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Business Communication: Building Critical Skills
Kitty O. Locker, Ohio State University
Steven Kyo Kaczmarek, Columbus State Community College
Kathryn Braun, Sheridan College
Working and Writing in Teams

E-Learning Session

  1. What kinds of communications happen in groups? Different messages are appropriate at different points in a group's development.
    1. Group messages fall into three categories:
      • Informational
      • Procedural
      • Interpersonal
    2. There are four stages of development. TRANSPARENCY MASTER
      • CONCEPT CHECK True or False: Groups tend to develop positive relationship quickly and easily. CONCEPT CHECK
  2. What roles do people play in groups? Roles can be positive or negative.
    1. Positive roles and actions that help the group to achieve its task goals include:
      • Seeking information and opinions.
      • Giving information and opinions.
      • Summarizing.
      • Evaluating.
      • Coordinating.
    2. Positive roles and actions that help the group build loyalty, resolve conflicts, and function smoothly include.
      • Encouraging participation.
      • Relieving tensions.
      • Checking feelings.
      • Solving interpersonal problems.
      • Listening actively.
    3. Negative roles and actions that hurt the group's product and process include:
      • Blocking.
      • Dominating.
      • Clowning.
      • Withdrawing.
          1. CONCEPT CHECK True or False: Some actions can be positive or negative depending on how they are used. CONCEPT CHECK
    4. Groupthink is the tendency for groups to put such a high premium on agreement that they directly or indirectly punish dissent.
      • Groupthink should be avoided.
  3. How should we handle conflict? Get at the real issue, and repair bad feelings.
    1. Conflicts will arise in any group of intelligent people who care about a task.
    2. Take steps to reduce the number of conflicts in a group. TRANSPARENCY MASTER
      • CONCEPT CHECK True or False: Being passive is one of the ways to reduce conflicts in a group. CONCEPT CHECK
    3. Take steps to resolve conflicts when they occur. TRANSPARENCY MASTER
  4. How can we create the best co-authored documents? Talk about your purposes and audience(s). Discuss drafts and revisions as a group.
    1. Use four key steps when writing collaboratively:
      • Plan the work and the document.
      • Compose the drafts.
      • Revise the document.
      • Edit and proofread the document.
    2. Use five key steps to make the group process work. POWERPOINT SLIDE
  5. Go to the Self-Quizzes section if you would like to test your understanding of this module.




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