Professional Workplace Communication

Frequently Asked Questions

1.What exactly is Workplace Communication?

At first glance, most people tend to think of “communication” as public speaking or writing. While those are definitely important individual skills, many other forms of communication operate under the surface to shape workplace cultures—and individual career success.

At a tactical level, workplace communication includes our verbal, nonverbal, electronic and formal written communication within and across organizations. Specifically, it is our daily communication with our peers, teams, managers, and leaders – as well as with external stakeholders including customers, vendors, partners, regulators, and the media.

Our communication choices with these groups in turn reflect and reinforce the culture of our workplace, as norms form within the organization around the practice of leadership, conflict and decision-making, organizational change, and interorganizational collaboration.

So, studying workplace communication helps us recognize, understand and influence “what’s really going on here” —an important, yet often unrecognized career skill given today’s globalized, technology-driven and ever-changing organizations.

2.What courses does the graduate Professional Workplace Communication certificate include?

The graduate certificate in Professional Workplace Communication includes two required core courses and two electives, for a total of twelve credit hours.

The first required course is COMS 811: Applied Organizational Communication (formerly COMS 930), which explores the workplace culture dynamics described above. COMS 811 is typically offered each fall semester.

The second required course is COMS 730: Writing and Speaking for Decision Makers, which focuses on planning, crafting and delivering audience-focused messages through both public speaking and written report writing. COMS 730 is typically offered each spring semester.

Electives are offered each year as well. Previous electives courses have included organizational culture and communication, stakeholders and organizations, and communication and organizational change.

3.How is the Workplace Communication certificate different than marketing communication or business programs?

Workplace communication is a valuable supplement to marketing and business expertise. Workplace communication explores the human side of business, rather than campaign design and measurement or bottom-line, financially-based business metrics.

That being said, workplace communication dynamics are often at the root of issues related to missed deadlines, team conflict, employee turnover, ineffective management/leadership, or a lack of technical product innovation. Given these common organizational challenges, the insights gained through knowledge and application of workplace communication dynamics is a valuable career differentiator.

4.How can I integrate Workplace Communication courses into my current program?

All KU Edwards graduate students are invited and encouraged to take courses from the workplace communication certificate curriculum. Courses count as an elective within the required curriculum for many other graduate programs at the Edwards Campus (please speak to your academic advisor to determine the courses fit best with your plan of study). You may also choose to complete the full four-course certificate as a supplementary credential to another program.