Preface

There are two types of text books—one that follows a given syllabus; the other that defines syllabus. This edition is an attempt to do the latter.

After having tested the first edition for over five years, and the second for over two, we were convinced that the book had established very well the pedagogy—teaching of Business Communication by case method, but the question, “What exactly to teach in Business Communication to make students corporate-ready?” still remained incompletely answered. Thus, the third edition had taken a very different approach to the content of a Business Communication course.

This fourth edition of The Art and Science of Business Communication is an attempt to take the book to a higher level by including some topics that will make the book more useful for not only the regular MBA students, but also the practitioners. For example, the chapter ‘Theatre Technique for Effective Communication and Personality Development’ provides a hands-on, step-by-step guide to a faculty for a structured and programmed application of one of the most modern pedagogical tools of communication. Another new chapter ‘Communication for Effective Marketing’ has been developed largely from the point-of-view of marketing executives using the most realistic jargons and language for easy application.

But, most importantly, this edition, for the first time, brings out the Science of Business Communication alongside the Art. There are two facets of Communication: Skills and Effectiveness; and, they are, often, used interchangeably. That could be the reason why, more often than not, most of the authors talk about development of Skills; and, try to suggest that ‘skills would automatically lead to effectiveness’. This work, since the very first edition, has been propagating the idea that Skills and Effectiveness are two different and distinct levels of communication. Skill is the Art, and how we go about using these skills to achieve Effectiveness is the Science of communication—the process, the reasoning, the rationale, and the logic. And, this understanding of the approach to result-oriented communications helps develop skills better. Precisely, this edition takes this perspective. This edition also re-organizes some of the parts for a more logical structure and flow of topics.

PREAMBLE

What is communication? Communication is what it does—bringing people together. How does it do that? By establishing a commonness among people. The message (the verbally/non-verbally developed idea), the medium (the carrier of the message), and the environment (the surroundings in which communication takes place) bring about this commonness, a situational relationship for a (common) purpose. This is how we would like to explain communis, the Latin origin of the word communication.

If communication is a social need for an individual, it is the lifeblood of an organization. If we, as individuals, communicate 70 per cent of our waking time, an organization communicates 90 per cent of its working time. If individuals communicate for their personal purpose, communication in an organization is for business purposes. Thus, communication plays a crucial role in an organization, bringing all aspects of the business together—employees, customers, suppliers, intermediaries, the public, and so on.

Working people communicate at three levels—personal, social, and professional. We could also call these the three spheres of communication. We have a natural ability to adapt to the communication requirements of each of these spheres. However, with time, some of us become more and more fixed in our style of communication and tend to use the same style across the three spheres. What does our tendency to be flexible or rigid across the three spheres of communication depend on? Does it depend on how conscious we are at a particular level, and for how long? For example, if someone communicates more consciously for most of the time at the workplace, would they not become more formal in their style for the rest of the day and spheres as well?

Flexibility in our communication helps us adapt to the situational requirements faster, which results in efficient communication, and efficient communication translates into less time and effort in getting ready to communicate appropriately at a particular level. So, consciousness gives control, which, in turn, helps develop flexibility and makes our communication effective and efficient.

Our contention is that 90 per cent of us are not conscious of our communication 90 per cent of the time. And those of us who are conscious about our communication, are more conscious of what we communicate than how we communicate. Business Communication prepares students for effective communication at the workplace by focusing on how to communicate in business situations—how to recognize the techniques that help in communicating a message accurately, how to handle intercultural situations that require thoughtful communication, how to use appropriate words and an effective tone for writing effectively, and so on. The book helps students master the art of communication be learning to be more conscious of their communication and developing a flexible and effective communication style.

NEW TO THE FOURTH EDITION

1. This edition incorporates two new chapters—Chapter 2, “Theatre Technique for Effective Communication and Personality Development” and Chapter 17, “Communication for Effective Marketing”. These chapters have been included to keep pace with the evolving needs of corporates and the nature of business communication. Today’s professionals need to work with clients and colleagues from different spheres. They require a more confident personality. They need to hone their marketing communication skills. The two new chapters discuss these issues in detail.
2. The fourth edition also carries many new cases included in the last edition, such as the ones on report writing, non-verbal communication, and negotiation skills.
3. The fourth edition builds on the strengths of the first, second, and third editions, and provides a more comprehensive coverage with rich illustrations, practical guidelines, and a more user-friendly design.
4. Continuing from the third edition, the fourth edition also follows a new learning design. The text’s more interactive presentation includes many new pedagogical features:

ORGANIZATION

The fourth edition of this book is a result of our experience in teaching, training, and consulting with the help of the first three editions over the last ten years. This includes areas such as language skills, report writing, technical writing, communication skills, presentation skills, negotiation skills, personality development, and marketing communication. Most of the skills, concepts, and applications presented in this edition are thoroughly examined and tested with groups of students, executives, and academics.

The book is divided into three parts divided across 22 chapters. The chapters cover topics that are becoming an essential component of business curricula in leading business schools the world over and are also important for job aspirants.

The appendix on grammar, English usage, and style addresses some important aspects of business communication, such as the rules of grammar, common errors in English, and documentation styles. By practicing the exercises in this appendix and spending time on the rules and styles, students can produce impeccable written reports and documents.

THE TEACHING AND LEARNING PACKAGE

A full range or resources that support teaching and learning are available on the companion Web site of this book, www.pearsoned.co.in/PDChaturvedi. These include:

• PowerPoint lecture slides that provide an overview of the key concepts, figures, and guidelines in each chapter.
• An instructors’ manual that provides a chapter summary, teaching notes, and hints to the end-of-chapter questions in each chapter.
• Bonus material, including a sample report and a chapter on research methods, which can be downloaded by students for additional reading.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We express our sincere gratitude to our students, colleagues, and the executive participants of numerous management development programmes, who have helped us clarify our concepts of business communication. We are also thankful to the distinguished scholars and authors whose works we have used over the years in our teaching, research, and training. Their works have become an unconscious part of the ideas and thoughts discussed in this book. We appreciate the assistance of those, without whose help, this book could never have been possible—Abhinav Chaturvedi, and the editorial/production team at Pearson—Varun Goenka, Jubi Borkakoti, and G. Sharmilee.

We thank our prospective readers in advance, for they would be a source of improvement and further development of this book.

Finally, we would fail in our duty if we did not acknowledge the most loving care and support enjoyed by us, all through the work on this book, from our dear family—Roli, Akbar, Ritushree, Milky, and Abeer.

(P.D. Chaturvedi)
Mukesh Chaturvedi