Evaluating Communication Strategies of International Business: Report

This report undertakes an analysis of the communication strategies employed by two prominent Australian companies, Commonwealth Bank and Caltex. The report begins with an introduction that highlights the importance of effective communication in international business, followed by an overview of each company's background. It then delves into the non-electronic communication methods and practices utilized by both companies, such as letters, face-to-face interactions, invoices, and memorandums. Subsequently, the report explores the electronic media and communication strategies employed, including email, text messaging, phone calls, social media, and video conferencing. A SWOT analysis is conducted to assess the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats associated with each company's communication methods. A comparison of the communication strategies of both companies is provided, highlighting their similarities and differences. Finally, the report concludes with recommendations for improving communication methods and practices and summarizes the key findings and insights.

Evaluating the
communication strategies of
International Business

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Executive summary
Most of the companies use different communication strategies for executing their business procedures
in various market segments. Based on certain factors, the paper discusses the communication strategies
of Commonwealth Bank and Caltex Company of Australia. It is analyzed that both these firms’ use
different method and practices of communication for engaging the groups of people related to their
companies. The communication method generally depends on the working procedure of the companies.
Caltex is an oil company, and Commonwealth Bank provides all sorts of financial services; therefore, it is
quite evident that both of these companies follow a different method of communication. Also, the paper
also provides a comparison between the communication strategies of both these firms and along with
some recommendations are also provided that help both the companies to improve their
communication methods in the future.

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................................3
Non-electronic communication methods and practices used by the companies..............................3
Commonwealth Bank...........................................................................................................................3
Caltex.....................................................................................................................................................4
Electronic media and communication strategies used by the companies.........................................4
Commonwealth Bank...........................................................................................................................4
Caltex.....................................................................................................................................................5
SWOT analysis of the company's overall communication methods and practices..........................5
Commonwealth Bank...........................................................................................................................5
Caltex.....................................................................................................................................................6
Comparison of the communication strategies used by Commonwealth Bank and Caltex..............6
Recommendations....................................................................................................................................7
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................................8
References................................................................................................................................................9

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Introduction
The primary purpose of the report is to analyze the communication methods and practices of two
Australian Securities Exchange companies such as Commonwealth Bank and Caltex. Both the companies
are different from each other, and thus, their communication strategies will also differ from one
another. The paper will discuss both electronic as well as non-electronic communication strategies of
these companies. Along with this, a SWOT analysis will be provided that will demonstrate the overall
communication practices used by these Australian organizations. Moreover, a comparison will be
provided on the communication practices of both these companies that will help the reader to
understand their communication strategy. Furthermore, some recommendations will help both these
organizations to improve their business communication in the coming days.
Background of the companies
Commonwealth Bank
Commonwealth Bank is the leading multinational bank of Australia which was founded in 1911 as a
government bank. The bank provides all sorts of financial services such as premium, retail, institutional
and business banking, superannuation, funds management, investment, insurance, and share-broking
services and products for their consumers (Commonwealth bank, 2019). Currently, the Chairman and
the CEO of this bank are Catherine Livingstone AO and Matt Comyn. With the help of this board of
members, the firm increases its shareholder's number to 800,000 and gain revenue of 26.006 billion
dollars in 2017. The management team always support and encourage its employees for their work,
which thus influence the bank to reach its profitable growth in the market.
Caltex
Caltex is a petroleum company of Australia that runs through partnership approaches. The firm has been
owned 50 percent by the Australian shareholders and 50 percent by the Chevron. Caltex is an oil
company which was founded in 1950, and the firm took over the two Australian companies Ampol and
Golden Greece in 1995 and 1981, respectively (Caltex, 2019). Currently, the CEO of this firm is Julian
Segal, and nearly 3,500 number of employees are working in this business. Caltex provides a flexible fuel
supply chain with high-quality fuel in various customers segments such as mining, retail, aviation,
agriculture, transport, marine, small and medium enterprises, government and automotive. Maintaining
the commitment of providing high-quality fuel, the firm considers as one of the largest continence
retailers in Australia.
Non-electronic communication methods and practices used by the companies
Non-electronic communication method and practices involve the distribution of message from the
company to the client through the direct process (Hansen, and McMahon, 2016). In this communication
method, company and clients directly share their views through speech, body language, and not by
using any electronic means.
Commonwealth Bank
The non-electronic communication method allows the bank to engage suppliers, consumers, public, and
staff members with their business. There are various non-electronic communication methods, but
among them, the Commonwealth Bank mainly follows the letters and face-to-face interaction oriented
non-electronic communication procedures. The several non-electronic communication practices used by
the bank of Australia are as follows:
Letters- To engage all groups of people related to the bank, the management team often sent letters to
maintain a high standard mode of communication. If any changes occur in the financial services, then
the managers give letters to their prime consumers by describing all details of their changing financial
procedure. For example, when some changes in bank operations take place, then the management team
make a formal letter demonstrating the changes of the function and circulate it to every branch of the

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Commonwealth Bank in both local and international countries (Petersen, Kushwaha and Kumar, 2015).
Hence by following this communication strategy, the bank has become successful in engaging its
consumers, employees, and suppliers with their business. However, sometimes the client misinterprets
the information, and this causes a huge issue to the bank, but in current days, they incorporate various
strategies that help them to overcome this challenge in the future.
Face-to-face- Commonwealth Bank is one of the government banks of Australia and for selling their
services they have to interact with the employees, suppliers, public as well as consumers through face-
to-face interaction method. It is an effective form of interaction between all these groups of peoples. In
this communication method, both the parties express their opinions and issues that are occurring in the
financial services of this bank (Angwin et al., 2016). Proper communication through direct method helps
the parties to solve their problems, and this allows them to reduce their hesitation of interaction with
the people related to this bank.
Caltex
The petroleum company Caltex of Australia mainly use two methods of non-electronic communication
practices such as invoice and memorandum (Haumann et al., 2015). As the company supplies their
products primarily to other businesses and thus, they used both these communication practices for
engaging all the groups of persons related to their firm. The various non-electronic communication
practices and methods used by this petroleum company are given below:
Invoice- Invoice demonstrates the quality of each good along with its prices, contact address for
payment and also provide the service description. By incorporating these interaction methods in the
communication strategies, the firm enhances its client and suppliers engagement with the business. For
example, after selling the products to a company, the management team of Caltex makes a legal
document that demonstrates the product and service description that has been already sold (Roshan,
Warren and Carr, 2016). The invoices thus made use as evidence of incurred debt by the purchasing
enterprises, and it increases the communication way between both the parties. After reviewing the
communication strategy of Caltex, it is seen that the management team sometime documented
incorrect invoices and this creates an argument with the other parties that eventually affect the overall
communication strategy of this firm (Baptista et al., 2017).
Memorandum- For the internal communication between the employees as well as the managers of
various department, these non-electronic communication practices are used by this Caltex firm. The
higher authority such as the management team and the board of directors when makes some changes in
the business function then they make a memorandum and circulate it to their junior staff members
(Qian, Strahan and Yang, 2015). Hence this mode of communication strategy help the superiors to build
a good relationship with their juniors. By this way, this non-electronic communication method increases
the engagement of employees in the firm.
Electronic media and communication strategies used by the companies
By using electronic media and communication strategies, the companies distribute their messages
through technology (Melewar et al., 2017). It is considered to be the easiest way of communication
between all groups of individuals related to the firm.
Commonwealth Bank
The electronic media and communications strategies help the Commonwealth Bank to easily connect
with their customers, employees, suppliers, and public without facing any sorts of the issue (Valos et al.,
2016). Among the various electronic media and communication strategies, the bank generally uses the
following methods:
Email- For informing the clients regarding the changes in financial activates, the management team
provides a physical mail to them. With the help of these communication strategies, the bank becomes
successful in increasing their consumer numbers every year. For example, through email, the

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management team generally sent a message relating to the increase and decrease in the interest rate of
the financial deposits (Luo and Bu, 2016).
Text and Instant Messaging- The bank also uses text and instant messaging communication strategies
for engaging the customers, employees, and suppliers with their firm. Along with email, the
management team sent a textual message to these groups of people for making sure that they must
read the company policy properly (Wold and Laumann, 2015). By this informal mode of communication,
the firm easily circulates their company message so that no issue will occur in the future due to the
changing procedure of bank.
Phone calls- The management team uses this electronic media communication strategy only for their
premium consumers, employees, and suppliers related to the firm. By using this interpersonal
communication method, the superiors of this bank convey the message to the peoples without
possessing any misunderstanding and misinterpretation (Ahmad et al., 2016). However, many users
make the unknown number into the block list, and this creates a problem for the firm to deliver the
message properly to their clients.
Caltex
Becoming a leading oil company of Australia Caltex uses effective electronic media and communication
technologies to involve all the persons related to the firm and also to sell their products to their targeted
consumer segment (Ahmad et al., 2016). Several electronic media and communication strategies are as
follows:
Social Media- By using this communication strategy, the firm facilitates interaction with their clients and
brief them about the benefits of purchasing their products rather than the other oil company of
Australia. With the help of this communication media, they provide details of their products and services
and also communicate with the people regarding their query over the goods and products. For example,
the management team of Caltex often makes smaller blogs regarding their company procedure, and this
helps their clients to understand the business operation of this firm (Zakaria, Nawawi and Salin, 2016).
Video Conferencing- With the help of this electronic media, the company communicates with other
business, which is far away from their firm location. This particular communication strategy helps the
firm not only to increase their relationship with other businesses in the nation but also it reduces the
traveling time and cost. For example, the firm in the current trend uses video conferencing procedure
for communicating with the suppliers and clients that present outside the country (Dijkmans, Kerkhof,
and Beukeboom, 2015). Thus by using this strategy, the firm has increased its suppliers' numbers and
clients in the nation.
SWOT analysis of the company's overall communication methods and practices
SWOT analysis is one of the strategic planning tools that help the companies to strengthen their
communication strategies and also help them to overcome their challenges in communication
prospects. SWOT analysis of both Commonwealth Bank and Caltex Company about their communication
practices and methods are given below:
Commonwealth Bank
Strengths Weakness
 Trust of consumer increases for the
communication procedure of the bank
 Letters enable the employees and
consumers to identify the changes
occurring in the bank (Dijkmans, Kerkhof,
and Beukeboom, 2015)
 Reduction in conflict with the people
involving the firm
 Misinterpretation of information creates
an issue for this bank in handling their
clients (Ashley and Tuten, 2015)
 Problems generated when the message
does not properly convey to the people
related to the bank

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Opportunities Threats
 Appropriate communication method
enhances their opportunity to increase
the consumer base (Ashley and Tuten,
2015)
 Increases the opportunity of enhancing
business growth in various branches
 Convey of inappropriate message create
challenges for the client, and they
become offended
Caltex
Strengths Weakness
 Maintaining legal document enhances
the liability of the firm (Go and You,
2016)
 Seniors and juniors sustain a good
relationship with each other
 Communication media influences the
firm to build a good connection with the
businesses outside Australia
 Incorrect invoice documentation reduces
the trust of clients (Dijkmans, Kerkhof,
and Beukeboom, 2015)
Opportunities Threats
 The effective communication strategies
help the firm to expand its business in
the international market (Go and You,
2016)
 Lack of communication approach
affected the business growth in Australia
Findings
From the findings of the communication methods and practices uses by Commonwealth Bank, it is seen
that the strategies help the firm to enhance its consumer trust towards their bank. As they provide
letters and arrange face-to-face interaction; therefore, it enables them to reduce the conflicts between
the bank and the clients (Guesalaga, 2016). Also, by using email, messages, and phone calls the bank not
only increase their consumer base, but it also allows them to enhance their business growth in the
Australian markets. However, ineffective convey of messages sometimes generate misinterpretation
among the clients, and they become offended by the services.
On the other hand, from the communication practices of Caltex Company, it is noticed that by
maintaining legal documentation and memorandum the firm enhances its liability with the clients. The
communication strategy helps the management team and board of directors to maintain a suitable
relationship with their junior’s staff members related to the firm. Also, by video conferencing method,
the firm enables to enhance its level with other business in the nation. It is analyzed that, in spite of such
strengths, the firm sometimes faces problems due to incorrect documentation of their invoice report. It
denotes that the lack of communication approach has mainly generated threat for this firm, and for
overcoming this barrier, the management team should incorporate new strategy in their communication
method.
Comparison of the communication strategies used by Commonwealth Bank and Caltex
After reviewing the communication strategies of Commonwealth Bank and Caltex, it is noticed that both
these firms use a different method of communication for surviving in the Australian market. A
comparison has been provided on demonstrating both the electronic and non-electronic communication
strategies uses by both this firm (Guesalaga, 2016). In terms of electronic communication method, the
Commonwealth Bank uses letter and face-to-face interaction practices, whereas the Caltex firm uses

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invoices and memorandum methods of communications. From these factors, it is clear that both firms
use different communications strategies for engaging their consumers, staff members, suppliers, and
public. Apart from this, it is noticed that the Commonwealth bank uses email, phone calls, and text and
instant messaging methods of non-electronic communication for enhancing the trust of consumers
towards their firm. In other words, the Caltex firm uses social media and video conferencing method for
maintaining a good relationship with their clients as well as employees (Ainin et al., 2015). From this
comparison, it is quite evident that both Caltex firm and Commonwealth Bank uses several methods of
communications that depend totally on their company working procedure.
Recommendations
Both the firms Caltex and Commonwealth bank maintain effective business communication strategies,
but they some faces some challenges in their communication procedure with their clients and staff
members. Thus to overcome their barriers, some recommendations are provided, which are as follows:
It is recommended that both the company’s management team should use non-verbal communication
method with the employees. It allows them to understand their employees’ opinion over their goods
and services, which may help them to incorporate proper communication way that must be beneficial
for the firm (Ainin et al., 2015).
Another recommendation is that both the companies should collect feedback from the clients,
employees, and suppliers by arranging campaign and survey procedure (Go and You, 2016). This process
helps the firms to interact with these groups of people easily, and by this approach, they can attract
these people towards their companies.

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Conclusion
The report concludes that both Commonwealth Bank and Caltex of Australia uses a different method of
electronic and non-electronic communication. It is seen that the methods depend on the company’s
business operation. Commonwealth bank provides financial services, and thus they use letters, face-to-
face, email, phone calls, text and instant messaging practices for engaging the suppliers, staff members,
customers, and the public with their bank. It is noticed that the oil company Caltex uses invoice,
memorandum, social, and video conferencing procedure for engaging all the people related to their
business. However, both these companies face some challenges about their communication strategies,
and thus, appropriate recommendations have been provided that may diminish their issues in the
coming days.

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