Chapter 2 Chapter Overview & Objectives

Getting the Message Across

Chapter Overview

This chapter presents essential communication principles and explains how communication happens, how it can fail, and how you can apply strategies to ensure it succeeds. You’ll learn how business communication involves many modes beyond the written word, and you’ll discover how messages flow between individuals within and between organizations. Finally, you’ll see why writing for the broadest possible audiences is an important skill in today’s global work environment.

Learning Objectives

In this chapter, you will learn to do the following:

  1. Describe the communication process.
  2. Identify communication barriers and apply strategies for overcoming them.
  3. Identify core competencies for interpersonal communication.
  4. Explain the importance of non-verbal communication.
  5. Analyze the systems and mechanisms for communicating inside and outside organizations.
  6. Examine the organizational flow of communication.
  7. Contrast high-context and low-context cultures.
  8. Ease the flow of communication between and across cultures.
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