Reflective Journal: Business Communication Skills and Applications

This reflective journal delves into the student's understanding and growth in business communication, focusing on group and organizational dynamics. The journal reflects on past experiences in group settings, highlighting the importance of patience, active listening, and respect for diverse perspectives. The student acknowledges a tendency towards assertiveness and aims to cultivate a more polite yet assertive communication style. The reflection also covers organizational communication, emphasizing the role of clear, professional communication in managing relationships, setting expectations, and resolving conflicts. The student recognizes the importance of transparent communication, constructive feedback, and adapting communication styles to different audiences within an organization. The journal concludes with a commitment to continuous improvement in communication skills and building meaningful professional relationships. This document is available on Desklib, where students can find a variety of past papers and solved assignments to aid their studies.

Business communication
Reflection

Group communication
Group communication refers to any kind of interpersonal communication that takes place among
a group of 3 or more people. We all come across group communications very frequently in our
personal as well as professional lives. Group communication is highly important as it brings
about effective coordination in a group as well as leads to a transparent flow of information
(Brink & Costigan, 2015). During all my previous experiences in group communication, I
noticed various conflicts. These conflicts occur because different people come together to work.
This course has been an immense learning experience for me. I have understood the importance
of being patient and allowing everyone to participate rather than simply being concerned with
my personal point of view.
I have always had strong opinions on subjects and issues. Therefore I tend to become aggressive
during group communications. I have also been given the feedback that I don’t allow everyone to
speak but continue to focus on my point. Through this course, I have learnt that I must change
this habit and become more polite yet assertive. Respect for other team members is very
important in a group communication (Karanges, Johnston, Beatson & Lings, 2015). I have also
learnt that communication can be a onetime event but what is important is to build a deep and
meaningful relationship with the people while communicating with them. This will also ensure
that conflicts are also being resolved patiently and effectively.
When I begin my career in any organization, I am sure I will face various opportunities and
situations which would require me to work with different teams. I am sure my learnings from
this course will help me in my professional life by improving my communication skills. Group
communication is also very important to ensure that organizational tasks assigned to the group
are achieved more effectively. If the group does not communicate effectively, then it will be
difficult for them to work together. This will not only impact their performance but will also
adversely impact the organizational culture and environment.
Group communications can often lead to conflicts. This is predominantly because every group
communication requires an honest communication and an equal participation from all the group
members. It is imperative that all the important information is circulated to every person in the

group. Therefore the means of communication must be mutually decided. I also learnt that
people of a group must encourage everyone to have an equal participation in the group. People in
a group must make sure that they use simple language and vocabulary that is understandable to
all. The group should also follow an open feedback mechanism where every person in the group
can provide an honest feedback to any person from the group. Everyone must also be encouraged
to take these feedbacks constructively.
When I look back, I have been a part of various group communications. Today, I am sure that if I
were a part of any group communication, I would learn from my experiences of the past and
ensure that my communications are more effective and transparent. I will also be a lot more
patient and listen carefully to other team members with due respect for their opinions and point
of views. Now when I engage in group communications with my friends I try to apply my
learnings from this course. I also try to be better prepared for a communication by having enough
subject knowledge.
I also have one question about the course. There are few people who by nature extremely
introvert. They may have brilliant insights but they often shy away from communicating. How
can I encourage them to speak and make them feel comfortable to speak in a group? Overall my
experience in this course has been that of immense learning and growth and I am sure that the
lessons from this course will continue to help and guide me through my future endeavors.
Organizational communication
Organizational communication involves any kind of communication that takes place within the
organization. This is important to all organizations. Organizational communications is effectively
used to transfer information throughout the business, manage employee relationships, set
organizational goals, convey organizational duties & responsibilities and provide feedback to
employees (Shockley-Zalabak, 2014). Organizational communication plays a very important role
in managing organizational conflicts as well as ensuring the right expectation setting between the
employee and the employer.
Through this course I have learnt a lot of things about organizational communication. I have
learnt the importance of the subject as well as its practical usage in the business. Through this

course, I have also learnt the art of professional communication. The correct use of vocabulary is
very important in organizational communication. It is important to maintain a polite, humble and
professional tone through organizational communications to make sure that the communication
takes place in an effective manner (Kramer, 2014).
Organizational communication also involves grapevine communication. This is an informal
source of information within the business. I have learnt about this communication, its importance
as well as its relevancy through this course. We also learnt that a lot of communication in
organizations happens through emails. Therefore our professor also taught us effective email
writing skills, the correct usage of vocabulary in the email as well as its structure and layout. As
previously mentioned I am highly assertive in my communication. I learnt that in organizations,
every person needs to communicate with many people. It is hence important that I try to
understand other people’s opinion and respect the same.
I have realized the importance of transparent communication in the sense that if I face any issue
in the business or have any particular grievance, it is important that I communicate the matter in
the right time, to the right people and in the right manner. This will be beneficial in my long term
career in the organization. Transparent communication with juniors, seniors and peers will also
help in building positive relationships as well as will assist in avoiding conflicts.
If and when a conflict occurs, it can also be effectively addressed to efficient communication
among the members involved (Haslam & Knippenberg, 2014). Communication within the
organization will also help in understanding expectations that different people hold from each
other. Honest communication will also help employees in accomplishing roles and
responsibilities that are assigned to them. Moreover, communication within the business will also
ensure that people working in the organization are clear about their jobs, exact roles and
responsibilities that they are expected to fulfill.
Today when I look back I have been a part of a lot of communications throughout my life. I am
extremely sure that if I would have taken this course before, I would have addressed those
communications in a more effective manner. I probably would have been more patient and polite
with my tone. Similarly, I have faced various issues where I have verbally communicated
important information and that has created a lot of conflict. There is no record for verbal

communication and hence I have found it difficult to trace my words. I have learnt through this
course that all the important communication in the organization must happen over email. This
can not only help me remember what I have spoken but can also be used as documented
evidence as and when required.
Professional or organizational communication is very different from the communication that we
have in our personal lives. The language, tone, choice of words as well as volume differ largely
between the two (Ayoko, 2016). My professor have always thrown light on the matter which
states that it is not what you speak rather it is how you speak that matters. Organization
communication involves communicating with various kinds of people including team members,
juniors, seniors as well as customers. The communication that an organization holds with its
customers have a lasting impression on the customer’s minds. This also leads organizations in
retaining or losing customers.
One very important thing that I learnt through this course is that while communicating with
people and especially while providing feedback, it is important to provide constructive feedback
that can lead to the growth and development of an individual (Goetsch & Davis, 2014).
Communication also plays an important role in motivating employees. This motivation enables
employees to work harder and perform better. The right communication as well as honesty in
communication leads to establishment of trust which is very important within organizations.
Employees who trust each other better will be in a better position to work together and achieve
organizational goals (Brown, Gray, McHardy & Taylor, 2015).
Overall, the course has been an immense learning experience. There were various activities that
were conducted and I am highly grateful for my learning. I have improved my communication
skills throughout the course and I have also understood that improvising of communication is a
consistent effort that must be made all through life. I will continue to take constructive feedback
from people and work on my communication skills and ensure that through my communication
skills I am able to build deep and meaningful relationships throughout my life.

References
Ayoko, O.B., 2016. Workplace conflict and willingness to cooperate: The importance of apology
and forgiveness. International Journal of Conflict Management, 27(2), pp.172-198.
Brink, K.E. and Costigan, R.D., 2015. Oral communication skills: Are the priorities of the
workplace and AACSB-accredited business programs aligned? Academy of Management
Learning & Education, 14(2), pp.205-221.
Brown, S., Gray, D., McHardy, J. and Taylor, K., 2015. Employee trust and workplace
performance. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 116, pp.361-378.
Goetsch, D.L. and Davis, S.B., 2014. Quality management for organizational excellence. Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Haslam, S.A. and van Knippenberg, 2014. Social identity at work: Developing theory for
organizational practice. Psychology Press.
Karanges, E., Johnston, K., Beatson, A. and Lings, I., 2015. The influence of internal
communication on employee engagement: A pilot study. Public Relations Review, 41(1), pp.129-
131.
Kramer, M.W., 2014. Managing uncertainty in organizational communication. Routledge.
Shockley-Zalabak, P., 2014. Fundamentals of organizational communication. Pearson.