Exam 15: Managing Communication

Across all industries,poor communication skill is the single most important reason why people do not advance in their chosen career.

Narrative 15-2 JetBlue Airways, in business since February 2000, has had tremendous success by offering direct flights, low fares, wider leather seats, flat screen TVs with live digital satellite channels, one-way tickets, no requirement for Saturday night stayovers, and great customer service. Modelled after Southwest Airlines, JetBlue has the lowest costs in the industry at 6.4 cents per passenger mile. But as its new planes age, its costs will rise, as will the wages it pays its pilots, flight attendants, and mechanics. JetBlue's challenge will be to continue its success as it ambitiously grows from 73 planes and 6,500 employees to 290 planes and 25,000 employees over the next five years. The key to meeting those goals is solid communication. As companies like JetBlue grow, managers must learn how to communicate effectively both one-on-one and with a larger number of people throughout an organization. This is why founder and CEO David Neeleman and President Dave Barger speak with every new "class" of employees as they come through JetBlue's structured orientation process. On the first day of orientation, Barger teaches the new hires about JetBlue's brand (direct flights, low fares, plane features, and so on), while Neeleman shows them how JetBlue earns its money and the role each of them plays in that. Another part of JetBlue's strategy to communicate and reinforce its organizational culture is a program called Principles of Leadership (POL), a five-day training program completely taught by JetBlue's managers from all levels of the company. As they teach, JetBlue's managers share real-world stories that illustrate ways in which company managers and employees have practised or violated the five principles of JetBlue's culture. In general, these stories demonstrate when it is proper and improper to break company rules to serve customers. For example, a JetBlue pilot once bought several dozen McDonald's Happy Meals for the kids on his plane. While this was a violation of company spending guidelines, buying those Happy Meals adhered to JetBlue's cultural principle of "Doing the right thing," because the plane was stuck on the ground without food, and the kids on board were hungry. Effective leaders, however, don't just communicate to others, they also make themselves accessible so that they can hear what others, particularly customers and employees, are feeling and thinking about their organization. At JetBlue, founder and CEO David Neeleman uses frequent informal meetings and surprise visits to listen to his customers and employees. On an almost daily basis, Neeleman can be found on a JetBlue flight talking to customers. Neeleman will typically use the plane's public address system to introduce himself and say that he wants to hear any feedback, good or bad, that they have about the airline. Passengers often offer advice on where JetBlue should offer new routes and service, but they also complain about the lack of food (snacks only). To this complaint, Neeleman says, "We found out most people would rather have a TV than a meal." But, most important, Neeleman listens, writing thoughts and customer comments on airplane napkins that he stuffs in his pockets to be turned into organizational to-do lists once the flight is over. -Refer to the Narrative 15-2.Which step of the communication process is involved when managers turn the CEO's notes written on airplane napkins into to-do lists?

Listening is an example of a voluntary behaviour.

Which term is used to describe the process of remembering interpreted information,in the perception process?

What is the term for the process of attaching meaning to new knowledge,in the perception process?

Which of the following is one organization-wide communication technique regularly used for staying in touch with people throughout the organization (i.e.,hearing what others feel and think)?

One recommendation for managers wishing to improve formal communication is to decrease reliance on downward communication.

According to attribution theory,to which of the following causes does the defensive bias make workers more likely to attribute their performance problems?

Which of the following terms is used to describe the experience of someone likely to take any negative criticism of his or her department personally?

What should you do to be a better listener?

Narrative 15-1 Urban legends and Internet scams are a real problem for some businesses. In 1997, Gerber Baby Foods was flooded with one million letters and 80,000 phone calls from parents responding to an e-mail about a phony class-action lawsuit. Another urban legend about a Costa Rican flesh-eating bacteria that affected banana shipments cost that industry more than $30 million in 1999. More recently, Procter & Gamble (P&G) had to deal with claims that its Febreze product contained Agent Orange, a dangerous chemical. Many companies choose to ignore these myths created by angry customers or rabble-rousers, but experts believe that doing so is the worst possible action to take. Instead, companies should do everything possible to reassure their customers. -Refer to the Narrative 15-1.Which term can be used to describe the Internet,through which urban legends are transmitted?

During a job interview,the interviewee is trying to deceive the interviewer if their hand is often used to cover their mouth and the person talks through their fingers as if hiding or trying to keep words from escaping.Less obvious but also a sign of deception is a single finger to the mouth or (with men)the mustache stroke.Interviewers can use their knowledge of these types of gestures to determine when interviewees are telling the truth.What type of knowledge is this?

Horizontal communication flows among managers and workers who are at the same organizational level.

What is the term for the process of incorporating new information into your existing knowledge,in the perception process?

Renovation of a street and sidewalk was supposed to be finished in October.Wet weather prolonged the rebuilding until the middle of December.Local retailers blamed the city for low holiday sales.Why would you agree with this analysis of why sales were poor?

The two kinds of one-on-one communication are mentoring and vestibule training.

Which of the following should managers first recognize when communicating feedback one-on-one to employees?

What is the term for the process of noticing or becoming aware of particular stimuli,in the perception process?

Bonnie can be very loud and boisterous especially during lunch breaks.Connie feels Bonnie acts this way because she craves attention likely due to a childhood in which she received very little attention.What are Connie's thoughts about Bonnie an example of?

When does organizational silence occur?