LESSON 9 attitudes the employees have, and the overall

tone and approach to any given operation.

Assimilating into the enduring organizational

The Nature of Workplace culture facilitates easier communication with
Communication the higher-ups, middle-management leaders,
and fellow workers.
"Communication- the human connection- is
the key to personal and career success." Multiplicity of Identities differences in gender,
Paul J. Meyer ethnicity, language, beliefs, and other
attributes. Mutual respect for the perceived or
Workplace Communication real differences in the attributes of the people
The evolution of communication is best in the organization is a virtue to practice at all
described as the process of transmitting times.
ideas and thoughts through the years for
human survival. In charting one's journey in 2. Co-worker Relationship
this evolution, education, science and Time spent at work is greater than time spent
technology, business and trade, and media at home
have all contributed to how an individual for many in the active employment workforce.
copes with social needs and demands It is urgent then from the moment of hiring to
through human connection. immediate designation to a particular post to
establish pleasant relations with fellow
Human connection is indispensable whether workers. Informal networking within the
in the confines of home, school, or the workplace creates better opportunities to
workplace. In Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of attain the long-term communication goals of
Needs, social belonging is crucial to self- the organization.
actualization. In the 21st century, this is
becoming more pronounced as personal
success is equated with career growth and 3. Shared Leadership
advancement which is reliant on one's level of The distribution of leadership responsibilities
social belonging. In the professional context within a team can influence the functionality
or in the workplace, harmonious relations with of its members. Positions cease to exist
co-workers can be consequential and crucial where there are no team members to work on
to both the individual and the collective assigned tasks by the team leaders.
productivity and efficiency in the workplace. Leadership is not simply taking command of
the ship but of sailing the course with the rest
Workplace communication, the process of in the ship. The definition of task and
exchanging information, either verbally or relationship roles in the workplace requires
non-verbally, is important in any social communication in order for these roles to be
environment, including the academic and carried out efficiently.
corporate environments. In any organizational
structure, communication is the force that 4. Team Building
maintains its operations from the top up to the Where shared leadership is nurtured, team
middle and bottom level. building is not far behind. Formal and informal
gatherings help build a strong team. Team
Workplace Dynamics roles surface where task roles, relationship
roles, and self-centered roles have to be
1. Diversity in the Workplace periodically monitored, assessed, and
Multigenerational workforce employee evaluated for a check on functional roles.
classification composed of Baby boomers,
Generation X, Generation Y, Millennials, and  Task roles roles that help the team carry
Generation Z or Post-millennials. out tasks and get the work done (e.g.,
Organizational culture (Quintanilla & Wahl, initiator, information giver, information
2011) the way an organization operates, the seeker, opinion giver, opinion seeker,
 coordinator, procedural developer, Formal - In technical writing, you cannot just
summarizer-evaluator) write anything you like in any way you want
because some writing standards underlie the
 Relationship roles-roles that strengthen or structure, pattern, format, and language of
maintain team relationships (e.g., this kind of writing. You have to adhere to
supporter, harmonizer, gatekeeper) . Self- these agreed upon technical writing rules
centered roles roles that interfere with the because your readers judge the value or
team's ability to complete tasks (e.g., credibility of your output based on how you
blocker, dominator, attacker, clown). conform to the conventions governing this
kind of writing.

Graphical - Graphs like tables, charts,

figures, diagrams, maps, pictures, and other
LESSON 10 illustrations are necessary in technical writing
to support the written information provided.
Technical Writing in the Workplace Since technical writing deals with technical
information, visual representations help in
“The sum of human wisdom is not contained expressing specialized meanings, or ideas
in any one language” known only to a specific set of people
Ezra Pound (Bertoline, 2009 in Baraceros, 2011).

Technical Writing Objective - technical writing must avoid

Technical writing is a form of written inclusion of individual and subjective
communication used mainly as judgment in relaying information. Being
correspondence and in the production of straightforward and direct, forms of technical
written outputs valuable to an organization. writing should avoid including inner thoughts,
As an act of writing in the workplace, it sentiments, or feelings in order to adopt an
pertains to written communication present in impartial or impersonal stand or attitude
all kinds of organizations, jobs, and towards what is written.
professions.
Practical - forms of technical writing should
be practical in the way that they function
Features of Technical Writing according to their purpose.

Below are some characteristics of technical Procedural - some forms of technical writing
writing (Baraceros, 2011); are procedural as they provide sets of
instructions and sequenced information such
Accurate - a technical written work is as user manuals and laboratory reports.
accurate when it deals with facts that are
completely true. An accurate report uses Specialized - technical writing usually
words, sentences, numbers, or figures that functions within a specific demographic.
exactly express what the written work intends Language used is specialized (i.e., technical
to convey (Bantin, 2008 in Baraceros, 2011). terms, expressions) and easily understood by
a specific set of readers.
Clear - your written work is clear, if in one
reading. your readers are able to easily Diverse - technical writing as on-the-job
understand the main message or point of the writing is prone to extensive exposure to
whole composition. You can easily achieve multicultural clients, and co-workers. Cross-
this if you always remember that writing cultural or multilingual communication
clearly always results from thinking clearly, as brought about by globalization through the
well as from the use of simple, concise, internet, materialized through technical
specific, and grammatically correct language writing will lead you to various topics, ideas,
structures (Gustavi, 2008 & Marsh, 2005 in people, methodologies, concerns, purposes,
Baraceros, 2011). formats, and language.
Straightforward - a straightforward manner company. Stakeholders, management, and
of writing means presenting facts and the employees get a fair share from the
information honestly and directly. Unlike other benefits of customer satisfaction and
forms of writing like literary and expository continued patronage.
writing that permit the writer to hide meanings
through figurative language-technical writing
presents ideas in a frank, unequivocal, or
clear cut-way. LESSON 11
Authoritative - to describe technical writing
as authoritative is to think of it as a piece of Writing Workplace Communication
writing with the ability to command or to Materials
enforce something on anyone. Forms of
technical writing use an authoritative voice to
exude credibility in relaying information.

Presentable - any technical writing output

must be presentable, without any
grammatical or typographical errors. A
technical writer must ensure that his or her
output always undergoes proofreading.

Workplace Communication as
Technical and Professional
Communication Written Communication in the
Workplace
Globalization inevitably gives rise to
professional communication which entails As in any form of correspondence, business
technical communication. Professional or workplace correspondence involves three
communication encompasses written, oral, factors: the sender, the message, and the
visual, and digital communication that may be receiver.
used in part or in full in creating, delivering,
consuming, and managing information and As the sender initiates the process, the
data for business purposes. Professionals in intended reader is expected to respond
different disciplines are therefore needed for according to the nature of the business letter.
writing, editing, reading, speaking, and A business letter, for example, must be
listening to maintain effective operations deemed worthy to be read in order for the
management in the workplace. sender to gain feedback.
Workplace communication is technical in a The message, the purpose, and the target
work environment where management and receiver or
employees focus on manufacturing and audience must all be considered in writing
marketing products and services for target any business letter.
clients and customers. Opinion papers,
technical reports. business proposals and The message and its purpose should be clear
presentations, and similar types of writing are for the letter to be properly understood by the
written, read, listened to, and disseminated intended receiver. When you write a business
for various business purposes. A specialized letter, read your work as if you are the target
language or technical jargon is used relative reader and ask yourself the following
to the field it is intended for. questions:
In the long run, effective workplace • Does the message appear to be important?
communication brings about more customers • Is the message easy to understand?
or clients and brings in profits for the
 The three standard formats of
Tips for Effective Written business letters are full- block, modified-
Communication in the Workplace block, and semi-block. The differences
between these three are illustrated through
1. To ensure the effectiveness of written the following examples:
communication materials in the workplace,
the following qualities must be remembered: Full-Block

• A-ccuracy - The content must be truthful

and accurate. It must stay true to facts.
Sweeping statements that may be challenged
later on should be avoided.

• B-revity Sentences must be kept short and

direct. Simple, carefully chosen words and
expressions should be used while information
overload is avoided. Nonetheless,
completeness should never be sacrificed for
brevity.

• C-larity Visualize the reader in front of you

wishing only to hear precise words whose
meanings cut across quickly and clearly to
him or her. A good grasp of grammar will be a
great help.

2. Select the format that is the standard,

prescribed, and acceptable to the institution
represented or to the parties in the
transaction.

3. Courtesy, whether in written or oral form, is

Modified-Block
more implicit than explicit in purposive
communication. Use positive words that are
proactive and not reactive. Correct word
usage and sentence structure will make a
real difference.

Business Letters

Business letters are essential in the

workplace, especially in the external
operations of an organization. It is through
business letters that an organization can
reach out to its clients and vice versa. The
different kinds of business letters illustrate the
different communication situations that
constantly need to be addressed by the
internal and external functions of an
organization.

Standard Formats of Business

Letters
Semi-Block