HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGERS’AND BUSINESS COMMUNICATION STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION OF SELECTED COMMUNICATION COMPETENCIES Donald E. English, Professor and Head Department of Business Administration and MIS Texas A & M University-Commerce Commerce, TX Office Telephone (903) Fax (903) Edgar Manton, Professor Department of Business Administration and MIS Texas A & M University-Commerce Commerce, TX Janet Walker, Professor Department of Business Administration and MIS Texas A & M University-Commerce Commerce-TX 75429

WHAT WE DID Developed a questionnaire pertaining to communication competencies Mailed the questionnaire to human resource managers in the 200 largest companies in the Dallas/Ft.Worth area. Questionnaires mailed200 Questionnaires returned 48 Return Rate 24 Usable questionnaires 41 THE QUESTIONNAIRE WAS DISTRIBUTED TO STUDENTS ENROLLED IN BUSINESS COMMUNICATION CLASSES AT TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY-COMMERCE. A TOTAL 231QUESTIONNAIRES WERE RETURNED BY BUSINESS COMMUNICATION STUDENTS.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGERS AND BUSINESS COMMUNICATION STUDENTS WERE ASKED TO USE THE FOLLOWING SCALE TO RATE EACH OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNICATION COMPETENCIES 4=EXTREMELY ESSENTIAL COMPETENCY IS VITAL FOR INITIAL EMPLOYMENT 3=HIGHLY ESSENTIAL COMPETENCY IS QUITE ESSENTIAL FOR INITIAL EMPLOYMENT

2=ESSENTIAL COMPETENCY IS NEEDED, BUT COULD BE LEARNED ON THE JOB 1=NOT ESSENTIAL COMPETENCY IS NOT ESSENTIAL FOR INITIAL EMPLOYMENT 0=UNDECIDED A weighted average was calculated for each competency.

Communication Competencies Weighted Average Student HRM 1.Spells correctly3.527(3) Understands the importance of business relationships with superiors, coworkers, subordinates, customers, vendors, and other business associates (7) Punctuates and uses correct grammatical written communication (4) Writes effective resumes and letters of application (10) Interacts in a positive, productive, and thoughtful way 3.396(9) a. Maintains appropriate confidentially.3.373(2)3.641* 6b. Effectively proofreads, edits, and revises written communication (5) a. Avoids stereotyping people from other cultures, and understands their norms and values (19)3.026*

8b. Collaborates effectively in groups and on teams (17)3.051* 10. Uses personal integrity in all communication (includes all relevant information, and does not present any deceptive information (1)3.795* 11. Effectively focuses on the main idea in the message (11) a. Knowledge of general principles of writing effective business communication (6) b. Recognizes the importance of neat, organized, and attractive written documents (8) Demonstrates appropriate social courtesy and etiquette (12) Uses eye contact effectively.3.249(19)3.026**

16. Uses appropriate nonverbal behavior (kinesics, personal appearance, paralanguage, and proxemics, etc.) (16) Demonstrates leadership abilities.3.213(28)2.718* 18. Uses a clear, distinct, and pleasant speaking style (24)2.921** 19. Effectively delivers an oral presentation (34)2.605* 20. Writes effective letters (15) Writes well-organized paragraphs (words, strong languages, abbreviations etc) (13) Proficient research and data collection, analytical, and interpretation skills (27)2.763* 23. Understands and exercises conflict resolution strategies and techniques (33)2.667*

24a. Writes effective business messages without emotions and cyber speak abbreviations (14) b. Possesses sensitivity to the language values and behaviors of other cultures (35)2.579* 26.Writes strong messages (with active verbs and concrete words) (28)2.718* 27. Effectively uses persuasion and builds strong arguments 3.083(36)2.526* 28a. Knowledge of grammatical, semantical, and interaction speaking rules (26)2.816** 28b. Organizes and develops effective speeches (40)2.342* 30.Possesses skills in informal business and social conversation (25)2.842** 31. Learns appropriate professional and social behaviors of the culture with which he or she is communicating (32)2.684*

32. Writes from the standpoint of the reader’s Interests and benefits (31)2.711* 33a. Exercises empathy by understanding how readers may interpret written messages (17)3.051** 33b. Uses appropriate communication skills to share messages with someone whose first language is not English (37)2.395* 33c. Uses varied and appropriate vocabulary (23)2.921* 36.Writes effective short reports.2.988(22) Understands the importance of intercultural business practices and customs (42)2.237* 38. Writes concisely (leaves out unnecessary words and phrases) (21) Writes effective long reports.2.953(28)2.718** 40. Demonstrates intercultural communication competence (40)2.342* 41. Effectively evaluates audiences.2.930(39)2.368* 42. Knows how to use and interpret tabular and graphic data (37)2.395* *p<.01 **p<.05

ResponseNumberPercent Yes9541 No6227 Undecided7432 Total ResponseNumberPercent Very Valuable20689 Valuable2511 Little Value00 No Value00 Total Do you believe that college graduates are well prepared in communication skills? How valuable are good communication skills in the business world?

ResponseNumberPercent Yes1816 No7363 Undecided2521 Total ResponseNumberPercent Very Valuable11196 Valuable54 Little Value00 No Value00 Total Do you believe that college graduates are well prepared in communication skills? How valuable are good communication skills in the business world?

ResponseNumberPercent Yes1127 No1229 Undecided1844 Total41100 ResponseNumberPercent Very Valuable3995 Valuable25 Little Value00 No Value00 Total41100 Do you believe that college graduates are well prepared in communication skills? How valuable are good communication skills in the business world?