Effective business communication skills are essential for organisational success. Poor communication can cost an organisation dearly and prevent it from being truly competitive.

Corporate Communication: Getting the message across in business is not a textbook; it is a practical guide to successful business communication in the South African context. It caters for the needs of students in Business Communication at universities, universities of technology, comprehensive institutions, and business professionals in large organisations, small business owners and entrepreneurs.

It is written in a clear, informative style, refreshingly free of business or academic jargon.

A few of the important topics addressed in this book are:

• Effective interpersonal business communication
• Dealing effectively with clients
• Persuasion and negotiation
• The role of culture in business communication
• Planning successful formal presentations
• Modern business writing
• Arranging and holding a press conference

About the authors

Dr Elise van Staden is a senior lecturer in the Department of applied Communicative Skills at the University of Johannesburg. She has coordinated the Business Communication courses on the university's Kingsway campus since the inception of the courses in the mid-nineties. She has a doctorate in Linguistics, specialising in language planning.

Susan Marx was responsible for the development of the Business Communication course for BCom and Engineering students at the University of Johannesburg and has extensive experience in corporate marketing and finance. Her experience as a news anchor for the SABC has added to her expertise in the field of corporate communication. She has an MA in Applied Linguistics and is currently completing a PhD on whistle-blowing.

Lisel Erasmus-Kritzinger has written several best-selling communication books. She lectures in Business Communication at the University of Johannesburg and heads up a successful business communication and training company. She has an MA in Applied Linguistics, specialising in cross-cultural communication in South African organisations.

The authors also run public and corporate seminars on corporate and business communication skills. They have worked with a wide range of South African companies.