GUSTAV W. FRIEDRICH
ARTHUR VANGUNDY
University of Oklahoma

Our recent and ongoing transition from a postindustrial society to an
information-based society has made skillful communication the funda-
mental resource of the age. Nowhere is this more noticeable than in the
areas of employment and career success. John and Merna Galassi ( 1978),
summarizing 60 years of research on the job interview, concluded: "re-
searchers consider communication and interpersonal skills as the single
most important set of factors in the interview" (p. 191). Not only are
communication skills an important determinant in obtaining jobs, they
are equally relevant to success and promotion in those positions. A recent
study of the graduates of the 13 degree-granting institutions that compose
the University of Wisconsin system concluded that the three factors given
the greatest importance in the assessment of job candidates (interpersonal
skills, attitude, and oral communication skills) correspond closely to the
three highest ranked factors for successful employment (interpersonal
skills, motivation, and written and oral communication skills). The impor-
tance that the responding organizations place on communication skills is
further revealed by the fact that more than 90% of them provide additional
training for their employees in both oral and written communication
( Page & Perelman, 1980).

Employers of University of Wisconsin graduates are not unique. Over
10 years ago, William C. Norris ("Training talks," 1977), chair and chief
executive officer of Control Data Corporation, estimated total expendi-
tures for training in American industry at $100 billion annually -- or

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