Top Communication Barriers and How to Tackle Them

Top  Communication Barriers and How to Tackle Them
July 12, 2018

Communications barriers can have a significant effect on the work environment. When communication barriers exist, it can lead to misunderstandings, decreased productivity, and a lack of trust between employees. It can also lead to a lack of collaboration and cooperation, which can cause projects to take longer than necessary and result in lower quality work. Additionally, communication barriers can lead to feelings of frustration and isolation among employees, which can further reduce morale and motivation. Finally, communication barriers can create an atmosphere of confusion and uncertainty, making it difficult for employees to stay focused on their tasks.

Types of communication barriers

  • Physical communication barriers include social distancing, remote work, the lack of a desk nature of work, closed office doors, and much more.

  • Emotional communication barriers brought on by emotions like fear and mistrust.

  • Language communication barriers include both verbal and nonverbal communication.

Lack of communication skills

Poor communication skills can lead to misunderstandings, miscommunication, and conflict. It can also lead to decreased productivity and morale.

Social distance and remote work

Social distancing and physical barriers can limit the ability of employees to communicate with each other in person. This can lead to a decrease in face-to-face communication, which can make it more difficult for employees to build relationships and trust with each other. Additionally, physical barriers may limit the ability of employees to collaborate on projects or tasks, as they may not be able to easily access each other’s work areas. This can be extremely damaging to an organization that does not understand how to use technology to eliminate communication challenges.

Disengagement

Effective communication is all about engagement between the communicator and the receiver of the message. Employee engagement is one of the major barriers in any work community. Companies are struggling to draw the attention of their employees and establish an open culture full of engaged employees and transparent communications.

Mistrust

There is no effective communication when don’t trust their employers, leaders, or managers. According to many reports 1 in 3 employees don’t trust the employer that’s why organizations across the world thrive to build trust in the workplace.

Wrong communications channels

Wrong communication channels can lead to miscommunication, misunderstanding and lack of clarity. This can lead to confusion, frustration, and decreased productivity. It can also lead to a breakdown in trust between employees and management. Wrong communication channels can also cause delays in decision-making and the implementation of strategies. This can result in missed opportunities or costly mistakes. Additionally, wrong communication channels can lead to a lack of collaboration between departments or teams, which can further hinder productivity.

Lack of personalization

One of the primary causes of disengagement is a lack of personalization. When recipients receive information that is unrelated to their work or messages that aren't interesting to them, they are much more likely to ignore future communications.

Lack of listening

Always engage in two-way communication. What’s more listening is often much more important than speaking. Many businesses still underestimate the value of encouraging employee voice and the worth of their feedback.


How ShawtAwt eliminates those barriers in your workplace

Agile your communication

ShawtAwt will help you maintain employee awareness of organizational changes or decisions in order to promote a culture of transparency and trust.

Be engaging and personalize your communication

You have the ability to reach out a department, team, or even a member you can boost engagement even further to acknowledge and reward employees for their hard work and accomplishments or share your company updates.

Build trust

Though ShawtAwt you can build trust with your community members by increasing transparency and providing them with more information.

Increase engagement

ShawtAwt will keep your employees engaged and updated in order to improve workplace satisfaction and loyalty. 

Encourage feedback

ShawtAwt offers many features that allow your employees to provide feedback and eliminate the feeling of not being heard.