Communication in the general sense is an information exchange between people or their groups. There are interpersonal, social (functional-role), business communications. The subject of our conversation will be the last view.
What it is?
Business communication is an interaction in the field of official relations, the purpose of which is to solve specific problems, achieve certain results, and optimize any activity. Moreover, each participant has his own status - boss, subordinate, colleagues, partners.
If communication takes place between people who are on different steps of the career ladder (leader and performer), then there is a vertical relationship, that is, subordinate relations. If the interaction is based on the principles of equal cooperation, then this is a horizontal relationship.
It is business communication that a person carries out daily at work, at the university, in schools, official institutions. This is the communication of teachers and students, superiors and subordinates, colleagues, partners and competitors.
It depends on how well the interlocutor is familiar with the rules, forms and methods of such communications, whether he will be able to achieve his goal. Partners must speak the same language (both literally and figuratively), understand each other, have a common social experience.
Business Communication Terms
For business communication to be effective, a number of conditions must be observed:
- Communication should have an understandable goal, in the achievement of which all persons involved in the process are interested. For example, networking, conclusion of an agreement, coordination of an event, development of conditions for cooperation, etc.
- Participants should contact each other regardless of likes and dislikes.
- Mandatory compliance business etiquette subordination, job roles, formal restrictions.
Formal restrictions are understood as various regulations, routines and protocols, as well as the banal need to control the power of one’s own emotions and respect the interlocutor.
Also, the leader or other participant as interested as possible should make sure that business communication is manageable. It is necessary to motivate participants to find a solution, otherwise they will be just passive observers of the meeting who do not offer any ideas.
Forms of business communication
The two main forms of communication are contact (direct) communication and indirect (indirect).
In the first case, the interlocutors communicate face to face and have the opportunity to evaluate each other's non-verbal behavior, therefore the effectiveness of such contact is higher. In the second case, interaction occurs using any means of communication - telephone, letters, etc.
More specifically, the most common forms of business communication are:
- Meeting.
- Presentation.
- Business conversation.
- Conversation.
- Telephone conversations.
- Exchange of official business documents (application, contract, power of attorney, memo).
- Consultation.
- Interview.
- Public speaking, conferences.
In turn, using separate forms of business communication, participants can take a confrontational or partnership approach. The first option is a confrontation: each side intends to win. A partnership approach involves finding a solution that is acceptable to all participants.
Stages
Despite the fact that the types of business communications are different, they are almost always characterized by several stages:
- Training. This is setting goals, goals, collecting and analyzing information, determining a strategy for behavior. After all, a business meeting or negotiations are not organized in order to chat “about nothing” and to find out how things are in the personal life of the interlocutors.
- Planning. The meeting can be held spontaneously, but it is still believed that the professional should have a clear plan: what he will say, how to argue, what exactly he wants to get from the other side.
- Discussion - discussion of ideas, suggestions, finding common points of interest, making a joint decision.
This scheme is most relevant for negotiations. Other types of communications may not include all stages. A “cold” phone call or issuing instructions, for example, may not involve any discussion.
Business Communication Styles
Allocate not only types of business communications, but also styles. When it comes to professional interaction, the following are most often used:
- Formal business. In turn, it has an administrative-clerical, legislative and diplomatic sublime. Business conversations are characterized by speech cliches and certain communicative forms.
- Scientific. Used in the preparation of reports, speeches at seminars and lectures.
- Publicistic. This includes any performance in public, including through the media.
- Conversational household. Informal relationships also take place in the professional environment, and are encouraged in individual companies. Colleagues do not always communicate exclusively with the help of memos. However, you need to understand where such a style is appropriate and where not.
Features of business communication
Why does business communication require preliminary preparation for communication in advance? Firstly, people do not just spend their personal and working time on official meetings, and no one wants to wait until the initiator gathers his thoughts. Secondly, the second side is not always interested in any kind of interaction or is set to cooperate, but sees it in a completely different way.
As you know, there will be no second chance for a first impression. You need to be able to make contact so that all participants get the mood for discussion. If the other side did not initially plan to work together, then you should at least interest the interlocutor and arrange a meeting with him at a more convenient time.
At the international level, there are specifics of business communication, because different cultural characteristics can greatly interfere with the course of negotiations. For example, Americans are used to coming to a meeting on time and after a short greeting to get down to business. Arabs are also punctual, but they start a business conversation from afar, first discussing nature, weather, food. The Italian does not see anything terrible in being late for a meeting and also does not immediately begin a business discussion. And the Japanese will avoid a direct look during a conversation.
Thus, we learned what business communication is, what are its features, what forms, types and styles are characteristic of it.
