Downward communication

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The downlink communication (also top-down communication or information cascade ) is a form of internal communication , unlike the upstream communication (in the bottom-up ) and the communication on the same hierarchical levels (in-between) the communication flow proceeds from the senior management or employers ( top-down ). Downward communication is mostly used in companies and large companies to keep employees informed about ongoing processes and developments. For this purpose, various means of communication are used as distribution media such as employee magazines , newsletters , internal radio or other electronic and print media .

General

In the structure of a company, an authority , organization or similar structural models, various problems arise as to how information should get from the source of creation or decision-making to the base. Various communication models have been developed and implemented for this purpose. In the course of the development of society, industry, but also individual associations of individuals, new models were gradually developed or existing models further developed.

Frederick W. Taylor , who is considered to be the founder of ergonomics , founded the concept of Scientific Management and thus developed a methodology with which companies could work more efficiently and economically. In this concept he also outlined the need for top-down communication.

In the course of the ever increasing industrialization and modernization of western countries, Henri Fayol developed an administrative approach to design the overall organization of a company. For Fayol it was of fundamental importance that employees must be led by management and people in leading positions and that the interests and goals of the whole must be implemented through direct instructions from above (command and obedience).

Max Weber presented a new ideal type in his work Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft (1922) and stated that the bureaucracy should be viewed as the ideal type of exercise of power and that downward communication was the most efficient form of making a company capable of acting.

Taylor, Fayol and Weber have thus worked out approaches for downward communication in different ways in their works. These have been redefined and further developed time and again with social and business change. In modern society and the leading industrial nations, downward communication in its traditional form, namely the instructions dictated from above, is hardly to be found any more. Rather, a mixture of downward communication and upward communication adapted to the circumstances is used today, which allows the company to gain flexibility.

Downward communication (top-down)

With the downward communication, the senior management has the possibility to pass on information and directives to all hierarchical levels quickly and effectively . In large companies, this flow of information takes place over several levels. The information is passed on in the shape of a pyramid from the top level via the subsequent levels until it finally reaches the employee at the base.

Advantages of Downward Communication

The advantages of downward communication result from the quick and effective transfer of information, changes and directives. Above all, this means of internal communication can be used effectively to bring about changes in the internal process or the internal alignment without having to evaluate and take into account possible conflicts of interest of the employees. Downward communication is often the method chosen when the scope for action is severely limited from the outset, for example in product security .

Disadvantages of downward communication

However, the advantages of downlink communication also result in major disadvantages. Because changes or information are conveyed in the form of downward communication, these usually lead to rejection among employees at the base, especially if the changes have a profound effect on everyday work. In addition, downward communication can have disadvantages if large amounts of information have to be conveyed. On the one hand, this can lead to an excess of information among employees, and there is also the risk that information is not recorded and saved due to the lack of or severely limited direct communication.

Means of downward communication

Various media have become established for downward communication in everyday corporate life. With advancing mechanization and the development of new communication possibilities, the means of downward communication also develop further. A wide range of different media and forms of communication are often used in large companies or organizations. The following list does not claim to be complete, but on the one hand is intended to convey that the downward communication is not only subject to new knowledge in social science , psychology and other social science research areas, but also benefits from new technologies . Weighing up the advantages and disadvantages of the individual means of downward communication are, on the one hand, the basis for decision-making and the success that results when the information is passed on in a certain way.

Written and printed media

In addition to direct contact, written and printed media are the basic means of downward communication. With the development of the printing presses in the Middle Ages and later of the electronic printers , they were and are the predominant means of communicating with employees. The written or printed media include circulars , work instructions , internal newsletters and annual reports . The advantages of written and printed media are that they can be reproduced quickly and easily and that they are accessible to every employee either in a personal edition or via a public notice. The disadvantage of this form of communication is that information may reach the addressees too late. Another disadvantage is that information can be withheld in a targeted manner or cannot be stored by the addressee due to excess.

Audiovisual media

As technology advances in companies and organizations, more and more audiovisual media such as company television , video presentations or films are used. These media have the advantage that information and directives can be conveyed in a relaxed form and with clear examples. In addition, the presentation of a speaker or a suitable leading figure in film and television can lead to additional identification with the new information. The major disadvantage is that the production of films and other audiovisual media is very expensive and time-consuming. Much of the information may then arrive late and be out of date when it is presented. There is therefore the problem that audiovisual presentation superimposes the production on the actual information content and thus leads to a distortion of the implementation for the recipient.

Group meetings

In many companies and organizations, downward communication is supported or sometimes even replaced by group meetings . Group meetings include conferences and meetings , workshops and seminars as well as meetings within small and medium-sized subdivisions of the company or the organization (e.g. departmental meetings or personnel meetings ). The advantages here are that, on the one hand, there is a social component to the exchange of information, which in turn results in a higher level of collegiality and solidarity with the group. Disadvantages of this possibility may arise from the fact that groups often develop their own dynamic, important information can be lost or lost due to inattention.

Further possibilities of downward communication

Other options for downward communication include recruitment interviews , performance appraisal interviews, direct work instructions from the supervisor or coaching . These are an integral part of companies and organizations, and although they are changing due to new research and technologies, so far not in their basic form, namely, for example, the hiring, assessment or instruction of employees.

Downward communication in social science research

Newer voices in the literature describe the form of downward communication also outside of the traditional application areas such as companies and organizations. Examples of this are consumers at the end of a product chain or persons affected after a service offering has been changed . A closer examination of the points outlined shows, however, that this differentiation from the conventional term of downward communication is not expedient, as the consumer or beneficiary of a service will always be affected in one way by the changed information flows or directives of a company or service provider. The fact that the affected group of people is now included in the effective area of ​​downward communication does not do justice to the instrument of downward communication and would lead to a far too far-reaching application of the term. Nevertheless, the endeavors to expand the concept of downward communication to other areas of society and to adapt it to needs are evident and are being investigated further by social science research.

literature

  • Monika Hubbard: Brand management from the inside out: On the role of internal communication as a value driver for brands (organizational communication). VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften / GWV Fachverlage GmbH, Wiesbaden 2004, ISBN 3-531-14335-2 .
  • Miriam Meckel , Beate Schmid: Corporate communication: Communication management from the perspective of corporate management. Gabler GWV Fachverlage GmbH, Wiesbaden 2008, ISBN 978-3-8349-0973-2 .
  • Alexander Tarlatt: Implementation of strategies in companies. Business publisher Dr. Th. Gabler GmbH, Wiesbaden 2001, ISBN 3-8244-7471-9 .
  • Tobias Sebastian Witte: Internal communication as an element of change management, development of recommendations for action using the example of a supply and disposal company. Diplomica GmbH, Hamburg 2007, ISBN 978-3-8366-5197-4 .
  • Christian Ries: Public relations and employee communication in growth companies. Investigation of the communication concepts of rapidly growing companies in German-speaking countries. Diplomica Verlag GmbH, Hamburg 2010, ISBN 978-3-8366-3405-2 .
  • Anke Baum-Nilsson: Social Media Inside: Satisfying the communicative employee needs through social media: An empirical study based on DAX and MDAX companies. Diplomica Verlag GmbH, Hamburg 2013, ISBN 978-3-8428-3224-4 .
  • Herbert Gölzner (Ed.): Stakeholder-oriented communication: New approaches to customer, employee and corporate communication. GWV Fachverlage GmbH, Wiesbaden 2008, ISBN 978-3-531-16166-2 .
  • Jörg Pfannenberg (Ed.): Change communication: How to support the change process effectively: Topics, processes, implementation. Frankfurter Allgemeine Buch, Düsseldorf 2009, ISBN 978-3-89981-410-1 .