To be an effective communicator, you need to be aware of the $$big picture$$ in which your communications will take place. This activity will test your understanding of concepts that can help you grasp the communication environment where you work.

Read the scenario and use your understanding of the business environment to answer the questions.

Sean Hempleman, a recent college graduate, has just joined the IT $($information technology$)$ department of a medical billing company. The company$$s clients are medical offices whose administrators prefer to contract out the billing for their services rather than billing the patients themselves. Sean$$s job is to help his department resolve employees$$ computer problems, keep the billing functioning efficiently and accurately, and prevent security breaches. Use his situation to test your understanding of the business communication environment.

Sean$$s company employs about $100$ people, all of whom work in the same building. The company$$s structure is hierarchical; the employees consist of about $70$ billing clerks $($who process bills that need to be sent from the medical clients to their patients$),$ about $15$ nonmanagerial professionals $($in IT$,$ accounting, sales, and customer service$),$ and about $15$ managers$/$executives$.$ Which is least likely to be true about his company$$s communication?

Multiple Choice

For their internal communications, everyone in the company uses a friendly, informal tone.

The billing clerks do not send many communications to the executives or upper$-$level managers.

The billing clerks work in cubicles in a large room, while most of the professional and managerial staff have offices on the floor above. This layout tends to discourage upward communication from the clerks to anyone except their immediate supervisors.

There are written guidelines for many of the company$$s procedures.

The customer$-$service representatives tend to follow standardized scripts and procedures when responding to client calls.