Analyse the Communication Structure in term of Classical Communication Theories - Essay Writing Assessment Answers

While your essay should follow conventional academic essay structure and style conventions, you must cover the two parts and produce one cohesive essay.

Part 1

Using an organisation of your choice, analyse the communication structure and processes evident in terms of the classical communication theories presented in this unit. Keep in mind, there may be elements of more than one theory evident.

• You can choose to analyse the communication structure of:-
• a sporting organisation
• a voluntary organisation
• your workplace
• or another type of organisation (you must get clearance from your tutor).

Part 2

Analyse the decision-making processes evident within your organisation of choice in terms of the theoretical approaches covered in this unit.

You may use the textbook and other set readings but as this is a third year unit, we would expect to see at significant independent research to support your ideas. You must find at least ten refereed journal articles that are relevant to this essay. In order to find appropriate sources, students will engage in library and on-line searches for REFEREED journal articles, evaluate the standing of journals, identify the author's argument and compare it with the arguments of other authors in their research.

Introduction

The Emirates Airlines is the biggest airline company in the United Arab Emirates and one of the bests airlines in the world flying more than 124 destinations. The airline company was established in 1985 and it operates some of the latest airbuses and it provides the best service offers to its clients (Arnold, 2013). Decision making is a key organizational element of skill in management, and it contributes to success of a company. Successful business firms and other organization have to integrate classical communication theories with transformational emerging managerial and communication techniques to effectively meet objectives. This paper discusses how Fly Emirates, the Emirates Airlines applies managerial and communication techniques for decision making within the company that has led to its success. In addition, the paper tries to explain how the organizational structure and culture relate to the various approaches to leadership and management styles employed by the Emirates’ Chief Executive Officer, Tim Clark. Emirates Airlines practices the classical management approach and this has been evaluated in comparison to other various management approaches (The Emirates Group, 2016).

Communication structure Analysis of Emirates Airlines

Management is an act of organizing people to accomplish required objectives and goals by effectively and efficiently utilizing available resources. Classical management approach focuses on increasing workers’ efficiency within the organization following conventional practices. Emirates Airlines focuses on a global standard by ensuring that all customers calling at contact centre are given global standard quality services in every place, even though the services may differ depending on the situation (Arnold, 2013). Employees at Emirates Airlines are identified and assigned duties and roles based on their capability to handle a task and a standard method is designed for each task performance. The employees are also taken through a standard training on customer care and system operation of the company. Employees are rewarded for good performance and improvement which are evaluated to gauge its impact on business performance.

Fly Emirates uses strategise like good employee treatment with recognition, good remuneration, bonuses and promotions to motivate workers to unleash their full potential (Fermor, 2010). Emirates Airlines applies a hierarchical structure in its organizational management and uses motivational strategies as ways of inspiring employees and getting tasks accomplished. The analysis below emphasizes on Emirates Airlines structure of organization as well as individual employee behaviour in isolation and in groups within the company organization. The research presents the company’s employees cultural behaviour and the problems associated with workers behaviour and how such problems can be solved.

Businesses are often conducted best in systematic and coordinated structured groups of individuals called organizations. Emirates Airlines organizational structure provides un understanding of the relationship between culture and management style. The Emirates Airlines has shown distinctive growth since its incorporation in 1985 to the extent that the company is now an award winning brand flying to more than 124 destinations globally. The company operates over 177 air buses and has over 55, 000 employees who speak different languages located in various parts of the world (The Emirates Group, 2016). The Emirates Airlines has diversified into various related sectors and industries in the market including investing into engineering, airport services, catering, hospitality services and tour operations.

Emirates Airline has a tall hierarchical organizational structure which begins at the top with the chairman, vice presidents who are followed by the executive secretaries. The next in rank are the divisional vice presidents, the senior vice presidents, the regional mangers and area managers. Other positions in the structure include the heads of departments and supervisors and the staff respectively who report upwards to their seniors. The structure incorporates the executives of passenger sales and executive management through to the level of operational managers.

It is clear from the above presentation that the reason for which Emirates Airlines has a tall hierarchical leadership structure is due to its growth in the global market creating a need for more levels of management to rise. There are several advantages resulting from a company practicing a hierarchical organizational leadership structure like in the case of Emirates Airlines. One of the advantages is that it is possible for a close control of supervision to be undertaken in a tall hierarchical structure. There are clearly defined objectives and roles in a tall hierarchical leadership structure like applied by the Emirates, and the consequences are that the structure is more authoritative. Another advantage of a hierarchical management structure is that every person who is charged with responsibility has to be accountable to his or her senior authorities thus there are less mistakes made and considerations are carefully made before decisions for action are taken.

However, the level of employees motivation in a hierarchical structure is often low hence their work output and performance are low, which in turn affects the company’s overall output (Fremor, 2010). Another demerit of hierarchical management structure is that there are normally barriers to effective communication being created between the respective management levels right from the top through the middle to the lower category. Emirates Airlines group is large with many levels of management and departments undertaking various duties (The Emirates Group, 2016). The company’s departments stretch from customer cares service provision to engineering, catering etcetera. Each department in the Emirates Airlines group is managed by the departmental head who reports upwards to managers at the middle level and finally to the top level management. Since the company is not fully online based, the staff play a very key role in various stations and this explains the significance of the appointed supervisors, departmental heads, area managers and regional managers.

An organizational culture is often based on the mode of conducting business, and these include customs, norms, ideas and values professed by employees within the company as its foundation (Suresh, 2012). An environment of culture ought to be motivating to employees who would in turn do their best to enhance the overall business performance of the company. Emirates Airlines culture focuses more on service delivery and quality. It is a culture of optimism factoring in the requirements of customers and ensuring that the customers always get the best of the company.

Organizational culture at emirates airlines (Fly Emirates) is one that is role oriented with the whole organizational structure playing a key role in ensuring that every flight with booked customers all getting required facilities (Suresh, 2012). Customer service oriented culture is aimed at offering the best of the various comfort and extra benefits to the customers to make them feel good and satisfied with the value for their money so that they remain long term company loyalists. Every employee together with top leadership managers take responsibility for each action taken.

The tall hierarchical structure favours Emirates Airlines in the decision making process because many varying ideas are obtainable trough the multicultural group of managers together with the employees (Fermor, 2010). The company ha s a policy that steers its employees to work in pursuit of its common vision in varying ideas and values that result in an ethical conducting of business. Consequently, the employees get motivated hence give their best in task performance to enhance the overall company output.

There are three main intentions guiding employees behaviour within the organization in order to attain the company’s ultimate objectives and goals. The Challenge conviction is where both managers and employees are influenced by the organizational culture to which all employees ought to adapt so that every challenging situation is accepted (Fermor, 2010). The employees are encouraged to be curious, courageous, innovative, pioneering, imaginative and ambitious. Good business performance is possible if the structure of an organization supports the culture of a company by motivating the staff in many ways so that they clearly know their roles and the goal of the organization.

The other intention in guiding the employees behaviour at Emirates Airlines is focused on anticipating and exceeding the expectations of the customers. The staff and management work together accordingly to bring out the culture and customer service oriented culture through a cosmopolitan, empathetic, visionary, intelligent, human and tech savvy manner (Suresh, 2012). The third intention of guiding behaviour is to have an attitude of competence among employees to believe in possibilities because Emirates Airlines has a culture of positivity that motivates workers to go beyond their limits.

Emirates Airlines has the major control centre in Dubai even though different stations experience different problems despite certain similarities. At the Colombo station, problems are identified through weekly meetings to discuss and address issues that arise every week. The relevant management take the matters to provide solutions to the identified problems. The company also discusses employees work attitude in the weekly meetings because certain staff have expressed performance issues in regard to meeting deadlines (Suresh, 2012). Another problem is the bureaucracy within the company where an employee has to wait for a supervisor to give the go ahead for a task that would otherwise be undertaken by employee’s own discretion. Some other problems that the company has experienced include unethical conduct among employees and discloser of sensitive and confidential information. Time management is another problem that has been identified because there is no clarity on how much time the employees should spend on their personal errands like checking emails and visiting social sites. These problems have been identified by the company as serous due to misinformation that may lead to loss of finance hence the endeavour to breed honesty among employees.

Conclusion

Tim Clark, the Chief Executive Officer of the Emirates Airlines (Fly Emirates), has played a key role in transforming the company into a successful global airline story. The officer seems to employ both autocratic and democratic leadership qualities by commanding the lower management on quick decision making while discussing with them on important issues at times. The chief executive officer is a dynamic leader who often sees situations differently and is flexible to embrace change. Innovation, dedication, openness, integrity and magnanimity in leadership have been expressed in passion through the top leadership of the Emirates Airlines hence motivating employees and increasing the company’s growth.