Page 440 - Fundamentals of Management Myths Debunked (2017)_Flat

CHAPTER 13 • Managing Communication and Information 439
case applIcatIon 3
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Using Social Media for Workplace Communication

heories about commu- details of 100,000 employees
nication should provide Understand your chosen had been stolen and uploaded
Tmanagers with the tools COMMUNICATION to the Internet. They used so-
and information necessary to CHANNEL cial media platform Facebook
to immediately announce the
be able to communicate more issue. Morrisons had also sent
effectively and efficiently with out notifications via email to
members of the staff and avoid miscommunication. managers within stores and requested that it be passed onto
However, there are numerous cases where the intended colleagues who did not have access to company email ad-
message has not been received by staff or customers in the way dresses. Many employees had found out about the issue
it was intended. With the advent of social media, managers because of the announcement on Facebook, long before any
61
and businesses have new opportunities and methods to com- internal communication had reached them.
municate with staff and customers. At the same time, messages
that are transmitted via social media can lead to instances of Discussion Questions
miscommunication and confusion amongst the recipients, with
many often questioning whether managers have used the most 13-22 Based on the two examples from the case, what do you
appropriate channel of communication. For instance— think are the main communication issues? Did the manag-
ers of these organizations communicate effectively? Why or
• A cryptic post to the social media site Facebook was how the why not?
staff of a popular Belfast restaurant, the Bank Café Bar, found 13-23 How would you feel if you were working in these organiza-
out that they were to lose their jobs. Managers took the deci- tions and were affected by such miscommunication through
sion to announce the immediate closure of the restaurant to social media platforms?
customers and staff in the same message, ending the message 13-24 What would you do differently if you were a manager for the
with “#nojob”. Members of the staff had previously been told companies mentioned in the examples?
that the restaurant was facing some difficulties, but many had
agreed to stay with the business despite the difficulties. 60 13-25 What do you think other mangers should learn from these
• UK based supermarket Morrisons fell victim to cyber examples of miscommunication?
crime and found that the personal data, including bank