An Organizations Communication Climate

Communication climate is defined as the network of personal relationships within an organization or the atmosphere of personal relationships/interactions within an organization (Mack, n.d.). Communication climate is an important aspect in the operations of an organization since its regarded as the glue that makes relationships within the organization to run smoothly. This concept is also regarded as the tone or mood of interpersonal communications that affect how people within an organization feel and perform their jobs. Communication climate is divided into two i.e. supportive climate or defensive climate. Supportive communication climate is an atmosphere that encourages open flow of information, enhanced employee participation and engagement, and constructive conflict. On the other hand, defensive communication climates are atmospheres that obstruct cooperation and hinder effective flow of information. This blog describes the communication climate in my organization and how it affects motivation and organizational/team commitment.

RiksPro is a business organization that provides videography, photography, and graphic design services that was founded in 2008. The organization has experienced tremendous growth and profitability since its inception due to suitable business practices and effective implementation of its strategies. The company has opened several branches in different locations because of its increasing customer base and growth. One of the major drivers of RiksPro's success, growth and profitability is enhanced contributions from its employee base. The company's employees have constantly demonstrated organizational and team commitment, which has contributed to enhanced input into work processes and activities. The organization's management has increasingly focused on establishing a working environment where all employees feel safe and work collaboratively towards the achievement of desired business objectives. In this regard, RiksPro's HR department engages its employees in decision making processes and initiatives on how to enhance their well-being and safety as they carry out their respective job duties. This process has also entailed the creation of enhanced flow of information within the organization because employees are engaged in critical decision making processes relating to their work.

Based on this description, RiksPro has a supportive communication climate that is characterized by enhanced employee participation and engagement in work processes as well as improved flow of information. The existence of a supportive communication climate in RiksPro is also attributable to the effective collaboration framework that has been established by the human resource department. Additionally, the organization has open channels of communication through which it's the management and employees interact freely. In essence, there is healthy vertical and horizontal communication within the organization, which helps enhancing the atmosphere of the working environment. This finding aligns with the results of the Communication Climate Inventory, which shows that RiksPro has a supportive score of 45.

Communication climate within an organization has significant impacts on employee motivation and their organizational or team commitment. According to Noordin et al. (2010), communication climate affects the performance of an organization through influencing employee motivation. For RiksPro, the supportive communication climate has contributed to enhanced employee motivation and better organizational/team commitment. Through the open communication channels in the organization, employees have demonstrated a high sense of ownership and belonging as they carry out their respective work duties. As evident in RiksPro's case, the high employee motivation and organizational/team commitment emerges from the supportive nature of the working environment. This essentially means that a defensive communication climate that inhibits cooperation between the internal organizational stakeholders contribute to low employee motivation and decreased organizational/team commitment. The critical aspects of communication climate that contributes to enhanced employee motivation and organizational commitment include involvement in decision making processes, enhanced teamwork, effective leadership and management, suitable organizational culture, and improved job satisfaction.

While RiksPro has a supportive communication climate, there is still need/room for improvement to enhance the atmosphere of the working environment. The organization's communication climate can be enhanced through improving conflict resolution processes. Conflicts in the organization's work teams are inevitable and usually characterized by a negative view/perception. The negative view has in turn affected the effectiveness of conflict management approaches in the organization. It is important to learn how to develop skills that can turn conflicts into opportunities in order to enhance the communication climate (Segal & Smith, n.d.). In this regard, some of the skills I would like to learn to improve or in order to create a supportive communication climate include conflict management skills, group dynamic skills, and organizational communication skills.

In conclusion, communication climate refers to the atmosphere of interpersonal communications within an organization. Based on the results of the Communication Climate Inventory, RiksPro has a supportive climate that is characterized by open communication channels and enhanced employee participation and engagement. The supportive climate has contributed to high employee motivation and improved organizational/team commitment. However, the organization's communication climate can be enhanced through improved conflict management approaches given the negative view that is constantly associated with conflict in the organization. This would require learning skills on conflict management, group dynamics, and organizational communication.

References

Mack, S. (n.d.). What is a Communication Climate in Business? Retrieved May 24, 2017, from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/communication-climate-business-57145.html

Noordin et al. (2010, February). Organizational Climate and its Influence on Organizational Commitment. International Business & Economics Research Journal, 9(2), 1-10.

Segal, J & Smith, M. (n.d.). Conflict Resolution Skills: Building the Skills that can Turn Conflicts into Opportunities. Retrieved May 24, 2017, from http://www.helpguide.org/articles/relationships/conflict-resolution-skills.htm