Date of Award

2012

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Specialization

Communication and Leadership

School or Department

School of Leadership Studies

First Advisor

Dr. Nobuya Inagaki

Second Advisor

Dr. Michael Hazel

Abstract

Technology based communication tools in business represent an area that has been intensely researched. Of all the available tools, teleconferencing remains the most widely and frequently used in business communication. This case study explores whether teleconferencing is a useful communication tool for leadership to express objectives to the organization’s members. Philosophical assumptions in this paper are based on Aristotle’s components of rhetoric: ethos, pathos, and logos. Media Naturalness (Kock, 2004) and Social Presence Theory (Short & Williams, 1976) provide the theoretical basis for this paper. The study is based on qualitative data gathering and analysis surrounding the 3rd Quarter Organization-wide Teleconference event of a large multinational corporation. Two focus group discussions were conducted. Participating members were from two separate office locations. The objective was to determine what messages participants received during the teleconference meeting, whether they were in line with leadership’s intentions, and participants’ perceptions on the usefulness of the teleconferencing format. The main purpose of this paper is to provide insight into ways organizations may optimize the use of technology based communication tools available to them.

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