Introduction
Effective communication is a fundamental aspect of human interactions, especially when people interrelate at the place of work (MacLennan, 2003). It is worth noting that the process of communication takes different forms and medium. Nevertheless, various factors can hinder the effectiveness of the communication process (MacLennan, 2003). While the essence of effective communication may have appeared obvious to me, I had an instance at my place of internship where its relevance became quite clear in my entire career.
Personal Experience
I was working closely under the head of the sales department during my internship. In fact, we were working on a presentation that was meant to compete for a marketing contract with a renowned company. In that morning, my team members and the representatives from the prospective company were gathered in the company’s boardroom, while we were waiting for our head of department to arrive and conduct the presentation. However, time passed on, and the target company representatives appeared restless and the presenter was not yet there. The director of the client company contacted our company’s director who immediately came in and ordered that I do the presentation. The notice for the presentation was rather short, but I had to do it to save the situation. After a thirty-minute presentation, I gave the audience a chance for queries and clarifications that I handled confidently. When I finished the presentation, and the client company assented to our bid for the contract, I was impressed. My colleagues and my director congratulated me and told me that I was able to present competently. In particular, my director was impressed by my composure and way I delivered the power point presentation. Indeed, I employed the right gestures and my articulate choice of words towards the firm that was quite different in culture from our company were impressive. In essence, the effective communication in this situation was the platform that facilitated the presentation and discussion of both companies, as well as our contract consideration.
Elements of Effective Communication
There were various effective elements that assisted me in my presentation, which include being open and clear about ideas, embracing objectivity, sensitivity to the audience diversity, and appreciation of language, as well as cultural differences.
Although I was not aware that I would make a presentation, I had taken part in its preparation. Therefore, I was quite informed about the content. Besides, I had already developed a positive attitude towards such an impromptu assignment, a situation that improved my clarity in ideas of presentation. Secondly, my presentation was objective because I was aware that I had to defend the business opportunity at hand. Therefore, I employed all the strategies learnt in effective communication, as well as marketing fundamentals that I felt would assist my company in winning the contract. Thirdly, I was able to understand the client company cultural background. Therefore, I was able to communicate effectively with the other company’s representatives. Although we had very clear differences regarding organizational and interpersonal culture, I managed to appreciate the diversity and delivered an effective presentation.
After the presentation, both the representatives of the client company and my colleagues cheered and congratulated me, a situation that confirmed that I managed to communicate. The clarifications sought after my presentation was only minimal. Eventually, both companies initiated the paperwork, and the contract was sealed.
As is evident from the analysis, the effective communication in the marketing presentation enabled my company to win the contract. As such, just as would have been expected, the winning of the contract depended more on the effectiveness of communication between my company and the client company. Therefore, it is clear that the essence of effective communication at the place of work facilitates not only the interpersonal relations but also have a direct effect on the business transactions (MacLennan, 2003).