CGE2000 Series Tutorial
Communication in Organizations

Task 1 - Pre-tutorial Reading
Read the following three paragraphs BEFORE the tutorial. Try to understand the context of the workplace being described here. Then, answer the questions in this section.

A Meeting at Alinsu

Ariel is a junior claims processor (a person here, not the CPU in a PC) working at the insurance company, Alinsu. Read the following excerpt of what happens in a regular meeting she has.

1. At 9.00, the claims processors converge on the supervisor’s desk for a unit meeting. They roll their chairs and sit in a semicircle around her desk. Postures vary, ranging from straight backs to leaning over a desk nearby. Most processors sit cross-legged with their notebooks on their laps. Ariel looks at the familiar faces of her colleagues, who dress formally every day. It has been only a little over a year, and yet so much has happened - so many conversations and so many events. Of course, people get petty around the office. They have nothing better to do. Everybody is here, and it’s a matter of interest. You come and you work here eight hours a day. It’s your life. People know everything that’s going on. They do it out of boredom, she thinks to herself.

2. There is a mixture of local chat with interjections across the semicircle. The atmosphere is general relaxed and the talking as well as the configuration convey a sense of familiar conviviality. These meetings are a regular occurrence in the office. They take place at least once a month, but usually at shorter intervals – whenever there is business to discuss. Harriet, the supervisor, looks at her watch and checks that everyone is there. Esther is still on the phone. “We’ll wait for her.” There she comes on her chair: after some shuffling and scooting, everyone is ready. Harriet then passes a piece of paper for everyone to sign