Complex Messages in Large Organizations Will Always Be Misinterpreted - Essay Example

Complex messages in the organisations will always be misinterpreted AFFILIATION: Communication in Organisations Communication is one of the important attributes of every human life and most of the time every individual is requesting for or receiving the desired information. They are found in one form of the communication process or another that is either sender or receiver of messages. According to Harris and Nelson (2008), communication is defined as the process by which people either exchange valuable information or express their feelings or thoughts with each other. The minute an individual gets up in the morning, they are involved in the process of communication either with family, friends, professional, and others as such. The ability of exchanging information is important for every individual and organisation as it is the main source of creating relationships with people and getting the work done in an effective manner. The success of all leading corporations such as Unilever, Microsoft, Colgate-Palmolive, HP, Dell and many more is because of the presence of an efficient and productive communication process. Many of these organisations have open door policies that allows a smooth and effective communication process to take place amongst the all the management levels in the organisation. Successful communication processes within organisations allow organisations to achieve their targets (Zainab, 2012). Every business organisation has to ensure that it has the best communication process which will ensure that all messages are communicated properly. Individuals in organisations are from different cultural, educational and social backgrounds. The difference in the backgrounds increases the risk of complex messages being misinterpreted. The way the various employees perceive messages would be different from employee to employee. It is very important for managers to ensure that the message is perceived in the right sense by all the concerned employees that will conduct the task so that maximum level of productivity is attained. It has been observed that complex messages in large organisations will always be misinterpreted as everyone perceives the message differently (Blundel & Ippolita, 2008). If there is lack of clarity about the purpose of a specific message, then there are more chances that an organisation will suffer huge losses in the long-run. As the communication process varies across the organisations, it is vital for the management team to develop and implement a system that will ensure that the employees are on the right trail and the desired message has been effectively communicated (Modaff, DeWine & Butler, 2008). When organisations observe a change process in their management due to mergers or acquisitions, then the chances of communicating messages becomes difficult initially. Many employees are resistant to change, and revealing the news of a change in management in a positive way is a challenging task for the top level management. With mergers, the leadership and culture of the organisation may be affected. Hence proper orientation programmes need to be conducted, so that such type of complex and critical messages can be communicated effectively in the organisation (Richardson, 2007). Various mediums of communication used in organisations As there are various mediums of communication that can be used in an organisation, it is imperative that the medium is selected in accordance to the importance of the message and the audience. For instance, if a new policy is introduced by the Human Resource Department, then the employees can be informed either by e-mails or in the form of an announcement letter. But if a new process is installed for attendance recording, then the best way is to arrange a one-to-one meeting in each department so that everyone in the large organisation has a clear understanding about the method of operating the system. During the meeting, a demo should be given so that the employees have a realistic view of the functioning of the innovative attendance system (Gupta & Joshi, 2006). In most of the large organisations, it has been found that the managers don’t consider it their responsibility to communicate the complex messages to their subordinates by themselves and rely either on e-mails or letters to inform them. The organisations that lack proper communication mechanism for communicating complex messages are more vulnerable to face problem of misinterpretations of these messages. If employees misunderstand any important message given by the top management, then there is also a possibility that the productivity of the organisation may be affected. In order to ensure that the messages are interpreted in an accurate way, the companies should focus on the communication medium that is used for transmitting highly important and complex messages (Richardson, 2007). All kinds of communication in the various businesses have specific purposes so that the primary aim can be achieved such as making inquiries about the improvement areas in business operations, providing explanation for any problem encountered in the business premises, giving all details and information about the company and providing access to confidential data that can help the workforce in making effective decisions, persuading people to accept the change process that the company will be undergoing in future and many other similar things (Modaff. DeWine & Butler, 2008). Hence, it is crucial for every company to ensure that it selects compatible communication method for each message from simple announcements to complex procedures so that there are less chances of misinterpretation of the desired message. Method of communicating complex messages As large organisations have a complicated and complex structure, it is important for the managers to ensure that they implement an appropriate and highly effective communication process within the company. Since there are many employees working for a company, there are many chances that the complex messages are misinterpreted when communicating to them. In order to avoid ineffective communication, the barriers should be removed so that the organisation is able to enhance its productivity level (Zainab, 2012). The most common barrier to effective communication is the lack of feedback option; for instance, when a group of employees are told about a new procedure during a meeting, then the manager will end the meeting without taking feedback from them. It is vital that the feedback is taken from the receiver after communicating the message to ensure that the person has understood the intended purpose. The manager need to have a short question and answer session so after stating the details about the new procedure so that if any employee has any doubts or questions, they can clarify it with the manager on the spot. Another important barrier that needs to be addressed is the content and medium of communication (message); the language should be simple so that everyone can easily understand the message and perform the required task with accuracy. The management needs to be well aware of the competency level of their employees and accordingly communicate with them. For example, while dealing with operational level employees, the use of technical jargons may cause the employees to face problems in understanding the message well. The manager needs to use simple vocabulary and terms that are understandable by the operational level employees. Likewise, there should be flexibility in a large organisation regarding the communication medium that should be used for any specific message so that the message is communicated via the correct medium. Any company that confines itself to limited mediums for all kinds of messages is most likely to fail in the long-run (Richardson, 2007). In order to avoid misinterpretation of complex messages in a large organisation, the management team will have to take remedial steps in advance which means that it should revamp its communication process, allow open communication within its premises, get feedback from the employees after delivering the message and use an appropriate medium for transmitting the message to the workforce. The management level in organisations should be open to communication. If the management is rigid in their communication procedures, then there are chances that subordinates and other employees may hesitate in clarifying doubts and complex message results may turn out to be misunderstood by the employees. Conclusion In large organisations, there are various messages that are communicated on daily basis and they range from simple installation of new machinery to changing the IT infrastructure; it is important that every information and detail about the business activities of an organisation is communicated in a highly proficient manner. Whenever any message needs to be transmitted to the employees, the medium should be selected in accordance to the capability of the audience so that there are fewer chances of misinterpretation by the workforce. Communicating messages such as change in management of the organisation and change in the organisational culture ate highly critical messages that need to be stated to the employees in a highly effective manner. Although the complex messages will mostly get misinterpreted in large organisations but when a well-integrated and organised communication method will be used there will be higher chances that the correct message is understood by the receivers. Hence, every message should be communicated within the organisation in the most appropriate manner so that the organisation’s performance is enhanced and it can move in the right direction and even develop its reputation in the market. References Blundel, R and Ippolita, K., 2008. Effective Organisation Communication: Perspectives, principles and practices. 3rd ed. London: Prentice Hall. Gupta, S.K and Joshi, R., 2006. Organisational Behaviour. 4th ed. New Delhi: Kalyani Publishers. Harris, T.E. and Nelson, M.D., 2008. Applied organisational communication: Theory and practice in a global environment. New York: Lawrence Eribaum. Johansson, C., 2007. Research on organisational communication. Nordicom Review, 28, pp. 93-110. Modaff, D.P., DeWine, S. and Butler, J., 2008. Organisational communication: Foundations, challenges and misunderstandings. 2nd ed. Boston, MA: Pearson Education. Richardson, K.A., 2008. Managing Complex Organisations: Complexity Thinking and the Science and Art of Management. E:CO, 10(2), pp. 13-26. Zainab, A., 2010. Barriers to effective communication in an organisation and overcoming it. [Online] Available at: [Accessed 19 November 2012] Read More