Business at work

work for which the subordinate is responsible

. informing managers about the subordinate’s own performance, problems

or their personal ambitions in relation, for example, to promotion or

opportunities for developing new skills.

. passing on information about other employees in the subordinate’s

section and relations with sections with which there is a direct link

. submitting ideas on improving working methods and solving work

problems.

In the interests of effective working relations. Most organisations expect

subordinates to report formally through their immediate supervisor or

manager. However, they are likely to communicate in formally with managers

higher up the hierarchy and in some situations, such as grievance

procedure, may go directly to a more senior manager than their immediate

superior.

Horizontal information flow

In addition to upward and downward flows, there are also horizontal

information flows between people of the same status. Because many

operations within an organisation must work very closely together, there

must be formal arrangements for the exchange of information between

sections and departments. The production department, for example, must have

close contact with the purchasing department when it is considering changes

to materials and components or introducing advanced machinery and

equipment. Production staff also has to exchange information with employees

in requirement, training, marketing and transport.

The quality of information.

The essential characteristics of an efficient information system are that

the right people receive the right information at the right time. The

information communicated should be:

. internally relevant to the needs of the recipient

. accurate and concise

. comprehensive, avoiding a time-consuming request for extra

information

. clear – it must be presented and communicated without ambiguity or

possible misunderstanding.

The person receiving the information must have confidence in the ability of

the sender and, therefore have the confidence to take decisions based on

the contents of the communication. The person sending the information must

be confident that the receiver has the ability to understand, use and take

effective decisions based upon the information supplied.

This information system, the communication media and the kind of

information provided should be review on a regular basis. The information

system should be adjusted to take into account any developments within the

organisation such as changes in its organisational structure or management

style. This review should also take into account external factors such as

advances in information technology.

Informal communications

Vertical and horizontal information flows should be clearly defined. If

individual are not sure about from whom the y should receive information

and instructors, this can lead to the growth of information flows which are

not part of the formal system. If there are two information flows running

at the same time, there can be confusion and a fall in productivity. These

informal systems can generate alternative sources of information and create

a situation where the different levels of management receive inconsistent,

inaccurate or even conflicting information.

Many businesses, however, accept that some tasks would not get completed if

they only used formal channels of communications and chains of command. It

may be necessary to short cut the formal system if a matter is very argent

or a clash of a personalities is creating communications problems. Some

informal channels may be tolerated if groups of workers have formed good

working and personal relationship outside of the formal channels. Informal

channels may even be the most effective way of communicating some kinds of

information.

All organisations have a grapevine, which communicates information

informally through personal contact between employees both vertically and

horizontally throughout the organisation. The grapevine can be a quick way

of communicating information to the workforce as a whole as it tends to

operate by word of mouth. It can be used to pass on important information

before an official announcement and, depending upon the feedback generated,

the company may modify its intentions before the formal announcement.

The problem with using the grapevine is that information can get distorted

or exaggerated as it is passed on. Proposal to cut a workforce, through 10%

natural wastage and 5% redundancies, may soon get changed to 15% compulsory

redundancies as it spreads through the grapevine. This may be useful as the

actual announcement may prove to be much more acceptable than the distorted

version on the grapevine.

External communications

Efficient internal communications are important, but an organisation’s

external communications are vital. Its business prospects will be seriously

threatened if it neglects its external communications. An organisation

needs to communicate externally with:

. customers and clients

. suppliers of materials, parts, machinery, other physical inputs and

business services

. local, national and European authorities that deal with matters such

as taxation, planning permission, environmental protection,

competition law, investment grants, trading standards, and health and

safety

. pressure groups concerned with issues such as consumer protection,

animal welfare, environmental matters and the welfare of law paid

workers

. the media and the general public on matters that can either damage or

enhance the company’s public image.

Organisation must ensure that the quality of their external communications

is as high as possible and select the most effective media for

communicating information. It is obviously important that organisations

maintain effective communications with their customers, and most businesses

invest heavily in market research promotion to attract and keep customers.

Many companies now recognise the importance of providing a communication

channel which allows customers easy access to the company. Some companies

advertise a customer care telephone number or an E-mail address on their

packaging or promotional literature. The customer care section will be

stuffed by people trained in the kinds of communications skills needed to

deal with customers making complains. Larger companies may employ

specialists press officers and public relations officers to handle dealings

with the media, pressure groups and the general public.

Organisations relying on other companies for materials and components can

find themselves in financial difficulties of their external communications

lets them down and orders are not placed at the right time. This may led to

shortages of parts and materials, and production may be held up. Relations

with suppliers may also be affected by poor verbal communications skills

which can cause confusion of the exact nature and delivery of an order. It

is for this reason that any changes to an order made verbally should be

supported by some form of written or electronic confirmation.

Opened and restricted channel of communications

In most organisations, some internal channels and communication media are

open to all employees; stuff at all levels can access the information.

Organisations want to provide some information to all their employees. This

would include, for example, information on health and safety regulations,

environmental management policies, incentive chemist and any response to

resent adverse publicity. This downward information flow from the top of

the hierarchy would be open to all.

The content of much downward and upward information flow sis fairly

routine, and organisation are not too concerned about people beyond the

sender and recipient being aware of what is being communicated. However,

access to some information and channels of communications may be

restricted. Some information is sensitive – and if it becomes known to

people other than the intended recipients, it could create either internal

or external problems.

Information and communication technology

Both internal and external channels of communication are increasingly

supported by information technology, with computers generating and managing

information flows. A computer-based information management system provides

the mean to communicate, collect, store, summarise, analyse and present

information in a way that best suits the controlling and decision making

needs of different managers. Inform received by one department or section

can be further processed before it passed onto other departments through

the organisations computer network.

Computer systems can help organisations:

. react changes in the business environment

. process complex information

. provides administrative support

. increase job certification

. collect information at source

. communicate via the internet.

The Data Protection Act 1984

The Data Protection Act was introduced to ensure that organisations

structured and managed the data held on their computers in a responsible

way. These are its main provisions.

. Organisations must register the kind of information it keeps on

individuals with The Data Protection Agency (DPA).

. Data must be obtained and processed fairly. People should know if the

information they give to organisations will be kept on computer and why

it is needed.

. Organisations can only collect the kind if information that they have

registered with the DPA, and the data must not be used outside of the

purpose for which it has been registered.

. The information held on individuals must be accurate and, where

necessary, up to date and it must not be kept longer than necessary.

. Organisations must take precautions against unauthorised access to the

information they hold on individuals.

. Individuals are allowed access to the personal data held by

organisations and, where necessary they can correct mistakes.

In March 2000 the Data Protection Art was extended to cover records kept on

a paper as well as information stored on computers and to provide

additional protection for the individual. The protection includes new

rights to know who holds information on you. It provides a statutory right

to know the identity of the person in a business responsible for data

protection issues, right to have a photocopy of personal information held

by organisations and greater rights to object to anyone holding personal

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