Select the correct term to match the definition of each intercu/tural communication barrier. Read the scenario, and then answer the corresponding question. Mary is out to dinner with a client from Germany. She notices that the client holds his fork in his left hand. Mary misinterprets the client's behavior as a lack of sophistication and poor manners. What barrier to communication may cause miscommunication between Mary and her client? Ethnocentrism Proxemics Translation limitations At your last three team meetings, one team member manipulated the conversation and directed the entire meeting. What should your team do to improve the team's future communication? Build trust. Distribute leadership. Improve the information flow. Matthias is a manager in an international software company. His team has been getting feedback from teams in North and South America noting opportunities for his team's products to be improved. What can Matthias do to show acceptance for the feedback his team has been getting from other regions? Ignore it and tell his team to continue with current plans Send an email to the teams reporting suggestions and tell them he knows what's best. Thank the teams for feedback and look for opportunities in the future to engage these teams during product review phases to ensure feedback has been processed into the review phase To be a part of an organization with cultural adaptation, you should be able to display: Check all that apply. Political skills to ensure you get the credit for superb work. The ability to act based on knowledge received and a desire to improve. Desire to improve A firm voice for telling people "No." Capacity to gather information from cultures other than your own. Excessive emphasis on profits Misplaced corporate loyalty Obsession with personal advancement Unwillingness to take a stand for what is right Holstead Communication's decision to add a hidden fee is Diversity challenges are another contextual force influencing communication in the workplace. Issues such as age, gender, and education influence how you send and receive messages. Additionally, these factors require increased levels of awareness and sensitivity. As an effective business communicator, you need to be aware of diversity challenges. Read the scenario, and then answer the question. More than half of your company's workforce today is over the age of 40 . Due to changes in benefits, financial concerns, and overall better health, professionals are choosing to stay on the job longer. What are the key diversity challenges associated with this trend? Identify the potential diversity challenge described in the scenario. Check all that apply. Language barriers and ethnocentrism Global expansion into new markets Multiple generations in the workplace 4. Contextual forces influencing business communication Legal and ethical constraints are two of the four contextual forces influencing business communication. As contextual forces, legal and ethical constraints shape communication and provide boundaries in which communication occurs. Your understanding of legal and ethical constraints will improve the effectiveness of your workplace communication. When making any ethical business decision, you should first consider the interests of all have a direct interest, involvement, or investment in your company's decision. Which of the following are factors that provide legal and ethical constraints in business communication? Check all that apply. Educational levels Profit margins International laws Personal values Read the scenario. As you read, consider the position of your boss in relation to the ethical and legal forces at work, and then answer the questions. You work for Holstead Communications, a midsized digital phone, cable, and Internet service provider in rural New Mexico. Your company has always provided customers with two billing options: paperless or traditional. As a cost-saving measure, the company has decided to discontinue its traditional billing option. All customers who choose the traditional billing option will be charged a yearly billing fee of $25. This fee will offset printing and mailing costs of $600,000 annually. The CFO and legal team have determined that Holstead may be legally obligated to announce the fee increase to its customers. Nevertheless, to avoid customer loss, negative press, and a potential decrease in revenue-which would jeopardize the company's profit margin-Holstead will not announce the new fee. Instead, customers with traditional billing options will see a $2.08 increase on their monthly bills beginning next month. You are uncomfortable with the company's decision and bring your concerns to your boss. Your boss listens and unsympathetically tells you that it's not his decision. He then informs you that the decision is in the company's best interest and that you should be glad to have a job. Technological changes and team environments are also contextual forces that influence workplace communication. Today, many organizations rely heavily on a team-based approach and technology to improve productivity and innovation. Familiarity with technology and team environments will make you a more effective employee and communicator. Work teams help companies remain competitive in a global marketplace. Choose the selections from the list that best define effective work teams. Check all that apply. Teams are inherently dysfunctional and unpleasant unless they are well supervised. Teams are most successful when there is a common goal with measurable outcomes. Self-directed work teams handle a wide variety of functions. Read the scenario, and then answer the corresponding question. Your company has recently restructured, moving from a more hierarchical structure to a team-based approach. You are on a team of nine individuals. Two of your team members have been with the company for more than five years. The rest of your team members have joined the company in the past two years. As your team moves forward, you all must learn to establish good team practices that consider communication differences on your team. At your last three team meetings, one team member manipulated the conversation and directed the entire meeting. What should your team do to improve the team's future communication? Build trust. Distribute leadership. Improve the information flow