Communication Problems in an Organization - Essay Example

?Heading: Communication in organization Communication in organization Introduction Communication is significant in any set up. In an organization, it is very important for managers since it helps them in performing their functions of management. The main functions of a manager are to plan, to organize, control and direct. These functions would not be effective without proper communication with the organization. In fact, the definition of the term organizational communication is highly dependent with the way one views the relationship between communication and organization. On the other hand, the model that the organizations adapt for communication is defines its effectiveness. Communication in an organization can contribute to its failure or its success (Downs & Adrian, 2004). This paper is a recommendation report that addresses the problem of communication in a business organization. It identifies the problems and recommends how an organization should deal with such problems related to communication. Communication Problems in an Organization Poor communication is a major problem in most organizations. It leads to failure of many projects, dissatisfaction of employees and eventually high turnover of employees hence causing huge losses to the organization. Poor communication also leads to lack of team work within the organization. This might result to low or dismal performance by employees. One major problem associated with poor communication is the lack of employees being informed about whatever is happening in the organization (Carroll, 2010). This can be facilitated by lack personal contact between workers and management. In most organization, there is a wide gap that exists between top managers and employees at the lowest level in the organization. As a result, it becomes difficult for information to flow effectively and efficiently from the top to bottom. Employees at the lower level stay in the dark, and they do not know what is happening. It is assumed that the modes of communication used can deliver important information to all employees. However, there are employees who do not use the modes of communication. For instance, where the top management is not in personal contact with the other employees, they might decide to use email as a mode of communication. Not all employees working in the organization have access to computers. Therefore, they do not use emails. It becomes difficult for such employees to be up to date about what is happening. It is imperative to note that the large gap in the organization has continued to increase especially with the advancement of technology. There is no personal contact since people are mostly using computers and cell phones for communication. Not all employees have access to these facilities. Managers who have excellent communication skills would prefer personal contact when communicating to their employees. The other problem associated with poor communication is the lack of clarity in the information received by employees from management (Carroll, 2010). It is very important for managers to communicate to their employees clearly. This is essential for successful communication to be effected. People are different and different employees interpret things in a different way. As a result, the managers need to clarify the issues they wish to communicate. Lack of clarity in information delivered by top managers might lead to different supervisors communicating messages that are conflicting to lower level employees. This leads to inconsistency of communication. There result is that there will be confusion among employees. This might affect the overall organizational performance. Poor communication also leads to luck of timely deliverance of information to employees. Employees do not get information when they need it (Carroll, 2010). This causes delays in decision making. It also delays projects especially if vital information is not received on good time. This is one reason that is likely to cause project failures. On the other hand, if decisions are not reached on timely bases, the organization may find itself in other serious problems which affect its performance. Timely information also means that the right information should be delivered to the right people and at the right time. Critical information such as market data has to be delivered to the right people at the right time. This enables them to make decisions on the strategies the organization needs to apply in its marketing. Delay of such information gives the competitor a chance to take advantage and overtakes the organization. Feedback is very important in improving the performance of employees. Feedback is given based on the performance evaluation (Carroll, 2010). An employee gets to know where they need to improve to better their performance. Feedback should be provided regularly. However, due to poor communication strategies in most organization it becomes difficult to give regular feedbacks. Most organizations do it annually. Regular feedbacks enable employees to improve on their skills. This is helpful in improving the general performance of the organization. Causes of communication problems in an organization Lack of proper communication skills by managers is one of the major issues that are likely to cause communication problems. A manager should have the ability to communicate effectively to his or her employees. If a manager does not have this ability, then there are always communication problems within the organization. This could be as a result of poor training or lack of regular seminars where managers get a chance to learn the art of effective communication (Downs & Adrian, 2004). The other factor that could result to communication problems is complexity of the organizational structure (Downs & Adrian, 2004). When the organizational is complex, there are higher chances of poor communication. Managers of organizations that have complicated hierarchies have less personal contacts with the employees at the lower level in the hierarchy. Therefore, information may not be passed effectively from the high level down to the lower level employees. Only those employees working at the higher level are able to know whatever is going on in the organization while those at the lower level stay in the dark. Communication among employees may be poor if employees do not understand the goals, mission and vision of the organization. If employees do not understand the direction of the organization, they are likely not to work towards a common goal and this affects communication among them. Recommendations to improve communication within an organization Training of managers can be effective in solving communication problems in an organization (Downs & Adrian, 2004). Managers are the once who do most of the communication. They communicate to the lower employees on what the organizations want to achieve and strategies that it is willing to adapt. Therefore, they need to have excellent communication skills. Top level managers as well as middle, and operational managers need to be trained so as to improve their communication skills. This enables them to communicate effectively to the rest of the employees. They learn the importance of personal contact with the employees and how to maintain contact. All employees should also be trained. They need to know the mission and vision of the organization. They also need to be trained on the importance of team work in an organization. Proper communication among employees is helpful in improving their performance and the general performance of the organization. An organization should adapt a hierarchy that is not complicated (Griffin & Moorehead, 2012). This reduces the gap between top managers and employees at the lower level. Information can easily flow from the top to the lower employees. All employees are aware of whatever is happening in the organization. In addition, information reaches the right people at the right time. Conclusion Communication is an important tool that helps an organization gain a competitive advantage. Managers should take their time to communicate effectively to their employees. They should identify communication problems in an organization and work towards solving them. This helps improve the performance of the organization. References Carroll, N. R. (2010). The communication problem solver: Simple tools and techniques for busy managers. New York, N.Y: American Management Association. Downs, C. W., Adrian, A. D., & Downs, C. W. (2004). Assessing organizational communication: Strategic communication audits. New York: Guilford Press. Griffin, R. W., & Moorehead, G. (2012). Organizational behavior: Managing people and organizations. Mason, OH: South-Western/Cengage Learning. Read More