Business, Management & Accounting

Would you ever take or accept a bribe in the workplace? One university lecturer and researcher reports that, in her native Mauritius, bribery has become so common that little is done any more to stop it. As the global economy continues to expand and businesses diversify their workforces, at some point in your career, you will likely interact with people who have different cultural beliefs than yours, and whose economic and social status is on a different plateau from yours.

Effective communication across diverse cultures can be challenging. However, you can overcome cultural differences between you and your audience by applying certain strategies, such as assessing their reliance upon context. Low-context cultures tend to ignore nonverbal meaning and rely almost exclusively on spoken or written words. High-context cultures tend to interpret meaning within environmental settings and rely more on nonverbal communication. In addition, other cultural differences must be considered as well. Countries and inter-dependent regions may differ from one another socially in terms of measures of success, roles, manners, and concepts of time. Countries may also have varied communication styles in terms of openness, directness, and nonverbal gestures. To overcome barriers to cultural communication, speak clearly and in a moderate pace, avoid slang and colloquialisms, and pause where appropriate to clarify understanding. You can take advantage of technology tools such as online translators and dictionaries. To be an effective intercultural communicator, you are responsible for making sure your messages are received as clearly and accurately as you intend.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Describe the challenges of communicating across cultures
• Describe how language barriers can be overcome
• Identify communication approaches to communicating across cultures
• Discuss intercultural sensitivity
• Describe how language barriers can be overcome
• Identify communication approaches to communicating across cultures

We tend to remember the negative experiences of dealing with a company more than the positive ones, and the negative ones can more deeply impact our feelings about that company. You might think twice about investing in its product or service again. But communicating a bad-news message does not have to leave the recipient with a poor opinion of you or your company. In fact, it could begin the process of creating a positive experience from a bad turn of events. To avoid negative feelings associated with a bad-news message, focus on just a handful of main goals.

There are specific methods and strategies you can employ to soften the blow. You should evaluate your audience and be sensitive to their needs in determining if a direct or an indirect approach would be more appropriate. With an indirect approach, you open your message with a buffer. When your message's purpose is to say no to someone, in addition to presenting specific reasons, list negative points last in the body of your message or in the middle of a sentence or paragraph between two positive points. The close should offer alternate solutions or direct the audience to complete an action. You can use the same writing process and structure to craft other bad-news messages such as refusing requests, turning down job applicants, and issuing negative organizational news. Whatever the circumstance, your bad-news messages should always be polite, tactful, neutral or positive in tone, sympathetic, and error free.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Write an effective bad-news message
• Evaluate methods used to send bad-news messages
• Describe types of bad-news messages
• Discuss approaches for conveying bad news

The most common form of business writing there is, is the request for information; the next most common is the response to such requests. It's ordinary, but it speaks as much for the integrity of your company as a policy statement. Other types of ordinary communiques include recommendations for new resources of action or changes in policy, commendations for positive actions a partner company or customer may have taken, and claims or requests for adjustment when your company isn't satisfied with the quality of service or product it's received.

All types of business requests and responses follow the writing process steps: planning, writing, and completing. In most cases, each routine communication has an opening, a body, and a close. Good news, statements of goodwill, and news releases follow this same structure. The purpose of these writing tasks is to share information, provide congratulations, or capture the attention of a reporter or news editor. In each case, your communication represents your company and should be professional, courteous, and effective.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Discuss approaches for conveying positive messages
• Develop a response to a business message
• Develop an effective business memo and business letter
• Produce a routine business message

When assigned a writing task, do you cringe at the thought of accomplishing it? Many people avoid writing because they're overwhelmed with the thought of taking on a task that will be scrutinized so closely for meaning and quality, not unlike performing on stage. Here is a secret: People who write well start with a plan. Composition is a three-step process that begins with planning, some of which you may not even have to write down. Understanding how to make a plan, analyze your audience, gather information, and organize your thoughts will help you compose your business message or correspondence in simper, incremental, more manageable steps.

During the planning process, you determine a purpose and theme for your composition, gather and organize information, and choose your delivery medium and format. Before writing a first draft, you will analyze your audience to be sure your message is sensitive to their needs and builds a strong relationship. After writing, you will revise, produce, proofread, and distribute your message. There are a number of things you do in the composition process besides writing, that ensure the act of writing is efficient, successful, and even short.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Develop a written message using the steps in the writing process
• Write an effective business message
• Explain how a business message can be sent successfully electronically
• Formulate a business message using successful design characteristics

There are probably any number of things people would prefer doing than reading a business report, perhaps including reading almost anything else. So while you may have the reader's eyes, you may not have the reader's attention. It's up to you to present your information in a compelling way, even if the only persuasion you do is persuading the reader to follow you through to the end. Reports are not, by definition, dull. However, lack of attention to quality may make them that way. Gone are the days when business reports and proposals were paper-based, black-and-white documents with pages and pages of text. Multimedia technology has opened a world of possibilities for presenting long, technical reports in more appealing formats. Now we can use visuals and media such as tables, bar and pie charts, flowcharts, maps, animations, videos, and photos to bring our reports to life and connect with our audience.

Although it may help to add the wow factor, you can't rely solely on technology in your business communications. It's still crucial that you follow a basic plan when organizing and drafting reports and proposals. You must adapt your tone, style, and content to your audience's needs as well as organizing your reports into an opening, body, and closing. You need to include specific elements to ensure your writing is effective and organized. Following the guidelines for drafting reports and adding visuals will undoubtedly make your reports less time-consuming, and more appealing and effective.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Identify parts of a business report and proposal
• Produce a business report
• Develop effective visual aids for a business proposal

Company executives or decision makers use formal reports and proposals to objectively validate or refute sales, purchases, or funding. These reports provide support for their decisions so they know the risks, benefits, or consequences of their actions. Formal reports are often regular publications of a company or organization and, as such, have a long history. Their structures often follow the dictates of decades of history in informing executives and shareholders of the status of the company and its divisions in much the same way.

When a format works well, there's no need to change it for the sake of change. So in many cases (unless the company is new and hasn't published formal reports before), much of the hard work of structuring may already have been done for you. In the case of formal reports, there are typically special details in the very beginning, that you would not normally find even in the standard formal proposal. Some of these details are required by law, especially for a publicly traded company.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Identify parts of a formal report
  
• Critique a formal report
• Explain the purpose of a formal proposal

Businesses today value effective, ethical communicators who can represent the company at all times. With more businesses knocking down the walls between offices, and connecting remote branches with instant messaging and videoconferencing, a business leader could very well be visible to everyone at every moment. Poor communication with your co-workers is a fact that is itself effectively communicated through their body language. If you have a bad impression of a company, chances are it's because you had a poor experience with its customer support, maybe just one person. Online knowledge bases, automated help lines, chat rooms, self-service kiosks, and teleconference channels give companies many options for customer service and support.

Today, many of these same technologies help businesses maintain contacts with clients and manufacturers, track packages, and manage inventory. Whether you're communicating through technology or face-to-face, the statement you make on behalf of your business should be effective, ethical, and barrier-free.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Explain how effective business communication is achieved
• Examine tools used for effective business communication
• List communication barriers
• Describe the impact that technology has had on business communications
• Analyze ethical issues related to business communication

An effective report or proposal can get the boss's attention, help the company make sound decisions, or secure a lucrative contract. Companies rely on reports to maintain inventory, develop and market new products, stay competitive, identify and satisfy customer needs, and manage employee relationships.

Proposals present new ideas or solutions and help companies secure contracts for work. Writing reports and proposals does not have to be frustrating, boring, or overwhelming. A simple procedure can guide your writing, break it into manageable steps, and help you communicate the final product effectively to your audience, whether it's inside or outside the company.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Identify types of business reports and proposals
• Demonstrate the ability to conduct research and analyze research materials
• Identify types of business reports and proposals

Good presentation skills are expected in today's business world. The most respected companies are run by executives who are masters of presentation and communication. Good presentation skills will help to enhance your career, open doors of opportunity, and provide you with a sense of confidence in your communication ability.

One difference between delivering an oral presentation and a written report is that you see the feedback from your audience during the delivery process. Like a great stage performer or comedian, you may want to adjust your presentation in response to that feedback. And perhaps like a solicitor before the high court, you may get direct questions in the middle of your presentation, which may force you to go off-program. Another difference, just like on television, is that you'll likely be interacting with visuals such as charts and photographs.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Demonstrate knowledge regarding audience awareness
• Write an oral presentation
• Demonstrate knowledge regarding audience awareness
• Write an oral presentation
• Develop appropriate visual aids for an oral presentation
• Write an oral presentation Describe how to prepare to respond to questions during an oral presentation

Advertising is not, by nature, disingenuous or dishonest. It is the business of persuasion, upon which all business relies. When used properly, persuasion can be a positive influence, providing potential customers with new information that facilitates understanding and enables them to make informed choices.

Writing persuasive messages is a three-step process that includes planning, writing, and completing. During the planning stage, writers analyze the audience's needs and likely reactions to the message, determine the most effective emotional and logical factors, and gather facts, test results, testimonials, expert opinions, and competitive comparisons to support any claims they plan to make. When writing, they implement the AIDA model to prompt an audience's attention, interest, desire, and action.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Describe methods used to send persuasive messages
• Identify strategies for developing a persuasive business message
• Apply effective writing skills in producing a persuasive message

Your career is something you nurture and develop like a strategic asset. Today, seeking a new job while you're currently employed, being laid off unexpectedly, or having a contract lapse and not be renewed are all commonplace events. Full-time employment is no longer guaranteed, as independent contractors, temporary employees, and part-time labor all give employers less costly alternatives.

Most jobs are not posted publicly because companies prefer to hire from within, or based on recommendations from current, valued employees. You can network through social media, friends, and friends of friends. You can also use your writing skills to plan, write, and complete a résumé and an application letter that will make a stellar first impression and prompt a hiring manager to call you for an interview. You then plan for the interview. Write possible questions they may ask you, and include possible responses. Practice your nonverbal communication skills, selling yourself, and discussing answers to salary and compensation questions. After the interview, send a follow-up letter, and soon, you might just be sending that letter of resignation to your old job and saying “hello” to your new one.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Discuss types of interviews
• Explain the important elements of securing a position in the current job market
• Create samples of appropriate follow-up messages
• Write an application letter
• Create a resume

As a member of any kind of team, you are responsible for ensuring that you're an active, contributing participant. The structure of a team determines the limits and extent of members' responsibility and participation, including yours. You may not always be the leader of every team you work with, but your ability to interpret group dynamics and respond positively, will make you a natural leader in whatever role you play. Team involvement is not always about meetings.

When you're working with a team on a project or an everyday task, you may be communicating with more than one party at a time—especially if you're using the phone or email. It's important that you not look distracted or overwhelmed, because the rest of the team is counting on you even if you're not the leader. Your poise, your wardrobe, and even the way you appear to be listening, send important messages to your co-workers.

This resource provides instruction for users to:

• Describe the characteristics of effective teams
• Recognize elements of a successful business meeting
• Recognize barriers to effective communication
• Identify categories of nonverbal communication
• Examine elements of appropriate business etiquette