Ethical dilemma and ethical lapse

Ethical Dilemma Vs. Ethical Lapse

Describe the difference between the terms “ethical dilemma” and “ethical lapse” using a minimum of one scholarly and/or credible source from the library to defend your answer. Provide an example from your life, or of someone you knew, who was faced with an ethical dilemma in the workplace. Without mentioning the name of the organization, describe the situation and the decision that was made. Explain an alternative solution to the dilemma. Then think of a time where you or someone you knew demonstrated an ethical lapse. Describe the situation and the decision. Then provide an alternative solution to the situation.

Guided Response: Review several of your peers’ posts, responding to at least three of them by Day 7. Respond substantively to at least three classmates throughout the week, suggesting aspects that they may have overlooked. You are encouraged to post your required replies earlier in the week to promote more meaningful and interactive discourse in this discussion forum. Continue to monitor the discussion forum until 11:59 p.m. on Day 7 and respond robustly to anyone who replies to your initial post.

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1 Professional Communication in a Digital, Social, Mobile World LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After studying this chapter, you will be able to

1 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001084#P7001012451000000000000000001088) Explain the importance of effective communication to your career and to the companies where you will work.

2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000010d4#P70010124510000000000000000010D8) Explain what it means to communicate as a professional in a business context.

3 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001163#P7001012451000000000000000001167) Describe the communication process model and the ways social media are changing the nature of business communication.

4 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001219#P700101245100000000000000000121D) Outline the challenges and opportunities of mobile communication in business.

5 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001270#P7001012451000000000000000001274) List four general guidelines for using communication technology effectively.

6 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001390#P7001012451000000000000000001395) De�ine ethics, explain the difference between an ethical dilemma and an ethical lapse, and list six guidelines for making ethical communication choices.

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COMMUNICATION CLOSE-UP AT JetBlue twitter.com/jetblue (http://twitter.com/jetblue)

If you have ever worked in retail, customer service, or a similar job, you know what a challenge it can be to make sure each customer has a great experience with your company. Imagine the challenge of keeping 35 million customers happy. That’s how many passengers JetBlue carries every year —an average of roughly 95,000 customers per day.

As a relatively new airline, taking its �irst �light in 2000, JetBlue has always tried to differentiate itself from the older carriers in the business. A great example is its pioneering use of Twitter as a customer service platform. JetBlue joined Twitter in 2007, only a year after the microblogging service launched and well before most companies were aware of its potential for business communication. The company views its website as the central hub of its online presence, but social media (the company is quite active on Facebook as well, with over a million likes) provide a vital connection between customers and the website. In fact, digital communication of all forms is so important that the company considers itself a digital brand.

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JetBlue’s use of social media for customer support coincides perfectly with air travelers’ use of mobile devices.

© AR Images/Alamy Stock Photo

The airline was also one of the �irst companies to truly get the social part of social media—that Twitter and other systems were about more than just pushing information outward. Morgan Johnstone, the JetBlue communications staffer who got the company started on Twitter, recognized early on the power of listening via social media. He wanted to hear what people were saying about the company, whether it was plea for help during travel, a compliment for a company employee, or even an unpleasant criticism. This interaction became so valuable to the company that it now has more than two dozen Twitter agents all ready to interact in real time with the 2 million travelers who follow the company. They answer questions, resolve problems and complaints, and even rebook �lights on the spot if needed. (When a customer needs speci�ic help, JetBlue’s Twitter team usually takes the conversation private via direct messaging, and its Twitter homepage now encourages customer with service issues to phone or email for help.)

For a company that is all about moving people from point A to point B, it’s no surprise that mobile communication has become an essential part of JetBlue’s connection with its customers. Customers who ask for help or who post complaints on Twitter often do so via their mobile devices, whether they’re on their way to catch a �light, stuck in an airport trying to rebook on a different �light, or even on board an aircraft waiting to take off. Mobile is now a core element in the company’s communication strategy, with a mobile-friendly website and JetBlue smartphone apps. However the company innovates as it moves forward, its focus will be on using digital, social, and mobile communication to make sure customers have the best possible experience.1 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P700101245100000000000000000156C)

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1.1 Understanding Why Communication Matters LEARNING OBJECTIVE

1 Explain the importance of effective communication to your career and to the companies where you will work. Whether it’s as simple as a smile or as ambitious as JetBlue’s social media program (pro�iled in the chapter-opening Communication Close-Up), communication (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001441) is the process of transferring information and meaning between senders and receivers, using one or more media and communication channels. The essence of communication is sharing—providing data, information, insights, and inspiration in an exchange that bene�its both you and the people with whom you are communicating.2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P700101245100000000000000000156E) As Figure 1.1 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001084#P700101245100000000000000000108F) indicates, this sharing can happen in a variety of ways, including simple and successful transfers of information, negotiations in which the sender and receiver arrive at an agreed-on meaning, and unsuccessful attempts in which the receiver creates a different message than the one the sender intended.

Communication is the process of transferring information and meaning between senders and receivers.

You will invest a lot of time and energy in this course developing your communication skills, so it’s fair to ask whether the effort will be worthwhile. This section outlines the many ways in which good communication skills are critical for your career and for any company you join.

COMMUNICATION IS IMPORTANT TO YOUR CAREER

Ambition and great ideas aren’t enough; you need to be able to communicate with people to succeed in business.

Improving your communication skills may be the single most important step you can take in your career. You can have the greatest ideas in the world, but they’re no good to your company or your career if you can’t express them clearly and persuasively. Some jobs, such as sales and customer support, are primarily about communicating. In �ields such as engineering or �inance, you often need to share complex ideas with executives, customers, and colleagues, and your ability to connect with people outside your �ield can be as important as your technical expertise. If you have the entrepreneurial urge, you will need to communicate with a wide range of audiences—from investors, bankers, and government regulators to employees, customers, and business partners.

The changing nature of employment is putting new pressure on communication skills, too. Many companies now supplement their permanent workforces with independent contractors who are brought on for a short period or even just a single project. Chances are you will spend some of your career as one of these freelancers, working without the support network that an established company environment provides. You will have to “sell yourself” into each new contract, communicate successfully in a wide range of work situations, and take full responsibility for your career growth and success.

If you launch a company or move into an executive role in an existing organization, you can expect communication to consume the majority of your time. Top executives spend most of their workdays communicating, and businesspeople who can’t communicate well don’t stand much chance of reaching the top.

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Figure 1.1 Sharing Information

These three exchanges between a software project manager (left) and his boss (right) illustrate the variety of ways in which information is shared between senders and receivers. In the top exchange, the sender’s meaning is transmitted intact to the receiver, who accepts what the sender says at face value. In the middle exchange, the sender and receiver negotiate the meaning by discussing the situation. The negotiated meaning is that everything is �ine so far, but the risk of a schedule slip is now higher than it was before. In the bottom exchange, the receiver has a negative emotional reaction to the word think and as a result creates her own meaning—that everything probably is not �ine, despite what the sender says.

In fact, improving your communication skills may be the single most important step you can take in your career. The world is full of good marketing strategists, good accountants, good engineers, and good attorneys—but it is not full of good communicators. View this as an opportunity to stand out from your competition in the job market.

Strong communication skills give you an advantage in the job market.

Employers sometimes express frustration at the poor communication skills of many employees—particularly recent college graduates who haven’t yet learned how to adapt their communication styles to a professional business environment.3 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001570) If you learn to write well, speak well, listen well, and recognize the appropriate way to communicate in any situation, you’ll gain a major advantage that will serve you throughout your career.4 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001572)

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Check out the cutting edge of business communication

This Pinterest board created by the authors highlights some of the most important changes taking place in the �ield of business communication. Go to real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real-timeupdates.com/bct14) and select Learn More in the Students section.

COMMUNICATION IS IMPORTANT TO YOUR COMPANY

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Aside from the personal bene�its, communication should be important to you because it is important to your company. Effective communication helps businesses in numerous ways, by promoting5 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001574)

Effective communication yields numerous business bene�its.

A stronger sense of trust between individuals and organizations Closer ties with important communities in the marketplace Opportunities to in�luence conversations, perceptions, and trends Increased productivity and faster problem solving Better �inancial results and higher return for investors Earlier warning of potential problems, from increasing business costs to critical safety issues Stronger decision making based on timely, reliable information Clearer and more persuasive marketing messages Greater employee engagement with their work, leading to higher employee satisfaction and lower employee turnover

WHAT MAKES BUSINESS COMMUNICATION EFFECTIVE? Effective communication strengthens the connections between a company and all of its stakeholders (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P70010124510000000000000000014A9) —those groups affected in some way by the company’s actions: customers, employees, shareholders, suppliers, neighbors, the community, the nation, and the world as a whole.6 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001576) To make your communication efforts as effective as possible, focus on making them practical, factual, concise, clear, and persuasive:

Effective messages are practical, factual, concise, clear, and persuasive.

Provide practical information. Give recipients useful information, whether it’s to help them perform a desired action or understand a new company policy. Give facts rather than vague impressions. Use concrete language, speci�ic detail, and information that is clear, convincing, accurate, and ethical. Even when an opinion is called for, present compelling evidence to support your conclusion. Present information in a concise, ef�icient manner. Concise messages show respect for people’s time, and they increase the chances of a positive response. Do your best to simplify complex subjects to help your readers, and make sure you don’t inadvertently complicate simple subjects through careless writing.7 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001578) The ability to explain a complex subject in simple terms is immensely valuable, whether you’re training new employees or pitching a business plan to investors. Clarify expectations and responsibilities. Craft messages to generate a speci�ic response from a speci�ic audience. When appropriate, clearly state what you expect from audience members or what you can do for them. Offer compelling, persuasive arguments and recommendations. Show your readers precisely how they will bene�it by responding to your message in the way you want them to.

Keep these �ive important characteristics in mind as you compare the ineffective and effective versions of the message in Figure 1.2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000010d4#P70010124510000000000000000010E0) .

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1.2 Communicating as a Professional LEARNING OBJECTIVE

2 Explain what it means to communicate as a professional in a business context. You’ve been communicating your entire life, of course, but if you don’t have a lot of work experience yet, meeting the expectations of a professional environment might require some adjustment. A good place to start is to consider what it means to be a professional. Professionalism (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P700101245100000000000000000149D) is the quality of performing at a high level and conducting oneself with purpose and pride. It means doing more than putting in the hours and collecting a paycheck: True professionals go beyond minimum expectations and commit to making meaningful contributions. Professionalism can be broken down into six distinct traits: striving to excel, being dependable and accountable, being a team player, demonstrating a sense of etiquette, making ethical decisions, and maintaining a positive outlook (see Figure 1.3 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000010d4#P700101245100000000000000000110C) on page 8 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000010d4#page_8) ).

Communication is an essential part of being a successful professional.

A key message to glean from Figure 1.3 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000010d4#P700101245100000000000000000110C) is how much these elements of professionalism depend on effective communication. For example, to be a team player, you have to be able to collaborate, resolve con�licts, and interact with a wide variety of personalities. Without strong communication skills, you won’t be able to perform to your potential, and others won’t recognize you as the professional you’d like to be.

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Figure 1.2 Effective Professional Communication

At �irst glance, the top email message here looks like a reasonable attempt at communicating with the members of a project team. However, compare it with the bottom version by referencing the notes lettered (a) through (h) to see just how many problems the original message really has.

Figure 1.3 Elements of Professionalism

To be respected as a true professional, develop these six qualities.

This section offers a brief look at the skills employers will expect you to have, the nature of communication in an organizational environment, and the importance of adopting an audience-centered approach.

UNDERSTANDING WHAT EMPLOYERS EXPECT FROM YOU Today’s employers expect you to be competent at a wide range of communication tasks. Fortunately, the skills employers expect from you are the same skills that will help you advance in your career:8 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P700101245100000000000000000157A)

Employers expect you to possess a wide range of communication skills.

Recognizing information needs, using ef�icient search techniques to locate reliable sources of information (particularly from online sources), and using gathered information ethically; this collection of skills is often referred to as digital information �luency9 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P700101245100000000000000000157C) Organizing ideas and information logically and completely Expressing ideas and information coherently, persuasively, and concisely Actively listening to others Communicating effectively with people from diverse backgrounds and experiences Using communication technologies effectively and ef�iciently Following accepted standards of grammar, spelling, and other aspects of high-quality writing and speaking

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Communicating in a civilized manner that re�lects contemporary expectations of business etiquette, even when dealing with indifferent or hostile audiences Communicating ethically, even when choices aren’t crystal clear or you have to share news that people don’t want to hear Managing your time wisely and using resources ef�iciently Using critical thinking (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001459) , which is the ability to evaluate evidence completely and objectively in order to form logical conclusions and make sound recommendations

You’ll have the opportunity to practice these skills throughout this course, but don’t stop there. Successful professionals continue to hone communication skills throughout their careers.

COMMUNICATING IN AN ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT In addition to having the proper skills, you need to learn how to apply those skills in the business environment, which can be quite different from the social and scholastic environments you are accustomed to. Every organization has a formal communication network (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001485) , in which ideas and information �low along the lines of command (the hierarchical levels) in the company’s organization structure (see Figure 1.4 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000010d4#P7001012451000000000000000001148) ). Throughout the formal network, information �lows in three directions. Downward communication �lows from executives to employees, conveying executive decisions and providing information that helps employees do their jobs. Upward communication �lows from employees to executives, providing insight into problems, trends, opportunities, grievances, and performance, thus allowing executives to solve problems and make intelligent decisions. Horizontal communication �lows between departments to help employees share information, coordinate tasks, and solve complex problems.10 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P700101245100000000000000000157E)

A company’s formal communication network mirrors its organizational structure.

Every organization also has an informal communication network (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001489) , often referred to as the grapevine or the rumor mill, which encompasses all communication that occurs outside the formal network. Some of this informal communication takes place naturally as a result of employee interaction on the job and in social settings, and some of it takes place when the formal network doesn’t provide information that employees want. In fact, the inherent limitations of formal communication networks helped spur the growth of social media in the business environment.

ADOPTING AN AUDIENCE-CENTERED APPROACH

An audience-centered approach involves understanding, respecting, and meeting the needs of your audience members.

Figure 1.4 Formal Communication Network

The formal communication network is de�ined by the relationships between the various job positions in the organization. Messages can �low upward (from a lower-level employee to a higher-level employee), downward (from a higher-level employee to a lower-level employee), and horizontally (between employees at the same or similar levels across the organization).

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An audience-centered approach (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001439) involves understanding and respecting the members of your audience and making every effort to get your message across in a way that is meaningful to them. This approach is also known as adopting the “you” attitude (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P70010124510000000000000000014B1) , in contrast to messages that are about “me.” Learn as much as possible about the biases, education, age, status, style, and personal and professional concerns of your receivers. If you’re addressing people you don’t know and you’re unable to �ind out more about them, try to project yourself into their position by using common sense and imagination. This ability to relate to the needs of others is a key part of emotional intelligence, a combination of emotional and social skills that is widely considered to be a vital characteristic of successful managers and leaders.11 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001580) The more you know about the people you’re communicating with, the easier it is to concentrate on their needs—which, in turn, makes it easier for them to hear your message, understand it, and respond positively.

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The fundamentals of emotional intelligence

Understand the �ive elements that make up this essential quality for business success. Go to real-timeupdates.com/bct14 (http://real- timeupdates.com/bct14) and select Learn More in the Students section.

Etiquette, the expected norms of behavior in a particular situation, can have a profound in�luence on your company’s success and your career.

A vital element of audience-centered communication is etiquette (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P700101245100000000000000000147D) , the expected norms of behavior in any particular situation. In today’s hectic, competitive world, etiquette might seem a quaint and outdated notion. However, the way you conduct yourself and interact with others can have a profound in�luence on your company’s success and your career. When executives hire and promote you, they expect your behavior to protect the company’s reputation. The more you understand such expectations, the better chance you have of avoiding career-damaging mistakes. The principles of etiquette discussed in Chapter 2 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p70010124510000000000000000015f4#P70010124510000000000000000015F4) will help you communicate with an audience-centered approach in a variety of business settings.

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1.3 Exploring the Communication Process LEARNING OBJECTIVE

3 Describe the communication process model and the ways social media are changing the nature of business communication. Even with the best intentions, communication efforts can fail. Messages can get lost or simply ignored. The receiver of a message can interpret it in ways the sender never imagined. In fact, two people receiving the same information can reach different conclusions about what it means.

Viewing communication as a process helps you identify steps you can take to improve your success as a communicator.

Fortunately, by understanding communication as a process with distinct steps, you can improve the odds that your messages will reach their intended audiences and produce their intended effects. This section explores the communication process in two stages: �irst by following a message from one sender to one receiver in the basic communication model and then by expanding on that approach with multiple messages and participants in the social communication model.

THE BASIC COMMUNICATION MODEL By viewing communication as a process (Figure 1.5 (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001163#P7001012451000000000000000001171) ), you can identify and improve the skills you need to be more successful. Many variations on this process model exist, but these eight steps provide a practical overview:

Figure 1.5 The Basic Communication Process

This eight-step model is a simpli�ied view of how communication works in real life; understanding this basic model is vital to improving your communication skills.

The sender has an idea. Whether a communication effort will ultimately be effective starts right here and depends on the nature of the idea and the motivation for sending it. For example, if your motivation is to offer a solution to a problem, you have a better chance of crafting a meaningful message than if your motivation is merely to complain about a problem. The sender encodes the idea as a message. When someone puts an idea into a message (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001495) —which you can think of as the “container” for an idea—he or she is encoding (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001465) it, or expressing it in words or images. Much of the focus of this course is on developing the skills needed to successfully encode your ideas into effective messages.

The medium is the form a message takes, whereas the channel is the system used to deliver the message.

The sender produces the message in a transmittable medium. With the appropriate message to express an idea, the sender now needs a communication medium (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P700101245100000000000000000144D) to present that message to the intended audience. To update your boss on the status of a project, for instance, you might have a dozen or more media choices, from a phone call to an instant message to a slideshow presentation. The sender transmits the message through a channel. Just as technology continues to increase the number of media options at your disposal, it continues to provide new communication channels (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bovee.7626.18.1/sections/p7001012451000000000000000001433#P7001012451000000000000000001449) you can use to transmit your messages. The distinction between medium and channel can get a bit murky, but think of the medium as the form a message takes (such as a Twitter update) and the channel as the system used to deliver the message (such as a mobile phone).