Miscommunications in the Workplace

Miscommunication in the Workplace

Communication is a two-way street. Making assumptions and drawing conclusions based on only one frame of reference will usually fail and cause miscommunication between the parties involved. This can be because of differences of gender, culture, age or even education levels. Changing the fundamental way in which a person thinks or feels can lead to better communications between the parties involved. "Due to the rapid changes brought about by globalization it isÐ'...vital to understand that we react to our environment, its teachings and its belief systems. A lack of understanding of our most cherished and deeply held values can lead to considerable stress and feelings of anger. We must be especially sensitive toward the areas of religion, racial equality, moral behavior, privacy, justice and fair play"(Swaenpoel, 2005).

Ever gone into work and found that several coworkers are in a panic over the promotion of someone from outside of the office to a position of authority? They wonder why everyone is so upset. When talking with coworkers, it is discovered that two of them had applied for the position of supervisor. These coworkers feel that they were passed over for the promotion. The manager, we will use the name Mr. Smith, did not speak to the candidates that applied for the promotion and did not interview them before making the decision and the announcement of the new person coming in.

From the example above, can it be determined why the workers were upset? The manager, Mr. Smith, did not inform the office candidates of the decision to hire someone from outside before making the formal announcement, which caused hard feelings from the two inside candidates. This can lead to the new supervisor having problems getting the office staff to accept them and causing their authority to be questioned. How could this have been stopped before it got started? The manager, Mr. Smith, could have spoken to the inside candidates to inform them that he was hiring from outside and giving his reasons as to why he felt it was a better choice to go outside the company. This would also give the office a chance to reflect on what was required for the position and why the two inside candidates were not right for the position.

Another situation I have found is there is always much discussion about having an open, honest communication and environment of trust, but there are always un-advertised promotions within the group. The announcement only goes out to the selected few instead of general population as other positions are communicated. While these may be well-deserved promotions, the appearance is of management being underhanded, showing favoritism and not fostering trust in the organization.

To help the right message get through to the employee managers can adapt his or her communication style to be similar to the employees' personal communication style. They also need to read the employees' body language and be sensitive to the context of the message. If all else fails, put it in writing and be careful to not hold back on the details of what the message is concerning. Lastly, the manager needs to cultivate an environment of openness in office communications.

Miscommunication can be a problem when it comes time for an annual appraisal or review only to find out that the supervisor has graded an employee below his or her expectations and they had never been told that there was a problem before hand, so that he or she could make the necessary changes to bring their performance or attitude up to where it needs to be because this can and will affect a person's raise and chance for a promotion. Personality problems should be conveyed to workers before hand, not at the appraisal without any fore knowledge or chance to correct the situation. Communication and especially the lack of it can lead to a negative impact on working relationships.

In today's workforce we have people from late teens to near retirement age all working in the same place. The differences between coworkers, gender differences, cultural differences, communication style differences, and finally bad communication habits can all be causes for miscommunication in the workplace. The diversity of cultures in the workplace of today can lead to misunderstandings, miscommunications and missed opportunities for the improvement of both workers and management. Managers should be equipped with and practice effective communication skills, which can transcend any or all kinds of cultural barriers. To alleviate the tension between different groups and their differences by understanding their differences we must practice good communication skills. Many managers and even coworkers are only concerned about themselves, how they can get to the top of the corporate ladder. Managers and coworkers will walk all over others to get where they what to be no matter what the cost to others or who it my hurt, whether it be a promotion, some form recognition, or to just build up their self-esteem so they can feel important. There are very few managers who truly support their people. A good manager should guide and direct at all times, not just during the good times. Keeping employees moral up and conflict down should be a daily task for both managers and employees. As an employee, we have the responsibility to perform our daily tasks while assisting others as needed or directed by our manager.

"Why do managers need to know how to handle conflict? The main reason is unresolved conflict usually grows into bigger conflict. Unresolved conflict is like a snowball rolling down hill. As a snowball rolls down hill it picks up more snow and becomes bigger. The more the snowball grows, the more chance it will pick up even more snow. The only way to stop the snowball from getting even larger is to put up a barrier to stop the snowball. The result is like making the growing snowball hit a barrier causing it to break apart. The barrier not only keeps the snowball (conflict) from growing but it disintegrates to where even the original ball of snow (conflict) does not exist"(Green, 1999).

Managers must know the difference between good and bad conflict as well. Good conflict means that team members trust each other enough to disagree and know that all ideas are valued and aired. Conflict can mean that ideas are aggressively debated but when a team decision is made it will be followed with passion. Conflict while essential is only allowed while the team is debating and only within the confines of the meeting room. Once the issue is aired and decided the conflict ends.

Effective teams collaborate or work together but that only occurs when there is a level of trust between team members. Ideas and perspectives are vented so that everyone