Types of Communication in an Organisation

Effective communication is the backbone of every organisation. It is the responsibility of managers to ensure smooth flow of communication within an organisation in order to enhance the productivity and efficiency of the organisation.

Significance of effective and organised communication

Communication refers to the exchange of different ideas, opinions, thoughts as well as information between employees, managers or different units in an organisation. It is a vital part of an organisation. Without proper communication, an organisation cannot operate its activities or gain success.

Various types of communication take place in an organisation catering to different communication needs. Apart from choosing the right type of communication, a proper medium for transferring the information is also necessary so as to keep the message confidential and limited among the desired persons.

In an organisation, communication is classified as:

On the Basis of Relation

• Formal Communication: When a message or information flows through different levels of an organisation in a prescribed direction following an official channel then it is called formal communication. Formal communication is followed to solve the organisational problems and the needs of the employees, employers and management. It is performed without any encumbrance.
• Informal Communication: Under this type of communication, the transmission of information does not need to follow a particular track or official channels. So, it doesn’t arise out of organisational needs. Rather, the information can be passed socially when the colleagues meet each other during working hours or coffee break.

On the Basis of Expression

• Verbal Communication: Verbal Communication involves the usage of words for expressing facts, ideas or thoughts within the organisation. It can take place in the form of face-to-face contact, radio, group discussions, calls as well as memos.
• Written Communication: Information when transmitted in the written form, falls under written communication. Written communication is quite beneficial because the written message can be retained as proof of communication.

On the Basis of Direction

• Upward Communication: When the information flows from the lower level to the top level of the organisation, it is termed as upward communication. When the top level management transmits some information to the lower level, they look for the feedback which is a part of the scalar chain.
• Downward Communication: It is the flow of information from the upper level to the lower level of the organisation. It is important for the success of the organisation as employees need to correctly interpret the message sent by the management to function optimally. This type of communication follows the pattern of the scalar chain. Effective downward communication leads to improved morale of the subordinates, better coordination between the co-workers and improved customer relations.
• Horizontal Communication: This type of communication involves information transmission between people or departments or units of the same level in the managerial hierarchy.

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Steps in Employee Selection Procedure

Do you aspire to become an HR manager? If so, then you should pursue a course in Human Resource Management and master your skills for the job role. However, before opting for the course, you should have an idea of duties you’ll be expected to perform as an HR manager.

The task of an HR manager is multi-faceted. It involves selecting the employees, training them, getting them accustomed with the rules and regulations of the organisation, motivating them, carrying out performance appraisal & rewarding the best performers, and taking care of the grievances of the employees.  Out of these, the most crucial task of a manager is to select suitable candidates to fill up various positions in the organisation.

Various steps are involved in the process of selection which finally leads to the selection of the best employees.  The key steps in the employee selection procedure are mentioned below:

Preliminary Screening

This primary step in selection is to check whether the candidate who has applied for the job post is physically as well as mentally suitable for it. This step is basically performed to see whether the candidate is competent to fulfill all the minimum qualifications and to eliminate those who fail. The preliminary screening is mostly performed by the receptionist or subordinates, just to check whether the candidate is creditable to go to the next round.

Application Blank

In this application blank, the candidates need to fill their personal information such as their age, marital status, experience, interests and many more in the application form. This is considered to be the candidate’s written record.  When the forms are filled by all the candidates, these are scrutinised and the suitable ones are short-listed for the written test. However, there are different application forms depending upon the jobs.

Employment or Selection Test

Every individual has a different mental capacity and physical quality so there are different tests to test different traits. Employment tests are performed to determine the candidate’s skills and aptitude since it is assumed that human behaviour and its traits can be measured through sampling. Through this test, the most suitable candidates are identified and sent to the next round.

Selection or Employment Interview

This involves face-to-face interview of the candidate with the panel of judges which includes HR managers, employer and members of top management. In the interview, various questions are put in front of the interviewee. Some questions are asked pertaining to the field of operation while some are general questions that are put up just to gauge the suitability of the interviewee as well as his/her persona. Moreover, the information given by the candidate in the application blank is also cross-checked and the candidate is given a complete picture about his job role and the company’s background.

Medical or Physical Examination

After the interview, suitable candidates go through a physical test or medical test to check their physical fitness for the job. This is also done to check whether the candidate is not suffering from any serious disease which in the future may cause the problem to him as well as the enterprise.

Checking References or Background

Every candidate is required to fill the reference column in the application blank. In the final step of selection, the HR managers contact those references to verify the information provided by the candidate.

Final Approval

At last, the most suitable candidate who clears all rounds is selected and is asked to join the organisation in the specified date. The offer letter is given to the candidate with all the details.

Closing notes

These were the steps involved in the process of selection. Every HR of a reputed organisation follows these steps. You can also learn to effectively carry out the process of staffing and other skills that are essential to become successful HR managers by pursuing our Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM) course in HR management.