Business communication

(MB 0039 sem-1)

1502004731

Q1. As a speaker you are addressing a group of people. What could be the possible
barriers in this communication?
Answer:-Noise is one of the elements of communication. Noise is essentially a barrier to
communication and we distinguished between physical noise, physiological noise
and psychological noise.
There are many other barriers to communication, and understanding and analysis of
which are needed before coming op with ways to eliminate or minimize them. These
barriers may be classified as follows:
1. Environmental barriers:-This is the same as physical noise, which could be in
the form of distracting sounds, an overcrowded room, poor facilities and
acoustics, all of which may hinder the ability to listen to and understand the
message.
2. Individual barriers:-A major barrier to interpersonal communication is a
tendency to judge, evaluate, approve or disapprove of the views of another
person. This happens particularly in situations where we have strong feelings
about something. In such cases, we tend to block out the communication and form
our own viewpoints.
3. Organizational barriers:-In organizations that are too hierarchical, that is, where
there are multiple layers, messages may have to pass through many levels
before they finally reach the receiver. Each level may add to, modify or
completely change the message, so much so that it becomes distorted by the time
it reaches the intended receiver. In other words, there is likely to be loss of
meaning and the message may not reach the receiver in the same way as it was
intended by the sender.
4. Channel barriers:-In the earlier section, it was pointed out that communication
can fail due to any of the different elements going wrong. Wrong choice of
channel is one of the main barriers to communication. Using a wrong medium of
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advertising, or conveying a message orally when a written letter would be more

appropriate, are examples. The written channel is more appropriate when the
communication is more formal or for keeping things on record, while emotional
messages such as feelings about co-workers are better conveyed orally.
5. Linguistic and cultural barriers:-When the sender of the message uses a
language that the receiver does not understand, the communication will not
succeed. Either the sender may be using a different or foreign language, or the
language used may be too highly technical for the receiver to understand.
Linguistic barriers may also occur in cross-cultural advertising and distort the
communication, when translating campaigns or slogans literally from one
language to another. For example, Pepsis slogan Pepsi brings your ancestors
back from the grave!
Cultural differences refer to differences in values and perceptions, which may
affect the interpretation of the message by the receiver.
6. Semantic barriers:-The word semantics refers to the meaning of words and the
way in which they are used. For example, different words may have different
meanings in different cultures. Failure to take this into consideration could lead
to serious blunders.
Q2. What is the importance of kinesics and proxemics in communication? Explain
with examples.
Answer:1. Kinesics:-This is the most often studied and important area of non-verbal
communication and refers to body movements of any kind.
Different body movements can express inner stated of emotion.
Facial expressions can convey feelings of surprise, happiness, anger and sadness.
If you meet a long lost friend and say Im very happy to meet you again, but
with a sad facial expression, it conveys the exact opposite meaning.
Eye movements, such as wide open pupils express feelings of surprise,
excitement or even fear. The importance of eye contact with ones audience was
pointed out earlier. Direct eye contact is an indication of intensity and interest,
while lack of it can convey feelings of nervousness and guilt.
Gestures, such as movement of the hands while giving a lecture or presentation
indicates a high level of involvement in what you saying. On the other hand,
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shuffling of the feet is a sign of nervousness and speaking with ones hands in
ones pockets is considered to be casual or even rude.
Head movements like nodding the head can convey interest, appreciation,
agreement or understanding.
Body shape and posture body shape is not within ones control but can be
stereotyped to convey certain meanings.
Physical appearance our outward appearance, including the way we dress and
the jewelry and make-up that we wear can convey and impression of formality or
informality.
2. Proxemics: - proxemics is derived from the word proximity or closeness and is
the communication term for personal space and distance. The space and distance
which we choose to keep from people is also part of non-verbal communication.
Each of us has our own inner and outer circles, which differ for different people.
Our inner most circle is an intimate space, into which we generally admit only
select people such as family and close friends. Next comes a personal space
which might include other friends and colleagues or coworkers. These two spaces
involve communication of an informal nature.
Most of us also have a social and public space, which includes official or
workplace relationships, where the communication is of a more formal nature.
In a business context, it is more relevant to understand the concept of fixed
space and semi-fixed space.
Fixed space means that the physical features of the work environment such as
furniture, room size and seating arrangement are permanent.

Q3. What are the steps in making oral business presentation?

Answer:1. Definition of the purpose of the presentation:-Before preparing for the
presentation, it is important to be clear on the goal of the presentation. A
statement of purpose, expressing what you want to achieve through the
presentation should be framed, so that it becomes easy to measure whether the
goal has been accomplished or not.
2. Development of the key idea:-The key idea of a presentation is a statement that
expresses the main message to be conveyed to your audience. It is different from a
statement of purpose, in that the purpose, in that the purpose is generally meant
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for yourself as the presenter, while the key idea is mentioned to the audience at the
beginning of the presentation.
3. Audience analysis:-Making a good presentation alone is not enough. It also has
to be tailored to your listener, in such a way that they understand and appreciate it.
The following information should be gathered about your audience, even before
you begin preparing for the presentation
Job designations and areas of expertise
Preferred style of presentation
Demographic characteristic of the audience
Size of the audience
The level of knowledge on the subject
The attitude of the audience.
4. Analysis to yourself as a speaker:- Apart from analyzing your audience, you also
need to do a self-analysis to determine your own purpose of making the
presentation, your level of knowledge on the subject and your feelings about the
subject.
5. Analysis of the circumstances:-This includes taking into consideration any
limitations of infrastructure, time and context that might affect your presentation
in any way. For example, if you will be speaking in a small room where the
lighting and the acoustics are insufficient, you may have to overcome these
limitations by altering the seating arrangement, using brighter visuals and
speaking loudly.
6. Preparation outline:-Once the initial groundwork has been done, you will need
to develop an outline of your presentation. Irrespective of the nature and purpose
of the presentation, a standard format is generally followed, including the
following
Introduction
Body or main section
Conclusion
7. Collection of information and material:-Once the outline of the presentation has
been developed, you will need to start gathering the relevant material. This is a
time consuming process and requires a fair amount of research. The information
can generally be gathered from existing sources such as magazines, newspapers
and the internet.
8. Organization of the body:- The body of the presentation should always be
prepared before the introduction. Organizing the body consists in identifying the

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key points that will support your main idea and then selecting an organizational
plan to develop these key points.
9. Planning the introduction:-Since the introduction is where you make the first
impression, it should be planned with care. It should take up between 10 and 15
percent of your total speaking time. At the outset, you need to try and establish
your credibility, by showing that you are qualified to speak on the subject of the
presentation. An attention getting opener should be developed, using techniques
such as humor, dramatic questions an interesting story, a quotation or a starting
statement.
10. Planning the conclusion:-The conclusion of the presentation should be shorter
than the introduction and occupy only 5 percent of the entire presentation.
Generally, every conclusion should have a review and a closing statement.
Q4. Imagine a new product from kids apparel industry. Write a persuasive letter to
customers, persuading them to buy your companys product.
Answer:Dear customer
We are happy to inform you that we have launched our new kids apparel collection
recently. We are having a wide variety and range exclusively designed for kids at most
affordable price. This price and quality of the kids apparel cannot be challenged by out
competitors as we have made these apparels especially for the kids.
The material which we have used to make the apparels are skin friendly and there is
guarantee that your kid will love to wear them without any rashes. These are made from
pure Lenin material to suit and give comforting feeling to the kids.
Moreover we have a wide variety of range from new born to 3 and them from 3 years to 8
and until 15. For both girl baby and boy baby.
As a parents we know how much you take care of your kids in each and every matter and
for selecting the apparels for your kids we are here to sever your needs and makes you
feel happy.

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And apart for this we have great discounts on all the segments available at our stores.
Please visit the nearest store to avail the good quality cloths for your loved ones and make
them happy at great price never before. So hurry up and grab the offers.
SINCERELY
SALES MANAGER
NEW KIDS APPARALES
Q5. You are going to face a job interview for the post of manager-operations. Which
aspects you will keep in mind while facing the interview?
Answer:-As a job applicant, you will have to do some groundwork before the interview,
prepare to do well during the interview, assess your performance and do some follow up
after the interview.
There are several sources are available for researching an organization, including business
publications, financial newspapers, annual reports, company websites and interviews with
company employees. The information that job applicant needs to gather about a company
include the following:

Name of the company.

Its status I the industry, in terms of market share, ranking, sales, assets and number

of employees.
Recent developments in the company.
Scope of the company-whether it is local, national or international.
Names of the top management.
Products and services offered.
Plans for future growth, such as expansion and diversification.

Once you have gone through the preparation stage, you are ready to face the actual
interview. This is the most important stage of the job application process, during which
attention should be paid to the following aspects:

Opening formalities:-Since it is important to create a good first impression, the

way you greet and introduce yourself is important. Using the name of the
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interviewer correctly, giving a firm handshake, waiting till you are asked to be
seated and sitting with an erect posture, are common courtesies that should be

observed to project a good image.

Non -verbal communication:-It is emphasized that in face-to-face communication,
non-verbal cues can enhance communication and convey a positive message.
Apart from a firm handshake and erect posture, your non-verbal behavior should

indicate that you are confident and attentive to what interviewer is saying.
Group interview:-A group interview is one where a panel of interviewers
interview a single applicant. The group may comprise people from different
functional areas in the organization, such as HR, marketing and finance. When
asked a question by one of the group members, it is common courtesy to make eye

contact with and to address your responses to all the interviewers.

Two way interview:-Although the applicants task is primarily to listen and the
interviewers job is primarily to ask questions, it is in the hands of the applicants

to make the communication a two-way process.

Honesty and humility:-It is important to be honest and to avoid bluffing or beating
around the bush, if you do not know the answer to a particular question.

Employers appreciate honesty, rather than over smart answers.

Positive answers:-Do not speak ill of your previous employers. If asked about
your previous experiences, you may give honest feedback, but you should do so

tactfully. Your answers should always end on a positive note.

Salary discussion:-Any discussion on salary should be initiated by the interviewer
and not by the interviewee, especially during the initial interview. When sked
about your salary expectations, you should indicate a range, rather than a specific
figure. Therefore, you should have found out the general salary range for

candidates with your qualifications and experience, before the interview.

Closing the interview:-How you close the interview is as important as how you
open it. Normally, the interviewer gives a signal when the interview is over, either
through body language, or by making a comment on the next step for action. At
this point, you must thank the interviewer, give another firm handshake and say
that you look forward to hearing from the company soon.

Q6. Write short notes on:

1) Skimming
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2) Notices
Answer:1) Skimming:-Let us say you are a student of management; and as suggested by
your professor, you need to by a reference text book on investment management,
or to write a paper on computer graphics. You go to a book store and see a rack
full of books, with the same title, but different authors. You do not have time to
read the pages before deciding on buying the book. Therefore, you quickly go
through the contents, title page and the blurb. By now, you have decided to by one
book. This type of reading that you do in the book store is known as skimming.
Thus, skimming may be defined as looking over a text/book quickly, in order
to get a general or superficial idea of the content.
2) Notices:-Like memos, circulars and notices are also written forms of
communication within the organization. The difference between a circular and a
notice is that circulars are announcements that are distributed to small or selective
groups of people within the organization, whereas notices are meant for a large
group of people.
Example:-If a manager wants to call a meeting of heads of departments, he will pass
around a circular only to the heads, requesting them to attend that meeting.
On the other hand, notic3s generally contain information or announcements that are
meant for all the employees of an organization.
Example:-A list of declared holidays for a calendar year is a notice, since the
information is relevant to all employees.
A notice is therefore a legal document that has to be put up on an official notice or
bulletin board.
Let us examine another example of a circular and a notice.

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Imagine that you are the president of the student committee in a management college
and wish to hold a meeting to plan for the annual management fest of the college. You
will have to send some information to those whom you want to involve in organizing
the fest. You may not want all the students to be involved initially, since it may take a
lot of time and there may be too many suggestions. Instead, you may choose to invite
only the committee members to discuss details such as the date, venue, duration, how
to get sponsors and so on. For this purpose, you may send a circular only to the
student committee members, requesting them to attend the meeting.
During the meeting, the date and venue may be finalized and various smaller
committees may be formed, such as a reception committee, stage committee and so
on. You may also decide to get each student to contribute a nominal amount for the
fest. In order to announce these details and to ask for student contributions, you may
then put up a notice on the official college notice board, which all students can see
and respond to.

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