| Bravo Team Company BCOM/230 |
Memo
To: | New Manager, Edward Seibert | From: | [Your Name] | cc: | Cindy Perry, Brain Brennan, Angela DeLoach | Date: | August 4, 2014 | Re: | Group Communication | | |

Welcome Edward to Bravo Team Company. We have many different groups within Bravo Company, and as a manager you will need to be up to speed quickly on some of the common communication barriers within the company. The common barriers, such as Disruptive team members, language, listening, and group think, are some of the ones that we have seen in the past. I have given examples and also techniques on how some managers have handled these barriers. I also wanted to let you know a little about conflicts in groups, which can be good or bad. Good luck and please come see me if you have any questions or need help with anything.

* Disruptive Team Members
Disruptive team members can cause a break in group communication. A couple of examples that we have dealt with in the past are the “dominators” of the group and the “progress blockers.”

* Usually, a dominator takes over the discussions by giving their point of view on the subject before being asked, and by not allowing room for anyone else in the group to share their thoughts or ideas. I have found that by preparing an outline of what we will discuss in the meeting, and by pre-appointing roles such as leader, recorder, and time keeper, helps to involve everyone in the group. The leader is responsible for keeping order in the group, causing a lower chance for domination

* Occasionally, we encounter a progress blocker during a group meeting. The progress blocker is the one that disagrees with most everything that is being discussed. You must stop the negative attitude before it spreads to the rest of the group. When I see that the negative attitude has made its way into our meeting, I usually try to get the progress blocker to share their thoughts on the topic of discussion. Sharing their thoughts sometimes helps the blocker to get everything out in the open, and to lighten the negative attitude. If the negativity continues to be a problem, then I suggest that we take a break from the discussion for a few minutes. During the break, I usually pull the blocker aside to find out from where their frustration is coming. There have been a few times that the frustration was coming from personal problems at home. Showing concern and understanding the cause of the frustration will help to show the blocker that you care. We are all part of the same team, and try to help each other out when we can.

Keeping a handle on the dominators, and stopping the negative attitudes at the door will help to enhance group communication.

* Language Barrier
The language barrier encompasses quite a few language communication barriers. There is the language barriers between different teams, as each has their team jargon. Being an accountant you know quite a few accounting jargons that people who are not accountant look at you strange when you are talking with your fellow colleagues. Last month we hired Jane, as an account receivable specialist. This job is her first one out of college. She is using BTW, LOL, BRB, OMG, etc. in her talk and also her written communications. Our other account receivable specialist is Valentina, who is Russian. She is working hard to understand all of the slang, acronyms and jargon for her position. Valentina felt overwhelmed by the acronyms Jane was using, so Valentina went to Mary, her boss. She explained the situation, and Mary spoke to Jane to let her know that the acronyms she used with her friends were not part of common business communications.

* One Technique that Mary used that has worked has been to make the employees stop using the acronyms and jargon in communications. Having them say or write the full words have helped. This technique helps others who are unfamiliar with the jargon to understand the communication. It has opened up communications in our office. It has led to better communications across all the other teams and has helped in productivity between teams. The same is also true with the use of slang in conversations. Remember that English might not be all the team member’s first language.

* Listening Barrier
Another type of communication barrier is the listening barrier. Listening is harder than you think. You have to become an active listener. You need to pay attention to what a team member is saying. If you do not pay attention in meetings, then you may look like you do not care about what others have to say. If you are trying to focus on when you can jump into the conversation, it may make you seem unable to relate to others around you. Once George came in to see me, and I was working on the financials. I knew he had come in, and I thought I was listening, but I need to get the reports done. He spoke to me, I must have answered him, but when I finished. I thought back to why George had come in, and I could not remember. So, I had to go and ask George what he had asked before which was a little embarrassing. So, I had to figure out how not to have this happen again.

* A Technique that I have found helpful, as I am guilty of not actively listening, is to make sure I focus on what people are saying. It is difficult to do, as you may want to rehearse what you want to say. If you use active listening, you should be able to see when there is a pause and be able to jump into the conversation. I am guilty of having people walk into my office, and because I am busy not paying attention to them. I have made a habit to stop what I am doing and concentrate on that person or group. Doing so, lets them know I am receptive to what they are saying. I am a better communicator because I am actively listening.

* Physical Barriers

One type of communication barrier is a physical barrier. A physical barrier can be as simple as a closed office door. A closed door shows the employees that you are closed off from the team. Also, it shows that you are unwilling to communicate with them. The team will lose focus quickly if you do not communicate with them. Joe, our new inside sales manager, kept his door closed all the time. His group felt cut off from him. They thought he did not want to communicate openly to them. They did not want to disturb him all the time, so the group lost their focus. Worst there was no communication between Joe and his group. When he talked to Angie our Service Manger about his team not communicating with him, she told him when she was a new manager she had the same problem.

* One technique Angie used to stop this physical barrier was to have an open door policy. In keeping an open door, you show the group that they can communicate with you openly. Doing so will help you to keep aware of what is going on around you. It makes you seem more receptive to other group members.

* There is going to be some conflict that arises in a group setting, and that is why it is important to understand the role conflict plays in group communication. “Conflict in a group occurs when members disagree over two or more options that a group can take in trying to make a decision, resolve a problem, or achieve a goal.”(Beebe & Masterson, 2005) Every employee will have different perceptions, attitudes or prefer different actions. It could keep the group from completing its task,; however, it does make the group test and challenge ideas. When there is a lacking of challenging ideas this could lead to a serious problem.

* Groupthink is the illusion of agreement. It is a type of thinking that occurs when a group strives to minimize conflict, maximize cohesiveness and reach a consensus without critically testing analyzing and evaluating ideas. If there is too little conflict, it will lower the quality of group decisions. If you do not take the time to look at the positive and negative consequences of alternative decisions, the quality of the decision is going to suffer. Alternative decisions are something to keep in mind when being in charge and why it is important to understand the role that conflict plays. Not having any conflict is just as bad as having too much conflict. If you know how to deal with conflict, it will only help the group.

* There are also different types of conflict and being able to identify the types will help you better manage them. There is Pseudo, Simple, and Ego conflict. Pseudo has to do with individual’s misunderstanding each other’s perceptions of a problem. Simple conflict is a disagreement over the course of action, idea, policy, or the like. Ego conflict is defense of the ego. The best way to manage these types of conflict is to make sure everyone in the group has open lines of communication, and can speak freely. Also being able to be an active listener will only help you in managing types of conflict.

Please remember that these are only a few examples of these barriers. There are other communication barriers some of the common ones are; communication apprehension, emotions, by-passing, cultural differences, physical disability. I am sure that as you go along you will find more examples and will be able to work to find techniques of your own to solving communication barriers. Again welcome to Bravo Team Company and good luck with your new position.

Reference Page

Beebe, S. A., & Masterson, J.T. (2005). Communicating in small groups; principles and practices (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.)