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
15
Communication in the Workplace
Activity 12
Send a fax to our property photographer, Ms Julie Yang, and ask her if she is available to
photograph a new property listed at 597 South Station Road, Booval, Q, 4304. We need to
have the photographs by the end of the week for publication in this Saturday’s paper. Ask Ms
Yang to contact the office to confirm date and time to take the photos. Photographs will need
to be taken in each room of the house and outside areas.
Activity 13
Send a memo to all staff in the office and ask them to attend a meeting next Monday at
9:00am. It is really important for them to be there as we will be discussing performance rates
and salary packaging. They must let Judith know if they can or can’t make it before Thursday
to arrange an alternative session.
Activity 14
You are to send a fax to the local newspaper to find out the cost of placing a full page
advisement on our newly listed property. You would like a journalist to write a report on the
house and place a number of pictures in the ad. Find out the difference between a full colour
page and black and white. You will also need to know when the cut off date and time is for
publication. Can you please get this information back to me before tomorrow afternoon so I
can take it to the client? The contact person at the paper is Janice White (Fax: 3432 5555, Ph:
3432 5500).
Activity 15
Create a BUSINESS CARD for yourself as an agent for The Plains Real Estate Pty Ltd.
“Business cards are used to communicate your personal contact details with customers and
suppliers. They include your name, role in organisation, email address.”
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
16
Communication in the Workplace
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
17
Communication in the Workplace
SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
18
Communication in the Workplace
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SMC Grade 8 BIT 2011
19