Business and Professional Communication Quarterly Dec 2019

Employers’ Perspectives on Workplace Communication Skills: The Meaning of Communication Skills

Tina A. Coffelt ; Dale Grauman ; Frances L. M. Smith

Abstract

Employers provide their interpretation of the meaning of communication skills in this qualitative study of 22 managers. Employers understand written communication to be types of documents, a way to write, and a mode of communication. Oral communication skills mean a style of interacting, presenting, and conducting meetings. Visual communication skills were understood to be data visualization or nonverbal communication. Electronic communication was interpreted as email. The findings contribute to closing-the-gap research by highlighting areas where meaning converges for employers and instructors. Faculty members in communication disciplines can incorporate these findings into their course design and learning outcome discussions.

Journal
Business and Professional Communication Quarterly
Published
2019-12-01
DOI
10.1177/2329490619851119
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Topics
curriculum design qualitative research multimodality professional writing voice and style

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (14)

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Cites in this index (6)

  1. Coffelt et al. (2016)
    Business Communication Practices From Employers’ Perspectives
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  2. Ortiz et al. (2016)
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    College Composition and Communication
  4. Reinsch et al. (2014)
    Do Communication Abilities Affect Promotion Decisions? Some Data From the C-Suite
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  5. Brent (2011)
    Transfer, Transformation, and Rhetorical Knowledge
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
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  1. Reinsch et al. (2006)
    Ari, R U There? Reorienting Business Communication for a Technological Era
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