Business Comm Mid-Term (Ch 1-7) – Flashcards

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When it comes to communication skills, employers express particular frustration with
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recent college graduates who haven't learned how to adapt to a professional environment
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Which of the following is not a characteristic of effective business messages?
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They present the writer's opinions as facts
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A flatter organizational structure
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helps make communication flow more efficiently
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The term corporate culture refers to
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the mixture of values, traditions, and habits that give a company its atmosphere and personality
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An example of horizontal communication is
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an email message about sick leave sent from one department secretary to a secretary in a different department
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In most organizations, the rumor mill tends to be particularly active when
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the formal communication network is not providing the information employees want
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Generally speaking, limitations of the formal communication network
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have helped to spur the growth of social media in the business environment
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In the first step of the communication process, the sender
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has an idea
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Uncomfortable meeting rooms, multitasking, and computer screens filled with popup messages are all examples of
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distractions
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During a long meeting, you notice that you're automatically questioning the motives of anyone whose viewpoint does not match your own . You are engaging in
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selective perception
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"Business Communication 2.0" refers to
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a new approach to business communication, emphasizing interaction and conversation rather than one-way publication
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Most companies that embrace Business Communication 2.0
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adopt a hybrid approach to communication, in which some messages follow the traditional model and others follow the 2.0 approach
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Which of the following is an example of Business Communication 2.0 in action?
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An electronics store invites customers to submit YouTube videos showing how to install home theater systems
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The "information technology paradox" refers to
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the idea that information tools (such as email) can waste as much time as they save
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The accepted principles of conduct that govern behavior within a society are known as
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ethics
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Which of the following is not a way teams help organizations to succeed?
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Increase groupthink among members
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A hidden agenda refers to
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individuals' private, counterproductive motives
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________ are informal standards of conduct that team members share.
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Group norms
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One member of a task force on which you serve is particularly good at helping other members get along and work through their differences. This individual plays a(n) ________ role.
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team-maintenance
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Only one sales representative can go to the conference in Hawaii, but both Susan and Sean want to go. After much discussion and arguing, they draw straws and Susan gets the trip. This is an example of
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a win-lose situation.
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When composing collaborative messages, the best strategy is to
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avoid composing as a group
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Social networking technologies are designed to
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do none of the above.
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The key to a productive meeting is careful planning that addresses
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all of the above
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Use of parliamentary procedure
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helps meetings run more smoothly.
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When conducting a meeting
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do none of the above.
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If you are listening mainly to understand the speaker's message, you are engaging in ________ listening.
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content
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A reliable employee you supervise has come to speak with you about a leave of absence related to personal issues. To understand her feelings and needs, you should engage in ________ listening.
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empathic
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The first step in the basic listening process is ________ the message.
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receiving
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In part, poor listening occurs because listeners
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can this faster than speakers can speak
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Which of the following is not an important consideration related to etiquette in the workplace?
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your height and weight
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Diversity in the workplace can be based on differences in
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all of the above
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Culture influences a person's understanding of
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all of the above
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When you react ethnocentrically, you
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assume that your culture is superior to others
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The practice of accepting multiple cultures on their own terms is known as
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cultural pluralism
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Cultural differences appear in a number of important areas, including
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all of the above
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To convey meaning in a low-context culture such as the one existing in Germany, people rely more on
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explicit verbal communication
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Compared to low-context cultures, high-context cultures tend to take a(n) ________ approach regarding the meaning of business contracts.
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more flexible
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Women executives who travel abroad
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may not be taken seriously as businesspeople, depending on the culture.
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Meeting a deadline is generally less important than building a relationship for businesspeople in
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high-context cultures.
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Associating youth with strength and age with declining powers is
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common in the U.S., but not in many Asian societies.
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Learning about an unfamiliar culture
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is a worthy undertaking even if you learn only a small amount.
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Letters from Japanese businesspeople tend to be ________ than those written in the United States
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less direct
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When writing for multicultural audiences, it is often helpful to
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use simple sentences and short paragraphs.
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When preparing a message to someone from another culture, you should
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be careful to express numbers and dates in the format used in that person's culture.
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Which of the following sentences contains an idiomatic expression?
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Making our monthly sales quota will be a piece of cake.
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In developing business messages, the step during which you evaluate whether you have expressed your ideas clearly is
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completing
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Inexperienced communicators tend to
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dive directly into writing the message without taking sufficient time to plan.
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An example of a specific purpose for a business message would be
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to inform employees about the new vacation policy.
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In most cases, a message should be deferred or canceled if
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the time is wrong
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In general, for internal communication, the higher up your message goes, the
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fewer details people want to see.
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Forecasting your audience's probable reaction to your message is
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vital, because potential audience reaction affects message organization.
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A knowledge-management system
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is a centralized database of experiences and insights of employees throughout an organization.
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When meeting your audience's informational needs, you should emphasize ideas
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of greatest interest to the audience.
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A good way to test the thoroughness of your business message is to check it for
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the who, what, when, where, why, and how.
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Choosing the right medium for your message
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is an important communication skill.
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In today's high-tech business environment, the need for managers to engage in frequent "walk-arounds" (chatting with employees to get input and answer questions)
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still exists, according to many experts.
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Form letters in business
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can be helpful when communicating about routine matters.
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In general, traditional business messages rely
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primarily on text, with occasional support from graphical elements. (such as charts and diagrams).
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Telephone calls are
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capable of conveying quite a few nonverbal signals.
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VoIP is a
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technology for making telephone calls via the Internet.
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Select the sentence with the best "you" attitude:
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Once your application is complete, you should receive a response within two weeks.
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When it comes to using the "you" attitude,
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it is important to recognize and accommodate cultural differences.
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In part because of limited opportunities for feedback, written communication and most forms of electronic communication require ________ than oral communication.
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more tact
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Select the sentence with the most positive emphasis:
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We will complete the process audit by Friday.
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A euphemism is a word or phrase that is
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a milder term for one with negative connotations.
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The title chairman
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is sometimes used to refer to a woman who heads a board of directors.
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If you must refer to someone's disability, the best wording would be
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an employee with physical handicaps.
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To help establish credibility with your audience, you should
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show that you are confident and that you believe in yourself and in your message.
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Using hyperbole when offering praise to fellow employees
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is less effective than pointing out specific qualities that warrant praise.
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Your communication ________ involves the choices you make to express yourself, the words you select, the manner in which you use those words in sentences, and the way you build paragraphs from individual sentences.
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style
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The best tone for most business messages is
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conversational
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Which of the following is not an example of pompous language?
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Please let us know
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Plain language is a style of writing
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designed to make information more understandable to the audience.
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Identify the voice in the following sentence: "Based on negative client feedback, the marketing department abandoned the campaign."
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active
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Using the passive voice makes sense when you
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want to be diplomatic in pointing out a problem or error.
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Messages sent via IM, text messaging, email and blogging
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should be revised, even if it involves nothing more than a quick review before sending
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Putting your first draft aside for a day or two before you begin the revision process
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is often helpful, especially with more complex messages.
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When evaluating the work of others, you should
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make sure you understand the writer's intent before you begin suggesting or making changes.
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As a general rule, if a document you have written scores well on a readability index,
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you should not assume that it is well-written.
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Skilled business writers
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vary the length of their sentences to maintain reader interest and convey information effectively
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When it comes to paragraph length, you should
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use one-sentence paragraphs only occasionally, for emphasis.
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Informative headings and subheadings
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guide readers to think a certain way about the topics covered.
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"If the figures are in by the end of the month we will hopefully be able to begin planning for the upcoming year's budget, but if they are not then the planning process will most definitely have to wait until later" is an example of
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an overly long sentence.
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What is wrong with the following sentence? "To waste time and missing deadlines are bad habits."
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Similar ideas are not parallel.
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"Environmental impact consultant study results" is an example of
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a long noun sequence.
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"The above-mentioned book" is potentially an example of
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an awkward reference.
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Which of the following sentences is the most concisely worded?
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Before the project begins, the engineers need the revised specifications from the project manager.
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Starting a sentence with "It is" or "There are" is
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usually a sign that the sentence could be shorter and more active.
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A spell checker
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highlights words it doesn't recognize.
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When using a computer thesaurus, you
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should be careful to use only those words that convey your intended meaning.
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Email is to be used for external communication
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regularly, although it has been replaced in many cases by other tools.
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Which of the following is not true of instant messaging?
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It costs more than phone calls or email.
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In terms of the three-step writing process, podcasts differ mostly from written messages in the ________ step.
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completing
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When it comes to writing messages in today's business environment,
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printed letters are still used for external communication.
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Which of the following compositional modes for electronic media involves helping people find their way through an unfamiliar system or new subject?
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orientations
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When selecting the appropriate compositional mode for a communication task using electronic media, the central factor to consider is
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what kind of information audience members are likely to need.
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Social media postings on sites such as Twitter and Facebook
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have caused some employees to be fired.
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One of your sales representatives has begun using social networks to aggressively promote a new product line. The best response would likely be to
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discourage him from using blatant "salespeak" since it is likely to alienate the audience.
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You have decided to post a video on YouTube explaining how to use one of your company's new products. To be most effective, the video should be no more than ________ minute(s) long.
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5
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Compared to social media sites, email
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still has compelling advantages that make it useful in many companies
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Email hygiene refers to
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all the efforts companies make to keep email clean and safe.
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One important element of basic email etiquette is to
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respect the chain of command.
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Email messages
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should be written with the assumption that they will be stored forever.
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Which of the following is the best example of an effective email subject line?
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Website redesign is on schedule
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Email
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should follow the convention of other business writing in formal situations.
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