When a business isn’t growing as it’s expected to, you’ll tend to look at what might be happening externally, and what the issues might be there. It could be that marketing needs impricing, for example, or perhaps you need better products, or there’s something about the offers you’ve got that people aren’t interested in, and so on. And sometimes that is the problem, but it could also be that it’s a bit closer to home, and it’s actually how people communicate with each other at work.
The fact is that when communication breaks down, that breakdown ripples out, and you’ll end up with lots of lost messages, confused priorities, and work that becomes a lot harder than it needs to be. With that in mind, here’s why better internal communication is the key to business growth – read on to find out more.
Small Gaps Add Up
It could be that you’ve got lots of small gaps in your business communication that are barely noticeable one by one, but that add up to a big problem, and if you can fill those gaps, you might be able to solve pretty much all the issues you’ve got. Perhaps your team isn’t all that clear on expectations, or maybe all the updates are shared in random places, so people tend to miss them quite easily, or maybe it’s because you (or someone else) makes decisions without keeping everyone in the loop, meaning it’s hard to tell when something’s changed one way or another.
All that – and plenty more besides – can slow things down because people have to spend a lot more time checking things or asking questions, or even redoing work, so of course, growth is going to slow down. And on top of that, morale is going to be a problem as well because if people are doing work only to find it’s wrong because of something they weren’t told, or they always feel they’ve got to double check everything, they’re not going to be confident or comfortable within the business.
Everyone’s Working But Not Always Together
Most teams are busy most of the time, and work gets done with deadlines being met, but there’s actually quite a big difference between being productive and working together to create growth and reach goals.
Unless there’s clear communication, people can sometimes head off in different directions without knowing it (they’ll assume they’re all on the same page). That doesn’t mean anyone’s doing anything wrong, necessarily, but it does mean that not everyone involved in a job or project has the same information, and that can clearly be quite a big problem if you want a positive end result.
Something like a social intranet could be exactly the right tool to add to the mix if that’s something you keep coming up against because it means everyone and everything is in one place, and that’s going to make it a lot easier for everyone to stay connected to what’s actually going on. And if they’ve got questions, they’ll know exactly where to ask them, which also helps massively.
Making Information Easier To Find And Share
One of the best and easiest and most effective changes you can make is to ensure that information is easier to access – it’s crucial, because if people know where to go for updates, documents, decisions, and general information, they’ll be able to get on with their work with fewer delays and mistakes, as well as a lot more confidence that they’re doing the right thing.
It means that instead of having to search through emails or messaging different people for answers and then having to wait to hear back, everything’s just there, clear and available. That alone can save a surprising amount of time and keep things moving forward rather than stalling or even going backwards.
Encouraging More Open Communication
Better communication isn’t just about structure (although that does need to be in place) – it’s also about culture, which is important for pretty much everything in a workplace, so it’s wise to learn more about how to make it improved if there’s a problem (or even if there isn’t). In the end, people have to feel comfortable asking questions, sharing ideas, and raising concerns without feeling like they might be overstepping or interrupting someone’s busy day.
When there’s more of a sense of openness, problems tend to get addressed earlier (before they have a chance to become bigger ones), and ideas can develop more (and hopefully be more successful at the same time). It basically creates a collaborative environment where people actually feel involved, and that’s great for morale and productivity.
Reducing Misunderstandings And Rework
Miscommunication is a bad thing for all kinds of reasons, but one big issues is that it often leads to work being done twice, or not quite hitting the mark the first time. That’s so frustrating, and it wastes time that could be spent moving things forward.
If you’ve got clear, consistent communication, however, those kinds of issues can be really reduced and you’ll have expectations that are easier to understand, feedback that’s easier to act on, and projects that run a lot more smoothly as a result.
Supporting Remote And Hybrid Teams
With more teams working remotely, or at least on a hybrid basis, communication has become even more important – you can’t rely on quick conversations in the office or picking things up from things you hear along the way if you’re at home by yourself.
That’s why it’s essential to have clear systems in place so that gap is filled – they’ll be able to keep everyone connected, even when they’re not in the same place, and that means nothing important gets missed along the way.
Building Trust Across The Business
When communication is consistent and transparent, it helps to build trust – people just feel more confident in what they’re doing because they understand the bigger picture and they’ve been involved in various processes along the way.
They’ll know what’s expected, they’ll know where things are heading, and they’ll feel part of the process rather than just reacting to it.
