F.Y.B.COM. SEMESTER – I BUSINESS COMMUNICATION Q.4 Communication in the Context of Technology. ANS: In these early years of the third millennium, we find ourselves real inhabitants of the global village that Marshall McLuhan had envisaged over thirty years ago. Advances in technology have facilitated the process of market globalization. New technology has permeated every sphere of life, especially the corporate world. Business today has widened its horizon and overstepped its former boundaries, and so has communication. The old scene has been replaced by a new landscape: the modern world is buzzing with activity, and the face of Business0020 Communication has also changed as a result. In the 21st century, following in the footsteps of the revolution in Business and Commerce, the Communication Revolution has assumed greater significance. The electronic means of communication have evolved from the printing press, which was invented some 500 years ago. A few years ago, terms like RAM, MODEM, DISC would have carried other connotations. But today, even if people do not understand their exact meaning, they are, at least, able to associate them with technology of some sort. Technological developments have thus contributed towards revolution of digital electronics. This revolution has influenced information transmission since World War II. A new approach to communication is taking the place of the conventional approach, so that, what was unimaginable earlier is a reality today. No wonder that this revolution has entered the business scene, and, in turn, the business world has taken hold of it and exploited it for its expansion. Electronic means of communication have brought about a radical change not only in organizational working but also in communication. More sophisticated means of communication have mushroomed over the last few years. A study of Business Communication without a proper understanding and cognizance of this fact would be unimaginable. Information Technology including the Internet (intranet and extranet), e-mail, voice mail, fax, tele (audio and video) conferencing, desktop computing, wireless devices, instant message have electrified commerce and thereby revolutionised the way we communicate. Consequently, the old telecommunication devices like telegraph, telex are now outdated, just as are letters and other such forms. Availability of a variety of electronic media has increased the options open to us as communicators. Today, with electronic means, communication can be effected in the blink of an eye and at the stroke of a key. The electronic media have facilitated communication among people all over the world, enabling them to reach widely dispersed publics personally. The electronic media‘s ability to overcome time zone barriers, their speed, frequency, multi-tasking and efficiency are simply laudable. Advanced means like earth and environmental service allow people from opposite ends of the world to collaborate with each other, work together, seamlessly as it were, thus bringing the resultant benefits to numerous other people. This collaborative group effort ensures quick decision-making, which is of great importance for success in the global competitive market. This enables companies to promote the sales of their products / services in a quicker and more economical way, thus facilitating commercial operations and activities. The Modern Era is becoming an office less world as the concept of workplace and method of working are changing. Now when an employee says, I’m at work, s/he is referring to what S/he is doing and not to the place. The line between home and office is now blurred. This is because people need not confine themselves to traditional workspaces for working. They can work from home and, at the same time, they can maintain contacts with their colleagues. Thus, a constant attempt is being made to bring all aspects of the office under one umbrella. Henceforth, technology, and not the traditional glass-box office layout, will bring the employees together. Thus, flexi-time/place, mobility, adjustability, miniaturization, paperless, automated, horizontal, democratic organization are the order of the day. Direct one-to-one and one- to-many transfer of information, storing data, retrieving it at anytime and anywhere are all the miracles of this digitalized / electronic communication. That is why, on-line trading, banking, e-recruiting, cyber recruiting are gaining popularity. In short, telecommunicating has become the norm. All this has made today‘s professional more of an infocrat, rather than an autocrat/ technocrat / bureaucrat. In fact, the driving force behind the business world is, no doubt, technology. However, new technologies have given rise to communication challenges. In addition, the growing global access to electronic means has magnified these challenges. Though electronic means have come as a blessing, they are not devoid of problems and disadvantages. They are afflicted by problems such as viruses, worms, theft, information overload, lack of privacy, reduced productivity, and waste of time. They are responsible for some of the tension of in the workplace. With them, confidentiality is endangered. Yet the benefits of electronic means of communication usually outweigh the disadvantages. They are, therefore, preferred to the conventional ones. If we want to reap the full benefit from the potential of Communication and Technology, we have to train people to be proficient in the art of electronic communication. As the need is for an effective, rather than a nominal communicator, the selection of a suitable tool, and its effective, appropriate and judicious use, should be insisted upon. Furthermore, it is important to realize that technology showcases a person‘s communication and presentation skills as far as speaking and writing are concerned, and facilitates the listening process; it can never be a substitute for the person himself. The person needs to develop his/her basic communicative competence which goes beyond aspects of clarity and circumvention of barriers to include a consideration of the reader‘s or listener‘s viewpoint, and a sensitivity to cultural differences and their potential areas of misunderstanding. For example, in some countries, video conferencing is not accepted in business dealings. So, we may say that the best method of handling matters and problems related to communication would be one wherein effective skills are coupled with, and enhanced by, the use of modern technological devices. Of course, this approach is not
