Communication Audit Report

Naval Surface Warfare Center

Indian Head, MD

Prepared by

Name

Professor name

BCOM 5203

July 28, 2017

Internal communication is an essential tool to inform the staff and members of activities in the organization. The main objective of any organization is building a good internal communication strategy. So as to be able to assess the effective mode of communication that the company is using, you need to do an assessment and also conduct an audit on the organization. It is vital since it helps in getting support from the staff. It also provides a good and efficient workplace with great collaboration.

This diagram illustrates what encompasses business communication in an organization.

Board members of the Naval Surface Warfare Center saw it necessary to come up with a communication audit committee to make a report on communication for the organization. The main purpose of the report was to seek for facts and also opinions and come up with recommendations to improve external and internal communication in the organization. Effective communication is a tool that enhances efficiency in the company. The primary source of my information was based on questionnaires which were given out to ten members of the organization. Below are the results obtained from the questionnaires.

This shows that total number of people who took the questionnaires were twenty; 8 females and 12 males. M, P and S symbolize mangers, personnel and supervisors respectively. Whereas F and M represent male and female respectively.

According to flow of information, 10/20 or 50% of the members said it was effective, 6/20 or 30% need improvement and 4/10 or 20% very effective.

Out of the members who took the questionnaires 10/20 or 50% have degrees, 4/20 or 20% has masters, 2/20 or 10% hours towards masters and 4/20 or 20% is in the other category.

Most of the members use email and memos as type of communication to the other employees.

During communication to the subordinates, findings show that 10/20 or 50% of the member’s use emails, 6/20 or 30% prefer person to person talk and only 2/20 or 10% uses I messaging while others 2/20 or 10%.

In addition, 14/20 or 70% of the member’s company location is in Indian while 6/20 or 30 % of the members are not. Also, according to the questionnaire, there is no direct supervision in the organization. Most of the people in the organization have an experience between 6 and 15. The best thing about flow of information in the organization is that it always reaches the right receiver despite the time spent.

The type of communication used in Naval Surface Warfare Center involves video conferencing, telephone conversation, face to face conversation, email, handheld devices, blogs, formal written documents and spreadsheets

The diagram below illustrates the cost of using email as a means of communication. It clearly shows it is cost efficient and quick. Weekly emails work like weekly meetings. The purpose of weekly emails is to explain or remind you the tasks that are ahead of you that week. You can add the meetings that are to be attended that week in the email weekly. Therefore, findings show that incorporating email is a good communication tool.

Additionally, Naval Surface Warfare Center uses etiquette during their communication, whether through email or telephone hook-ups. 80% of the emails are read with a different tone than intended by the writer. If its intention was to be funny, then it may appear to some as dismissive. Therefore, the Naval Surface Warfare Center has kept in mind the possible risks and has stepped in to avoid any disaster.

However, findings have shown various ways in which information reaches the member and staff.

According to the diagram, face to face conversation is the best method to deliver information to staff. As well as video conferencing and telephone conversation. The reason is, when conversing there is direct feedback between the sender and receiver, thus information is understood in the right manner. However, despite using email, handheld devices, and blogs as the quickest method to transfer information the richness in information is medium. Since, the receiver may not get the information in time or not understand well the content of the message. Additionally, the formal written documents and spreadsheets are the poorest method to deliver information.

Improving communication within an organization enables employees to be engaged. The introduction of a communication blitz is a good approach to communicating good messages effectively throughout the organization. During implementation of a project, continuous communication is paramount for the success of the organization. The purpose of the message is to help manage the change within an organization. Below are ways to improve communication in an organization.

The first approach to improving communication is following a sequence.

The leadership/ seniors develop a brief message and divide front line supervisors into equal groups. The leaders and supervisors discuss the message and educate the employees with the same message. The leaders then ensure there is no retention of the employees or staff. Once the retention measures are put in place, the message is developed.

Secondly, the organization should use multiple channels to deliver information. The most effective way to deliver information is to ensure you send your message through various channels. Mostly, the channels used include meetings, face to face conversations, memos, letter, and telephone conversations. The process ensures the message is disseminated and not relying on a single channel.

After disseminating your message, the organization needs to focus on listening that is a vital tool during communication. One way to focus on listening is using reflective listening skills and repetition. Also, use of nonverbal communication, body posture and focusing on the partner to listen first before getting your message across is a good way to improve communication.

After listening, and fully understanding your partner, it is vital to get your message across, the exact way it is intended. One way to do that is by speaking honestly, openly and on point. Ensure you use terms that can be understood by various people from different backgrounds so that it can be accurately received.

Lastly, handle communication problems that are prone to arise at during interaction by humans in the organization. Problems involve conflicts, cultural differences, and misunderstanding. By managing this problem and resolving them, ensures the communication in the organization is effectively received.

Findings show the importance of the use of a communications audit to determine and also improve the value of communication within the organization. An audit involves steps that involve identifying major areas of communication within the company. Major areas involve strengths and weaknesses, for example, the use of a telephone is the strength and email is the weakness. It shows that Naval Surface Warfare Center does not use an intranet, thus the need for communication audit. Below are steps for the audit process.

Analyze the existing means of communication. During this step, we gather the communication methods that are used to reach your audience and evaluate them individually. Evaluation helps to know whether they are effective, accessible and give information in time. The organization can come up with a master chart as an analysis of the methods used for communication. Additionally, you can get information concerning the best methods to be used by involving your staff.

Naval Surface Warfare Center should conduct interviews to ensure that the assessment reflects issues of the organization's success. The interviews help to know the purpose communication in an organization. Also, to inform the team members what they expect from them, goals of the company that involves communication know the weakness and strengths of communication and visualize ideal communication strategies.

The third process is to provide management and employee focus interviews. This focus interview provides a platform to compare the attitude of the employee and management. The employees are divided into groups and send a representative to represent them in the interview. It also helps in information flow since the management will be able to know why sometimes he gates full information and sometimes no information.

Also, the organization should conduct a communication survey regularly. The survey helps in measuring future improvements and identifies differences when it comes to various audiences. Through this survey, we know how many people get the information thus need for improvement.

Lastly, Naval Surface Warfare Center should develop a need based communication plan. This plan serves as a baseline for developing communications process since it is research and findings based. During an introduction of the plan, it should report findings that help to derive recommendations on communications.

In conclusion, conducting a communication audit is not simple and needs a good strategy. However, the results are good since it enhance effective communication in the organization. Therefore, adopting these measures of improving and recommendation, then it will improve the employee’s engagement to the organization.

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