Strategies for Effective Teamwork and Persuasive Communication in the Global Workplace

1. Chapter 2 Teamwork, Ethics, Persuasion, and Global Issues in Technical Communication Strategies for Technical Communication in the Workplace Laura J. Gurak John M. Lannon

2. Organizing a Team Project • Appoint a group manager. • Define a clear and definite goal. • Decide on the type of document required. • Divide the tasks. • Establish a timetable. • Decide on a meeting schedule. • Establish a procedure for responding to other members’ work. (continued on next slide)

3. Managing a Collaborative Project (cont.) • Develop a file-naming system for drafts. • Establish a procedure for dealing with interpersonal problems. • Select a group decision-making style. • Decide how to evaluate each member's contribution. • Prepare a project planning form. • Submit progress reports regularly.

4. Conducting Meetings • Set an agenda. • Ask each person to prepare as needed. • Appoint a different “observer” for each meeting. • Begin by summarizing the minutes of the last meeting. • Give all members a chance to speak. • Stick to the issue. • Keep things moving. • Observe, guide, and listen. • Summarize major points before calling for a vote. • End the meeting on schedule.

5. Technology to Help with Team Projects • Teleconferencing • Email • Instant messaging • Project management software • Editing software • Digital whiteboards • Web conferencing • Blogs • Intranets • Wikis

6. Sources of Conflict • Interpersonal differences • Gender differences • Cultural differences

7. Managing Team Conflicts • Listen actively. • Avoid gender and cultural bias. • Research cultures other than your own. • Give everyone a chance to be heard. • Take everyone’s feelings and opinions seriously. • Don’t be afraid to disagree. • Offer and accept constructive criticism. • Find points of agreement with others who hold different views. • When the group does make a decision, support it fully.

8. Reviewing and Editing the Work of Others When reviewing, inform the writer of how you responded as a reader, pointing out what does and doesn’t work. When editing, actually “fix” the piece by making it more precise and readable.

9. Recognize and Avoid Ethical Abuses • Plagiarizing the work of others. • Falsifying or fabricating information. • Suppressing or downplaying information. • Exaggerating claims. • Using visual images that conceal the truth. • Stealing or divulging proprietary information. • Misusing electronic information. • Exploiting cultural differences.

10. Persuasion Persuasion is the act of trying to influence someone’s actions, opinions, or decisions. • Persuasion is required in the workplace whenever people disagree about an issue. • To communicate persuasively, you must identify the following major claims: • What the facts are • What the facts mean • What should be done • All claims require support.

11. Identify Your Specific Goal • Arguing to influence people’s opinions • Arguing to seek support • Presenting a proposal • Arguing to change people’s behavior

12. Expect Audience Resistance People resist persuasion based on three factors: • What you are requesting • Who you are persuading • How entrenched people are in their views When people yield to persuasion, they respond in one of three ways: • Compliance • Identification • Internalization

13. Know How to Connect with the Audience Power Connection = Writer  Audience Relationship Connection = Writer  Audience Rational Connection = Writer and Audience

14. How to Persuade Effectively • Identify your specific goal. • Anticipate your audience’s reactions. • Don’t ask for too much. • Allow for give-and-take. • Recognize constraints. • Consider the cultural context. • Choose the right time and the right medium. • Connect with your audience.

15. Strategies for Global Technical Communication • Learn as much as possible about the culture and background of your team. • Be respectful and considerate. • Avoid the use of humor, slang, and idioms. • Avoid stereotyping.

16. Consider the Cultural Context • Some cultures hesitate to debate, criticize, or disagree. • Some cultures observe special formalities in communicating. • Many cultures consider the source of the message as important as the content. • Some cultures trust oral communication. • Cultures respond differently to different emotional pressures. • Cultures differ in their attitudes toward big business, technology, competition, or women in the workplace.

17. For additional help reviewing this chapter, please visit the Companion Website for your text at http://www.pearsonhighered.com/gurak. Any Questions?