Communication issues in the workplace between employees at all hierarchical levels is something that a lot of organizations are now trying to address. After all, the opportunity cost associated with communication problems in the workplace is immense.
57% of employees report not being given clear directions and 69% of managers are not comfortable communicating with the employees in general.
With these staggering data points, it is clear that issues around communication in the workplace need to be addressed.
Table of Content
Causes of Workplace Communication Problems
From having stringent hierarchies in the organization to the lack of cloud-based technology, the causes of problems around communication in the workplace can be manifold.
Here are some of the possible causes that lead to communication problems and ultimately a decline in productivity –
Informal Communication
A company dominated by an overly friendly work culture is used to quick replies. This may be in the form of text or mail due to which critical components of the project are left unclear.
Tip: Make email or text communications clear and detailed. Make sure that your responses are complete and comprehensive. Take into consideration the fact that the receiver is not aware of any details of the project.
Lack Of Distinction Between Roles In A Project
When employees are not clear with their roles within a collaborative project, there is always a high chance of missing tasks. Individuals just assume that somebody would be responsible for the task and in the end, nobody does it.
You can easily avoid finger-pointing and missed deadlines with proper management and allocation of tasks to team members.
Tip: In any group setting, there needs to be a clear demarcation of the responsibilities that are expected from all members. The person in charge of the team could resort to composing an email that explicitly specifies the roles of each member in the group and streamlines their responsibilities.
Oversharing Irrelevant Details
Being in an overly friendly environment may often lead to sharing of information that is not necessarily relevant to projects. This is often the case if there is a lack of rotation of team members and employees get ‘too comfortable’ with each other.
Tip: Authorities should emphasize the need for professionalism in the company. Information sensitive meetings should be held behind closed doors. And an attempt should be made to stop gossip at its very culmination.
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5 Signs of Workplace Communication Problems
As an employer, it is of utmost importance to identify problems around communication in the workplace and address those –
The positives of effective communication not only include higher productivity but also leads to higher sales, improved customer service, and higher staff retention.
Thus, identifying the problem and finding its solution is paramount to an organization’s overall success.
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Over-reliance On Technology
The pandemic has crippled our actual communication channels, the entire setup being shifted to online mediums. Services like group email and video conferencing have become critical to this faceless communication.
Striking a balance between technology and actual face to face communication is the key when it comes to effective communication in the workplace.
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Usage Of Slang And In-house Jargon
The creation of a friendly work environment makes it likely for employees to communicate with each other using slang and jargon. And everyone is not familiar with this kind of language.
This is especially the case if the organization is related to a technology-based product where jargon used there is overwhelming to grasp for an outsider.
When this happens, the listener lacks the understanding required to grasp the concept and soon stops listening. This reduces the chances of converting a possible sale, thus creating a lull in the profitability for the organization.
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Lack Of Relationship Between Managers And Employees
In an attempt to meet personal targets, the management often becomes fixated on results. In this process, employees face situations wherein their inputs are disregarded.
If this happens multiple times, it eventually leads to the employee refraining from sharing information. And ultimately causing poor communication/an information gap.
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Lack Of Emphasis On Collaboration
If employees start feeling that their companies do not promote collaboration on projects, they stop making efforts to communicate.
This in turn reduces the quality of information exchange thereby hindering teamwork, employee-employer relationships, and the growth of the organization.
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Assuming Everyone To Be On The Same Wavelength
In certain cases, there is a closed-off relationship between managers and their employees. Managers often tend to assume that the employee is on the same wavelength as them. They, thus, feel that there is no need to communicate all the information.
The employee is left clueless in this situation and hesitates to communicate with his senior management. This is devastating for the firm as this notion may sweep over to the entire hierarchy of the business creating chaos.
How to Have Better Communication in Your Workplace
The upsides of better communication at the organization are numerous which is why an employer must address these.
Following are some innovative solutions that you can implement into the business:
Emphasize the importance of clear, concise, and to the point communication
Present information at its face value rather than trying to patronize it.
In that regard, businesses can consider the adoption of CloudTutorial. It is essentially a solution that helps businesses to create FAQ pages which in turn allow them to serve their customers better.
These FAQ pages can also be created for the benefit of employees. They can consist of guidelines that help the individual better tackle a situation that may arise due to poor communication problems.
Encourage discussions between managers and employees so that each person is on the same page
Fostering an environment in which each employee shares the same vision helps boost efficiency and productivity.
Encouraging effective workplace communications also leads to –
- Improved working relationships,
- Checks thread that leads to gossip,
- Improves employee engagement,
- And boosts business performance.
Wherever possible, encourage face to face communication
Given the pandemic and the shifting of businesses to an online setup, verbal communication should be given more importance.
Yes, we have access to excellent communication tools and solutions where teams are just a phone call away. But there’s only so much that written communication and phone calls can handle especially when you cannot assess listening skills and the body language of a person.
Trying to give communication tools a break sometimes, and switch to face to face communication/meetings. It’s an easy way to assess listening skills and boost employees’ morale.
Eliminate in-house jargon that is used to relay information to employees
Not everyone is familiar with the technical terms used and keeping up can become a monumental task, especially for someone new to the organization.
CloudTutorial is an easy to use knowledge-sharing platform that stores information under certain headings and subheadings. It allows newly appointed employees to search through the database in case the usage of a particular jargon is unclear.
Encourage the exchange of ideas throughout the organization and go big on feedback
This helps in maintaining a certain degree of openness and honesty, critical for efficient communication.
You can also include a suggestion box so that each person/team can anonymously put forth his message.
Teach, don’t assume
It is often seen that the ones in management and leadership positions assume that employees already possess the level of (business) communication skills they are aiming for. Well, this is a huge mistake.
Conduct a training session and encourage group initiatives for critical skills. By doing this, you’ll notice that your workforce makes fewer mistakes.
Build an advanced knowledge base for your customers and give them answers fast – real fast.
Take your app and help center to the next level with CloudTutorial.
Final Thoughts
Organizations that have the most effective communication practices have streamlined their efforts throughout the hierarchy.
If practices and protocols are not already in place, it is high time to consider information-sharing tools like CloudTutorial which will compensate for the ineffective organizational setup.
An important thing to remember is that not all problems can be attributed to communication problems in the workplace. Hence, you must assess the situation in totality and look for other possible causes too.
Good communication starts with an individual.
Make sure your employees feel at ease while sharing their ideas. Encourage them to ask questions and seek help if they are unclear about tasks or face issues.
This will help foster a conducive environment for employee growth and will also have a positive impact on your relationship with the team members.
No. The whole concept of idea exchange sessions and other collaborative exercises is for employees to feel valued in the company.
A strict hierarchy usually prevents teams from feeling like their opinions, questions, and ideas matter, which is why these sessions will be greatly beneficial.
Good communication forms an integral factor for the smooth functioning of any organization. It is an essential tool that helps to strike a balance between meeting goals and maintaining a strong working relationship with all levels of the organization.
The need to address poor communication has become even more critical. Why? Because the pandemic has forced employees to often work remotely and employee communication and meetings have taken a backseat.
Thus, it is important to develop a communication strategy that will be key to achieving long-term results. Well communicated ideas are a result of effective communication and are critical to the longevity of a business.
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