Who are the stakeholders?
A stakeholder is any person or group affected by a business, or able to affect it.
- Internal stakeholders: employees, managers, owners who work in the firm. Communication with them is internal communication.
- External stakeholders: customers, investors (shareholders), banks, suppliers, the local community, the media and the state. Communication with them is external communication.
They want different things. Customers want good value. Staff want fair pay and clear goals. Investors want profit and low risk. The community wants jobs and a clean environment. So one message for everyone does not work.
Communication strategy
A communication strategy is a plan for what to say, to whom, and how. It has five parts:
- Target: the exact group, for example working parents aged 30–45.
- Message: one clear, true key idea. Keep it short.
- Channel: where this group pays attention.
- Timing: when they are most likely to listen.
- Feedback and measurement: sales, clicks, survey answers, complaints. Then improve.
Every message follows the basic communication process: sender → encodes a message → channel → receiver decodes → feedback. Noise (jargon, distractions, mistrust) can spoil it at any point.
A firm's brand image grows from all its messages together, so they must agree with each other and with what the firm really does.
Verbal, non-verbal, written and digital communication
- Verbal: meetings, phone calls, presentations, interviews. Fast and personal; you get an instant reply.
- Non-verbal: facial expression, eye contact, posture, gestures, tone of voice, even clothes and punctuality. If words and body say different things, people believe the body.
- Written: emails, letters, memos, reports, contracts. Slower, but it leaves a record and can be checked.
- Digital media: websites, social networks, apps, newsletters, video. It reaches many people quickly and allows two-way talk. Three kinds:
- Owned media: the firm's own website or account.
- Paid media: online and offline ads.
- Earned media: reviews, shares and news stories the firm did not pay for.
Digital risks: a bad review or a careless post can spread in hours (a bad buzz), and personal data must be protected by law.
Financial communication and the business plan
Financial communication means giving money facts to investors, banks, tax offices and the public: annual accounts, profit, debts, risks and plans. Companies listed on a stock exchange must publish these regularly and truthfully. Honest numbers build trust; hiding bad news destroys it.
A business plan is a written document used to start or grow a firm and to ask banks or investors for money. Its usual parts:
- Summary and idea (what problem it solves)
- Market study: customers, competitors, trends
- Marketing plan: product, price, place, promotion
- Team and legal form
- Financial plan: start-up costs, sales forecast, cash-flow forecast, break-even point
Example: a small bakery in Pune needs ₹8 lakh for ovens. Its plan shows daily sales of 400 items and that it reaches break-even in 14 months.
Communication inside the team
Decision-making stages
1) Name the problem → 2) collect facts → 3) list options → 4) weigh pros and cons → 5) choose → 6) act → 7) review. Methods: a pros-and-cons list, a decision table with scores, brainstorming, and voting or consensus in groups.
Time management
Sort tasks by important and urgent: do important + urgent first, schedule important but not urgent work, hand off urgent but unimportant tasks, drop the rest. Set SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound).
Team building and barriers
Good teams have a shared goal, clear roles, trust and open feedback. Barriers: unclear goals, poor listening, conflict, language or cultural gaps, information overload, and groupthink (everyone agreeing to avoid conflict).
Influence and manipulation
Honest influence uses reasons, evidence, examples, and fair give-and-take. Manipulation uses tricks: fake hurry ("only today!"), guilt, flattery, fear, or a small "yes" that leads to a big one. Defence: pause, ask for facts in writing, check with someone else, and be ready to say no politely.
Try it
Pick a real or made-up small business (a tiffin service, a bike repair shop). Write one message for three stakeholders: a customer, an employee and a bank. For each, fill in Target, Message, Channel, Timing and how you will measure Feedback. Then check the 3D free play: does your channel match the one it suggests?
Key formulas and definitions
- Stakeholder = anyone affected by, or able to affect, the business
- Internal (staff) vs external (customers, investors, banks, suppliers, community, state)
- Strategy: Target → Message → Channel → Timing → Feedback
- Process: sender → message → channel → receiver → feedback (noise can interrupt)
- Digital media: owned, paid, earned
- Business plan: idea, market, marketing, team, finance
- SMART goal: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound
Worked examples
1. A phone maker finds a battery fault. Who must it tell, and how?
Customers: a clear recall notice on the website, email and social media, plus shop staff ready to help. Employees: an internal briefing first, so they can answer questions. Investors: a statement on the cost and plan. Regulators: an official written report. Same fact, four channels, honest in all.
2. A café wants more students. Build a short communication strategy.
Target: students aged 17–22 near the campus. Message: "Study-friendly café, free Wi-Fi, student price ₹60 coffee." Channel: short videos on social media and a poster at the college gate. Timing: start of term and exam weeks. Feedback: count student discount sales each week.
3. During a pitch, a speaker says "we are very confident" but avoids eye contact and speaks quietly. What do listeners believe?
When verbal and non-verbal messages disagree, people trust the non-verbal ones. The listeners will doubt the confidence. The fix: steady eye contact, open posture and a clear voice that match the words.
4. Sort these tasks: (a) client complaint due today, (b) plan next month's training, (c) colleague asks for a routine form now, (d) scroll social media.
(a) important + urgent: do first. (b) important, not urgent: schedule. (c) urgent, not important: hand off or do quickly. (d) neither: drop.
5. A salesperson says: "Sign now, this price ends in 10 minutes, everyone else already signed." Name the tricks and a defence.
Fake hurry (scarcity) and social pressure (everyone else). Defence: pause, ask for the offer in writing, compare with other options, and say no if pushed.
Common mistakes
- Sending the same message to every stakeholder. Investors, staff and customers need different content and channels.
- Thinking communication ends when the message is sent. Without feedback you do not know if it worked.
- Ignoring body language. Tone, eye contact and posture can cancel your words.
- Treating a business plan as only numbers. It must also explain the idea, the market and the team.