Communication Management Strategies

The purpose of this course is to prepare you for the communication challenges that you are likely to meet in rapidly evolving global business environments. It will help you to present yourself confidently, persuasively, and professionally in the way you speak, write and participate in your chosen profession. AB0602 starts with the basic - and well-rounded - premise that Communication Theory, Strategies and Skills are all needed in a highly complementary way for today's young executives preparing for workplace effectiveness. Theory provides a conceptual framework that guides strategy and skills. Strategy allows communicators to make intelligent choices about content, organisation, style, tone, delivery, and timing of messages. Skills are needed to craft effective written documents, give constructive feedback, and create as well as deliver persuasive business presentations. Throughout, the emphasis is on the art of persuasion for effectiveness in the corporate context. In addition, the course addresses other new demands in today's work culture. One such emerging demand is the need for effective Small Group Communication, a skill valued for collaborative work and team building. As such, you will be trained to go beyond prepared presentations to help you operate effectively in contexts which require spontaneous yet formal communication. Such contexts include small talk, meetings, team briefings and group discussions. Another new demand comes with the prevalence of online communication. To prepare for this trend, you will be guided to enhance your Executive Presence (EP) in both face-to-face and online settings, with special emphasis on social media and personal branding. Building on the theoretical foundation provided by EP experts, you will learn how to be an effective communicator across each medium - in-person, written or virtually - and in diverse situations. Finally, this course also offers you the opportunity to acquire an understanding of the method of Principled Negotiation developed by the Harvard Negotiation Project. You will gain hands-on experience in negotiation through engagement in negotiation simulations. To sum up, this course is planned to align with the broader vision of preparing you well for the workplace and address the increasingly complex needs of industry. As Mr. Ong Ye Kung, speaking as Acting Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills), has noted: 'IHLs (institutes of higher learning) must help students to build up their essential soft skills, such as interpersonal skills, working in teams and across cultures, the ability to communicate well, negotiate effectively, and be resourceful and enterprising.' Approximating the real-world work environment and culture to the extent possible for a course, the teaching approach consistently keeps the final outcome in mind: 'your development as a work-ready young executive able to operate in the corporate context with presence and persuasion.'