Michael R. Collins
COM/285 – Business Communications
May 9, 2011
Mr. Carlos Campos
Current Trends in Business Communications
Technology has affected communication not only in our personal lives but also in our business lives. Companies are trying to achieve a paperless environment that can move information electronically to any place needed instantaneously. Company locations in different time zones or even a different country are no longer barriers to productivity (Ober, 2009). E-mail, the Internet, and texting are just a few of the ways we communicate today in a business environment not easily available until recently.
I deal with many groups in my company each day and communication is extremely important. I usually start my day by opening my e-mail to see if any of the e-mails need a response to a particular issue or if I need to provide information for a project. Some e-mails are information only and others will need a reply with a simple email. A phone call or a face-to-face meeting may be required for more technical issues. These emails, phone calls, and meetings enable the stakeholders to perform the needed tasks to complete the project I am managing. The Safety department sends out safety information each morning. Safety is an important company value and is important to me because I want anyone working on or visiting my project to be in the safest work environment possible. This information consists of words of advice, reports of simple scrapes or cuts and any significant safety event that happened the day before. Any of these items could prompt me to hold a safety meeting with my crew that morning if I believe there is merit in sharing this information on my work site. Some emails consist of corporate communications ranging from benefit information to events around the company. This could be an update on the company’s newest retirement plan or information on a ruling regarding a regulatory