Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
E-mail allows one to escalate diplomatically by copying the manager
on the e-mail thread. This may not be sufficient, however, because
managers may not have the time to go through entire e-mail threads to
discover that something is not being delivered on time. Formal escalation
is advisable. The person escalating should inform the parties concerned
that the matter is being escalated. This keeps the escalation professional
and helps maintain relationships.
Another reason why timely escalation is advisable when delays are
encountered is because the other person may be delaying for he or she
need his or her manager's authorization to re-prioritize their work. An
escalation helps clear some logjams at the other party's end.
Automatic escalation exists as part of certain automated processes. This
is common in call center or technical support situations. One might recall
that such automatic escalation has a term identifying it — algedonics —
as discussed in Chapter 2 on Systems.
Communication Techniques
This section examines three ideas that the authors of this topic have found
useful and effective.
PGP
Edward Tufte says, “When presenting complicated material, follow PGP
(particular/general/particular).” This is a valuable organizing method.
When one wants to convey a point in a paragraph, one can structure it
so that one begins with a particular example (“Toyota sold more than X
electric cars last year”), then makes a general point (“Electrical cars are
becoming commercially successful lines for car manufacturers,”), and then
ends with a particular again (“Even Honda and other manufacturers have
come out with models such as Y and Z.”).
Tagmemics
Tagmemics is a theory considered by some to be a fringe linguistic theory.
We do not go into those details here. Of interest to us is one of its extended
concepts: the suggestion that an event or an object can be seen as a static
unit, a dynamic unit, or a field. This can be considered an ordering principle
for one's thinking, useful in communicating better. As a static unit, the event
or object must be considered on its own. For example, this is the online
help module for this application. As a dynamic unit, this online help module
