Top 6 Communication Problems in Today’s Workplace – 2020 Guide

According to various research, companies lose roughly $62 million per year due to poor internal communication. It’s an expensive issue that may be holding your company back. Unfortunately, it’s sometimes difficult to diagnose these problems, even though they’re standing right in front of you.

Because of this, we’ve decided to help you find the communication problems inside of your company and the ways you can resolve them effectively. So, if you’re ready to learn more about the topic and possibly get your company on its way to success, then let’s get it started, shall we?

1. Cultural differences

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Having a diverse employee structure is extremely important. However, it can lead to some unexpected problems along the way. If you’re not addressing these issues, they’ll only cause misunderstandings between your employees. A good way to approach this sensitive matter is through informing and educating your employees about their differences. The celebration of these differences should be a vital part of your company culture. So, try your best to promote these ideals, and make people who come from different cultures work together as much as possible.

You can even host thematic events that push your employees to share and learn about each other’s cultures and traditions. Whatever you do, make it known that any type of ignorance and bigotry won’t be tolerated at your company. It’s the only way to create a healthy work environment for everyone.

2. Attitude

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Does everyone seem to dislike one of your employees for some reason? Usually, there’s a good reason behind that. It may be due to their inability to cooperate and work together with their colleagues. Sometimes, this is caused by shyness (which is easily resolvable), but other times it may have something to do with their attitude. Only one employee with an attitude problem can act as a communicational obstacle in the workplace.

Of course, you shouldn’t immediately jump to conclusions and take overly drastic measures. After all, the employee in question may be an efficient and reliable worker. What you should do instead is- you guessed it, communicate more! Try to act as a mediator and talk things through with the entire team! Make sure your HR is well-trained and ready to help you resolve any internal conflicts caused by these types of issues.

3. Poor employee morale

Source: gallup.com

Sometimes, you’ll notice a lack of motivation from your employees. While this isn’t always about communicational issues, they certainly can be one of the reasons behind the low employee morale. In most cases, this is caused by poor management skills. A good manager should be a leader, not some kind of dictator ordering people around in the office. Your employees have to feel comfortable sharing their ideas with upper management. So, it’s your task to create an atmosphere where all of this will be possible.

Start by training your managers and instill the company’s policies and ideals into their roles. You want people who are easy to talk to but who are able to guide the rest of the team to your collective goals.

4. Outdated technology

Source: inc.com

If your company uses exclusively emails as the main form of communication, you’re bound to notice some inefficiencies. While there’s nothing inherently bad about e-mail correspondences, they do get a bit difficult to manage during the busiest hours of the week. Sometimes, your employees will be too busy to check their mails, which will in turn make things difficult for the rest of your team.

Luckily, communication tech has been evolving rapidly in the past few years, especially now when we’re forced to work remotely. You can hold important meetings and conferences over the video, and you can make use of various employee management apps and software. Additionally, you could invest in digital signage software such as the one you can find on this website.

Whatever you do, make sure to invest in the newest tech so you gain an advantage over your competitors.

5. Passive listening

Source: entrepreneurcaribbean.com

Sometimes, when you talk to someone you’ll notice they’re only half-listening to what you’re saying. Many people are simply not motivated enough to be active listeners, but when it comes to work-related topics, you have to ensure everyone is truly listening. You can do this by setting an example of yourself and trying hard to listen to and engage with the rest of the team. Also, you could always find creative and interesting ways to motivate your employees and convey important information in a fun way.

Of course, you can’t make someone listen to what you’re saying, but you can always try to find the root of their dissatisfaction and try to fix it. So, yes, try holding some meetings and team-building exercises to help your employees find the motivation they need to start being active listeners.

6. Departments are not well-connected

Source: mprnews.org

Your marketing team can’t do their jobs without the accounting department, your accountants can’t finish their reports without the efficient IT service…You get the gist. Your entire company should work as one! If your departments don’t have effective ways of getting to know each other, they won’t be able to collaborate well.

So, make sure to host some company-level meetups and events, where all of your employees can share their ideas and thoughts on the company matters. Let them resolve their issues by themselves! As long as the entire team cooperates well, your company will be on its way to success! So, don’t talk only to the department heads, make sure everyone’s voices are heard and their issues solved as fast as possible.

The bottom line

If your company is facing communication issues, make sure to work on resolving them as fast as you can. While these issues may seem minor at first glance, they’ll negatively affect your workplace, especially in the long run.

Wherever the issue may lie, make sure to act as a role model to the rest of your team. Be consistent and create a positive work environment where everyone feels comfortable enough to contribute to the solution.

Overall, as long as you talk to your employees and work on solving communication issues that may arise, you’ll see some great improvements in both productivity and revenue.