SAN BRUNO, CA, April 04, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A new study by Dynamic Signal, the leading Employee Communication and Engagement Platform, reveals that employees feel less informed, more anxious, and more confused about how to do their jobs because of poor or mismanaged workplace communication. While communication tools are meant to enable greater access, visibility and break down silos, the sheer number of tools in today’s workplace are creating more confusion, as companies are struggling to streamline them to improve employee productivity and satisfaction. In fact, the problem is so dire that one-third of U.S. employees report wanting to quit their jobs due to poor communication at work.
The study also found that more than half (52 percent) of C-suite executives report ineffective communication and that workforce misalignment had considerable negative financial implications, with 48 percent saying it cost their company more than 30 percent in lost revenue. This misalignment is also creating a crisis for employee retention and satisfaction.
As C-suite and communication professionals continue to investigate an ever-rising number of solutions to increase efficiency, productivity and engagement, more than half (55 percent) of employees in the study report that either their company doesn’t have an internal communication strategy in place or they were unsure if one existed. Employee Communication and Engagement is no doubt a top priority for companies, but despite increased investments in workplace tools, a communication gap is creating an urgent business problem. Introducing new tools to the workplace is part of the solution, but companies need to focus more on connecting these channels to streamline communication, ensuring that employees are receiving the information they need to align to a company’s goal.
Constant pings kill productivity, create overwhelming and stressful workplace
Poor communication is causing employees to feel overwhelmed with pressure (53 percent) to keep up with the plethora of communication tools they are supposed to use and manage. Employees also report unnecessary stress (50 percent) for fear of missing important information and ultimately losing valuable work time, decreasing productivity. In fact, employees report that this is affecting their daily work:
- Three out of four (75 percent) employees report wasting time to keep up with the constant dings, pings, chats and more
- Two-thirds of employees (66 percent) report losing between 30 minutes and 1 hour every day from pressure to keep up, costing over three billion dollars in annual profits from wasted time alone
- Two-fifths (42 percent) report missing critical information necessary to do their job caused by ineffective communication tools, with nearly half saying this was at least a weekly frustration
The Dynamic Signal study finds a direct correlation between employees feeling informed and overall workplace satisfaction. Therefore, as employees are an organization’s most valued asset, missed lines of communication can severely disrupt alignment and the ability for employees and companies to be successful. In fact, the report found that most workers (51 percent) do not feel properly informed by their company, ultimately feeling disconnected (57 percent), unhappy (33 percent) and not valued (76 percent) for their work, resulting in workplace departures.
“Companies know the importance of communicating in today’s workplace, yet they still lack a strategic approach to modernizing, streamlining and measuring internal communication in a way that ensures workplace alignment,” said Dynamic Signal CEO and Co-founder, Russ Fradin. “Pushing out or even just facilitating mass amounts of untargeted, and often irrelevant, communication across a number of channels with no measurement or tracking is adding noise, not value. Every employee has a job to do. It’s critical that those employees receive only the information they need, in a way that is most convenient for how they work.”
Despite increased investments in tools, leaders struggle to engage employees
The report found that nearly all (99%) C-suite executives rank workforce alignment and engagement as a critical business goal. And most companies (51%) are increasing their investment in new communication tools and technologies with expanded budgets, according to corporate communication professionals. Yet, across the board, respondents report significant challenges with legacy communication systems:
- Half (51%) of corporate communication professionals report their tools have not improved, or even reduced employee productivity
- More than one in three (35%) employees report a lack of clear understanding on how and when to use their company’s communication tools
- More than half (52%) of C-suite executives report personally missing vital information due to ineffective communication tools and channels within their organization
“One out of three employees want to quit because their company doesn't communicate well with them. That's insane! And with companies fighting to retain and recruit talented employees, poor communication is just bad business,” Fradin added. “Employees are your business. It’s absolutely crucial that communication is reaching them in a way that keeps them informed, aligned, and set up for success. This is just table stakes in today’s modern workplace.”
For the full State of Employee Communication and Engagement Study and accompanying graphics, please visit the report here and infographic here.
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