Communication Skills for Effective Management

Owen Hargie , David Dickson and Dennis Tourish Palgrave, Basingstoke, 2004, 496pp.
ISBN: 0-333-96575-2


Review by
Sow Hup Chan. Asian Business & Management. Houndmills: Dec 2006. Vol. 5, Iss. 4; pg. 559

Each chapter has an extensive list of references, valuable to the diligent student, teacher or researcher. The authors provide an introduction and overview or conclusion in each chapter, and most also have a 'reflective exercise', extremely useful in identifying areas for improvement and taking a more active role in the learning process.

Although oriented towards practitioners, this book would be suitable for a course covering a broad range of communication skills in management.

The book covers core skills across the spectrum of managerial communication and need not be read from cover to cover or in any particular order, as each chapter is stand-alone. Of particular interest are perhaps the last five chapters of the book, not often found in business communication texts. Chapter 11, 'Tell it like it is ...: communicating assertively', is particularly interesting as assertiveness is the preferred way of dealing with people problems.

In sum, the book lives up to its title. The information and insights should stimulate any individual in the workplace to understand how to interact more effectively. The emphasis on real-world organizational communication skills issues and recommended strategy makes Communication Skills for Effective Management a winner and a book I would recommend to prospective managers and librarians, as well as business instructors seeking to help their students appreciate the importance of developing communication competencies.