WELCOME!!!

Hello! Welcome to my blog! My hope is for this blog to become a showcase of my assignments in communication studies from both my current course and previous courses. I hope to highlight the facets of communications that are especially pertinant to my professional interests. Communications is an area of study that I truly enjoy. I love learning about it, but more than anything I really love finding ways to apply it to my everyday life. Not only at work but at home as well. I hope you enjoy the blog!
Feel free to leave any questions or comments!

WHAT MAKES A GOOD BLOG?

What makes a good blog?

            A blog can serve many purposes. It can be a personal outlet of expression that includes our individual beliefs and opinions on everything from politics to religion. Blogs can also be used to catalog someone’s personal journey, either literally or theoretically. Blogs have been used by Olympic athletes to document the individual journeys of specific athletes to help create a larger fan base and to encourage a seemingly more intimate relationship with the athletes. In the case of COM480, it has been utilized as a showcase for our assignments in both this course and previous communication courses.

            Creating a blog was intimidating for me. I am definitely not a technically savvy individual and I usually shy away from things I am not comfortable with. Our blog was definitely out of my comfort zone. Evaluating my classmate’s blogs definitely offered great insight into the things that I could do better with my own blog. I’ve taken a lot of time to evaluate each blog and to find things that were different from what I had done. The process has been and continues to be enlightening.

            AUNDREA’S BLOG:

Aundrea’s blog was clean and crisp. Her back ground was simple and it transitioned smoothly into her design. I thought it was interesting that she had opted for her “about me” to be at the bottom of her page. I think that this can work positively or negatively for her depending on what the purpose of her blog is. If Aundrea is using the blog only as a showcase for her assignments then I think it is a great idea! It keeps the focus on her work! If she wants to use the blog for anything else such as networking or as a portfolio for future career opportunities, she might wasn’t to choose a different layout that allows her to put the “about me” at the top of the page so that people know who she is.

            CATHERINE’S BLOG:

Catherine’s blog was simple and easy to read. It almost felt relaxing to visit her blog. Everything was neat, tidy and easy to find. I also really enjoyed her “welcome” post which is something I will definitely be adding to mine. I thought she did a great job!

            RYAN’S BLOG:

Ryan’s blog was great! It was interesting and much trendier than mine. I love that his ‘about me” made it clear what he was about and what his blog was about. This is another thing I will definitely be adding to my own blog! I also thought it was awesome that he posted videos! Such a great use of media!

            The feedback I have received from my classmates has been excellent and so helpful. I have a few more questions that I need to address before we get into the holiday weekend, but I do feel like I am back on the right track. I appreciated that the comments I received were constructive and honest. It was reassuring to hear about the things they liked about my blog as well. As we enter the last week of this course, it is clear that I have some serious work to do on my blog! Not to worry, I have the babysitters lined up so that I can whip it into shape between now and then. A few of the improvements that I must make are the addition of a “Welcome Post”, an inviting and explanatory “about me” and I need to upload some of my assignments from previous courses. I also need to pay special attention to my design and layout. After all, this isn’t exactly a MySpace page and it needs to be cleaned up. I need to find a softer background and a simpler design. I also need to choose a standard text color such as black, white or maybe a blue, but it needs to be consistent.

           
I found this "how to video" that would have been so great to have when we started this process. Lots of good information and great tips for starting a blog.

 

 

 

 

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Delivering bad news

         In this week’s assignment, we are asked to evaluate a given situation. In this situation, there is an employee who is underperforming. Complaints are coming from both coworkers and customers. This is especially concerning because this particular company prides itself on excellent customer service. We are to evaluate the situation and decide how we would approach the situation. We were also asked to anticipate the employee’s response as well as analyze which conflict resolution techniques would be applicable.

            My first step in approaching this situation would be to do my research. I would review every complaint that had been made by both customers and coworkers. If applicable, I would categorize them into two groups. One could be for general lack of professionalism. If the employee was rude or unprofessional in any way, that would fall into one category. The other category would be company specific. This is where the poor performance would come into play. Any company policies that the employee violated would fall into this category along with failures to meet departmental or company goals. All performance under achievements would be categorized as company specific. Hopefully by doing this I would be able to rank the complaints in order of severity. This would be helpful in my attempt to avoid some of the minor or nit picking complaints that would inevitably be included. With the help of the categorization and the ranking of complaints I would create a plan. I would be sure to lead off with the most serious complaints that are company specific. I would do this in an attempt to avoid any he said she said conversations. Frankly, there is no need to specifically discuss any complaints from coworkers. A generalized and anonymous summary presented to the employee will suffice.

I would need to be familiar with their entire performance at the company. I need to be centered in my opinion of the employee and comfortable in my perception of their professional routine. This is especially helpful in determining how hard I should fight for this employee. If they have a history of bad behavior, I might approach the situation with a less sensitive and less understanding tact.  

            I would expect a few different responses from the employee. One of which may be a complete deference. Something along the lines of “I wasn’t feeling well that day” or “But that customer was so rude” might be some of the statements. Another possibility is the denial of knowledge. The employee could claim that they were not aware of the departmental or performance goals. If this were to happen, I would remind the employee that we all have days that we are sick or don’t feel well and that it is never the customer’s fault. If we are unable to reign in our emotions on day that we do not feel well, we should not be at work. In reference to a rude customer, we would spend a few moments discussing the fact that the employee’s position is in the customer service field and that the importance of delivering excellent customer service in all environments in paramount. If the employee claimed to be unaware of the departmental or performance goals, I would not waste time debating it. I would review all appropriate goals thoroughly and be sure that they leave our meeting very aware of the company’s expectations.  Another response might be in light of the employee’s tenure with the company. For some companies, two years is a significant amount of time. This is another area where research on my part would be beneficial. I would need to have an accurate interpretation of the employee’s cumulative performance. Acknowledging the employee’s accomplishments and success in the past could help build a level of comfort during the meeting. This could help to alleviate an elevated conflict later in the meeting.

            I would start the meeting with a hand shake and by asking if everything is ok. A generalized question including spouse, kids, family and friends would be presented. I would do this because the explanation for poor performance could be as simple as “I’m going through a divorce and a custody battle.” Obviously in that situation, I would try to be sensitive to their personal problems. If my company offered any type of family support I would make sure to inform them of that. I think that a very brief synopsis of the complaints should be relayed to them. After that, I would reassure them that they have company support but that we do need to still meet our company goals. I might offer a late arrival or early dismissal when needed to help alleviate some stress. Through our discussion, I would find out when the divorce was expected to be finalized and create a game plan with the employee about getting back on track.  This game plan could be very informal but could be vital when explaining the situation to my own management. We would schedule a follow up meeting a few weeks later to evaluate the situation again. If no improvements had been made by that point, I would be forced to deliver the ultimatum. I think that when an employee is struggling in their personal life, they sometimes need extra consideration and support from their management.

Assuming this is not the case and the answer to the question was, “No, everything is great!” I would proceed with the meeting. I would start off my acknowledging the two years they have been with the company and then briefly mention any success or achievement from earlier in their tenure. My transitional statement would be something along these lines, “You have been with the company for two years and we appreciate your loyalty however we have a few concerns about your recent performance. We have received numerous customer complaints and are concerned that you haven’t been delivering the high level of customer service we demand of our employees.” At that point I would allow them to respond with thoughts, feelings and explanations. If further explanation of complaint type or subject matter is warranted I would obviously do so, but remaining cautious about coworker complaints. I really don’t want to go that route in this scenario. At this point in the meeting I would cut to the chase and make a clear statement such as, “I want you to understand that if we do not see an immediate improvement in your delivery of customer service and your professionalism, I will be forced to let you go.”  In this scenario, I would also set up a follow up meeting with the employee. The purpose of this meeting will be to establish whether or not things have improved or if we need to begin the paper work for employee dismissal. From there, we would review company policies about customer service, professionalism and anything else that is relevant to the complaints. After giving the ultimatum I want to be sure that I have provided all of the tools and resources for their impending success.

            Delivering bad news in any scenario requires the consideration of all the facts. Delivering bad news in a tactful and effective manner demands that we do our homework and have a true understanding of the situation. That same consideration is just magnified. There is no fool proof way to delivering an ultimatum or bad news. Each situation is unique and requires its own approach specific to its encompassing details.

TELEGRAPH/MORSE CODE

TELEGRAPH/MORSE CODE

 

Morse code initially sparked my interest as a world changing media technology but I quickly realized that the Morse Code would not exist without the telegraph. The telegraph in the United States was invented in1828 by a gentleman named Harrison Dyar. However, a very rudimentary telegraph was invented in 1809 by Samuel Soemmering in Bavaria prior to Dyar’s invention. In 1835, Samuel Morse,”proved that signals could be transmitted by wire. He used pulses of current to deflect an electromagnet, which moved a marker to produce written codes on a strip of paper - the invention of Morse Code” (Bellis, 2014). With the invention of the telegraph and Morse Code, Samuel Morse created a forum for international communication. This was also a pivotal development in the future development of telephones and then cell phones. So much of our modern day media technology can be traced back to the telegraph and Morse Code.  Western Union played an important role in the progression of the telegraph and the establishment of the telephone. “In 1959 Western Union inaugurated TELEX, which enables subscribers to the teleprinter service to dial each other directly” (Bellis, 2014). This was groundbreaking at the time. Western Union still holds a place in the world of media technology by offering a number of advanced technological services.

 



CELL PHONES

CELL PHONES

 

Naturally, I selected cell phones as another media technology. This is one of our current technologies that seem to be all encompassing. They no longer serve as only a telephone. Cell phones are now the primary resource for all communication and information necessities. There are records of mobile radio systems dating back as far as 1921. These were commonly known as push to talk systems and were abundantly flawed not only in their concept but their design as well. These were not functional systems. The first major advance toward mobile phones was in 1964. A car phone could be used to dial directly to a land line. This alleviated the need for an operator and the theory behind push to talk systems. The title of mobile phone officially began transitioning to cell phone after, “AT&T proposed a modern day mobile phone system that involves dividing cities into cells” (Keith, 2004). Arguably the most important year in cell phone development was 1988. The Cellular Technology Industry Association was created and began paving the way for advancement. The first cell phone was introduced just three years later in 1991. Today, cell phones are used to access all that is available through the internet. Everything from social media and GPS to personal banking and online universities can be accessed from the cell phone. As the capabilities of the modern day cell phone continue to increase, so does the target demographic. A device that was once targeted to only wealthy adults is now sought after by everyone. Children are wanting and receiving cell phones at really young ages. It is not uncommon in this day and age for elementary aged children to have cell phones of their own. In turn, some cell phone devices and accessories are being marketed directly to children.



MAGAZINES

MAGAZINES

 

Another facet discussed in my week two discussion post was the role of magazines in our world of media technology. Magazines are also known or have been known as periodical, serials, glossies and a slick although “magazine” is still currently the most common reference. No matter what name you familiarize with, magazines are simply, “publications that appear on a regular schedule and contain a variety of articles” (Curtis, 2011).Magazines have the innate ability to be far reaching in their demographic because they are created specifically for their particular audience. Magazines exist in almost every genre of life.

There are magazines being published about, entertainment, music, health and fitness, beauty, home improvement and DIY. There are gaming magazines, hunting and fishing magazines and even gossip magazines that likely have fabricated every word in their print. Regardless of your lifestyle, age, gender, interests or tax bracket, there is at least one magazine targeted at you. The first magazine was published in 1663 in Germany. The notoriety spread worldwide over the next 300 years and evolved into the audience specific publications we know today. As magazines improved so did the cost of production. These costs were and still are offset by advertising, the purchase price and pre-paid subscriptions. Other momentous introductory publications were the first women’s magazine, published in 1770; National Geographic began production in 1899; Time was first published in 1923; Playboy and TV Guide were both introduced to the world in 1953; Sports illustrated materialized the following year. Today, magazines are vastly popular and effortlessly available. (Curtis, 2011)



BOOKS

BOOKS

            In my week two discussion post, I listed books as the most obvious media technology.  Books are also one of the first ever media technologies to exist. Long before the invention of paper and the printing press, there were papyrus scrolls. Papyrus is a thin, paper like textile that is created from the pith (or stems) of the Papyrus plant. It was first discovered and manufactured in Southern Sudan and Egypt. The earliest surviving papyrus scroll known to man has been dated back to 2400BC. Parchment served as a transitional material between papyrus and paper and it was created from animal skins. Paper making as well as the first paper mill was established in Tuscany in 1276. This is an important year in the evolution of media technology as information now had a canvas. With the establishment on paper mills, paper became more prevalent and attainable. The next historic event to occur in the progression of manuscript happened in 1456. Johannes Gutenberg printed the Bible Mainz, Germany. “The Gutenberg Bible was the first complete book extant in the West” (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2014). It is unknown how many copies were originally printed but it is thought that approximately 40 are still in existence. As the first complete book, this served as a landmark event not only in the religious communities but throughout the world as well. In took another 244 years before the first significant books were printed from typecast plates. This bridged a major gap between early Southern Sudan and Egyptian papyrus and westernized media technology. (www.fsu.edu)