Grapevine communication is an informal mode of communication but it plays an instrumental role in aiding the formal methods of communication in every organization. Recognizing its pros and cons can help you use it to your advantage. Reliability: Formal communication is the more reliable form, as there is a paper trail. Authorities should ensure that the grapevine initiators hold accurate information. Here the conversation is mostly based on interesting stuff that is not related to work anyway. Teams become more cohesive when members talk to one another outside of the project or assignment they may be working on. Vertical Formal communication typically moves vertically or horizontally through an organization. For a related article How Rumors Hurt People, click here. As per an analysis, around 80% of the rumors in grapevine communication are work-related, while 20% is associated with personal things like gossips. In this lesson, you’ll learn about verbal, non-verbal, formal, informal and grapevine communication. I love writing about the latest in marketing & advertising. Its stretch within an organization is not limited; hence it got the name – grapevine. Whats does informal mean? Informal communication is … Have you found other pluses or minuses of the grapevine? not according to the prescribed, official, or customary way or manner; irregular; unofficial: informal proceedings. Moreover, this form of communication is not backed by any rules; hence it is impossible to control the spread of information. If a rumor gets going, it won’t take long until the rumor is there in the whole organization. On the other hand, informal communication is very quick, often being instantaneous. Communication is a _____ of facts, ideas, and opinions by two or more persons. Required fields are marked *, Copyright © 2020 Marketing91 All Rights Reserved, Grapevine Communication: Meaning, Types and Importance, Personal Development - Importance and Steps, Organizational Effectiveness - Definition, Meaning and Six systems, Verbal Communication - 9 Barriers to Verbal Communication at Workplace, Nonverbal Communication - Uses, Types, Importance And Role, What is Communication? Click the button and find it on your computer. Your email address will not be published. The information passes rapidly in grapevine communication. If the information is emotionally unhealthy for someone, then it may lead to an emotional breakdown. Do you have a great story about this? This form of communication follow no formal rules; hence misunderstanding may arise quite often. Formal communication channels directly impact the decision-making process of a company’s management. To justify our participation in spreading the rumor, we tell ourselves that part of it must be true. You can follow me on Facebook. Grapevine communication is a metaphor for a communication system that began in the 1860s during the Civil War in America as a description for telegraph lines that were strung through trees, resembling grapevines. On one hand, people will think twice about taking what they know is a wrong course of action. So, grapevine communication can be beneficial for the company’s productivity only if accurate information spreads in a controlled manner. Formal communication is also known by the name of official communication. Disadvantages: (i) Less credible: A grapevine is less credible than a formal channel of communication. Increase in the growth of an organization leads to increase in the chain of command. d. Information carried by informal communication channels is estimated to be 75 to 95 percent accurate. When gossip is being spread through the grapevine, people's reputations, careers, and lives can get destroyed very rapidly. Thisformal system provides information regarding the organization tothe employees through different media. It is formed by individuals and groups in an organization. They ought to ensure that the official information channelizes via formal means before the unofficial version starts making its rounds by using informal channels. In the probability chain, the person transferring the information is not sure about whom to pass the information. Information that spread in grapevine communication is often based on rumors and is mostly incomplete information. This type of information communication goes up, sideways, down, and diagonally in an organization, and it spreads the information by using separate means from the formal channels of communication. It brings them closer and gives them immense satisfaction. Speed: Formal communication is slower, sometimes feeling unbearably slow due to bureaucracy. For example [my story] would show as my story on the Web page containing your story.TIP: Since most people scan Web pages, include your best thoughts in your first paragraph. These are the four types of grapevine communication that are witnessed within an organization. This is an advantage as well as a disadvantage of grapevine communication. Importance and Steps, Oral Communication: Definition, Importance and Examples, Communication Cycle: Definition, Barriers and Importance. How to make grapevine communication beneficial for an organization? In organizations or establishments where formal communications do not function properly, grapevine communication comes to the rescue. In many cases informal communications can turn to formal communication if they are added in to the formal communication information flow of a company. Formal communication typically occurs through prescribed reporting channels established by a company's hierarchy structure. Formal communication is based on designated lines of authority.4 It is best identified by the organizational chart. To cool down the surge emotions, employees should have a medium to talk to their colleagues informally – grapevine is useful there.