Business Communication Best Practices

Trevor Marshall

ORG535 – Contemporary Business Writing and Communication

Colorado State University – Global Campus

Dr. Keith Pressey

November 20, 2016

COMMUNICATION

AND ETHICS• Loss of trust has a lasting effect on an

organization and can happen in many different ways. (Bonime-Blanc, 2014, pg. 1).

– A companies reputation, and ultimately trust, is constantly on the line.

• “Reputation risk and opportunity can hurt or enhance a product or service” (Bonime-Blanc, 2014, pg. 1).

– The risk and opportunity can effect any size organization in many different ways.

Communication Case Study –

Takata Airbag• Takata attempted to cover up

manufacturing issues it was having

with airbags (Atiyeh, 2014).

• Key stakeholder trust was lost.

– Customers - Major Automobile firms

– Executive Reputations

– Relationships with regulators

• Reputation of company suffered

unrepairable damage due to industry

and importance of safety.

– Loss of key accounts means no viable

business moving forward.

Source: http://blog.caranddriver.com/massive-takata-airbag-recall-everything-you-need-to-know-including-full-list-of-affected-vehicles/

INTERCULTURAL

COMMUNICATION• Diversity has the opportunity to unlock innovation and

drive substantial growth.

– Executives must embrace and believe in this potential.

• Employees at firms that embrace inherent and acquired diversity out-innovate and out-perform others.

– Up to 45% likelier to improve market share and 70% more likely to develop a new product line.

• Leaders must give diverse voices equal air-time to straight white men.

– Nearly twice as likely to unlock value driving insight.

(Canas & Sondak, 2014)

Video

(You Tube, 2016)

Business

Presentations

• A Presentation is A…

Performance!

(You Tube, 2016)

DIGITAL MEDIA

• Twitter offers a great opportunity for intercultural engagement. –Makes it easier to connect with others

across cultural divides.

–Businesses should take advantage of this and capitalize on the opportunity it provides.

(Guffey & Loewy, 2015)

BUSINESS REPORTS

• INFORMAL REPORTS

– Used to

• Analyze, Sort, Interpret Statistical Data

• Use Tables

– Help for

• Drawing meaningful conclusions

• Make practical recommendations

– Organize

• Logically and provide reader cues

Case Study - AMAZON• Jeff Bezos - CEO

• NO Presentations• All proposals delivered in

draft• All attendees of meeting

must read entire draft and provide feedback from their conclusions

(Guffey & Loewy, 2015)

Conclusion

• Business Communication is important in many areas.

• Communication and Ethics are intertwined for organizations today.

– Your reputation is at stake

• Digital Media and Email are two predominant forms are business communication.

– Follow the 3x3 writing process

• Business Reports can be both formal and informal, depending on your audience.

References• Atiyeh, C. (2014). Massive Takata airbag recall: Everything you need to know, including full list of affected

vehicles. Retrieved from http://blog.caranddriver.com/massive-takata-airbag-recall-everything-you-need-to-know-

including-full-list-of-affected-vehicles/.

• Cañas, K. A., & Sondak, H. (2014). Opportunities and challenges of workplace diversity: Theory, cases, and

exercises (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

• Guffey, M. E., & Loewy, D. (2015). Business communication: Process & product (8th ed.). Stamford, CT: Cengage

Learning.

• Bonime-Blanc, A. (2014, May 8). The global ethicist: Risk and opportunity – the role of stakeholder trust.

Retrieved from http://www.ethicalcorp.com/stakeholder-engagement/globalethicist-risk-and-

opportunity-role-stakeholder-trust

• You Tube. 2016. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zH3ZDjvIULs#.

• You Tube. 2016. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEDcc0aCjaA.