Communication Audit Within a Government Institution

Abstract

Concern for communication in organizations has increased immensely. This has been partly brought about by the awareness that (1) the effectiveness and efficiency of a group are, to a great extent, dependent upon the careful coordination of each individual member’s and (2) satisfactory communication is prerequisite to understanding and cooperation. Still many other reasons could be cited for this burgeoning interest on and sensitivity to communication processes. But the two aforementioned are the most salient. Martires (1992) says that communication is the lifeblood of any organization. It is essential and part of the organization’s very nature to engage in activities which make action and coordination possible. Many research scholars have unanimously pointed out the fact that in order for a system to perform well, effective communication should be fostered. As one writer of the literature succinctly puts it, “Communication lines must always be open because the corporation (or the organization) must be eager to receive messages as it is to send them.” Furthermore, as corporations grow bigger, a more complex structure of communication follows. Without the corresponding communication system or process, no organization can sustain itself. In view of the importance of the communication system, the researcher has undertaken the task of studying the communication climate as it is perceived by the employees of a government institution-The Tanauan Municipal Government. Dennis (1975) defines the concept of communication climate as “…a subjectively experienced quality of the internal environment of an organization…which embraces members’ perceptions of messages and message-related events occurring in the organization.” Communication climate, therefore, is based on a person’s subjective beliefs. Since people’s opinions may differ according to the varied experiences they had in the organization, they respond to communication climate only in terms of their perceptions of it. To arrive at general conclusion regarding the perception of the employees about the communication climate existing within their organization, the researcher has examined eight areas which are, in fact, not elements of communication but are merely representations of activities which use communication as a tool in order that they would be disseminated evenly throughout the system. The activities are intended for the consumption of the internal public only. The areas examined were about communication policy, program, delegated authority, keeping department heads informed, human relations communications, focus on employee interests, information about the organization and information about management-employee relations. One instrument utilized by the researcher was a survey questionnaire which as a lapted from Frank Corrado’s employee communication survey. The questionnaires were randomly distributed to 40 rank-and-file employees in the Municipal Government who work of its various sub-units. The selection of the number of respondents for each sub-unit was guided by the number of employees present at the time of distribution. In addition, the Municipal Vice Mayor, the Consultant for Administrative Affairs and the Human Resource Management Officer-Designate were each interviewed to substantiate findings from the survey and to discover discrepancies between management and employee thinking. Data from the survey were converted to percentages, presented in tabular forms and analyzed based on a 5-point frequency scale. The following conclusions were drawn: 1) Employees understand the communication policy in the Tanauan Municipal Government. 2) Programs are not very effective and there is still the question on the availability or absence of written procedures to implement the communication policy. Employees feel that the policy does not allow much for two-way communication. 3) An informal authority structure exists in the organization. 4) The department heads know their accountabilities for communicating important information to relevant people but using them as the focal point, less communication is directed upwards thatn those directed downwards. 5) Human Resource is not at all involved in matters of communication. 6) Beyond basics like salary and benefits, other interests like training opportunities are not much considered. 7) Employees received a fair amount of information about the organization except about the need for new employees. 8) Employees and management are not separated by “barriers” and can freely interact with one another.