Communications and trust in organizational relationships

Communication and Trust

Do some research to identify four to six common communication problems that occur in organizations. The text discusses several organizational communication problems. Provide examples of where you see the problems in your organization. Also, identify four to six possible solutions or principles that leaders should utilize to stimulate effective communications. Solutions might line up to problems (i.e., one solution matched to one problem, etc.) or be a general list of solutions to address the problems.

Communication mistakes are common in every organization in existence. Not only are they common, but they also consist of many different forms of communication blunders that can slow an organizations path to its objectives. Furthermore, communication problems can also occur at every level of the organization. Despite the importance of effective communication skills, many organizations overlook the opportunity for training and development in this area. This paper will prepare a list of common communication mistakes that a leader can make in an organizational setting as well as offer some tips to avoid these problems in the future.

Cultural Differences

Cultural differences are a common source of communication problems. People from different backgrounds can have difficulty relating to each other in many instances. This can cause some employees to avoid other employees who are culturally diverse and an in-group and out-group situation can easily form. However, some research indicates that teams and organizations whose members are heterogeneous in meaningful ways, for example, in skill set, education, work experiences, perspectives on a problem, cultural orientation, and so forth, have a higher potential for innovation than teams whose members are homogeneous (Nelson, 2014). One way to avoid cultural barriers in group meetings is to designate an effective facilitator that can ensure that each member in the group has an opportunity to participate and share their opinions.

Getting Off Topic

Another communication blunder among groups is the fact that some groups have the tendency to get off topic both in and out of group meetings. Instead of focusing on organizational objectives, some individuals and groups will veer off topic and gossip or talk about something unrelated to the tasks at hand. One of the best practices from my experience is to have a formal agenda and meeting process. This can help keep the group on track because they will be aware of the specific items to cover as well as the time frame in which is allotted to the topics. Furthermore, the agenda should be prepared and distributed before the meeting so that the members can prepare their opinions beforehand. This often will lead to more insightful opinions being shared that are on-topic rather than the group "winging" it as they go.

Poor Listening Skills

It is commonly the case that people think about their own speech and body language when communication skills are mentioned. However, one of the most important aspects of communication is listening. Some researchers have indicated that listening can account for around forty-five percent of the time spent on communication. However, listening skills are commonly overlook when studying interpersonal communication.

One study identified as far back as the early 1980s that a majority of Fortune 500 companies lack adequate listening training programs (Hunt & Cusella, 1983). However, even today listening training does not receive enough attention. Individuals with better listening skills are, on average, more capable of performing tasks efficiently than individuals who have more difficulty with listening; especially when individuals are actively listening to content (Gherri & Eimer, 2011). Therefore, listening skills should also be considered in any discussion of effective communication skills.

Consider Non-verbal Communication