Impact of organizational communication in enhancing work effectiveness in local government entities

2.4 Local entities/ local government

The local government refers to a governing institution which has authority over a sub national territorially defined area; in federal systems, a sub state territorially defined area. These include towns, cities, counties, districts and regions governed in most cases by locally elected officials. Local governments' jurisdictional and administrative authority varies depending on the degree of decentralization and the national governance structure in a given country. (Tjosvold, 1991:61) Many of the theories used in developing cross-functional teams find their origins in small group organizational communication theories.

It can typically only have control over their specific geographical region, and can not pass or enforce laws that will affect a wider area. Local governments can elect officials, enact taxes, and do many other things that a national government would do, just on a smaller scale. ( www.businessdictionary.com/definition/effectiveness)

2.5 Meaning of effectiveness

Effectiveness is the degrees to which objectives are achieved and the extent to which targeted problems are solved or the capability of producing a desired result. When something is deemed effective,

it means it has an intended or expected outcome, or produces a deep, vivid impression; it is also means the degree to which objectives are achieved and the extent to which targeted problems are solved. In contrast to efficiency, effectiveness is determined without reference to costs and, whereas efficiency means "doing the thing right," effectiveness means "doing the right thing. ( http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/local-government)

According to (Norbin, 2011:10), One of the key factors in attaining high level of organizational effectiveness is sound communication .Organizational communication consists of a number of principles «Communication is a central and not a peripheral component of organizational effectiveness. It is not a frill. It is vital; communication is a pervasive activity in organizations. It is not something that only some people in organizations must do or something that occurs infrequently.

2.5.1 The theoretical framework

This research is built on two important variables:

The independent: organizational communication

The dependent variable: work effectiveness

The organizational communication has three aspects which are: interpersonal role including Figure-head, manager, and relation. Informational role include Monitoring, dissemination of information, speaker while the role of decision includes Entrepreneur, Problem solving, Appropriations and negotiation. (Mintzberg in International Journal of Social Science and Humanity, Vol. 2, No. 3, May 2012)

The functions organizational communication requires the following person's characteristics: Listener characteristics: Reading ability, academic achievement, and vocabulary, ego involvement with the message, fatigue, gender, extrinsic motivation, and ability to make a note and for the Speaker characteristic: speaking area, the fluency of the speaker's speaking, Speaker visibility, speaker credibility, and favorable attitude towards speaker. These characteristics can't achieve without the listener comprehension and Message characteristics such as Clear, unambiguous, active voice, containing similar points of view, disconfirmation on the listener's experience (Understanding model and audiences; source: Watson& Barker 1984)

Organizational Communication towards Work Effectiveness

Organizational communication is measured by Achievement of results, communicating effectively, dependability attendance, Job organizational Knowledge, makes effective decisions, planning organization, problem solving Judgment, productivity, Responsibility. And work effectiveness Handles and delivers multiple projects simultaneously Keeps individuals well informed of key organizational issues and needs Completes work in a timely manner Possesses knowledge and skills necessary to perform job Uses agreed upon criteria for decision-making rather than hidden agendas Updates staff regularly and communicates plans to those involved Resolves sensitive issues without making the situation worse Works effectively under pressure - balances multiple objectives Acts like a business owner, taking care of the needs of the unit (Michigan State University (2014) Job Effectiveness available at: http://www.hr.msu.edu/performance/supportstaff/JobEffect.htm accessed on the 24^th April 2015)