Showing papers on "Business communication published in 1998"

Exploring Corporate Rhetoric: Metadiscourse in the CEO's Letter

Abstract: This article explores how CEOs attempt to influence readers and project a positive personal and corporate image in company annual reports. It examines the role of metadiscourse, as a manifestation ...

Acceptance of communication media in organizations: richness or features?

Abstract: This study focuses on people's choices between electronic mail and voice mail. We found that users generally preferred electronic mail over voice mail for most communication purposes. These results do not support a hypothesis derived from media richness theory that voice mail would be preferred to e-mail for ambiguous situations. A more important finding is that other medium features besides richness influence individuals' media choices, specifically, medium features useful for retrieving and preparing messages and for working In group settings. From this and other evidence, we conclude that a complex set of social factors governs organizational media use in ways that neither theory can fully explain. Our findings have some interesting implications for designers of multimedia communication systems and for people like human resources specialists who are concerned with improving the effectiveness of professional work and the quality of working life.

Community Service Learning Increases Communication Skills Across the Business Curriculum

Abstract: Community service learning offers a unique and rewarding way for business students to reinforce communication capabilities while developing lifelong career and social skills. This article defines c...

Business trust and the formation of virtual organizations

Abstract: Organizations are operating in a complex and unstable business environment which is characterised by global pressures, de-regulation and intense competition arising from the innovative application of information technology to all aspects of business. In this new environment, the old rules of competition no longer apply, and there is a clear move away from traditional forms of strategy towards innovative approaches such as global market strategies, time-based competition and dis-intermediation in the supply chain. These mega-trends affect all types of organizations and industries and are forcing individual organizations and their economic partners to respond. One important outcome is the emergence of 'virtual' organizations which are defined with respect to their product-market strategy, network structure, information systems and business communication patterns. Virtual organizations are composed of different legal entities and are often geographically dispersed and international in their outlook. Emerging forms of virtual organization are characterised by their use of business trust in addition to formal legal contracts. A series of hypotheses are proposed and the theoretical implications of trust in the formation and development of virtual organizations is discussed.

Design and implementation of virtual organizations

Abstract: The current literature on virtual organizations describes a richness of different aspects that contribute to the emergence of this new organizational form, like customer orientation, the use of information and communication technology (ICT), and time-based competition or decentralization. However, there seems to be one common theme in this literature: "virtual" organizations are frequently (re-)created, sustained to capture the value of a market opportunity, and dissolved again to give way for the creation of the next virtual organization. This paper therefore approaches the concept of the virtual organization from the organizational routines or design processes which drive the design and implementation (D&I) of the virtual organization. As a step towards a conceptual theory, the article contributes a model of D&I processes for virtual organizations in order to contribute to the study of such organizations. It does so by summarizing eight propositions from earlier literature and empirical evidence. The model is concerned with the impact of the D&I processes on the effectiveness of virtual organizations. The case of ELEKTRO is selected from ongoing action research in the European Telematics Engineering Project TELEflow to illustrate the model. The company has been chosen as it is actively enhancing its existing competence to design and implement virtual organizations.

Mapping Conceptual Worlds: Using Interpretive Ethnography to Explore Knowledge-Making in a Professional Community

Abstract: Interpretive ethnography offers a useful avenue for exploring how members of a professional community go about producing and applying specialized written knowledge. Researchers using the methodology to study professional knowledge- making need to maintain a balance of engagement with and detachment from the conceptual world of the community being observed.

Innovative Pedagogy: Academic Service-Learning for Business Communication:

Abstract: Academic Service-Learning (AS-L) is an innovative business communication pedagogy. Like community service, AS-L involves students volunteering in the community; however, AS-L requires the infusion of the classroom content into the community service experience. This article describes AS-L, the assignment for a business communication class, and students' reactions as well as benefits and challenges to its use. The greatest strength of using AS-L is students'tying theory into actual application of principles, student passion for the work, fac ulty enthusiasm for the results, and community satisfaction.

Formal language for business communication: sketch of a basic theory

Abstract: Progress in research on developing a general-purpose formal language for business communications (FLBC) has been substantial. Key distinctions have been made, important concepts identified, and impressive prototypes implemented. The purpose of this paper is to present succinctly the basic elements of a complete (logical) theory for an FLBC. These elements include speech act theory, event semantics, extensive use of thematic roles, and representation in first-order logic. The theory is expected to lead to superior messaging in electronic commerce.

From Text to Context: An Open Systems Approach to Research in Written Business Communication:

Abstract: This article examines open systems thinking as a new lens for the field's researchers to use when exploring written business communication. The transfer or conduit model that the field has traditionally used to describe how communi cation occurs has, of course, determined what the field knows. An open systems model provides a new way of looking at the field, a lens that integrates concepts such as task, organizational structure, control, and technology into the analysis of written business messages. The article explores the influences these subsys tems have on written communication and then develops these systems and subsystems into a series of business communication system maps. These maps or models can serve as springboards for additional research of on-the-job writing situations.

The cultural context in business communication

Abstract: 1. Introduction (by Niemeier, Susanne) 2. I. Theoretical Issues 3. Three domains of culture and the triune brain (by Hall, Edward T.) 4. Rhetorical ethos: A bridge between high-context and low-context cultures? (by Campbell, Charles P.) 5. II. Interculturality 6. Negotiating with foreign business persons: An introduction for Americans with propositions on six cultures (by Weiss, Stephen E.) 7. III. The Cultural Context 8. Power and distance as cultural and contextual elements in Finnish and English business writing (by Yli-Jokipii, Hilkka) 9. Cultural values and Irish economic performance (by Scharf, W. Fred) 10. IV. Linguistic Perspectives 11. Parallel texts and diverging cultures in Hong Kong: Implications for intercultural communication (by Grundy, Peter) 12. Cultural keywords in Chinese-Dutch business negotiations (by Li, Xiangling) 13. 'Harmonious cooperation' in an English-German intercultural business negotiation (by Porings, Ralf) 14. V. Training 15. Raising awareness in business communication training (by Baten, Lut) 16. The experience of sameness in differences: A course in international business writing (by Verckens, Jan Piet) 17. Name Index 18. Subject Index

The Role of the Association for Business Communication in Shaping Business Communication as an Academic Discipline.

Abstract: The Association for Business Communication (ABC) has been instrumental in the development of business communication as an academic discipline. This article reviews ABC's impact in seven areas: nurt...

Technical Communication across Cultures Five Philosophical Questions

Abstract: Technical communication, to be more effective in international business, must attempt to be culture free (without cultural impediments and irrelevancies) and culture fair (adjusted to meet local cu...

Developing the learning network using extranets

Abstract: The commercialization of the Internet has led many to believe that companies are entering a new era of electronic commerce. New ways of using the Internet should result in new forms of electronic collaboration between trading partners. While attention has focused on the use of the World Wide Web to reach consumers and the development of internal intranets, it is the development of extranets, the business-to-business application of Internet technology, which is emerging as a critical component of the strategic use of electronic commerce. We discuss two types of extranets and show how they can be used to extend the existing notion of the virtual organization to create what we call the learning network. We draw on several industry examples to illustrate how gaining strategic value from extranets is based on three key factors: the uniqueness of the information; the extent to which users of the information alter their business processes; and the level of management the information is intended to support.

Designing a Problem-Based Learning Environment for ESL Students in Business Communication:

Abstract: As the population of students speaking English as a second language increases, our business communication courses have required changes in both content and pedagogical approach We have taught writing, speaking, and lis teningfrom a problem-solving perspective for many years and now find its emphasis on critical thinking poses different challenges for the ESL students in our courses Consequently, we have designed a problem-based course struc ture for an upper-level business communication course that allows both ESL and native English-speaking students the opportunity to improve communica tion abilities in cross-cultural work groups

Web-based computer-mediated communication: an experimental investigation comparing three communication modes for determining software requirements

Abstract: This experiment is the third in a series of empirical studies designed to explore the effectiveness of various modes of communication for groups working on determining software requirements. The study focuses on the effectiveness of matching communication media to stages of group work. Three modes of communication are compared: (1) face-to-face; (2) Web-based asynchronous computer conferencing; and (3) combined-a sequence of FtF, Web-based asynchronous computer conferencing, and FtF communication. Teams of graduate students determined the requirements for a computerized post office as a course assignment, over a two-week time period. Concerning creativity, asynchronous groups outperformed combined groups who, in turn, outperformed face-to-face groups. Combined groups produced higher quality solutions than face-to-face groups. There were no significant differences for quality between the combined and asynchronous groups.

Communication Quality Revisited: Exploring the Link with Persuasive Effects.

Abstract: This paper explores a central issue in business communication, communication quality, and links it to persuasive effects. Making connections between persuasive effects and communication quality requires rethinking some earlier research in the field, specifically Shelby's (1988) initial theory of management communication, which Reinsch (1996) noted also applies to business communication (p. 31). Therefore, in this paper I revise and extend the early formulation of the strategic choice construct. Furthermore, I explore theoretical relationships among effectiveness, efficiency, and quality, the three outcome variables or criteria by which (according to the theory) persuasive effects are judged. Since a comprehensive conceptualization of communication quality is also important in establishing theoretical linkages, following the quality assurance literature, I broaden the definition of communication quality beyond traditional stylistic concerns. Finally, I elaborate a framework for linking communication quality to persuasive effects and derive testable propositions about those relationships. Extensions of the Strategic Choice Construct An increasing number of scholars in various communication-related disciplines have minimized, if not turned their backs on, instrumentality - that is, on treating communication as a mechanism by which message senders use their knowledge and skill to affect the understanding or behavior of message receivers toward predetermined goals (Mumby & Stohl, 1996; Putnam, 1983). An alternative view - and the one represented here - is that business communication appropriately combines the rhetorical with the instrumental by creating knowledge during an exchange, which may be "instrumental" in effecting communication outcomes (see Moore, 1996a; Hagge, 1996; Kreth, Miller, & Reddish, 1996; Moore, 1996b). In practice, a lack of attention to the theoretical grounds of influence has too often reduced the field to formulaic prescriptives, many of which have little or no empirical basis (Shelby, 1986). As a response to that indictment, I developed a macro theory (Shelby, 1988), which posits rhetorical choice as a function of persuasive goal and probable audience response, the latter depending on certain receiver and situational variables. This paper extends that analysis in two ways: first, by qualifying rhetorical choice to mean preference for the "most appropriate" option for a given situation; and second, by suggesting that appropriate options are those that influence and, thus, predict the direction of persuasive outcomes. Though these choices neither guarantee nor necessarily predict the probability of desired persuasive effects, they do influence the direction of the outcome. Put simply, to move a reader or hearer closer to - or farther from - the behavior a communicator desires (understanding, believing, doing, collaborating) depends on how successfully the writer or speaker chooses appropriately from among the various rhetorical options at his or her disposal. The hypothesis presumes that communicators have options and, thus, make choices about whether to communicate, who should communicate, medium of communication, and message - content, structure, style, formatting, and, where applicable, delivery. The process may be modeled as follows: choice influences message, resulting in an outcome. In the feedback loop, outcomes constitute data for assessing appropriateness, assessments which in turn may shape subsequent rhetorical choices. Outcome Variables as Measures of "Appropriateness" If the most "appropriate" rhetorical options for a given situation predict the direction of the persuasive response - e.g., whether they move the receiver closer to or farther from what the sender desires communicators need definitive criteria for measuring what is and is not appropriate. In the following, I examine three socially constructed managerial outcomes by which the appropriateness of options may be judged - effectiveness, efficiency, and quality - and explore the interrelationships among them. …

Student Perceptions About Business Communication in Their Careers

Abstract: There is little question among educators and business executives that excellent communication skills are requisites for today's jobs. Yet most business teachers realize the difficulty of getting st...

Korean Business Letters: Strategies for Effective Complaints in Cross-Cultural Communication.

Abstract: This case study examines international business letters of complaint written in English by US. managers whose first language (L1) is English and by Korean managers for whom English is a second lang...

Locating marketing within the corporate communication managing system

Abstract: Where does expertise and responsibility for strategic business communication lie? Marketing and public relations vie for supremacy since both groups specialize in communication, using managed communications to pursue their respective objectives. Convincing arguments for one being subsumed by the other abound. A clarifying discussion of the often-confused vocabulary is the starting point for a review of the nature and role of marketing and public relations and how they are portrayed in respective textbooks. The emerging total management system of corporate communication and its relationship to marketing and public relations is placed in a framework for the integration of corporate strategy, organizational development, human resource management, public relations and marketing. Corporate communication has a dominant role in achieving organizational growth, by being concerned with learning, showing the corporation to itself and as a mode of organization for both external and internal environments. (The term c...

A Focus on Focus Groups

Abstract: Focus groups provide users with valuable qualitative data not readily obtained with any other data-collection techniques. First developed for market researchers to determine the present or potentia...

Group Work and Electronic Meeting Systems: From Boardroom to Classroom

Abstract: In the business community, collaborative efforts of work teams have led to a dramatic increase in the number of group meetings. Business managers, seek ing more efficient and effective methods of managing diverse contributions, have increasingly used information technology to supportgroup work. The same need to improve group communication is relevant to today's classroom, where new technologies can transform the classroom from a traditional instructor-centered environment to a student-centered environment where stu dents actively participate in intellectual discourse. Results from field and labo ratory studies about business usage of electronic meeting systems (EMS) can be applied to the classroom setting. We offer an overview of available tools and suggest some classroom activities. EMS-supported courses provide many new opportunities to foster learning. Students participate, participate more equally, and report a highly satisfying experience.

Meta-patterns for electronic commerce transactions based on the formal language for business communication (FLBC)

Abstract: Because of the highly communicative character of electronic commerce transactions, open-EDI representation languages like FLBC use the speech act (operator) as their basic building block. The advantage of this approach is that it addresses the deep structure of electronic commerce transactions rather than the form. This paper aims to reveal higher-level units of speech acts that materialize in so-called meta-analysis patterns. Various levels are defined, from speech acts to scenarios. After patterns have been identified, they can be stored in an FLBC component library and be (re)used effectively by business partners to speed up open-EDI transactions.

Enhancing Intercultural Communication among Business Communication Students

Abstract: The issue of international students in the tertiary classroom is of broad significance across disciplines as evidenced, for example, in the work of Ladyshewsky (1996), Pe‐Pua (1995), and Romm, Paterson and Hill (1994). The need for university instructors to employ teaching strategies that are student‐centred and interactive has also been gaining attention in recent literature, for example, in the work of Biggs (1992, 1997), Chalmers and Volet (1997), and McKay and Kember (1997). This article presents some practical teaching strategies employed in an undergraduate Business Communication class that, in our experience, provide a context that encourages student interaction and participation to the mutual benefit of both local and international students. Data collection procedures included an open‐ended questionnaire, observation of students, informal and unstructured discussions and reflective journals of students and tutor. The conclusions drawn here suggest that these strategies not only enhance cl...

Europe: oral business communication

Abstract: Ahmad, U. K. (1997). Scientific Research Articles in Malay: A Situated Discourse Analysis. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Michigan. Andrews, D. C. (1988). Technical Communication in the Global Community. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Graves, R. (1997). ’Dear Friend’ (?): Culture and genre in American and Canadian direct marketing letters. The Journal of Business Communication, 34 (3), 235-252. Hagen, P. (1998). Teaching American business writing in Russia: Crosscultures/cross-purposes. Journal of Business and Technical Communication, 12 (1), 109-126. Locker, K. O. (1998). The role of The Association for Business Communication in shaping business communication as an academic discipline. The Journal of Business Communication, 35 (1),14-49. Louhiala-Salminen, L. (July 1997). Investigating the genre of a business fax: A Finnish case study. The Journal of Business Communication 34 (3),316-333.

The Optimum Level of Argumentativeness for Employed Women

Abstract: Discussion of substantive issues among coworkers is vital to group effectiveness (see, for example, Burnett, 1991), and workplace discussion is rightfully encouraged by many business communication textbooks, which warn of the pitfalls of "groupthink." However, when an employee disagrees with the boss or a colleague, the employee must carefully consider the merits of pursuing the issue to the point of an argument. Although some recent business communication textbooks explain how to argue (e.g., Ewald & Burnett, 1997; Locker, 1997), there is little discussion in the business communication literature of the potential benefits and risks of argument, or of the personality predisposition known as argumentativeness that leads some individuals to argue more than others. This predisposition is of interest to business communication practitioners and teachers for two reasons: (a) argumentativeness can be influenced by training, and (b) highly argumentative individuals have been shown to have characteristics linked with workplace success. Achievement of supervisory authority is a widely recognized indicator of workplace success. Since supervisors must both present departmental results to upper management and convey executive decisions to their own subordinates, the possibilities for argumentative discussion are numerous, and the potential importance of those arguments is great. The supervisor's position is held at the pleasure of management, which must have confidence in the supervisor's ability to "communicate about corporate issues" (Gorden, Infante, & Izzo, 1988, p. 20). The importance of this and other management skills increases at higher supervisory levels. The value of argumentativeness for business people seems clear, yet, for female employees, a contradiction emerges regarding what Infante calls a "desirable communication trait" (1982, p. 146) in the workplace. Recent assertiveness research shows that males may react negatively to females' use of powerful communication (Carli, 1990; Wiley & Eskilson, 1985), defined as direct, assertive communication, in contrast to a traditional, tentative communicative manner (Wiley & Eskilson, 1985, p. 996). Yet argumentativeness is an assertive trait (Rancer, Baukus, & Infante, 1985) which claims numerous positive assertions over the last 15 years of study (Infante & Rancer, 1996, p. 321). The contradiction between the argumentativeness and the assertive research is striking. For ambitious women who have been encouraged to be assertive, or who are predisposed to argumentativeness, these findings pose a dilemma which this paper attempts to resolve. In this paper, I examine the relationship between argumentativeness and women's success in organizations, as operationalized by the women's supervisory levels. I begin by defining argumentativeness, including descriptions of how it relates to assertiveness and aggression, and how it is quantified. Then, I review the literature related to the following issues: the benefits of argumentativeness, relevant cultural perceptions/misperceptions, current workplace demographics, and the contradictory research regarding the value of assertiveness for women. Finally, I present the results of my own study which indicates that a moderate level of argumentativeness is optimum for women seeking supervisory advancement and explore the implications of this new information in research, in the classroom, and in the workplace. Literature Review The distinctions among aggressiveness, assertiveness, and argumentativeness are important to understand since the academic definitions, while validated by research, may differ from popular connotations and, therefore, workplace perceptions. Argumentativeness and assertiveness are academically defined as distinct, constructive aspects of aggressive behaviors (Infante & Rancer, 1982). Argumentativeness is One Type of Assertive (and, Therefore, Aggressive) Behavior. …

Teaching American Business Writing in Russia Cross-Cultures/Cross-Purposes

Abstract: This article describes the writer's experiences teaching American business writing in Russia and attempting to find documents for comparison of Russian and American approaches to business communication. She discovered that most documents common in the United States are rare or nonexistent in Karelia, where in many ways organizational culture is oral culture; documents exist largely to show to officials rather than to communicate with customers, clients, superiors, or subordinates. Although Hall's model of high-context communication accounts for some cultural differences between Americans and Russians, it is important to note the differences between Russians operating in official mode and in personal mode to understand the amount of explicitness and directness appropriate in various situations.

National Agendas and the English Divide

Abstract: While as of February 1998 non-US members comprised only 16% of ABC’s total membership, internationalism is evident on all fronts, including the composition of ABC committees and journal editorial boards; the roster of ABC award recipients, conference presentations, and journal publications; and the introduction of new communication vehicles that invite global networking, for example, BCQ on the Web. One ABC journal devoted an entire issue to international con-

Connections and Fissures: Discipline Formation in Business Communication

Abstract: n the last few years, discussions in business communication have I centered on questions of identity: What is business communication ? What should business communication be? These discussions are propelled, in part, by what Rentz (1993) calls our &dquo;collective desire to understand better the work that we are engaged in&dquo; (p. 234). The more driving impetus for our discussions, however, appears to be political. Because many business communication faculty are minorities in their academic departments, their work may not be understood or appreciated by colleagues, administrators, and tenure and promotion committees who, too often, perceive business communication as skills-oriented rather than as a coherent, knowledge-producing field. This desire to bolster our status to legitimize and clarify our work

Navigating the Web with a Typology of Corporate Uses

Abstract: Many business communication teachers are grappling with ways to use the rich potential of the WorldWide Web. A categorization or typology of sites provides students with a tool to explore the Web systematically and attentively. The typology discussed in this article divides corporate sites into five cate gories depending on purpose: marketplace awareness and promotion, cus tomer support, sales, advertising, and electronic information services. Armed with this typology, students analyze sites as examples of business communica tion. Based on this analysis, they develop a collaborative oral presentation.

Are you "pulling the plug" or "pushing up the daisies"? [communication patterns]

Abstract: We are becoming more and more dependent upon a broad range of more or less ubiquitous communication technologies, and these are increasingly integrated with our PCs. The more connected we become, the more important it is that we pro-actively manage our communication patterns. If not, we risk being forced to either temporarily disconnecting ourselves from communicating, or spend all our time trying to catch up with the demand for communication. None of these two scenarios are desirable. The aim of this paper is to investigate how people manage communication patterns as an integral part of their daily work. Empirical investigation of complex work in a Swedish pharmaceutical company showed a variety of means for managing communication patterns. Based on the fieldwork we present SwitchIT, an application for pro-actively managing communication modes, and discuss the theoretical implications of applying the concepts of communication overflow and communication deficiency to describe communication patterns. It is concluded that there is a need for collaborative technology supporting the negotiation of communication.