Communications Scenario Essay

Effective office communications are not always easy. To communicate with one’s coworkers in a manner that is professional and efficient takes effort on all parties involved in the conversation. When speaking to a member of the opposite sex, one must be aware that differences exist in the way in which messages are sent and how messages are received. In the attached scenario, two peers must work together to run the business while their manager is away. Unfortunately, the communication between Mary and Steve in the scenario below was not very successful, professional, or effective. 1. If Steve were addressing a male coworker instead of Mary, would he have chosen to communicate in the same way? Men and women communicate differently. Because this has been proven in multiple studies throughout the years, one should recognize this and be aware of these differences when dealing with members of the opposite sex in business communication opportunities. Unfortunately, emotions tend to overcome common sense sometimes and communication breakdowns occur. Cynthia Burggraf Torppa, PhD, (n. . ) states that â€Å"Although at times differences in women’s and men’s communication styles seem to be constant and overwhelming, they are really quite minor. For example, both women and men can be nurturing, aggressive, task-focused, or sentimental. What is important to think about, however, is that women and men sometimes perceive the same messages to have different meanings. In fact, it may be as a result of the differences in message interpretation that the â€Å"battle of the sexes† occurs. Studies indicate that women, to a greater extent than men, are sensitive to the interpersonal meanings that lie â€Å"between the lines† in the messages they exchange with their mates. † If Steve were addressing a male coworker, he would have spoken the same way. What should have happened differently is that Steve should have been more aware of how Mary would have responded to the way he presented his problem. Men and women could more effectively communicate if the opposite sex had a heightened awareness to how each interprets messages differently. Men, because they tend to compartmentalize their communication into a smaller part of the brain, tend to be better at getting right to the issue, the more female brain (will) gather a lot of material, gather a lot of information, feel a lot, hear a lot, sense a lot. † (Gurian, 2005) 2. If Mary was treated in the same fashion by a female coworker, would she have responded in the same way? Mary may have reacted somewhat differently if this communication had occurred with a female coworker. She may have been more at ease communicating with another woman. However, in times of stress, people react in different ways. Many women, like Mary, tend to like to confide in others in order to obtain someone else’s point of view on the situation while others may choose to confront the situation head-on in an attempt to find a solution that makes everyone happy. 3. How was this exchange perceived by the male and female employees who overheard it? If others overheard this exchange, the males and females may have had very different view of how the communication was handled and what the real message being sent was. Many have said that women tend to let their personal feelings get too involved in the work environment and tend to take things personally. Men, on the other hand, are said to be able to not let personal feelings get in the way. Other women who may have overheard the exchange may tend to side with Mary, perceiving Steve as being a â€Å"typical man† who is unable to communicate his feelings in an adult fashion. Other men who may have overheard the exchange may have wondered what the problem was but would have been more inclined to ignore the exchange. Employees who observed Mary’s action of resorting to seek comfort from another female employee may believe that Mary is insecure about her role as a manager. As acting managers, both Steve and Mary should have kept the differences out of the view of teammates. Employees should not be witness to a disagreement between two managers and the destruction of the reputation is furthered by the way Mary sought comfort by discussing the situation with a coworker and by Steve slamming the door. While the CFO is away, Mary and Steve need to have a private conversation to work through the differences that have been displayed. Good communication skills and listening skills will be critical in this situation. Each will have to â€Å"flex† their normal personality styles to be able to communicate effectively and work through this scenario. A solid front must be presented to the rest of the team so show that issues can be worked through and that both Mary and Steve are capable of being in charge in the CFO’s absence. Scenario Mary Smith and Steve Johnson have equal roles in management positions at Company X, Y, and Z. They have been asked to work and make decisions together, while the CFO is away on business. An issue has developed, on which Mary and Steve disagree. While discussing the issue on the phone with Mary, Steve abruptly yells, â€Å"You aren’t listening to me,† and hangs up. A shocked Mary goes to another female employee to discuss how unfairly she feels she is being treated by Steve. Meanwhile, Steve has slammed his office door to brood alone. Do Mary and Steve not like one another? Do they not work well together? The answer is probably no to both questions. The cause of the distress is likely due to the ineffectiveness of their inter-gender communication, fueled in part by the stressful task of filling in for the CFO. Mary and Steve were communicating in stereotypical male/female patterns. Steve aggressively vented his anger at Mary and Mary meekly retreated to the solace of a fellow female employee, instead of confronting Steve. Each individual is unique; however, there are biological, social and cultural factors that influence how we communicate with the opposite sex.