Business Communication – Explain verbal symbols and their advantages in Communication

 

1. Explain verbal symbols and their advantages in Communication.                               

(OR)

2. Differentiate between ‘posture’ and ‘gesture’ using specific examples.

3. Explain the following roadblocks which make communication slow and inefficient:

a. Strong emotion

b. Self centeredness

(OR)

4. How does ‘Lack of common language’ remain a roadblock to effective communication? Explain.

5. Imagine that you are going to give a lecture to a group of business executives. How will you structure your presentation?

(OR)

6. a. What is an agenda (of a meeting)? Explain the purpose of preparing an agenda.

b. Imagine that you are the GM of STAR TV Ltd., Chennai-63. Your company had achieved a sales target of 1,50,000 TV sets during the year 2009. But in 2011 till Nov. 2010, your company could sell only 1,00,000 TV sets. You have convened a meeting of the sales Managers and marketing executives of your company to discuss the ways and means of achieving the target sales.

i. Prepare an inter-office memo informing those concerned to attend.

ii. Prepare an agenda of the meeting.

7. a. Read the following letter sent to a dealer and analyse the tone of the letter.

ABC Electrical Ltd.,

52, Gandhi Road, Coimbatore – 641 047

Madhavan,

Sales Manager. Dt : 10.12.2010

To

The Manager,

Sathiya Agencies,

21, Swamy Sivanandha Salai,

Salem-11.

Sir,

Ref : Our bill No. 4225 dt: 21.06.2010.

We have sent 15 five HP Electrical motors as per your request six months ago.  You have paid 50% of the total cost of the motors at the time of placing orders for the supply. You

have not bothered to settle the remaining money. Inspite of repeated reminders you are silent.  Do you think you can cheat us? You must be a fool to think so. If you do not settle the bill next week, we will file a case in the court to recover the money.

Sincerely yours,
Sales Manager.

 

b. Rewrite the above letter with a suitable tone.

(OR)

8. What are the important factors of persuasion? Explain any Four.

 

9. Case study : (Compulsory)

Hunter Hunts for College Grads

Woody Hunter had been an HRM analyst with Control Data Corporation (CDC) for three years but was recently reassigned to the college recruitment staff.  The basic duties in his new job were to visit college and university campuses and interview seniors in order to identify individuals who could fill entry-level positions at CDC in accounting, engineering and marketing.

After three months’ travelling on the road, Woody received a report summarizing his performance to dat.  The figures showed he had conducted 540 preliminary interviews on 18 different campuses. Woody had follow-up interviews with 136 of these students, or approximately 25 percent.  Based on these second interviews, Woody recommended to his supervisor that 71 candidates be invited for company-paid visits to appropriate CDC manufacturing and administrative facilities where new college graduates were needed.  All of Woody’s selectees were offered visits.

What concerned Woody and his supervisor was this statistic:  Only four of the seventy-one candidates accepted the CDC invitation.  Based on over seven years of recruiting experience with CDC, Woody’s supervisor said that the company traditionally had better than a 60 percent acceptance rate.  Woody’s boss knew there was something seriously wrong. He asked Woody to summarize how he described opportunities at CDC to the recruits.

“I ask the students if they have read the CDC literature in the placement office,” replied Woody.  “Most usually have, but if they haven’t I highlight what we do at CDC, the kind of entry-level positions we have to fill, and the kind of people we’re looking for.  But I know that these students have heard similar propaganda from a dozen other big company recruiters.  So I emphasize the things CDC has that others don’t.  One thing I never fail to mention is our benefit package.  It is superior to anybody else’s.  I tell students about our tuition-reimbursement plan, our comprehensive health insurance program, and our pension system. I tell them that our pension plan vests after only five years.  I point out that the employee pays nothing into it-that all the costs are paid by CDC.  Most important, I emphasize that they can retire at age fifty five and receive 80 percent of the salary they were making in their last year.  There’s not a pension plan anywhere that attractive.  I even take the time to show the students how, with inflation figured in; they can probably expect a pension of $200,000 or $300,000 a year if they come to work for CDC.”

Questions:

a. What role do you think benefits play in the employment decision of a new college graduate?

b. What role do you think the beginning salary plays in the employment decision of a new college graduate?

c. What suggestions would you make that might improve Woody’s acceptance ratio?