INTRODUCTION
Communication means to create a common understanding. Communication is an important
aspect of human behavior. It stands for natural activity of all human beings to convey
opinions, feelings, information, and ideas to others through words (written or spoken),
body language, or signs. Communication is an integral part of life. From birth till death
every living being is communicating in his or her own way, be it birds, animals, trees or
human beings.
Communication is the most vital ingredient of an organization. In fact, an organization
cannot be conceived of without communication. An organization is a group of persons
constituted to achieve certain specific objectives. The achievement of these objectives
largely depends upon a proper co-ordination and integration of human effort in an
organization. The people working in an organization are interrelated; their activities are
also interrelated because all activities are performed only to achieve the organizational
objectives. Co-ordination and integration of various human activities are possible only if
there is an effective system of communication in the organization which provides for
exchange of information and sharing of various ideas. The more effective the system of
communication, the better is the relation between workers and the management.
It is communication which gives life to the organization; so, it is rightly known as the life
blood of an organization.
DEFINING COMMUNICATION
The term communication has been derived from the Latin word ‘communis’ that means
‘common’ and thus, if a person effects communication, he establishes a common ground
of understanding. Literally, communication means to inform, to tell, to show, or to spread
information. Thus, it may be interpreted as an interchange of thought or information to
bring about understanding and confidence for good industrial relations. It brings about
unity of purpose, interest, and efforts in an organisation.
“Communication is the sum of all things, one person does when he wants to
create
understanding in the minds of another. It involves a systematic and continuous process
of telling, listening and understanding.” – Allen Louis
“Communication is an exchange of facts, ideas, opinions or emotions by two or
more
persons.” – George Terry
“Communication is interchange of thoughts, opinions, or information, by speech,
writing, or signs.” – Robert Anderson
“Communication is defined as “the process of passing information and
understanding from one person to another, it is essentially a bridge of meaning between
people. By using the bridge of meaning a person can safely cross the river of
misunderstanding.” – Keith Davis
COMMUNICATION PROCESS
The main components of communication process are as follows:
Context - Communication is affected by the context in which it takes place. This context may
be physical, social, chronological or cultural. Every communication proceeds with context.
The sender chooses the message to communicate within a context.
Sender / Encoder - Sender / Encoder is a person who sends the message. A sender makes use
of symbols (words or graphic or visual aids) to convey the message and produce the required
response.
Message - Message is a key idea that the sender wants to communicate. It is a sign that elicits
the response of recipient. Communication process begins with deciding about the message to
be conveyed. It must be ensured that the main objective of the message is clear.
Medium - Medium is a means used to exchange / transmit the message. The sender must
choose an appropriate medium for transmitting the message else the message might not be
conveyed to the desired recipients. The choice of appropriate medium of communication is
essential for making the message effective and correctly interpreted by the recipient.
Recipient / Decoder - Recipient / Decoder is a person for whom the message is intended /
aimed / targeted. The degree to which the decoder understands the message is dependent upon
various factors such as knowledge of recipient, their responsiveness to the message, and the
reliance of encoder on decoder.
Feedback - Feedback is the main component of communication process as it permits the
sender to analyze the efficacy of the message. It helps the sender in confirming the correct
interpretation of message by the decoder. Feedback may be verbal (through words) or non-
verbal (in form of smiles, sighs, etc.). It may take written form also in form of memos, reports,
etc.