Unit 5
Modern Forms Of Communication
FAX
Invented in the early 19th century, the Fax machine was actually invented much before the invention of workable telephone lines. Fax - short for facsimile, also referred to as telecopying or telefax, performs the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material (both text and images) to a telephone number connected to a printer or other output devices. The fax machine has reduced in size and increased in functionality gradually and today the fax machine exhibits features which really make it a completely multifunctional device. Therefore, the fax machine has become a device which has improved with time and technology and in the present scenario has become irreplaceable in business environments.
The key features typically found in the present fax machines are functional in nature and significantly increase the convenience of use of this device. Some of the features of a fax machine are as follows:
- Printing is one of the main features found in fax machines today. The whole process of printing documents has become more reliable, accurate and cost effective at the same time with the options of laser and colour printing available at the disposable of every fax owner.
- New age feature like dual access lets the sender print incoming faxes from memory while transmitting another fax, or scan a fax into memory while receiving a fax.
- Modified Read protocol increases the transmission time of a fax machine and thus makes it more efficient.
- One of the most important features of a Fax machine is out of paper reception. This feature allows the device to receive and store the faxes even when the fax machine is out of paper.
- Another often overlooked but rather important feature of a fax machine is speed dialling.
- The Fax machines have become a multifunction device today. It can act as a phone, fax machine, scanner, printer and copier as well and is known as Multi-Function Device (MFD)
Relevance and Importance of Fax Machines
Below are some reasons why fax machines are important and relevant even today:
1.Global coverage and acceptance
Fax has long been established as a global communications medium. Even after the arrival of the internet age, sending and receiving documents via fax is recognized as the “lowest common denominator” in business-to-business communications worldwide. Although Internet-based alternatives do exist, none have managed to overthrow the humble fax machine as a universally recognized standard. There are over one-hundred million fax devices in use today globally.
2. Simple
Employees of all ages comprehend fax technology and have sent or received a fax as a component of their normal business duties. Traditional fax machine design is simple and intuitive – feed the pages that you want to send into the machine, enter a fax number like you would on a standard desk phone or mobile, and sit back and wait for the confirmation. Businesses that incorporate high volumes of fax messages into their workflows often choose a fax server solution which allows sending and receiving faxes from any desktop via email.
3. Traceable
Outgoing faxes generate notifications which are delivered to the sender informing him/her about the status of the fax delivery (sent/failed). A successful notification can only be generated when the remote device signals that everything was received correctly.
Fax servers go even further since they may even be configured to log and archive copies of all inbound and outbound faxes. Multifunctional peripheral devices (MFPs) when integrated with a fax server (instead purchasing a fax card option AND providing an analog line), all of the fax messaging can be logged and archived at a central location, optimizing both management and security while also providing consistent and professional coversheets for outbound faxes.
4.Legally binding
There are legal precedents for faxed documents such as signed contracts to be legally binding in a court of law. The intrinsic nature of the T.30 fax protocol, accurately reproducing documents between two remote points, meets the legal requirements of custodianship – that no third party could reasonably intercept or alter the document between the sender and the receiver. Support for digital signatures are also included into the fax server software which further ensures the integrity of the fax data.
5. Assured delivery
Unlike with email and mobile text messaging, with faxes the receiving fax machine must acknowledge that the document was received successfully – that the call wasn’t interrupted half way through and the device didn’t run out of paper, toner, or ink. Your notification is proof that your document has been successfully delivered to the recipient.
6. Ease of integration
Fax servers can be integrated with a business communication environment either on-premise or in the cloud, including servers such as Microsoft Exchange, Lotus Domino and Novell GroupWise. The capabilities of CRM, ERP and document management systems may also be extended with fax capabilities through dedicated and licensed fax server connectors. Legacy systems and non-Windows platforms can also interface with fax servers through standardized protocols like SMTP (email) and Samba (Unix/Linux file and print services).
7. Secure
The T.30 fax protocol is a point-to-point communication system and any malicious attempt to intercept or alter the data will be detected by either the sending or receiving party and ultimately cause the transmission to fail. This is the basis of the “legally binding” nature of faxed contracts and the primary reason why fax technology is still around today.
8. Still Popular
By establishing a foothold well before the age of the Internet, fax machines and servers are a ubiquitous technology available to every business and organization throughout the world. Many business processes, like transferring medical records and financial information, are linked exclusively to fax and don't have any universally recognized alternative. Organizations often forget about the importance of fax until there is a telephony glitch or a fax server goes down, then their reliance on the technology comes into sharp focus.
9. Fax over IP
Many corporates have progressed towards voice-over-IP technologies to save telephony expenses by eliminating the public switched telephone network as much possible and using Internet-based least cost routing. Because these systems are optimized for the human voice, a complimentary technology was created called fax-over-IP that is generally available on most voice-over-IP telephony systems. Although commonly not as quick as modern fax machines, fax-over-IP solutions can exist totally in a virtualized environment with no dependency on hardware.
10. Fax is established
It appears as if every decade ends with writers/bloggers making lists of practices and technologies that have reached the top of their usefulness and wish to be laid to rest. Business cards, newspapers, optical discs, credit cards, etc., are all debatable, but nobody omits fax machines. Indeed, the humble fax machine as we know it may fade away, but fax as a communication standard for national and international commerce is deeply entrenched and not going anywhere any time soon.
Emails
Emails are basically letters sent electronically. They can be long or short, formal or informal. Although for business purposes only formal emails are considered important.
Emails have become a dominant form of communication. Being able to write polished, relevant email is now a critical skill in college and work.
Formal Email:
- Written for a professor, colleague, manager, etc.
- Must always be professional.
- Accurate grammar, punctuation, and spelling necessary
Example:
Dear Professor Johnson,
I was unable to attend class today due to a doctor’s appointment. If you have a moment, can you let me know what I missed and what homework I need to complete on Friday?
Thank you,
Julia Smith.
Email Format
- Greetings / Salutation:
A formal email greeting is similar to a letter greeting. When you write a letter to a stranger, you put the question “Who Can Worry About You”? When applying for a job, you were addressing the person, “Dear Hiring Manager.” If you know the name of the recipient, you put “Mr. Dear Mr.M /. Smith. "For formal greetings, you should not use the recipient's first name or the informal greetings" Hello "or" Hello."
- Physical Categories/ Body Paragraphs:
It is important to remember that the email needs to be shorter.
I hope that all goes well for you.
Thank you for your prompt response.
However, in official emails it is best to understand the point. Depending on the topic, you should have four main roles and each paragraph should have one point. In your last paragraph you should provide a "thank you" or "call to action" depending on the topic of your email.
Thank you for your help with
Thank you for your time and look forward to hearing from you.
Please feel free to call me or email me if you have any questions. If this can be taken care of immediately.
- Closing:
As a greeting, the closing of the official email can be the same as the closing of the book. However, unlike mourning, there are many ways to close.
Thank you
very humble
Sincerely
It is also helpful to add your post (if any) and a phone number under your name in paragraph 4.
For example:
Yours sincerely,
Julia Smith
President of Student Body
Menlo College
(555) 555-5555
- Tips:
DO NOT use a contract.
Example: no, no, I'm not, I'm not.
DO NOT write about all the coins.
Use structured vocabulary and sentence structure. DO NOT use slang.
Close email at least twice and get a second opinion if possible.
Video Conferencing
If a business is disseminated in various locations, you may be able to save both time and money by using videoconferencing for meetings with staff from various offices. Applications such as Google Hangouts and Skype allow you to see one another while you hold your meetings. This allows for face-to-face communication although participants are many miles apart. This is an especially useful instrument for maintaining camaraderie among office personnel despite long distances.
Video conferencing is typically used as an umbrella term for multiple types of online collaborative services including web seminars (“webinars”), webcasts. And peer-level and organizational web meetings in general. Video conferencing is made possible by internet using information technology, particularly on TCP/IP connections. Services may allow time point communications as well as multicast communications. From one sender to many receivers. It offers data streams of text-based messages, voice and video chat to be shared simultaneously, across geographically dispersed locations. Applications of video conferencing encompass meetings, training events, lecture, presentations from a web-connected computer to other web-connected computers.
Video conferencing usually allows real-time point-to-point communication as well as multi-task communications from one sender to several receivers in separate locations. Depending on the requirements, either an application (additional software) is downloaded and installed or a web-based client application is launched in the member's browser. The latest open source technology for Web-conferencing is offered by Google’s WebRTC.
Five Advantages of Web Conferencing Solutions are:
1. Application and Desktop Sharing
One of the most important advantages of video conferencing is desktop and application sharing. The ability to present information through PowerPoint Presentations, Excel Spreadsheets, and any number of other applications ensures that your meeting runs smoothly and that all members are on the same page despite the distance.
2. Increase Productivity
Video conferencing does save time and costs, but that’s not the only way it can save time. Through web collaboration solutions, companies can give online demos of products and services without dalliance in the planning process. You can save the time that’s usually spent on coordinating with clients, employees, and customers by having a webinar demo or tutorial ready for online deployment.
3. Conduct Employee Training Easily
Most people consider the benefits of video conferencing in terms of internal meetings, but you can also utilize it for employee training. Web-conferencing programs like Blackboard specialize specifically on training and education, making it easier than ever to train employees located in various locations at the same time.
4. Improve Customer Relations
Video conferencing tools can even be employed to improve customer support and relationships. Utilizing the benefits of video conferencing solutions can give your support team more ability to acquire control of a client’s computer and fix problems in a more efficient and timely manner.
5. Unrestricted by Locations
Finally, the most important video conferencing benefit is that it allows your organization to act without geographical limitations. You can manage and run all the operations of your company through video conferencing with the best webinar tools, and the technology is improving at such a meteoric rate that the geographical distance between employees and team members will soon be a non-issue.
As you may see, leveraging the benefits of video conferencing solutions ensures that your entire organization is working on the same page, vastly improving the data flow of the corporate.
Businesses are selling products around the world. Partnerships are being formed with people from diverse cultures as business relationships are formed. Each country and the cultures within a country bring communication challenges to businesses. Good international business communication practices help maintain these intricate business dealings. Bad communication practices can cause loss of business and even international tension among countries. Communication is intricately blended with non-verbal communication and etiquette.
International communication across cultures can be a challenging task. Each culture has set rules and regulations that are followed by its people without even noticing that they are following a certain pattern that is not followed anywhere in the world in the same way. Many of us are aware of our own culturally appropriate behaviours but most of us are unaware because the cultural habits are imprinted on us from a very early age. And although a culture's knowledge, rules, beliefs, values, phobias, and anxieties may be taught by external methods, most of the information is absorbed subconsciously.
Therefore, the cultural challenge for international business communication has never been greater. Multinational businesses have gradually discovered that intercultural communication is a subject of great significance—not just because of continuously increasing globalization of the world, but also because their workforce is growing more and more diverse, ethnically and culturally.
Every individual is born and brought up in a particular culture and therefore no two individuals would react to a situation in the exact same way. That being said, generalizations are valid to the extent that they provide important indications on what one will most likely encounter while dealing with members of a specific culture.
- High-Context vs. Low-Context
All international business communication is influenced by various cultural differences. Even the channel of communication one chooses is coloured by cultural overtones. High-context or low-context culture refers not to the degree of industrialization but rather to the amount of content provided by various cultures during communication.
Cultures such as Mediterranean, Slav, Central European, Latin American, African, Arab, Asian, Indian culture are regarded as high context cultures when it comes to communication. They tend to leave the message unspecified and to be understood through context, nonverbal cues, and between-the-lines interpretation of what is being communicated.
On the other hand, low-context cultures such as Germanic and most of the English-speaking cultures expect messages to be explicit, direct to the point and specific.
2. Sequential vs. Synchronic
While conducting global business, various cultures think of time in various ways which affects the way they approach deadline, investments, the concept of long-term planning, investments etc. Some organizations view time sequentially, as commodity which is linear in nature and which can be spent, saved or wasted. On the other hand, some view time synchronically, as a constant flux which is connected and can be experienced in the moment, and as a force which is out of one's control.
Sequential business cultures include North American, Dutch, German, Swedish and English which tend to give their full attention on the fulfilment of one agenda after another.
In synchronic business cultures such as South America, southern Europe and Asia the flow of time is considered as circular. A kind of loop in which the past, present and future are all interrelated.
Business cultures such as the Japanese, Chinese and Korean view punctuality as a virtue and find it extremely essential to be punctual in not only official but also in social affairs.
3. Neutral vs. Affective
Reason and emotion both play an important role in international business practices. Depending upon these two factors a culture can be categorized as communicationally affective (readily showing emotions) or neutral (more focused towards reason).
The U.K, Norway, Netherlands, Japan and Indonesia for example could be considered as culturally neutral as they tend to react with reason rather than emotion during an international communication process. However emotional responses are readily accepted in Singapore, Italy and France.
4. Mannerisms
Various mannerisms are an essential part of non-verbal communication and therefore, are an intrinsic part of multi-cultural communication. It can be a difficult task to adapt to a certain culture which can create challenges in communication during an international business meeting.
For example, it is considered a respectable expression in Japan to greet someone with a bow whereas a formal handshake is a more common form of greeting in the U.K and the U.S. If one is not careful one might also hurt someone’s sentiments as they might find the mannerism of someone not adhering to their own culture as offensive. For example, a peck on the cheek is not a rare occurrence on the streets of Paris, however if the same is attempted on the streets of Mumbai where a ‘Namaste’ is considered as an appropriate way to greet, it might create trouble for both parties.
A group business or group of companies is an amalgamation a of parent and subsidiary businesses that function as a solitary economic entity through a common source of control. Leff defines group business as a group of companies that does business in different markets under common administrative or financial control whose members are linked by relations of interpersonal trust on the premise of identical personal ethnic or commercial background.
One method of describing a business group is as a cluster of legally distinct firms with a common managerial and administrative relationship. This relationship between the corporates in a group can be formal or informal. The concept of a business group is often employed in tax law, accounting and (less frequently) company law to attribute the rights and duties of a single member of the group to another or the whole. If the organizations are engaged in entirely different businesses, the group is called a conglomerate. The formation of business groups typically involves consolidation via mergers and acquisitions, although the group concept focuses on the instances within which the merged and purchased corporate entities remain in existence instead of the instances in which they may be dissolved by the parent. The business group may be owned by a holding company which may have no actual operations.
A business group is composed of several companies. The general rule for business groups is that a company is a separate legal entity from its shareholders, that is the shareholder's liability for the subsidiary's debts is limited to the value of the shares, and the shareholders cannot be required to perform the company's obligations.
However, some jurisdictions create exceptions to this rule. For instance, Germany has curated the affiliated enterprise law which provides situations by which one company is accountable for the debts of another company. In New Zealand, the Companies Act provides that the assets of related companies may be pooled to pay the creditors if one of the companies is liquidated. However, the circumstances in which this power will be exercised are very narrow.
Principles and Characteristics of Group Business
Below are the fundamental principles of a group business:
Belongingness: A good sense of belongingness must exist or develop in the members of the business group.
Perception: Changes can be implemented in the business group by creating a common perception in the minds of the members regarding the need for change.
Conformity: When continuous efforts are made in the direction of removing individual subparts of the business group, it may result in the conformity to the norms of the group.
Change: All the relevant information concerning the need, plan, strategy and outcome of change has to be shared amongst the business group members.
Readjustment: Changes in a particular part of the business group is likely to create stress in the other parts, which can be reduced either by reversing the change or introducing readjustments in the related parts.
Common Motives: A business group is formed and operated because of common or shared motives.
Power: The higher the level of the business group to its members, the higher will be the influence which can be exercised on its members.
Continuous Process: Every organisation which is a part of a business group is responsible for its continuous operation, so they must ensure that the activities and tasks assigned to the group are performed uninterruptedly.
Goal Orientation: The survival of a business group is ensured by placing the members into an operational hierarchy and a goal-oriented action.
In a nutshell, it deals with the constantly changing and adjusting relationship existing among the business group members. It encompasses all those affecting actions, processes and changes, that take place within and between groups over the period of time.
Communication links individuals and groups in a social structure. Initially, task-related communication links develop in an establishment so that subordinates can get the data they have to carry out, their work and co-ordinate different tasks with that of their colleagues. Over an extended period, these communication relationships become a complicated social structure comprising of both small-group communication networks and a bigger institutional network.
A communication network consists of a selected body of people who are interconnected as links within the communication flow. These networks structure both the flow and also the content of communication and support the organizational structure, institutional culture, beliefs and value systems that help tie institution to function effectively.
A group communication network is the pattern of directions in which information flows in the organization. The Channels of communication are networks by which information flows and they can be formal networks or informal networks. Formal networks typically follow the chain of authority as per the organizations hierarchy and are limited to task-related communications. The informal network, also known as grapevine, is liberal to move in any direction, skip authority levels, and is as likely to satisfy group members' social needs as it is to facilitate task accomplishments.
Network helps managers to ascertain contacts in several patterns through communication flows. The network depends upon the magnitude of the organization, nature of communication channels within the organization and also the number of persons involved in the process. There can be many patterns of communication network.
Types of Group Communication Networks
Below are the five main types of group communication networks in an organization:
1. Vertical Network and Y Network
The vertical network is typically followed between a superior and subordinate employee and vice versa. Vertical network provides a two-way communication structure. Immediate feedback is easily acquired in this type of group communication network.
Y communication network combines the features of both wheel and chain group networks. The upper portion of the vertical network follows the structure of a wheel network and lower portion follows the structure of the chain network.
Consider an individual A is the central person who communicates with B, C and D. The Y network follows the formal chain of command where vertical and horizontal communication takes place in the organizational hierarchy.
2. Circuit Network
In the circuit network two individuals communicate with each other directly. Mr. ‘A’ sends a message to Mr. ‘B’. After decoding and understanding the message Mr. ‘B’ communicates the feedback message to Mr. ‘A’ directly. Therefore, communication occurs in the form of a circuit. A circuit network is similar to vertical network but in a circuit network the sender and receiver of the message may not be compulsorily superior and subordinate.
Each individual in a circuit network communicates with the individual on both sides but not with anyone else.
This type of communication network is often followed in task forces and committees. It is often found that the morale of subordinates is significantly higher in this network. It is a faster and more effective network for solving complex problems within the group.
3. Chain Network
Organizational hierarchy and chain of command are an integral part of the chain network. All commands are passed on by the superiors to the subordinates. In the example below, B, C, D and E, F, G are the subordinates to A in the organizational hierarchy and receive commands from ‘A’.
In this type of group communication network, each member converses with the person above and below, except for the individuals on each end that communicate with only one person.
This pattern can be found most predominantly in a vertical hierarchy, in which most communication traverses up and down the chain of command.
4. Wheel Network
In the wheel network, one superior gives command to all the subordinates. This is highly centralized type of group communication network wherein each subordinate receives orders or instructions from a single authority or superior.
Information flows between the person at the end of each spoke and the person in the middle in this pattern. Individuals who are at the ends of the spokes do not directly communicate with each other.
Typical work groups feature this type of communication network, where the primary communication occurs between the members and the group manager i.e., the head of the institution.
5. Star Network
All members of the group communicate with each other and exchange information in this type of network. A star type network communication enhances teamwork. This network channel of communication is open to all members of the group. The members communicate with each other without hesitation.
In this network the information flows fastest compared to other networks, though there may be problem of coordination. There is one path of communication in single channel network for a specific position and information flows through that path only to various persons. This is usually the official path of communication where information flows ‘through proper channel’ between the superior and subordinates. In the star network the flow of information occurs through the concerned superior or subordinates only.
The success of a business or industrial organization lies in doing its job for this purpose, gathering information and passing it on to those who need it is important. In the broader collection and transfer of information is happening all the time in every area of formal life. So scientists, working brokers, testers, journalists, and various professionals, government and private organizations are asked to write and report to their management on important topics at the institution or the person involved.
Reports can be as short as a few sentences and as long as a few large pages. Although reports can be verbal and informal, here we are concerned with written and formal reports.
Features of a Business Report
- Requirement:
When organizing and preparing your reports you need to know who your audience is and whether or not your content meets their interests and needs.
- Accessibility:
Legitimacy has to do with how easy or readable it is. As most reports in normal cases type, all meetings with good typing should be followed. If there are handwritten reports, special attention should be given to writing clearly and clearly. Any departure from the above requirement will prove displeasing to your audience.
- Clarity and Readability:
Clarity, durability and systematic presentation of readable content. The concept is summarized better than the following:
The author does a lot by giving his reader a lot of information and taking away from him a little time.
In this regard the following five goals are met:
a) Use short sentences.
b) Prefer quality over quantity.
c) Choose a common name.
d) Use the economy and avoid unnecessary words.
e) Act actions as far as possible
- Conciseness:
Just like unwanted fat in the body, padding, prolixity and repetition violates the respect of good writing, not to mention the respect they wrote for you. So 'agree' and 'prefer' will be more acceptable than pompous 'agree with' and 'prefer'. As such, why use 'at that point in time' and at a time when we have the best and most economical holdings at that time 'and' when '. Viewed from the point of view of the report, or requested for the report, a good report will contain four important details, an analysis of the information, conclusions and recommendations. It should always be remembered that effective reporting requires special attention to the needs and expectations of the reader. It means that the author of the report has to 'snap a picture', he must think and understand himself.
Components of a Business Report
A business report is comprised of the following sections:
- Title Page
The title page includes the main title of the report, it must be short and concise. You can also include the word counts of your summary and main body.
B. Table of Contents
Help your reader quickly and easily find what they are looking for by using informative headings and careful numbering of your sections and sub-sections.
For example:
C. Introduction
The introductory part of the report comprises of statement of the objectives of the report and how the report should be treated by the readers. It should indicate towards the problem that is going to be addressed in the main body. It should be catchy and interesting to grasp the attention of the reader from the very start.
D. The Body
The main body consists of the central theme or the main idea of the report. It can be divided into a number of sections and subsections to separate your research and subsequent findings in a logical order.
E. Figures, Graphs, Formulae and Tables
This section consists of the statistical representation of the data you have collected. Ideas should be conveyed in the form which is most suitable to the reader and easily understandable by the reader. Excessive use of these tools should be avoided.
F. Conclusion
The conclusion is a kind of summing up of all the points you have stated in the main text. It should be a definite solution to the problem introduced during the introductory part of the report. The conclusion must be short and to the point.
G. Summary
Summarize all the key points stated in the report including your research, your findings and your conclusion. The summary should feel like a brief overview of your investigations and outcomes. The summary should be constructed in such a way that it can be called a stand-alone document on its own.
H. References
References must include detailed information of all your citations and the sources of material quoted in your texts. It can also include bibliography for further reading.
I. Appendices
This is the last element of a report. It refers to any material which can be useful in the detailed understanding of your subject. It is not meant for the casual reader but for readers who are highly interested in the subject.
Survey Report
A survey report is a document which elaborates the findings of a survey in an objective manner. Survey reports usually consist of detailed statistical analysis of the surveyed data divided into various sections. A survey report has no specific format and is curated as per the requirements of the surveyor.
Surveys can be conducted by means of questionnaires, door to door information gathering or by using internet surveying facilities. A survey report may be presented in factual form (numbers, percentages and proportions) along with its implications.
Like other reports, a survey report can also be broken up into several headings namely,
- To
- From
- Survey
- Date
- Purpose
- Introduction
- The Body
- Conclusion
Below is a basic survey report sample:
To: Mrs Joanna Brown
From: Liam Black Subject:
Survey "Ban on using and selling fireworks".
Date: 1st January 2008
Purpose
The aim of this report is to present results of the survey carried out to find out what is people's opinion on public displays and selling fireworks. That will help to decide if using and selling fireworks should be banned. The survey was carried out among people aged 25-50.
Ban on public displays of fireworks
Seventy-two per cent of people asked if there should be a ban on public display of fireworks were of the opinion that public displays should not be banned five per cent were for banning public displays of fireworks while three percent were not sure of their opinion. The facts stated above suggest that people do not mind public displays of fireworks and they would not want any limits on them.
An overall ban on sale of fireworks
The majority of people asked if there should be an overall, ban on sale of fireworks replied 'yes'. One fifth of interviewed said 'no'. One out of ten reported that they would rather ban sale of fireworks while a small portion of people (5 per cent) answered that they would rather not ban the sale of fireworks. Seven per cent did not have any opinion on the subject. It shows that over half of viewers are for banning sale of fireworks.
Children buying and using fireworks
A significant percentage of people (eighty-three) asked if they would allow their children to buy and use fireworks responded "no". The rest of interviewed said "yes". That shows that there should be absolute ban on selling fireworks to children as it may be very harmful and dangerous for them.
Conclusion On the basis of the findings above, it would seem that majority of people find fireworks dangerous and they would claim a definite ban on selling them, especially to children. People also do not trust displays of fireworks which should be banned. They also suggest that government should take some actions to restrict laws associated fireworks and sale of fireworks.
