Communication Media as Tools for Developing and Sustaining Organizational Identification

Abstract

The research attempted to make an intensive study regarding Communication Media as Tools for Developing and Sustaining Organizational Identification. The key question is, “What are the communication media commonly used by employees of Company X and how do these help in creating, developing and sustaining organizational identification?” The minor objectives of the study are: (1) to identify the communication media adapted by the employees of Company X; (2) to assess the level of organizational identification of the employees of Company X; (3) to validate the relationship of the communication media used and their organizational identification; and (4) to identify which communication medium is the most applicable and most result-oriented. The working hypothesis of this study states that: (1) Different communication media may be used as tools for developing and sustaining organizational identification. Each medium has its own unique, salient characteristics to contribute in the fulfillment of the task, and therefore possesses individual strengths as tools for the development and sustenance of identification. (2) Employees of company X have a high level of organizational identification. (3) The more face-to-face communication is utilized, the higher the level of organizational identification of the employees. (4) Face-to-face communication is the most effective and most applicable medium for developing and sustaining organizational identification. Communication Media, the independent variable, refers to the means or patterns employed and utilized by organizational members in communicating and transmitting messages to co-members. This includes: (1) face-to-face; (2) electronic communication; (3) telephone; and (4) documents. Organizational identification, the dependent variable, is a means by which organizational members define the self in relation to the organization. It represents the social and psychological tie binding the employees and the organization — a tie that exists even when employees are dispersed. Moreover, it refers to the strength of an individual’s cognitive attachment to the organization. The model utilized in the study is the Integrated Model of Berlo’s Communication Model and Daft, and Lengel’s Information Richness Theory. It shows the importance of organizational identification, nurtured by the employees and the organization itself. It illustrates the direct relationship between communication and organizational identification. The model shows that in order to achieve a high member identification, organizational members should use face-to-face communication, as it is the best and most effective medium in creating, developing, and sustaining organizational identification. Face-to-face communication is followed by electronic communication, then the communication via telephone. The least most effective medium in fulfilling the task is the use of documents. The research design is an exploratory-descriptive research using purposive-convenience sampling method. Survey questionnaires were distributed, and an interview was conducted to gather data. There were a total of fifteen respondents for the survey questionnaire. The interview was conducted with the manager of Company X. To analyze data, frequency-percentile tables were used, as well as the Spearman’s Rank Correlation. The results show that the employees of Company X have moderate to high organizational identification. They believe that face-to-face communication is the best communication medium to fulfill the task of creating, developing and sustaining organizational identification. There is a direct correlation between the communication media and organizational identification. The strongest of which is with Face-to-face communication with a correlation of 0.5152. Thus, the hypothesis is confirmed. Indeed, communication plays a vital role in creating, developing and maintaining organizational identification, and face-to-face communication is the most effective in fulfilling this task.