Professional Communications Organizations

There are scores of excellent organizations for students and professionals in the Communications field to be a part of. Below are just a few of the many available. Membership definitely has its privileges, because being associated with these organizations means you’re kept abreast of current happenings in the communications industry, you’re given access to special education opportunities to further your knowledge and understanding of the industry, you’re given the inside scoop on the many opportunities for employment available, and so much more!

Public Relations Society of America – (PRSA.org)
This organization was chartered in 1947, and to date is the world’s largest organizations of public relations professionals. It’s made up of over 21,000 members, and its goal is to set standards of excellence and uphold principles of ethics for the PR profession. PRSA also advocates for PR issues. The organization is an excellent networking resource, with professional interest sections that put professionals in touch with each other who are looking to share and gain knowledge and expertise.

National Communications Association – (Natcom.org)
This organization was created in 1914, and is one of the largest of its kind dedicated to communication. The organization’s mission is to work to understand and better all forms of human communication. It’s a non-profit organization that boasts over 8,000 members.

Association for Women in Communications – (Womcom.org)
Founded over a century ago, this organization is designed to encourage and support women’s advancements in the field of communications. A wide range of communications segments are represented within the organization, including print, broadcast journalism, television and radio production, PR marketing, and more. Members have the advantage of networking with mentors, exploreing career opportunities and enrolling in educational programs.

National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ.org)
Founded in early 1975, the NABJ is the largest organization in the US of journalists of color. It has over 3,000 members nationwide, and exists to, among other things, increase the number of black journalists in media workplaces and expand job opportunities for aspiring black journalists young and old. The NABJ hosts conventions that attract hundreds of recruiters, so it is an excellent employment opportunity resource.

Alliance for Women in Media (awrt.org)
Formally known as American women in radio and television, this organization is available to women who work in, or want to work in media. Founded in 1951, the organization serves as a resource and as an exchange of ideas medium for its members. The organization offers memberships of all different levels to accommodate women at whatever stage of their career they may be in.

Don't Stress Over Conflict and Communicating Bad News to Bad Employees

Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defines conflict as a, “mental struggle resulting from incompatible or opposing needs, drives, wishes, or external demands” (2009). Though the perception of conflict is, for most, negative, conflict can be either good or bad. According to authors Dudley Cahn and Ruth Abigail (2007), many people describe conflict using pessimistic terms, and remember conflicts as unpleasant events (p 7). They therefore, think conflict is something that should be avoided. Others however, look at conflict in a completely opposite way. They believe that, if properly managed, conflict is extremely important - - if not vital. They feel conflict lies at the core of innovation, and view it as an opportunity for personal growth, and a chance to learn. Regardless of the opinion of it, conflict is something that can not be avoided, especially in the workplace.

In his book, Workplace Wars and How to End Them, author Kenneth Kaye (1994) states that, “No organization is so excellent, no team so unified, no business so successful that it is immune to internal conflict” (p.1). No matter how hard we try to create an atmosphere and environment that fosters consensus building and collaboration, misunderstandings will occur, and tempers will sometimes flair. In other words, conflicts will happen. If left unresolved, they can cost companies hundreds of thousands of dollars each year in lost revenue and lost customers. They can also cause poor productivity, low morale, and distrust (Zupek, 2009, ¶ 3). The key to handling conflict effectively as a manager is being prepared for them, and knowing what conflict resolution techniques to utilize when they occur. If I were the department manager of technology support company, and I had to meet with an employee who was creating conflict within the company and being confrontational with other employees, I would handle the situation by using two very effective conflict resolution techniques outlined by Dudley Cahn and Ruth Abigail. Those two conflict resolution techniques are called the S-TLC system of conflict management, and the six confrontation steps to successful interpersonal conflict resolution (2007, p. 97).

There are six confrontation steps to follow should a manager find it necessary to confront an employee. The confrontation steps are as follows:

1) Preparation: identify your problem/needs/issues,
2) Tell the employee: let the employee know you need to talk with him/her,
3) Interpersonal confrontation: talk to the other person about the problem,
4) Consider the employee’s point of view: listen, empathize, and respond with understanding,
5) Resolve the problem: make a mutually satisfying agreement
6) Follow up on the solution: set a time limit for reevaluation.

I would follow, in order, these six simple steps when I confront the employee causing conflicts. If the employee were to stop me at one of the steps, I would backtrack a step or two to allow more time for discussion before trying to move forward, as Cahn and Abigail advise. I would also make sure to discuss, in-depth, the sixth step – reevaluation to determine progress made. The outcome of the reevaluation will determine whether the employee will be allowed to stay with the company or asked to leave.

When speaking with the employee who is causing problems, if I sense that the discussion is becoming heated, I would also put to practice the S-TLC system of conflict management. S-TLC stands for stop, think, listen and communicate. Stopping means not reacting blindly and responding habitually to the other person. After stopping, it is important to think, or analyze the situation to try to know what is really happening within it before acting on it. After stopping and thinking, it is important to listen to the other person. Listening means paying attention, and being open to another person’s views. Finally, communicating is deciding on the outcome both I and the problem employee want, and communicating in the best possible way to reach that outcome.

In conclusion, no matter how hard a company tries to create an environment which fosters consensus-building and collaboration, misunderstandings will occur, and tempers will sometimes flair. Conflicts will happen. If left unresolved, they can cost companies hundreds of thousands of dollars each year in lost revenue and lost customers. Consider these stunning statistics (Zupek, 2009, ¶ 4): fifty-three percent of workers said they lost time at work worrying about a past or future confrontation with a co-worker; twenty-eight percent of workers said they lost work time because they avoided a confrontational fellow employee; thirty-seven percent of workers said a hostile disagreement caused them to reduce their commitment to the organization; twenty-two percent said they put less effort into their work because of bad blood in the office. If I were in a situation where I was the department manager of technology support company, and I had to meet with an employee who was creating conflict and being confrontational with other employees, I would handle the situation by implementing two very effective conflict resolution techniques outlined by Dudley Cahn and Ruth Abigail. Those two conflict resolution techniques are called the S-TLC system of conflict management, and the six confrontation steps to successful interpersonal conflict resolution (2007, p. 97). Following these two techniques would allow me to successfully approach this employee, anticipate the employee’s responses and react wisely to them, and most importantly work toward resolving the employee’s behavioral issues or recommending the company part ways with him or her.

New Media is the Truth!

New Media gives consumers so much more control! We control what information we experience AND how we experience that information. Some forms of new media are podcasting, weblogs, streamming and more.

Podcasting is a method of distributing audio and video files over the Internet using RSS, or “really simple syndication” feeds. With them, consumers can choose a feed, and choose when and where they want to watch or listen to a program. The audio or video files are delivered to the consumer’s computer, where they can be played directly. According to Entrepreneur Magazine, “Podcasting takes its name from Apple's popular IPod line of products, but it isn't limited only to IPod owners and listeners” (Entrepreneur, ¶ 1). What makes a podcast different from other types of new media on the internet is that folks can solicit subscriptions from listeners, so that when new podcasts are created, it can automatically be sent, or fed, to the consumer’s computer or mobile device. Podcasts are designed for audiences who want to hear or view their content at the time they choose to, not the time a media company chooses for them to. According to Phil Wilson, of the Association for Downloadable Media, podcasts are a good way to reach traditionally “unreachable” consumers.

Weblogs, also called blogs, are simply personal websites that use a dated log format. Authors Cameron, Wilcox, Reber and Shin (2008), describe them as “an online diary or personal log of thoughts published on a web page” (p. 285). A weblog is exactly what it sounds like: a log that is published to the Web. The log entries are usually informal, short, posted daily. Weblogs are very, very popular, and very commonplace. They are no longer just for programmer nerds, either! A weblog authors can be anyone from a Stanford law professor, to a stay at home mom. Who is reading weblogs? It was once assumed that only young people were the ones perusing them 24 hours a day, but that is actually not the case at all. Most folks who read blogs are male, and over 30! Blog audiences are consumers looking for news/gossip/information that they can not find elsewhere.

Streaming is another very popular media technology. It is the delivery of media content over the Internet using data compression. This process allows the user to start playing the media as it downloads. Streamed content is for consumers who want to view or listen to content in real time, via their computer. For example, someone in California, sitting at their desk at work, can listen to a radio show airing in Milwaukee, via streamed audio over their computer! Radio stations and television stations have been able to share their shows with consumers all over the world via their streamed broadcast. Traditional signals no longer limit who can hear or see what is being broadcast.

Finally, social media also is a huge component of new media. It consists of channels set up to form online communities. Social media, in layman’s terms, is simply various forms of user generated content and the collection of websites and applications that enables people to interact and share information online. It allows “users to communicate and spread information widely and instantly” (Trenholm, 2008, p. 332). Social media is for consumers and/or businesses looking to interact or “talk” to each other via the Internet.

Media Technology and Communication

Technology has had a tremendous impact on media today. Working in broadcast media for well over a decade, I’ve watched how “new media” has emerged, and changed forever the way consumers and the media interact with each other. New media is interactive and Internet driven. With it, companies and consumers can communicate quickly and easily through cell phones, computers and more! According to author Sarah Trenholm, these new forms of media have “not only changed what information we experience,” but they’ve also changed “how we experience that information” (2008, p. 332).

Sarah states that there are six characteristics that will distinguish new media technologies. One characteristic is that they “employ digital technology” (p. 337). A second characteristic is they make it easy to combine many different kinds of information in a single format. A third is “time and space will no longer act as barriers” to information consumers want (p. 336). A fourth characteristic is media consumers can communicate anytime, anywhere. Fifth, new media allow greater levels of interactivity than ever before. Finally, the sixth characteristic of new media technologies is “consumers have more choose over what they see and hear, because media gatekeepers no longer have as much control over media content” (p. 337). Some of these new media platforms that media companies and consumers are interacting through include podcasts, weblogs, streaming, and more!

Communication Gone Wrong!

I think we can all agree that Twitter is a pretty interesting form of communication when used properly. However, people really need to realize that some things are best left untweeted! Blogger Joe Long wrote about this after running across some unbelievably questionable tweets. Below is a snippet from his blog. You can read Joe's entire post at http://blog.networksolutions.com/2009/5-stories-twittering-gone-bad/. Twitter allows others to stay connected to us, and follow what we do throughout the day. But just because we CAN tweet exactly what we're doing, doesn't necessarily mean we should!

When tweeting goes very wrong…

Twitter + Child’s Funeral = Bad Idea: Back in September, a Rocky Mountain News reporter, Berny Morson, used Twitter to provide live event coverage of a child’s funeral. (Example tweet: “coffin lowered into ground“) Needless to say, it did not go over so well. Part of the problem was that it’s hard to convey solemnity, especially in real-time, using 140 characters (or less) of text. Another problem is that funerals generally don’t get a play-by-play treatment, especially when done in a style more suited to, say, a basketball game. Lastly, even in a best-case scenario of respect, solemnity, dignity, and respecting the privacy of the grieving family, I can’t really find any value in the real-time tweeting a funeral.

Communication is power!

Most of today’s influential people reached their level of success by their ability to influence and to persuade, two skills of communication. Ghandi, Dr. Martin Luther King, and Barack Obama are examples of those who, through their natural ability to communicate, amassed tremendous followings, and moved millions to act. Understanding communication theories and principles like interpersonal communication and organizational communication can make anyone a more responsible communicator and a more desirable employee professionally.

Let's talk about communication...

Communication is defined as, “the transmission of information, ideas, emotions, skills, etc by the use of symbols, words, pictures, figures, graphs, etc” (Berelson & Steiner, 1964, p. 254). We begin communicating the moment we are born, conveying messages through crying. Thereafter, throughout life, our growth, our progress, and our development depend on forms of communication -- either communicating to or receiving communication from others. Having good communication skills is a powerful tool. Because we live, work and play in complex communication environments, the ability to communicate effectively is one of the most important traits any individual can possess. Most of today’s influential people reached their level of success by their ability to influence and to persuade, two skills of communication. The better the communication skills of an individual, the more successful he or she is likely to be.