Chapter 10 dives into the subject of business and professional communication ethics, it relates it to previous chapters (such as organizational communication) but states the main aspect that differentiates this chapter from the rest as, "Business and professional communication works at the micro level of organizational action, addressing issues of written persuasion, including routine letters, memos, and e-mail correspondence..." (175).
Business communication zeros in on a certain goal, "A company without clarity of direction falls prey to atrophy and decline, unable to engage in self-critical examination and change" (180). In order to reach the goal, they note "public testing" (which reminds me of trail and error). Understanding how the public responds to the communication a company produces allows them to see what direction they should take to make their goal become a reality.
Society has put an emphasis on health over the past few years. This has highlighted the health issues within the restaurant industry, and in return, that industry has had to evolve to satisfy all audiences. Vegetarianism and veganism are two health diets that continue to be on the rise in society. Due to this, many restaurants are having to change/add options on their menu to satisfy this type of customer. Promoting through advertisements the multiple options for vegetarians/vegans on the menu draws in business from those consumers, making that business stand out from others.
It is fascinating how important public testing has become in today's society. With the "good" of business and professional communication ethics being the continuity of the entity, businesses constantly have to adapt to the actions and demands of the consumers. This allows them to cater to their target market and stay ahead of competitors. They use market research techniques such as focus groups, questionnaires, and product sampling to get a better idea of what potential customers want. It seems that companies that best adapt to their target consumers are the ones who remain relevant and successful. This brings up the important question of what current and future trends may be. Companies who can take advantage of or anticipate these trends will continue to last and satisfy their customers.
ReplyDeleteYou mention that, “a company without clarity of direction falls prey to atrophy and decline, unable to engage in self-critical examination and change”. I like that you talk about businesses needing to “understand how the public responds to the communication a company produces allowing them to make their goal a reality and take a clear direction”. I agree that this is important for a business to survive as an external aspect.
ReplyDeleteHowever, a clear direction can also be looked at from an internal point of view. It helps companies understand the why behind losing or gaining employees because “a clear direction both brings people into a given workplace and moves them to another setting” (182). When a company has a clear vision it can either be shared by a person so they will want to be a part of the business or they may not agree with the vision and want to seek employment elsewhere. The book talks about the test beginning with who should be hired into a business by asking, “Can you, with conviction, contribute to the direction of a given company?” (182)
An example of this was when Estee Lauder acquired MAC Cosmetics. Their vision was to transition the artistry driven line into a goal/sales driven line. They moved the business from doing makeup and not having individual artist sales goals to a line that required sales goals per hour, and specific average unit sales. This forced employees to decide whether they agreed with the new vision of the business that they worked for and if they wanted to continue to work under a different vision of the company.
Do you think that these two views hold equal weight within the public testing ground of business and professional communication ethics or does one outweigh the other?