In today’s business environment the manager has many tools including technology for quicker communication and for more information. Analyse whether this enables the manger to make better or even perfect decisions. Explain why perfect decisions making is so difficult to achieve giving reasons for your choice. Illustrate your essay with specific examples.

The intent of this essay is to understand the role and relationship of communication in the decision making process as a manager. My concern with the ‘relationship’ is specific to the changes and development that have taken place in the business environment and the technological changes that have taken place. The aim is to look at the different forms of communication that are used and the reasons of ‘perfect’ decision making being a difficult process.
The late 1970’s was the period of the ‘Cultural Turn’ associated with the growth of trans-national corporations. There was a significant change in the work environment and the opportunities available. It could be seen as a result of the contemporary conception of the network economy, ‘A new economy …on a worldwide scale. I call it informational, global, and networked. It is informational because…fundamentally depend upon their capacity to generate process and apply efficiently knowledge – based information. It is global because the core activities of production, consumption and circulation, as well as their components (capital, labor, raw-materials, management, information, technology, markets) are organised on a global scale…’ (Castells, 2000:77). It has been argued that, the world was no longer about ‘nations and states’ but an interconnected ‘network society’. It was an ‘intensive and extensive’ period of Globalisation where the whole world was based around a common set of economic rules- based on competitiveness and productivity, innovation and flexibility.
In an era of Globalization, the barriers of geography, culture and distance have increasingly broken down. The creation of a new form of interdependence of various cultures and industries, has led to the world becoming a smaller place. ‘Corporate strategists realised that, because of the emerging knowledge-based economy, a company or individual could be valued principally on ‘intangible assets’ (e.g. intellectual capital and access to networks). This brought about a revolution in the corporate sector which in turn, has put pressure on companies to form alliances and break down inflexible departmental structures and initiate cross-departmental project teams (increasingly staffed by short-term or outsourced contract workers). Indeed, we have recently witnessed the birth of an alliance culture that collapses the distinctions (or boundaries) between companies, nation states, governments, private individuals (Mute, Issue 18, 2000)
‘Most generally, globalisation can be defined as the worldwide diffusion of practices, expansion of relations across continents, organisations of social life on a global scale, and growth of a shared global consciousness’ (Ritzer, 2000, 2004: 160). In such a dynamic era even the process of communication has changed overtime. Communication which earlier would have been limited to just verbal or written has evolved over the changing years to incorporate the technological advances. In any given corporate environment communication is now abundant with the latest technology of electronic mails, telephone or video conferencing, verbal, file sharing, faxes and so forth. As mentioned earlier, globalization has also led to communication incorporating the understanding of cultures and even sensitive issues like gender. In such an era of quick communication where the manager is equipped for fast transmission of information the challenges faced by him/ her is greater. ‘The abilities to read, listen, speak, and write effectively, of course, are not inborn. Thriving in the dynamic and demanding work world depends on many factors, some of which you cannot control. But one factor that you do control is how well you communicate’ (Guffey, 4: 2006). Therefore, the ability to make decisions is dependent on the level of communication and the manager’s capability of reaching a consensus.
However, achieving perfect decisions is a difficult task because, ‘doing business in far flung countries means dealing with people who are very different from you. They have different religions, engage in different customs, live different lifestyles, and rely on different approaches in business…the complications of multiple time zones, vast distances between offices, different languages’ (Guffey, 5:2006). In such a scenario it is a great challenge to ensure decisions which are perfect. A perfect decision would be one where both the parties land a common conclusion with no compromises. However with so many barriers of language, cultures etc. there is always a scope of lack of understanding or inability to believe in the same business goals. ‘Successful communication in these new markets requires developing new skills and attitudes. These include cultural knowledge and sensitivity, flexibility, patience, and tolerance’ (Guffey, 5: 2006)
Even in a scenario of handling an in house team, the manager faces a lot of challenges in terms of communication and ensuring a perfect decision. ‘Three factors- conflict, conformity and consensus- greatly affect the efficiency with which a team operates and the amounts of enjoyment members derive from it.’ (Ober& Quiring, 59:1992) Irrespective of the communication tools that are used there is always a possibility of a disagreement which would hinder the decision making process. Ensuring that all the team members who contribute to the decision are happy with the communication they have received can be a daunting task. To ensure that everyone agrees again depends on the manager’s ability to communicate however the level of agreement cannot be determined. The reasons being- some of the team members might agree just to avoid confrontation or the others might agree just keeping the authority in mind. Therefore when managing people it is highly imperative to have an environment which is ‘free’ where every team member has the freedom of expressing or communicating their thoughts without any negative repercussions. In such an environment until and unless everyone in the team think or react the same way it is highly improbable that a decision would be perfect because every individual is different. Avoiding conflict, conforming to the ideas or principles or reaching a consensus can then become a superficial activity with people trying to follow it just to avoid further discussion.
Keeping everything in mind especially the use of technology which helps in efficient communication I have understood that making a perfect decision is difficult to achieve. Electronic mails, telephone conversations, video conferencing etc. does help in quick transmission of communication and the use of time and space in an efficient manner however, when it comes to being a manager people leadership and the ability to interact with the team also plays an important role in terms of making decisions. The technology available allows fast communication however, at a certain level can be impersonal. Regular group meetings and getting to know the individuals in the team and being a ‘people’s person’ does add a personal touch and shows an interest in the team not just as numbers but as individuals.
The team in turn needs to realize that, ‘accepting membership on a team implies acceptance of certain standards of ethical behaviour. One of the most basic of these standards is to put the good of the team ahead of personal gain. Team members should set aside private agendas in their team actions and avoid advocating positions that might benefit them personally but that would not be best for the team. Team members also have an ethical responsibility to respect the integrity and emotional needs of one another. Everyone’s idea should be treated with respect and no action should be taken that result in a loss of self esteem for a member. Finally, each member has an ethical responsibility to promote the team’s welfare- by contributing his or her best efforts to the team’s mission and by refraining from destructive gossip, domination of meetings, and other counterproductive actions’ (Ober& Quiring, 60-61:1992). Therefore I would like to conclude by saying that, it is the manager’s responsibility to make decisions however, the answer to a perfect decision lies in the hands of the team. It is working as a team that makes the use of different communication tools a success.