Putting It Together: Communication in the Workplace

decorative imageCommunication is the exchange of information between people, and an organization’s success depends on it.  In this unit, we’ve learned how basic communication works via the social feedback model. Then, we looked at all the layers of complexity that can be involved in the actual transmission and understanding of a message. We’ve discussed the following topics:

  • The directions a communication can take within an organization
  • How people communicate interpersonally and how organizational dynamics add and change that
  • Technology and its impact on communication
  • Barriers to effective communication and how to minimize their impact
  • An organization’s obligation to communicate effectively

Internal communication is a key component of organizational behavior and, in fact, the catalyst for all employee action, motivation, engagement and productivity. It’s how workers know what they’re supposed to be doing, how they fit into the organization’s mission and even what their organization’s mission and goals are.

Perfect communication is unattainable. But the correlation between effective communication and productivity has been proven time and again so we should keep trying to get close!