Ethical Issues in Organizational Communication: Decision-Making Skills (Essay Sample)

Ethical Issues in Organizational Communication Name of Student Institution Affiliation Ethical Issues in Organizational Communication Poor communication can lead to devastating effects in the event of a catastrophe especially involving interdependent companies. Decision makers in such complex organization structures need to establish strong communication skills that ensure everyone in the organization receives correct and timely information. A centralized resource containing all the requisite information should be established to avoid conflicting information within the organization. The database would be significant to prevent interdependent companies making critical decisions that would affect the legitimacy and credibility of the company in the event of a catastrophe such as in BP (Brown, 2013). Such a database should be made available to all interdependent companies with regular and timely information correctly updated by the top management and decision makers. Establishing a proper crisis communication plan would prepare an organization in the event of a crisis by averting credibility issues while allowing decision makers to restore normality. Also, appointing a spokesperson is necessary to enable consistent reporting without contradictory statements from other inter-organizational companies. For example, the CEO of BP gave a contradicting statement regarding the responsibility of safety on the drilling rig by abdicating accountability to Transocean (Brown, 2013). A well-established communication chain will enhance stakeholder trust while allowing decision makers to make appropriate decisions for the organization. Organizations should integrate communication as a proactive function in its operations and not merely as a reactive function. The integration will ensure stakeholders; investors and shareholders are informed at all times about the happenings in the organization. Failure to notify the stakeholders dimini...