Oral communication capabilities of managers: The case of Iranian middle managers

Abstract: Sharing of information through oral communication has increased in significance among different occupations specifically among managers. This has resulted in the need for an instrument to measure managers' oral communication capabilities. The main objectives of this paper are to identify the dimensions of the oral communication capability and to develop an instrument to measure this capability. To achieve these goals, a survey was conducted among 59 male and female middle managers in different companies through providing a modified Oral Communication Capability Self-test. The results indicate that the oral communication capability construct has a structure with three dimensions among Iranian managers: The Ability to Pass on Information, The Ability to Present Self Credibly, and The Ability to Communicate With Male Counterparts. This study also investigated the typology of middle managers based on their oral communication capabilities. Based on the cluster analysis procedure, a two-cluster solution with significant differences between all oral communications dimensions was obtained