Effective Communication?

This blog post is better late than never...

Communication is when information is exchanged through words, signs, or symbols 

For week 3, within the program "The Art of Effective Communication," the message was the same, but could be interpreted differently because of the choice of medium.

Email:

An email is preplanned, making it a formal communication medium (Portny, Mantel, Meredith, Shafer, Sutton, 2008).  The sender can reread the words and select just the right words.  It is clear from the email that Jane needs Mark's information in order to finish her own work and meet her own deadline however there isn’t a sense of urgency, just a matter of fact message.  In my line of work, emails are sent so that there is a record of the communication.  This also brings a sense of accountability to the reader.  However, emails are easily looked over, especially if there is no specific information about need by date. 

Voicemail: 

Phone conversations and voicemail would be considered an informal communication since they happen when people want to share information (Portny et al., 2008).  Jane seems sympathetic to Mark's busy schedule but she adds emphasis to "really need an ETA" and "I really appreciate your help" indicating some concern about her approaching deadline.  However, as with an email, without a need by date, there doesn’t seem to be any urgency to her message.  I would interpret this to mean, send me the information when I get a chance. 

Face to Face:

The face-to-face seems very scripted.  In fact, Jane smiles more and that implies that there is no urgency to getting the information.  She appears friendly, calm, and at ease.  Her face does turn more serious and she uses her hands as she talks about missing her deadline.  This medium is also informal (like the phone medium above) but also seems the most casual.  I like to talk to someone face to face so that I can interact with the person for immediate feedback - to know the message was received, and, if face to face, I can read his/her body language or tone.

Application:

Even though the message in these three mediums are the same, people can and will interpret the meanings differently.  I’ve learned that if I use informal communication, I should send a follow-up email in addition as a formal response and to document the conversation.  Dr. Stolovitch (Laureate, n.d.) also stated ambiguity kills, meaning that it is important to keep the message clear and concise.  It is common to hear "keep it simple" to avoid confusion.  When communicating with a project team, it is important for the communication to be frequent and to include a clear message (updates, goals, action steps). 

If Jane is requesting the information via email, I think the email conveyed the message best.  However, if she desires a more prompt response, she needs to include more detailed information including need by date.  In this case, the phone or face-to-face communication seem like second attempts to get the information in a timely manner and thus would have more urgency in the tone of delivery. 

Resources:

Laureate Education (Producer). (n.d.). Communicating with stakeholders [Video file]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Portny, S. E., Mantel, S. J., Meredith, J. R., Shafer, S. M., Sutton, M. M., & Kramer, B. E. (2008). Project management: Planning, scheduling, and controlling projects. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.