The purpose of this investigation was to determine business department chairs' rat
ings of topics typically covered in the business communication course. A sample of
280 chairs provided administrative information about the business communication
courses at their institutions, rated the importance of 34 topics typically covered in
the course, and assessed the need for the course in their programs. Results indicate
that department chairs perceive writing skills to be more important to business
communication courses than other communication skills, such as speaking, tech
nology-mediated communication, interpersonal communication, team/group com
munication, listening, and cultural literacy skills. Implications for business com
munication curriculum and research are offered.
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