Communication In Business And The Expectancy Theory

Why Is Communication Fundamental To A Business's Success?

The brain is an extremely powerful tool, the left hemisphere is predominately responsible for communication and the ways in which we connect via vocalisation or non-vocally (including?facial expressions, gestures, para-linguistics, written etc) in business this is instrumental to relationship building and success. In this month's instalment of my LinkedIn column I have explored communication in business with a deep dive into The Expectancy Theory - which is highly triggered by communication and receiving mindset. I will also non-exhaustively touch on styles and effects of communication with watch-out's and impacts to provide a more wholesome view. Please note my opinion on Expectancy Theory is non bias and here for means to lightly inform the reader only.

Communication is by far one of the most important functions of business especially management. It has a dual effect and may cement an organisation or highly disrupt. Good communication promotes managerial efficiency fundamentally inducing human elements in an organisation to champion a spirit of camaraderie, it is the most efficient tool in performance management in my view.?It actuates people to action in accordance with the desires of the management and the overall company. Without proper communication, performance and achievements of the goals may not be possible.

Objective and subjective quality of decisions made in an organisation entirely depends on the amount and quality of information available to management teams. The quality of information is contingent upon effective communication, and the quality of communication exercises considerable influence on the quality of decision making, thus mutual feedback loops between management and team are essential!? Effective communication between employers and employees also plays a vital role in obtaining maximum optimal production with minimum of cost. Communication provides necessary will to work i.e employee feel more secure and more interested in their work, it increases understanding of the overall business vision simultaneously highlighting the individuals value and part within the business plan and team community.?It will increase productivity on the part of workers. It is possible to have good morale without efficiency; it is not possible to have efficiency without good morale....

It is also interesting to know that most human brains process information based on first and last impressions. This is called?the serial position effect, which is a psychological phenomenon in which an individual is more likely to remember the first and last items of the list than the middle items. For example I will correlate to retail (my comfort zone).The role of the serial position effect is commonly seen in e-commerce platforms. Imagine when you were scrolling through the different pages of your favourite e-commerce website, you like a car and then keep on searching the other related options. You compare every other option with the first car you liked, and high % chances are that you end up buying that particular car only. That is also why the open and summarisation of meetings internal and external is o so important! Communication meetings agenda, or vision or primary point in a clear manner from the start and also the chronological repetition of point to ensure ingestion and best impact for memory and recall.

But how does communication work when it comes to The?Expectancy theory? What does this mean and how does it work?

The Expectancy theory basically?states that an employee's motivation is an outcome of how much an individual wants a reward (Valence), the assessment that the likelihood that the effort will lead to expected performance (Expectancy) and the belief that the performance will lead to reward (Instrumentality).

In short,?Valence?is the significance associated by an individual about the expected outcome. It is an expected and not the actual satisfaction that an employee expects to receive after achieving the goals. But what is Expectancy.... so in a nutshell?it is the faith that better efforts will result in better performance. Of course it is influenced by factors such as: possession of appropriate skills for performing the job, availability of right resources, availability of crucial information and getting the required support for completing the job.

Whereas?instrumentality?is the faith that if you perform well, then a valid outcome will be there. Instrumentality is affected by factors such as belief in the people who decide who receives what outcome, the simplicity of the process deciding who gets what outcome, and clarity of relationship between performance and outcomes. Thus, the expectancy theory concentrates on the following three relationships:

• Effort-performance relationship: What is the likelihood that the individual’s effort be recognised in his performance appraisal?
• Rewards-personal goals relationship: It is all about the attractiveness or appeal of the potential reward to the individual.
• Performance-reward relationship: It talks about the extent to which the employee believes that getting a good performance appraisal leads to organisational rewards.

Advantages of the Expectancy Theory:

• It is based on self-interest individuals who want to achieve maximum satisfaction and who want to minimise dissatisfaction.
• This theory stresses upon the expectations and perception; what is real and actual is immaterial.
• It emphasises on rewards or pay-offs.
• It focuses on psychological extravagance where the final objective of an individual is to attain maximum pleasure and least pain.

Disadvantages of Expectancy Theory:

• Rewards are not necessarily associated with performance and can be subjective
• In some companies rewards are based on job skills and education not against behaviours too
• Effort, performance and value of rewards is hard to quantify therefore the accuracy of the expectancy theory is not always high
• Can trigger pygmalion effect (see below)

P/ N: Pygmalion effect can sometimes sit in conjunction with expectancy theory when it comes to team cultivation via manager as someone's high expectations for our performance don't only impact how we act, but also impacts how managers interact. For example,?if a teacher believes one of their students is really intelligent and will be successful, they may pay them more attention, give them more detailed feedback, and continue to challenge them. So it is important to give equal input and watch out for any bias behaviours.?

The Summary

Again as mentioned in the opening of this article this is just a brief look into a prominent theory I am by far no mean's an expert in, a light info-share.

Communication and the way communication is received and worked on is a constant in business for leaders and employee's of all levels. Tips to ensure strong communication and building on these skills for leaders include:?

1. Practice listening & observing effectively
2. Improve your memory recall of faces and names.
3. Be clear on agenda's, wrap up's and narratives
4. Be authentic in how you connect with people
5. Try paraphrasing?& open questioning (coach style)
6. Attend motivational seminars of strong communicators (for style emulation)?
7. Constant constructive feedback loops
8. Practice and participate in different scenarios