What is poor communication in the workplace?

Poor communication often occurs when there’s a discrepancy between what one person says and what another person hears. In other words, the person being communicated to misunderstands what you’re trying to tell them, so there’s no mutual understanding. It can also happen when there’s a lack of communication, such as when management doesn’t give employees the information they need.

Overall, good communication is the effective sharing of information, meaning, thoughts and feelings between people. When communication is effective, you can express yourself in a comprehensible manner, and the person you’re communicating with understands the message correctly.

What causes poor communication in the workplace?

There’s no one cause of poor workplace communication—every workplace is different and can have varying issues that lead to a breakdown of communication. Identifying the root cause in your office can help you resolve the issues. The following are some common causes of poor communication at the workplace:

• Miscommunication:When communicating with another person, ask questions to make sure they clearly understand you. Checking for understanding during a conversation ensures there’s no miscommunication.
• Poor communication skills: Not all employees are equipped with strong communication skills. Written communication can cause misunderstanding because of the lack of nonverbal cues to strengthen the message. Vagueness, multiple interpretations and improper grammar can all affect communication. Good written communication in the workplace is grammatically correct, unambiguous, precise and professional.
• Cultural differences: Embracing workplace diversity offers many benefits, but it can also cause communication issues. Words, gestures and phrases can mean different things in other cultures. Some cultures are very direct, which people from other cultures may consider rude. People can be confused if the words or phrases their coworkers use don’t translate well into something from their culture.
• Lack of clear objectives: Employees need to have expectations communicated to them clearly and in detail. Objectives should be measurable and easily assessed. When employees have tangible goals, they can easily judge their performance and try to improve when necessary.
• Insufficient leadership:Leaders need to communicate objectives, goals and future visions clearly. Poor leaders may lack the ability or training needed to answer certain questions a team has, leading to workplace frustration. Good leaders have the self-confidence to answer questions or seek out the necessary resources when they’re uncertain of the answers.
• Fear of punishment:Employees may withhold key information from employers because they fear their honesty could have negative consequences. They might not share their ideas if they constantly get shot down or ridiculed. They may not alert you to violations or wrong-doing in the workplace if they fear retaliation for whistleblowing. When leaders have a transparent communication style and explicitly value honesty, employees feel comfortable being vulnerable around them.
• Gossip:When rumors spread, people start to believe inaccurate information. Keep employees updated with current information to quell the spread of rumors. If gossip gets back to you, address it quickly and provide accurate information instead.
• Remote communication:A lot of workplace communication now happens virtually through messaging software and email. Without an in-person conversation, things can get lost in translation.
• Employees who don’t care: When employee morale and motivation are low, staff members often stop caring about their work. They might intentionally use poor communication or fail to communicate well simply because they’ve stopped putting effort into their jobs.

What are the effects of poor communication?

Poor communication can have lasting effects on workplace productivity and performance. Here are just some ways poor communication can affect the workplace:

• Unpredictable work environment:Poor communication can cause a lack of predictability and stability within the workplace, leading to an uneasy environment.
• Low morale:When there’s poor communication, employees may have a harder time meeting expectations and catching up when they get behind on projects. This could leave them with a sense of guilt, embarrassment or low self-esteem. Low workplace morale must be addressed immediately so employees can maintain a healthy work-life balance .
• Missed deadlines:When expectations are clearly communicated, deadlines are usually met, projects finish on time and work is completed as efficiently as possible. Employees need to know what work to prioritize to get things done efficiently.
• Workplace conflict: When tensions are high due to the effects of poor communication, conflicts between employees may arise. Good communication can prevent those conflicts to create positive employee relationships and a more peaceful environment.
• Safety issues: In some industries, poor communication can be hazardous. For example, if safety procedures aren’t clearly communicated to employees, they may not use them properly. If an employee doesn’t communicate an unsafe situation they see, someone else could get hurt. In dangerous work environments, effective communication is essential for safety.

How to improve communication in the workplace

Overcoming poor workplace communication isn’t quick or easy. It often takes multiple methods and the cooperation of all employees to improve. Follow these steps to improve communication between your employees:

1. Identify the cause of poor communication. This allows you to address that underlying issue. If remote communication causes issues, try different communication tools or increase the time you spend on video chat platforms. If there’s a cultural misunderstanding, provide awareness training and talk candidly to employees to better understand the differences.
2. Create communication policies. Identify acceptable communication platforms for different types of communication, and clarify your communication expectations.
3. Develop a straightforward onboarding process. Create a training program with easily accessible documents and videos so employees can review them if they have questions. Make your company culture easy to understand with clear guidelines for how employees can embody and support organizational values. Your onboarding process should be social so employees get the chance to ask questions and form meaningful connections.
4. Review your communication channels. This might include face-to-face conversations, chat programs, video chat, emails, your website and collaboration software. Determine which methods work well, which aren’t as effective and those you can add to improve communication. For example, social intranet software streamlines employee communications allowing for more efficient business processes. It lets employees share ideas and connect freely in a transparent environment. Be sure you’re using all the features of your communication channels to make them effective.
5. Make expectations clear and measurable. Employee expectations are measurable goals that outline steps to follow for success. Regularly meet with employees to assess their performance and give feedback.
6. Develop an open-door policy. Employees can sometimes feel intimidated about approaching their bosses, especially when leadership discourages such conversations. Having an open-door policy will allow your employees to feel comfortable approaching their superiors. This will help clear up any confusion that may arise when executing business processes.
7. Make sure resources and internal documents are easily accessible. Sharing information freely is essential to efficiently answer questions and clear up confusion. When information is readily available, employees won’t need to ask their superiors for help.
8. Consider creating an internal newsletter. A company newsletter offers a great way to share news and information quickly with everyone in the organization.

FAQs about poor workplace communication

Below, we answer some frequently asked questions on the topic of poor workplace communication:

What are some examples of poor workplace communication?

These examples can help you better understand poor communication:

• Instead of addressing issues directly, an employee is passive-aggressive and won’t talk to the other person involved or makes rude comments.
• When trying to resolve a disagreement with a colleague, an employee doesn’t listen to what the other person says. Instead, they think of arguments to defend their position, so the conversation doesn’t go anywhere.
• An employee shares an idea in a meeting. Another staff member interrupts frequently and dismisses the idea or mocks it. The manager doesn’t stop this negativity. This often happens on the team. The other team members eventually stop sharing to avoid being criticized.
• A company has major changes coming up with an expansion into another market. Management doesn’t communicate regularly with the team about the process. No one knows what’s happening, the timeline for the changes or their responsibilities in preparing. When asked, the managers avoid the questions and don’t provide any useful information.

Can you learn good communication skills?

Although some people are naturally better communicators than others, good communication can be practiced and learned. For example, there are classes that can teach you active listening skills to help you focus on conversations, understand what’s said and commit information to memory. Developing a workplace communication learning program can help your employees become more effective communicators.

Can you measure communication in the workplace?

Soft skills such as communication can be measured and assessed. One way to gauge how well people communicate in the workplace is to survey your employees. Their responses will help you determine if your core message is being transmitted effectively. You can also ask questions related to communication in exit interviews to get suggestions for improvement and determine if poor communication contributed to the employee leaving.