Effective communication strategies

Effective engagement mechanisms are an essential component of any effective enterprise. The coordination and relationship ties between various levels in an organization can describe the process mechanisms and affect the performance of such an institution. Changes in communication tactics may have a huge effect on an existing company, so they must be handled with extreme caution (Schreibman and Stahmer, 2014). According to the case report, MagicIce was a good holding before a decision to restructure was made. It is obvious that forming two subsidiaries is not the primary impediment to the company’s growth. From reviews and interactions with two employees, it is evident that poor communication strategies are to blame for every problem that the company is facing. Managements need to stay in contact with employees no matter their role in the company. The changes in the company indicate a change in communication links and strategies from the earlier times to the modern company generation. MagicIce is seeking for help to restore operations and maintain market share. From the preceding, the key issue is poor communication strategies as evident from the two interviews with Jessie and Michael. Poor communication strategies are the foundation of the problems affecting MagicIce and it is the responsibility of management to resolve it.

Analysis of Communication Issues

MagicIce used to be an efficient company when the owner, Wally, used to be in contact with his employees. However, things began to take a negative twist when he could not be in touch with them for months. Lack of communication between employees and the owner may be an expected occurrence following the exponential growth of the company. Nonetheless, expansion should not be a reason to compromise the establishment of a company. CEO’s can delegate some of their duties to junior staff who they believe to have the wherewithal to handle management positions in an organization. Employees must have been devastated when the boss who used to help them with company duties could no longer make contact with them for months. Nonetheless, lack of communication was not the major problem but the implementation of reforms without the input of the people who were supposed to execute the majority of the duties. Below are some of the major communication issues that developed from the analysis.

Lack of integration of key stakeholders

The expansion decision never reached the employees, some of whom were the founding persons of the company like Michael Trout. Treweek et al. (2013)outline that most company owners compromise their success because of lack of contact with the people that got them to the success they enjoy today. The decision to split MagicIce into two sections was not run by the employees. As a result, they got agitated and were of the opinion that the company did not care about they say or opinion on such matters when they were the key players in production and development of affairs. They felt that their jobs were threatened because of the prevailing status in the frozen foods industry. Eggenberger et al. (2013) believe that employees that handle daily operations in companies know fine details that may impact immensely on the operations of such entities. Lack of consultation was a major problem and negligence on the part of management.

Recognizing communication opportunities and using them appropriately

Wally made a mistake by sending Franco to handle the issue with the employees. First, the latter knew the company owner from the time of MagicIce establishment. As a result, he would have explored the long-term relationship to negotiate and listen to his employees so that they reach a consensus. However, Wally decided to delegate a duty that he ought to have handled himself. First, Franco had an individual interest in the employees getting back to work. His salary depended on it, and it was normal for him to get mad and shout at the workers. Nonetheless, from a management perspective, he made a huge mistake because anger does not solve disagreements involving individuals striving to fight for their rights. Had Wally taken the opportunity to engage the employees, things may have been different resulting in a compromise and later an agreement to get back to work.

Developing and conveying key messages appropriately

In a democratic environment, it is impossible to make everybody happy (Kasper and Kellerman, 2014). Nonetheless, that is not a reason to treat people wrong, and that is what Franco did. The employees were fighting for their rights, and all he needed to do was listen to their demands and report back to Wally. However, he went and scolded the employees indicating that they were lucky to have jobs in the company. He went ahead and told them that if he were the boss, he would have fired them. Scolding an agitated population worsens the problem in place instead of offering a solution (Arnold and Boggs, 2015). Despite disagreements at the time, had he consulted and informed Wally of the prevailing conditions, the company would have settled the issue.

The expansion was a strategy to create more jobs and keep up with the competition. From the case study, it is clear that the employees may not have known the reasons for the adjustments. They could have been paranoid and worried about losing their jobs without understanding the facts and strategies behind Wally’s adjustments. Nonetheless, they do not deserve any blame because Franco was supposed to handle the issue yet he contributed towards an escalating tension. It is important that employees at the management level who handle communication convey the right information and do it appropriately so that there is a link between the various levels and pay grades to ease tension and enhance understanding.

Employing Transparency in Communication Channels

The MagicIce situation indicates lack of transparency in communication, and that might have been a major contributor to the unrest that Goodman was striving to resolve. The key purpose of implementing transparency as a communication strategy is to ensure that everybody is un agreement with prevailing policies. Whenever an organization starts doing things behind the scenes, then there is a likely chance that such a proceeding may meet opposition from other members of the fraternity. If Wally had nothing to hide, he would have let all the employees in on his plan to expand and split the company to operate as two independent entities. However, this was not the case, and that did not impress the employees. Although it is not clear from the case study and interviews the reason for behind the scenes decision, the general assumption is that it was not good.

Wally fails to meet his employees after everything falls out of place and instead sends a representative, Franco. According to Michael, this was a boss who used to work with them and take pictures while discussing private issues such as family. He could show up to help the members of the staff when everything was on a right course. It beats logic for him to fail to engage the employees when the company is sinking due to retaliation from a group that would readily listen to him. Although the survey does not reveal much regarding reasons for this course of action, MagicIce, and especially Wally is hiding some vital information. Good communication demand transparency because eventually the truth always comes out.

Cultivating Emotional Intelligence

Communication strategies, whether personal or official, must take into account the emotional aspect of the parties involved. From the case study, the employment was a mere job for Franco an all he cared about was making money out of the sales. He gets mad and forgets that the rest of the employees have families and other essential things that require their attention. For instance, Michael is concerned about the reforms because he is taking care of his orphan grandson. His hard work follows an accident incident that claimed his child, parent to the grandson. It is wrong for an employee such as Franco to threaten the job of an individual that has an emotional attachment to the employment as the only avenue to fend for a grandchild. Threats do not solve problems instead they worsen them (Hybels, 2014).The approach by Franco was insensitive and selfish. In the end, despite a willingness to go back to work, the kind of tone and attitude presented by Franco would cause more trouble and stall the possibility of the employees resuming work.

Respect in Communication

Humans are versatile and sensitive. Showing respect as a communication strategy is a tactic to solve many communication stalemates. From the interview with Michael, the assumption is that he is one of the eldest and longest-serving employees in the MagicIce company. There exist high chances that most employees respect and listen to him. Moreover, the long journey with Wally may make him consider persuading the rest of the workers to resume duties. However, when Franco approaches them, he provokes the one person that would have been instrumental in having the team resume work. If he had shown the man respect, maybe they would have agreed to reach some level of compromise and resume work while waiting for the management to get everything back in order.

Wally may be the owner of the company, but his failure to show up and solve the workers’ strike was disrespectful of him. There exist logistics that govern big companies, and maybe Wally was busy handling managerial issues. However, the bond that he had developed for his employees and the respect they had for him demanded that he walk down to the floor and address the issue. He had the best idea of what the factory and the jobs meant for the people and yet he opted to sideline himself from the scenario. He ought to have talked to them and assured them that their jobs were safe as a gesture of respect and appreciation for a team that had been loyal to him since the establishment of the company.

Engagement of Concerned Parties in Communication

Johnson-Sheehan (2017) argues that the best way to resolve any problem in communication is through active engagement of the concerned individuals. Franco was supposed to give the employees an opportunity to present their problems. He would have then taken notes of all the concerns before inquiring whether anyone had a proposition for solutions. Had this been the case, then Michael and his team would have clarified that they needed to meet the boss in person. Franco would then take a step to inform Wally of the needs of the employee and request him to go and talk to them. However, the employee, Franco, got mad and yelled at the employees worsening the already volatile situation. From the prevailing situation, it would be right to highlight that the management was handling a problem they did not understand. Michael explained everything that was affecting them during the interview. If Franco had done his job the right way, Wally might have found a way out of the menace that was affecting the stability and operation of the company.

Conclusion

From the surveys and the above report, it is clear that the situation at MagicIce is due to negligence and lack of input by the management. All the workers needed was an assurance of job security. However, all they received was foul treatment and harassment from Franco, an employee who was supposed to handle their concerns. The surveys regarding employees job description and awareness of the work environment policies showed that most of the things were in order. Most employees knew what they were supposed to do and their role in duties execution. The management had neglected them in decision-making, and they believed that the changes that were underway would threaten their jobs. They were right to go on strike because no one explained to them the reasons behind reforms that MagicIce was implementing. Moreover, they were the ones to accomplish the duties in both entities, and so they believed a heads up was their right. Wally had sidelined himself from the situation, and that was another key reason for the unrest. The employees, especially Michael, believed that the CEO was a good person who could not turn his back on them. It is a failure to see him during this crucial moment that escalated the already delicate situation.

Recommendations

Communication is a fundamental part of organizational management. MagicIce is facing trying times following the increasing competition in its industry. It is important that it takes care of its employees and ensure that they are comfortable with working there. Some of them have a great experience, and other upcoming entities would conveniently poach them and adhere to their needs leading to further problems to the company. The following recommendations would help restore stability and operations in the company:

Wally must engage the employees to understand their concerns and address them accordingly.

Franco needs to apologize for his misconduct if the employees are going to continue working and him and consulting with him whenever necessary.

MagicIce must restructure and involve all the employees in decision-making so that they can be aware of various logistics and embrace proposed changes with minimal friction.

The company must invest in communication strategies for all employees to avoid recurrence of strikes as they cost the company so many resources and losses.

Wally must stay in touch with employees because they have ears on the ground and would provide viable information regarding operations and progress.

Reference

Arnold, e. C. & boggs, k. U. 2015. Interpersonal relationships-e-book: professional communication skills for nurses, elsevier health sciences.

Eggenberger, e., heimerl, k. & bennett, m. I. 2013. Communication skills training in dementia care: a systematic review of effectiveness, training content, and didactic methods in different care settings. International psychogeriatrics, 25, 345-358.

Hybels, s. 2014. Communicating effectively, mcgraw-hill higher education.

Johnson-sheehan, r. 2017. Technical communication strategies for today, pearson.

Kasper, g. & kellerman, e. 2014. Communication strategies: psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic perspectives, routledge.

Schreibman, l. & stahmer, a. C. 2014. A randomized trial comparison of the effects of verbal and pictorial naturalistic communication strategies on spoken language for young children with autism. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 44, 1244-1251.

Treweek, s., oxman, a. D., alderson, p., bossuyt, p. M., brandt, l., brożek, j., davoli, m., flottorp, s., harbour, r. & hill, s. 2013. Developing and evaluating communication strategies to support informed decisions and practice based on evidence (decide): protocol and preliminary results. Implementation science, 8, 6.