Communication & Virtual teams

Communication could be defined as the way how information is transmitted from one individual to another and the means used for this purpose. The most common and recognized is the interpersonal communication which is the basis for making and maintaining personal relations and it is so unique that cannot even be replaced by technology. This kind of communication has 4 key elements: The communicator, the receiver, the perceptual screens and the message. In order to reach a successful communication, the listening must be reflective; it means that one must listen carefully the counterpart, repeat back the message and make corrections about possible mistakes. Why should it be reflective? Because in reduces the chances for distortions in perceptions, assures that the right message is given and because it considers emotions as vital for an effective message. Responses to reflective listening go from affirming contact, paraphrasing and clarification of the implicit; to the silence and the eye contact.

However, communication varies depending on who gives the message since every manager has a different way to give a message:

• Expressive speakers: they express ideas, thoughts, and opinions and so on in a very open way so the employees can know where they really stand.
• Empathetic listeners: their main characteristic is their patience and concerning about others, and their willingness to listen.
• Persuasive leaders: they prefer to motivate and encourage employees instead of just giving orders.
• Sensitive to feelings: they look for enhancing employee’s self-esteem by giving feedback and adopting a critical perspective.
• Informative managers: provide the necessary information to employees in order to avoid information distortion and overload.

Also, some barriers are always present in every cross-cultural communication. Some of them are:

• Language barriers: different dialects, oral expressions and writing; semantic barriers, poor grammar and punctuation
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• Physical barriers: such as noise, time, distance, age and gender.
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• Social psychological barriers: status, attitudes, values, perceptions, inference, abstraction, etc.

It is important to take into account that communication is not limited only to the verbal one, but that there is also a non-verbal language carried out by facial and eye expressions, voice tone and paralanguage.

Virtual teams

According to Zenun et al (2007) a team should fulfill the following conditions: a small number of members, skills that can be complemented, to have a common objective or purpose, be committed to the team and show accountable results. Virtual teams are those whose members are located in different places and even in different time zones, which communicate each other by means of modern technology of communication so they must have a big coordination by the manager or leader.

On the one hand, the benefits of virtual teams are the following ones, among others:

• Low costs.
• Easiness to take advantage of market opportunities.
• Allow its member to be geographically dispersed.
• Quick response to changes.

On the other hands, there are also some difficulties when managing and dealing with virtual teams:

• Lack of face-to-face contact.
• Difficult for the leader to check the performance of every member.
• Possibility of mistrust, misunderstandings and conflicts.
• Different languages.
• Cultural differences.

That is why managers must have a balance and find ways to avoid the disadvantages so the virtual team can work as a real team, not as a group of individuals that work independently.

Communication is a process that allows organizations to send/receive messages within their own boundaries but also to interact with outside entities (customers, suppliers, the media, etc.). Messages are send/received not only through oral and written statements, there are many channels and ways that need to be considered when discussing effective organizational communication. In that sense, the use of sounds has become increasingly important.

Based on the article “If Intercontinental were a sound…what would it be?”*, Please discuss the implications (potential advantages, disadvantages, challenges, etc.) of using sounds to send strategic messages. You need to integrate the use of key concepts relating to the topic of communication to support your answer.

The usage of jingles and sounds is a very useful tool when looking for giving the desired message to a specific public. Normally, sounds are simple and so easy to remember since they are acquired by means of the echoic memory by which humans remember a sound, which is easier to memorize than an image. That is the reason why it is not strange that we remember dozens of sounds right now, and even more throughout our lives.

The problem is that given the nature of the message, jingles are not easy to design since a very well designed sound does not necessary mean that the communication will be given successfully. For that reason is why InterContinental study intended to create a musical version of the company’s profile, was a very interesting exercise because it allowed the organization to see beyond a simple sound and wonder about whether they understood or not their business.

Generally, we do not think about this, but the sensorial environment has a remarkable impact and influence by stimulating and creating stories that customers will remember after leaving the venue. The importance of this approach relies on the fact that this is a magnificent tool to take advantage of when trying to communicate the desired message. By means of this study, those involved on it, found out that they still had a lot to learn about the organization and stop for a while and redefine its values in order to show and assure the right message.