Business Communication

Assignment A
1. Explain the process of communication?

2. Why is recognizing common barriers to effective communication important? Identify one common barrier from each of the following three barrier zones

3. As you prepare a business presentation for your company’s executive management committee, how will you know whether you need visual aids? What kinds of visual aids can be used?    

4. How important is body language while appearing for an interview? Elaborate giving suitable examples.

5. Write short note on any three of the following.
A)      Abbreviations (Give examples) 

b)       Synonyms & Antonyms (Give examples) 

c)      Non Verbal communication (Give examples) 

d)     Interview as a mode of non verbal communication 

e)      Types of business letters 

6. Draft a circular for the office staff mentioning the changes in timings of the office

7. Design the promotional material for a management event. It should include brochures, invites and programs

8. You are the office manager for Smart System, Inc, a startup IT firm in Udyog Vihar Gurgaon. Recently you bought 10 modems from Precision Supplies, a computer hardware supplier located in New Delhi (L2 Block Connaught Palace New Delhi). After two weeks of installation of modems, you found that two of the modems are not functioning properly. Since you have paid the full amount against the purchase of modems you are entitled to enjoy two years of warrantee including free replacement for any product within one month. 
        You called their customer service department to ask for replacement last Friday that replacement would be delivered on following Monday. It is now Friday and you haven’t heard anything from the supplier company. You need the two modems immediately as your company is working on a major project and dead line is approaching fast. This is the first time you have ordered from Precision Suppliers and may be last 
Write a letter of complaint to demand for immediate replacement or full refund.

Assignment B
Case Detail:   
Q.    Read the case study given below and answer the questions given at the end
 Case Study
                                          Charisma Corporation
Charisma Corporation (CC) has recently embarked on a new kind of training. The corporation is teaching many of its employees, especially those in the marketing and sales to make decisions on the basis of non verbal communication cues. For Malini Varma, VP of CC, focusing on non verbal communications has become an important part of her inter personal dealings. Several years ago, Varma became interested in how body movements and mannerism truly reflect what an individual is saying. Continuously reading in this area of study, Varma has been able to take decisions about potential employees and potential customers by ‘reading’ them. Varma believes that body language can give a person competitive advantage. It can make difference while closing a deal or, as in CC’s case, while hiring employees. For example, during interviews, Malini pays constant attention to the candidate’s eye movements and mannerism. She believes that she can correctly predict if the candidate will be aggressive sales person while simultaneously being personable and friendly. How does she do it? She does this by looking at their eyes and the way they present themselves. In one case hiring decision came down to two people. The first person was animated and made constant eye contact. The second candidate never looked in the eyes of Malini. , leaned back in his/her chair, and crossed both his legs and arms. The first candidate demonstrated the communication skills that Varma thought aligned with successful performance in her organization.
                Malini Varma is convinced that communication skills play a significant role in helping her organization achieve its annual sales goals. Personally, she has found that it has helped her ‘quality’ customers. For instance even when a potential customer says,’ yes’ with his/her arms and legs crossed emphatically, it means, No! Understanding this, Varma is in a better position to probe further into the possible objections the customer has. She has found that, in many cases, she is able to steer the conversation in a direction that ultimately leads to successfully closing a sale. And that is a major competitive advantage.
 
1. What problems Varma encounter by her heavy reliance on non verbal communication

2. What communication guidance would you give to Varma and individuals like her who place an inordinately high value on body language? Explain your position. What communication guidance would you give to Varma and individuals like her who place an inordinately high value on body language? Explain your position.

Assignment C

1. Example of external Communication  
Letter from supplier
Meeting of employees in purchase department
Conversation between a manager and his assistant
Telephone call from area manager to branch manager

2. A manager would give message about social events to employees using—

Fax
Report
Agenda
Notice
3. Which size of business is most likely to use informal communication more regularly—

Large
Medium
International
Small
4. Which of these are record of a meeting?

Agenda
Minutes
Plans
Presentation

5. What type of meeting is AGM?

Annual General Meeting
Asking Group Meeting
Altogether Group Meeting
Answering General Meeting

6. Which of these is a disadvantage of e-mail as a form of Business Communication?

Lack of possible details
Limited number of recipients
Speed
Difficult for receiver to determine the tone

7. What o the letters ENC or ENCs at the end of a business letter mean?
Enclosure
Encircle
Encore
Encase

8. A cover letter is—

Courteous and helpful
Unnecessary
Considered to be in poor taste
Always mailed separately

9. Inquiry letters are letters that—

Ask for more information
Ask for credit
Try to reactivate the business
Ask for adjustments

10. Which of the following is NOT a component in the Communication Model? 

Sender
Messenger
Encoding
Receiver

11. What kind of information should be included in a resume?

Work experience 
- Education 
- Affiliation & Membership 
- Letter of recommendation  

All except 1
All except 2
All except 3
All except 4
12 What are the common barriers that impede communication? 
-  Barriers with people 
-  Barriers with wards 
-  Barriers made by cultural differences 
-  Barriers made distance  
All except 1
All except 2
All except 3
All except 4

13. Which of the following information should be included in minutes?
-    Date & venue of the meeting 
-   Decisions made at the meeting 
-   Comments from members 
-  Action to be taken by the members
    All above
All except 2
All except 3
All except 4
14 When preparing to write for business purposes, the 4 Ps include— 

-Personal 
- Position 
- Polite 
- Professional  
All except 1
All except 2
All except 3
All except 4

15. Which of the following is NOT a problem when calling for a meeting?

Personal Agenda
Team spirit
Interpersonal conflicts
Cultural differences

16. What type of software would a writer uses to produce a slide show for a meeting?

Database application
Presentation application
Spreadsheet application
Personal information application

17. Which of the following is not a component in Communication model?
- Sender 
-  Messeage 
-  Encoding 
-  Receiver      
All above
All except 2
All except 3
All except 4
18. Which of the following is NOT a problem when calling for a meeting? 

Personal Agenda
Team spirit
Interpersonal conflicts
Cultural differences

19. Which of the following is not an external business written communication?

Complaint Letter
Curriculum Vitae
Memo
Enquires letter

20. Effective communication can only be achieved when— 

-The audience is understood 
-  Feedback is encouraged 
-  Thoughts are organized
All above
All except 2
All except 3
All except 4

21. Although spell checks are useful for identifying misspelled words, it cannot distinguish—

Words that are spelled correctly but used incorrectly
Troublesome words that are misspelled
Homonyms that are misspelled
Synonyms that are misspelled

22. What should be avoided when engaging in business correspondences? 
-Choppy sentences 
- Passive sentences 
-  Bias free language 
-   Cliches  

    
All except 1
All except 2
All except 3
All except 4

23. I invited a friend to come to a street market by my house where they served some real good Japanese food. My friend’s mom wanted to pay for her daughter’s meal, but I insisted on paying for both for meals myself, her mom finally said, OK, as long as we go Dutch next time. What does it means?  
I pay for your meal
You take me with you
You let me drive you there
We divide the costs

24. I went to a real nice restaurant yesterday. The food wasn’t costly and helping were generous. I asked for a doggy bag as I couldn’t eat the entire food.

Package to pack leftover food
Dog bowl that you can give the left over to your dog
A special order where you get smaller meals
Special order where you get larger meals

25. Fabian was a doormat. No wonder his class mates were always giving him a hard time.

Snob
Geek
Coward
Chubby boy

26. When superior provides directions to his subordinates, it is known as---------------- communication. 

Upward
Downward
Horizontal
Lateral
27. If a person taps his feet, it is an indication of—

Impatience
Anger
Frustration
Confidence

28. Active listening can be demonstrated verbally through—

Clarifications
Questions
Feedback/Suggestions
All of the above

29. Paying more attention to the way speaker is dressed, is an example of focusing on-------rather than -----------. 

Deliver, Content
Content, Delivery
Looks, Message
None of the above

30. The most valuable ideas come from-------- communication.

Upward
Downward
Horizontal
None

31. Kinesics means—

Personal space and distance
Body language
Physical environment
None of the above

32. Eye contact conveys—

Intensity and interest
Nervousness
Interest
Anger

33. Barriers to listening—

Psychological Barriers
Physical Barriers
Attitudinal Barriers
All of the above

34. Some common mistakes made with regard to English Language usage are—

Redundancies
Clichés
Frequent use of similar-sounding words
All of above

35. Power Point slides should not be—

Cluttered
Colorful
Decorative
None of above

36. Meetings are effective when-----------are not made

Inputs
Decisions
Communication
None of above

37. The common purpose of notices and circulars is to-----------rather than--------------.

Persuade, Inform
Inform, Persuade
None of above
Both of above
38. Effective communication with shareholders means being--------with them.

Open
Transparent
Truthful
All of above

39. A---------is an opening statement in a bad news letter.

Idea
Subject
Buffer
None of above

40. Audience analysis helps to determine the-------and------of the report. 

Tone & Complexity
Language &ideas
None
both