Why Communication Matters Susan M. Kapusta, Ph.

"You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can't get them across, your ideas won't get you anywhere." Lee Iacocca

One of the distinguishing marks of a fine mind is the ability to communicate effectively. It is an essential skill that can be your pathway to a successful career in any field. The purpose of this chapter is to make you aware of communication strategies that you can begin to develop now for application in the career that lies ahead. Solid communication skills are critical for being an effective employee, and a commitment to continuously improving those skills will help you grow and develop as you advance in your professional life. No matter what your major, college provides an excellent opportunity to practice and develop your communication skills. These skills include verbal communication, written communication, word processing skills, and communication through e-mail. The purpose of communication through these mediums [oral, written, and electronic] is the promotion of mutual understanding between two or more people. A mastery of the use of all of these communication mediums is expected of new hires in the global marketplace. More than ever before, the ability to communicate well determines an employee's ability to thrive in today's workplace. People with well-developed communication skills are crucial to organizational success. These people are always in demand. "In fact,

excellent communication skills can do more to jump-start a promising career than almost any other factor" (Bienvenue and Timm xix). According to a report from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), employers responding to NACE Job Outlook 2007 named communication skills as a job seeker's most important skill. "Communication skills have topped the list for eight years," says Marilyn Mackes, NACE Executive Director. Employers expect that, during their college years, students will acquire the necessary education and training to meet the communication requirements of today's fastpaced global workplace. Even before you start a new job, you will need a well-written

resume and effective interviewing skills to convince an employer to hire you. Therefore, now is the time to ask yourself the following questions to assess your current skill level: How proficient are you in your ability to devise and communicate strategy, write effectively, prepare and deliver oral presentations and participate in meetings and interviews? Can you analyze and synthesize enormous amounts of information to convey your message? How adept are you at interpersonal communication -- can you establish the productive relationships with supervisors, customers, colleagues, and other stakeholders that are crucial to organizational success? If your honest self-assessment indicates underdeveloped communication skills, you can improve your skill level through the following methods: completing formal coursework, studying and emulating persuasive communicators, seeking real-world practice opportunities, attending to self-reflection and soliciting feedback from a mentor and others.

Active listening and sticking to the point are essential to reaching mutual understanding, which is the goal of both written and oral communication. You can develop these verbal communication skills by taking formal courses in public speaking, interpersonal skills-building, conflict resolution, interviewing, and communication ethics. For public speaking, be sure to select courses that integrate the effective use of state-ofthe-art technology. The traditional classroom will provide the opportunity to practice public speaking platform skills, as well as one-on-one communication with classmates and professors. Your written communication can be honed through basic writing courses. These classes will help you fine tune your grammar, spelling, punctuation, proofreading and editing skills. The goal is to finish college with the ability to write quickly, concisely and accurately. Furthermore, you will be valuable to any employer if you are in the

professional habit of meeting deadlines and submitting assignments that are error free. This means don't wait until the last minute. Work carefully and allow ample time for research and unexpected word processing and printer problems. As you move through your college years, take advantage of the opportunity to broaden your horizons by registering to present your academic papers at conferences. This is not only great experience, but it is also an impressive line item to add to your resume. Strategic thinking is the key to effective communication because there is no "one size fits all" formula for effective communication. Therefore, you must analyze the audience, purpose and media on a case-by-case basis to achieve the desired outcome. Depending on the circumstances, a communicator needs to strategically decide whether it is best to use a letter, phone call or electronic medium. As you grow in education and

experience, you will become increasingly more adept at choosing the best mediums for the situation at hand. Regardless of the medium of choice, however, establish the professional habit of responding to phone calls and letters promptly. Bienvenue and Timm define strategic communication as functional communication. It seeks to achieve results. It is different from other types of writing such as personal letters, poetry or fiction (28-45). Employers expect employees to be able to express ideas clearly and concisely to achieve desired results. In many workplace situations, the ability to orally present your written work offers a valuable opportunity to advance your ideas and your career. The visibility and exposure you can gain by making effective group presentations will enhance your chances of rising to leadership. One way to learn this skill is by studying the strategies of the masters before you. Persuasion is a specialized form of strategic communication one that calls for the ability to sell yourself and your ideas. The success or failure of any business is often a matter of persuasion. Convincing a boss, customer, colleague, shareholder or whomever of the value of your idea, product, service, investment or a host of other things can determine whether or not your endeavor succeeds. Direct and unambiguous communication is important, but a simple presentation of facts without emotion is rarely persuasive nor a prelude to action. The ancient Greco-Roman tradition laid the foundation for strategic communication. The advice and analysis of communication theorists such as Aristotle and Cicero are so persuasive that they continue to be studied today. Aristotle (384-322 B.C.), preeminent Greek philosopher, grounded his communication ideas in ethics and documented them in a book called the Nicomachean Ethics. He theorized that the three

elements needed to influence the audience to action are logos (logic), pathos (emotional appeal) and ethos (credibility of the speaker). Anyone seeking to persuade an audience must build understanding from values, beliefs or knowledge held in common by the speaker and an audience. No effective communicator can ignore the beliefs, values and concerns of an audience and hope to move them to action. No effective communicator in the 21st Century can afford to ignore ethics. The Roman, Marcus Tillius Cicero (106-43 B.C.), widely recognized as one of the greatest statesmen and orators of all times, expanded and applied the philosophies of Aristotle. To lead an audience to action, Cicero theorized that communicators must be strategic and deliver messages that combine style and substance. In other words, the speaker needs both wisdom and eloquence to be persuasive. Cicero also asserted that it is not sufficient to simply have ideas, you must also be able to sell your ideas to others and get things done. Though the story may sound like ancient history, effective communication remains the top leadership skill. You can rise to leadership in politics, business, academia, or any other field more readily if you are a persuasive communicator. Cicero was convinced of the potential for an ethical leader, equipped with sufficient natural ability and drive to shape the course of society through the power of speech. Cicero applied his powers of persuasion for the betterment of Rome. Forceful leaders in the United States such as John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, just to name a few, used their considerable communication skills to unite and inspire people at both a national and international level. The results their words changed the nation and the world.

In academia, Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg, University of Pittsburgh, uses his leadership skills to effectively communicate with Pitt alumni across the country through his "On The Road" fundraising presentations. Launched in 2000, Pitt's $500 million capital campaign has already exceeded that goal and raised more than $1.2 billion dollars to advance the institution. Nordenberg takes an Aristotelian approach to public speaking. His warm, seemingly effortless communication style combines a comprehensive knowledge of the institution with the emotional appeal of real-life stories that focus on people the students, faculty and alumni. Through a combination of his credibility (ethos), wisdom (logos) and emotional appeal (pathos), Nordenberg inspires his supporters to help reach the goals of the campaign for the University of Pittsburgh. His compelling use of language stirs the heart, soul and mind in a way that moves alumni to take out their checkbooks to support the continued growth and stature of their alma mater. This is just one of the ways that Chancellor Nordenberg gets positive results for the University of Pittsburgh. Business is another area where leadership and communication go hand in hand. Lee Iacocca, a famous American industrialist, is most commonly known for his role as a communicator and spokesperson in turning around Chrysler in the '80s when he was the Chief Executive Officer. Widely studied in communication literature, Iacocca went so far as to say that "The most important thing I learned in school was how to communicate." A self-made man and genuine folk hero, Iacocca exemplified the best of the American dream. In a review, Time Magazine described him in larger than life terms as "a big man (6 ft. 1 in., 194 lbs.), a driven man, an earthly, passionate, volatile, funny,

and profane man, a talkative man who tells it like it is, who grabs for gusto, who damns the torpedoes, and plunges full-speed ahead" (Iacocca). Iacocca takes a Ciceronian approach to public speaking. He combined his compelling natural style with his intelligence and marketing knowledge and made himself perhaps one of the most recognizable business leaders in history. He used his powers of persuasive communication with Congress and the American people to reshape the discourse surrounding Chrysler. As he grew in fame and stature, he was urged by many to run for president, and he produced three New York Times bestsellers. He was on the cover of Time Magazine no less than three times. Currently, he is selling his leadership ideas in a book entitled, Where Have All the Leaders Gone. Not surprisingly, his Nine C's of Leadership include the term - "Communicate." In public speaking, great leaders use intelligence, diplomacy, vivid language, loping repetitions, eye contact, appropriate humor, warmth and an invisible reliance on visual aids to shape the thinking and actions of others. All of these leaders Nordenberg, Iacocca, Kennedy, King, Reagan, Clinton and Obama learned to play at the top of their "A" game due in no small part to their ability to get positive results through effective communication skills. You too can learn to be at the top of your "A" game by studying the masters and pursuing real-word opportunities to hone your own verbal and written communication skills. Internships, summer jobs, student activities and volunteer work offer opportunities wherein you need to write letters and reports while interacting with others one-on-one and in groups. You can also join Toastmasters, which will give you the chance to develop platform skills and confidence in speaking in front of groups. Opportunities such

as these help students to gain and polish the skills necessary for a successful career in any field. Experience matters to employers, and these resume-building opportunities can help you gain valuable real-world experience. One final tip on strengthening your communication and career-building skills: Choose a mentor in your field of interest who can coach you and provide input on job opportunities, as well as feedback and contact information for your cover letter. Mentors can help you maximize your potential. As an example, Aristotle emerged as a mentor to Alexander the Great who no doubt became 'the Great' partly because he understudied a mentor of Aristotle's stature. Mentors are role models. When someone has walked down a road you have not traveled, their behaviors can help guide you on a more successful journey. Your own mentor may emerge when you take advantage of internships, part-time summer jobs and volunteer positions. Many non-profit board members hold high-ranking positions in the marketplace, and volunteer work can offer great networking opportunities with these experienced, influential people. You can also ask your school's career placement office for mentoring leads and advice. As you progress in your studies and your career, never assume that you "know it all" when it comes to the art of communication. Use self-reflection and solicit feedback from others to continuously improve. Feedback is a key to ongoing growth and development of communication skills. Your mentor can be a great source of feedback. You can also solicit feedback from professors and classmates. In summary, here are some communication dos and don'ts that can help give you a competitive edge to achieve career success.

Five Dos Enroll in formal courses to learn and develop strategic communication skills. Sell yourself and your ideas by modeling the communication strategies of influential leaders. Gain real-world communication experience by pursuing internships, part time summer jobs and volunteer work. Self-assess and build relationships with a mentor and others for guidance and feedback. Set high goals and stretch beyond your communication comfort zone to meet them.

Five Don'ts

"Wing It." Research your subject matter thoroughly and prepare your messages strategically and professionally. Be a communication spectator. Get actively involved in classroom, conference and networking activities. Forget that you need both style and substance to advance your ideas and your career. Create barriers to understanding through too much communication (rambling) or too little communication (withholding ideas and feedback). Compromise your credibility by missing deadlines or submitting work that contains grammar, spelling, punctuation or typographical errors.

Susan M. Kapusta, Ph.D., is the President, United States Steel Foundation Inc. at United States Steel Corporation. She has a Ph.D. in Corporate Communication from Duquesne University.

Suggested Readings and Works Cited Aristotle. The Nicomachean Ethics. Trans. David Ross. New York: Oxford UP, 1980. Bienvenu, Sherron, and Paul R. Timm. Business Communication: Discovering Strategy, Developing Skills: Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2002. Bizzell, Patricia, and Bruce Herzberg. The Rhetorical Tradition: Readings from Classical Times. 2nd ed. Boston: Bedford, 2001. Carnegie, Dale. How to Win Friends and Influence People. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2007. Cicero. De Inventione. Trans. H. M. Hubbell. Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1976. ---.De Oratore. Trans. E. W. Sutton and H. Rackham. Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1976. Covey, Stephen R. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989. Goleman, Daniel. Emotional Intelligence. New York: Bantam, 1994. Iacocca, Lee A. with William Novak. Iacocca: An autobiography. Boston: G. K. Hall, 1985. Mackes, Marilyn. Job Outlook 2007 Survey. "Top Skills/Qualities in Job Candidates." March 15, 2007. National Association of Colleges and Employers. 29 July 2009 www.nace.org/press. Marsh, Charles, David W. Guth, and Bonnie Poovey Short. Strategic Writing: Multimedia Writing for Public Relations, Advertising, Sales and Marketing, and Business Communication. Boston: Pearson, 2005. Nordenberg, Mark A. Interview. 27 March 2008.

Noonan, Peggy. Simply Speaking: How to Communicate Your Ideas with Style, Substance, and Clarity. New York: HarperCollins, 1998. Strunk, William, Jr., E. B. White, and Roger Angell. The Elements of Style. 4th ed. Needham Heights: Allyn and Bacon, 1999. Yate, Martin. Cover Letters that Knock 'em Dead. 7th ed. Avon: Adams Media, 2006. ---. Knock 'em Dead with Great Answers to Tough Interview Questions. 6th ed. United Kingdom: Kogan Page Limited, 2005. ---. The Ultimate Job Seeker's Guide: Resumes that Knock 'em Dead 2008 Avon: Adams Media, 2007.