Business Related Information

• Business Communication


  All communication that takes place in any business context, be it internal communication or external communication
• Communication


  A two way process where information is sent by one person (or group) and received and interpreted by another person (or group) that may or may not give feedback on the original message
• Factors that can cause a message to be misunderstood

  • Language barriers
  • Cultural differences
  • Physical noise
  • Physiological factors
• Jargon


  Special words or technical language
• Slang


  Informal language
• Acronyms


  A new word formed from the initial letters of other words
• In South Africa, business communication most often takes place in English, but because English is not everybody's mother tongue, misunderstandings do occur
• Physical noise


  Anything that literally means the message is not heard or is not heard correctly, e.g. hard music, noise from machines, poor lighting, extreme temperatures, internet pop-ups
• Physiological factors


  Issues like hunger, tiredness or sickness that interfere with the communication process
• Importance of good communication skills in business

  • Clear and logical communication allows you to get your ideas across to your target audience
• Situations where good communication skills are important in business

  • Board of Directors giving feedback to shareholders
  • Manager delegating a task to an employee
  • Employee giving feedback to supervisor/manager
  • Entrepreneur applying for finance from the bank
  • Management communicating vision to employees
  • Marketing department communicating with target market
• Verbal communication


  Communication where words (spoken or written) are used to transfer the message
• Non-verbal communication


  Communication that does not use any words, e.g. body language, graphics
• Forms of verbal communication

  • Telephonic communication
  • Business letters or statements
  • Electronic media
  • Business magazines
  • Oral presentations
  • Business reports
  • Business plans
• Telephonic communication


  • Allows the business to pursue new clients, give feedback to current customers, or allow customers to obtain information
• Business letters or statements

  • Mailed to customers to give them information or ask for information
• Electronic media


  • Emails, SMS, Twitter, Facebook used to promote products or create incentivised word of mouth
• Business magazines


  • Often contain health-related information to promote general health and focus attention on products sold
• Oral presentations


  • Frequently used in business to inform people about upcoming events or give feedback on certain issues
• Business report


  A method to organise and present information on a specific topic to a specific audience to articulate a specific point of view and make recommendations to solve a problem
• Structure of a business report

  • Addressed to a specific person or group
  • Topic clearly indicated
  • Introduction
  • Signed and dated
  • Body with facts and headings
  • Conclusion summarising opinion and recommendations
• Business plan


  A useful tool for a new or established entrepreneur to develop, often used as part of an application to get finance or to evaluate current processes
• Elements of a business plan

  • Cover page
  • Index
  • Executive summary
  • Business summary
  • SWOT analysis
  • General management plan
  • Marketing plan
  • Financial plan
  • Human resources section
  • Operational plan
  • Social responsibility plan
  • Contingency plans
  • Appendices
• Project plan


  A schedule of tasks indicating what has to be done, by when, by whom, work breakdown, resources needed, and implementation details
• Gantt chart


  A horizontal bar chart that shows the time increments of tasks
• Responding to business communication

  • Respond as soon as possible in a professional and courteous manner
  • Telephonic calls should be answered without delay, with a promise to find out and call back if needed
  • Business letters should be answered on letterhead with edited spelling and language
  • Responses to instant media like emails, SMS, Twitter, Facebook should be calm and professional, not instant if upset
  • When providing feedback after an oral presentation, listen carefully, ask for clarity if needed, and ensure all questions are answered
• Business letters


  Formal documents that should be answered on a letter head of the business
• Spelling and language in business letters should be edited as it gives a very poor impression of the business and the person replying if the document is riddled with mistakes
• Responses to "instant media"


  Emails, sms', twitter and facebook should preferably not be instant, especially if you are upset
• Never respond to instant media while upset as you might say something that cannot be retracted
• Responding to instant media


  Wait a few hours and then respond in a calm and professional manner, making sure your language is correct and the tone of your response does not become emotional
• Providing feedback to questions posed after an oral presentation

  Listen carefully to make sure you understand the question, ask for clarity if you do not understand, make notes to ensure all questions are answered, do not become involved in an argument, if you have made a mistake, do not hesitate to apologise, stand up straight and make eye contact with the audience
• Primary research


  Field research where original or new data is collected first hand by means questionnaires, interviews, focus groups, experiments or observation
• Secondary research


  Also known as "desk research", the researcher looks at what other people have said on the topic and then processes a number of other people's opinions on the topic to formulate his/her own conclusion
• Plagiarism is one of the biggest concerns when it comes to secondary research
• Plagiarism


  Stealing or kidnapping someone else's work
• Conducting secondary research


  Investigate what a number of other people have said on the topic, acknowledge in the written piece that it is the opinion of Mr. X by using a citation, acknowledge this as a source in your list of references, use this information to draw your own conclusions on the topic
• Citation


  The specific manner of acknowledging the source of information in the research report and list of references
• Examples of citations


  • If you use the internet and the author is known
  • If you use a source from the internet and the author is unknown
  • If a book has one author
  • If a book has more than one author
• You will have to sign a declaration to acknowledge that you know what plagiarism is and that you have not made yourself guilty of this offense