Jeanette W. Gilsdorf

Written Corporate Communication Policy: Extent, Coverage, Costs, Benefits

This article answers pertinent questions about the use of corporate communication policies, based upon evaluation of written policies and in-depth interviews with corporate representatives. Few firms have easily accessible written policies on communication and few follow a systematic approach to this crucial communication activity. Firms that engage in systematic communication planning, auditing, and policy-making will foster excellence and enjoy a competitive advantage.

Metacommunication Effects on International Business Negotiating in China

Forpractitioners and teachers, this article reviews the literature on differences in cultural assumptions underlying negotiation between businesspersons in the Peoples Republic of China and those from the West, particularly the United States. Unless perceived and understood, profound differences in atti tudes, expectations, and unworded messages will frustrate businesspeoples efforts to do business with China, a huge and developing market.

More "Process": A Luxury? An Illusion? A Millstone?

are not necessarily separate. Nothing shows more clearly than word processing that we can crunch the steps in the process together. Third, process may be so different from writer to writer that urging a set series of steps might gain little and interfere with the efficiency of some. We DO teach process, in a way, in business communication, but we don’t marry ourselves to it. Rather, in business communication classes we work with the assorted necessary elements and say to our students, &dquo;13y the time you send this communication, be sure you’ve attended to these essential things. We teach the students how to analyze the audience, crystallize the purpose of the message, choose the appropriate mcdium, and craft the message. We teach substantial material on crafting that message. But we move almost directly to concrete tasks, immediate and specifc to TIIIS reader, purpose, and task. Process as taught in English composition classes is somewhat abstract. Process, as the composition texts use it, requires many &dquo;takes&dquo;-the honing of a thesis statement, a formal outline, multiple drafts, conscious use of all sorts of things like comparison-and-contrast, analysis, cause-effect with