Survey Critique
Testing stability of the scores would entail determining consistency of the scores obtained from both surveys. As a matter of fact, the experiment was a test-retest procedure since the previous questionnaire used similar questions excluding the first and the last ones. In the survey for the previous year,, sales managers and representatives were not asked about their understanding of a clear company direction. Consequently, the test-retest test would not include the question. However, determining correlation between the scores of the two periods makes two assumptions. Firstly, it is assumed that the measured characteristic remains unchanged in both periods. Secondly, the elapsed time between the first test and the second one should be long enough to ensure that responses of the previous test do not influence current responses.
The second question states that: “Monthly sales magazine provide useful information to my job”. The question tested the attitude of sales representatives and managers towards significance of the information provided by Monthly sales magazines. It is evident that the scores obtained from the second question are not stable. The question was aimed respondents to rate the level of importance of the intranet portal towards providing significant job information. Comparing the scores to those of the previous year depict deviations of -15, +2 and +13 for the same group of respondents. Responses obtained from sales managers portrayed percentage scores of 40, 50 and 10 respectively for positive, on the fence and negative aspects. Comparing the scores with performance for the previous year indicates deviations of -6, +3 and +3 respectively for the three aspects. It suffices to state that the scores are unstable since both tests do not display similar scores for the aspects.
The third question states that: “Intranet portal provides useful information to my job”. It asked whether respondents received the right amount of communication. The question determines whether the respondents feel that the intranet portal is a useful source of information regarding their job. The scores were 19%, 68% and 13% for sales representatives and 18%, 73% and 9% for sales managers respectively. The observed deviations were +4, -8, +4 for sales representatives and -1, +1, 0 for sales managers. The deviations indicate that the scores obtained from sales representatives were unstable. Deviations of +1 and -1 are acceptable, hence, the scores were stable indicating that the survey question is reliable. Similarly, the fourth question was designed to determine effectiveness of the company information towards enabling the respondents to find quickly what they wanted. The question is appropriate since it determines whether the company information is easy to find or not. The scores obtained reveal discrepancies of -5, -2, +7 for sales representatives and 0, -6, +6 for sales managers respectively. Data score obtained from sales managers indicating that there was no deviation in the managers’ opinion stated that the information was indeed useful and easy to find.
The question which required a feedback concerning importance of the information to success of the sales is actionable and properly phrased. The question is also effective since it measures the most vital objective of communication that entails increasing sales. However, the scores are unstable since they depict deviations of -3, -2 and +5 for sales representatives and +2, 0 and -2 for sales managers. Consistency of the percentage of sales managers that safeguarded neutrality clearly indicates stability of the individual score. The question designed to determine the level of satisfaction that respondents received from the communication was properly phrased and actionable. Moreover, the question was a proper measure of the impact to the behaviors and attitudes of the respondents towards the communication system. However, all scores were inconsistent when compared to the previous year’s results. Consequently, the data is unreliable.
Asking the respondents whether they had a clear sense of the company development plan was proper. The responses obtained from the question would indicate whether the company communication plan was effective. However, the fact that the question did not appear in the survey for the previous year disqualifies the test-retest procedure. In the first question, respondents were asked to express their opinion concerning significance of the Monthly Sales Magazine towards providing information about their job. Question formulation is appropriate. It is also actionable and efficient to portray the attitudes of employees towards the magazine. However, the test-retest stability procedure is not applicable since survey for the previous year did not include the question (SCM, 2009, p. 7).
Data Analysis
The results obtained from the first question indicate that 32%, 38% and 30% of sales representatives are positive, on the fence and negative that the monthly sales magazine provides information that is significant to their job. It is also evident that 53%, 31% and 15% of sales managers are positive, on the fence and negative that the magazine provides useful information. The results indicate that about half of the managers are certain that the magazine plays a pertinent role in the provision of job information. However, a comparative majority of sales representatives (38%) are uncertain about whether the magazine provides useful information or not as shown in the figure below.With regard to the intranet portal, 34%, 50% and 16% of sales representatives are positive, on the fence and negative respectively, that the communication vehicle provides useful information. Similarly, 40%, 50% and 10% of sales managers are positive, on the fence and negative that intranet portal provides useful information as shown in the figure below. It suffices to state that 50% of sales representatives and managers are uncertain about the significance of the intranet portal in the provision of job information.The table below represents the results obtained from the respondents concerning whether they receive the right amount of communication. Apparently, 19%, 68% and 13% of sales representatives are positive, on the fence and negative about the idea. Also, 18%, 73% and 9% of sales managers are positive, on the fence and negative that sales managers consider the available communication system to be capable of providing the right amount of information. From both results, it is evident that majority of the respondents are unsure concerning whether the provided information is sufficient.
| Sales Representatives | Sales Managers | |
| Positive | 19% | 18% |
| On the fence | 68% | 73% |
| Negative | 13% | 9% |
Furthermore, the results indicate that about half of the respondents (49% sales representatives and 52% sales managers) are uncertain concerning effectiveness of the information provided, and its ease of access. 10% and 41% of the sales representatives are positive and negative respectively that the information is provided in a way that is easy to find. Similarly, 33% and 15% of sales managers are positive and negative respectively that the information can be easily accessed as shown in the figure below.The results also indicate that 48% of sales representatives and 52% of sales managers are uncertain about whether the communication is important to sales success. Similarly, 27% and 25% of sales representatives are positive and negative respectively concerning the idea. Additionally, 33% and 15% of sales managers are positive and negative respectively about the idea as shown in the figure below.Furthermore, 19%, 52% and 29% of sales representatives are positive, on the fence and negative respectively that they are satisfied with the received communication. Similarly, 21%, 49% and 30% of sales managers are positive, on the fence and negative respectively concerning the idea as shown in the chart below.Lastly, 10%, 30% and 60% of sales representatives are positive, on the fence and negative respectively that they have a clear sense of the company development plan. In a similar way, 15%, 50% and 35% of sales managers are positive, on the fence and negative respectively about the idea as shown in the table below.
| Sales Representatives | Sales Managers | |
| Positive | 10% | 15% |
| On the fence | 30% | 50% |
| Negative | 60% | 35% |
Issues to Explore and Measurement Tools
The results vividly indicate the prevalent communication lapse in Primus Company. An analysis conducted on most of the responses to the questions indicates that approximately 50% of sales representatives and managers are uncertain about the role that communication vehicles play in the organization, including the quality of information. As a matter of fact, the results portray a bad picture that necessitates addressing so as to reduce communication expenditure and increase company sales emanating from an efficient communication network. It is appropriate to explore further workplace communication constraints since poor performance of the company is also attributed to poor communication. Using a focus group would be essential since it enables exploration and testing of scenarios. For better results, I would ensure that planning, preparation and management of the conversations are appropriate (Cooper, n. d, p. 2).
It would be sound to apply ranking and multi-voting techniques in the conversations. Ranking entails asking individuals in the focus group to list down communication issues that they think require addressing in subsequent meetings. The information obtained from the responses can be captured and included in the report. Multi-voting entails allocating theoretical finances to each participant; then requiring the participants to spend the funds with respect to the order of preference of critical communication constraints. The opinions of the audience regarding the most effective communication plan would be obtained by comparing theoretical expenditures on each item of preference. The focus group would be appropriate in the determination of whether the communication department understands the exact facts that require communicating and the target audience (Katie, 2011, p. 1).
Measurements would be taken at the beginning, middle and end of the conversations. Taking measurements at the beginning of the conversation ensures that unique responses are obtained from the participants before commencement of the communication topic. Measuring in the middle of the conversation would be appropriate especially under the ranking technique since participants would have grasped the contents of the topic; thus, can provide applicable opinions. Lastly, taking measurements at the end of the conversation would allow obtaining conclusive findings concerning possible solutions to prevalent communication constraints (Cooper, n d, p. 3).