Foundations of Business Communication

This unit establishes core interpersonal and communication skills for effective workplace interactions, covering listening, nonverbal behavior, channels, audience analysis, feedback, and basic conflict strategies. Students will practice applying these foundations in interview, team, intercultural, and platform-based scenarios and consider responsible use of generative AI as a communication tool.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze the principles of effective business communication by differentiating hearing from active listening, interpersonal versus personal communication, and comparing communication models and channel richness
• Apply active listening, questioning techniques, nonverbal behaviors, reciprocity, and self-disclosure strategies to gather information, build rapport, and improve workplace interactions
• Demonstrate audience and stakeholder analysis to select appropriate channels and presentation types (informative vs. persuasive), orient to platforms, and craft messages that achieve a desired business outcome
• Evaluate feedback methods, conflict-handling options, intercultural considerations, and ethical uses of generative AI to create respectful, constructive communication and to prepare for interviews and team collaboration