This workshop investigated how managers can evaluate, select, and effectively use information resource management (IRM) tools, especially data dictionary systems (DDS). An executive summary, which provides a definition of IRM as developed by workshop participants, precedes the keynote address, "Data: The Raw Material of a Paper Factory,"…

A survey was conducted of 102 active quality circle members drawn from five organizations to determine how quality circle participation affected communication, as perceived by members themselves. The survey consisted of two parts. The first part contained ten open-ended questions inquiring about the respondent's personal experience in quality…

This report describes "AppleLink," a communications system used by Apple employees, which combines an electronic mail system, bulletin boards, and databases. The development of AppleLink from the pilot project stage is described, and the basic functions and features of the system are detailed. Suggestions are made for the use of a…

A study employed a Burkeian framework in order to determine the nature of Al-Anon's rhetoric and evaluate the success of the organization's rhetorical strategies in appealing to the co-alcoholic population that it addresses. According to Kenneth Burke, a message is persuasive if the audience perceives a commonality with the central beliefs of the…

A study examined communication patterns based on sex differences and status in the organization, specifically analyzing managerial behavior on one aspect--messages of control and instruction giving--of superior-subordinate communication in the corporate setting. Subjects, 24 first-line managers, 12 males and 12 females, recruited from five large…

Based on a review of the literature, this paper examines criticisms leveled against the communication audit developed by the International Communication Association (ICA) and then offers a modified version of the audit designed to meet those criticisms. Following a brief introduction, the first section of the paper reviews criticisms of the audit,…

This guidebook uses a question and answer format to recommend ways by which principals can manage 48 "conflict points" that often occur in a school setting. A preface describes conflicts as being natural and pervasive in the secondary school context. Although the principal is regarded as the responsible agent to reduce dissonance, the challenge…

As one views the interface of American and other cultures in international business, the first and most vivid impression is a lack of awareness of cultural differences. Persons are assigned to foreign duty with little if any briefing about the culture they will enter. Two approaches to improving the handling of international business are…

A survey of business people was conducted to assess the importance of listening and the deficiency in that skill and to identify existing listening training programs for future study. The questionnaire was developed to assess the importance and status of listening by placing it randomly among several other communication competencies. Subjects were…

To help educators improve school publications, this handbook discusses the reasons for school publications and presents guidelines for their production. Chapter 1 notes that school publications' purpose is to communicate. Chapter 2 discusses where to begin school publications and suggests focusing on people, making the publication's purpose…

Because a requirement for students in many public relations (PR) courses is that they must pool their efforts with other students, problems may arise when good students must work with students less motivated or organized than they. One answer to this problem may be to steer the brightest PR students toward a course that integrates communication…

Noting that communication apprehension contributes to failed communication, which in turn places business organizations at risk, this paper describes the rationale and methodology of a study to determine whether managers can predict an employee's sense of responsibility and willingness to improve following an incident of failure, based on the…

Noting the importance of communication to the socialization process of individuals entering organizations, this paper examines how individuals move through different communication modes and make use of different communication skills as they progress from newcomers to organizational members. To accomplish this, the paper uses aspects of…

J. Hage and F. Hull (1981) developed a typology of organizations based on two major dimensions--scale and complexity. The typology delineates four types of organizations: Type 1, "traditional" organizations, typically small-scale structures with low complexity; Type 2, "mechanical" organizations that are large scale, low complexity structures…

The communication skills believed to be relevant to a successful career in the business world and the organizational communication program in the Department of Communication at Central Missouri State University (CMSU) are the two major focuses of this paper. The first part of the paper discusses the importance of identifying factors that might…