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Shifts in Workplace Communication

Ryan McCurry

December 8, 2017
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Communication in the workplace is an invaluable resource to success in all businesses. When

coworkers are informed, wasted time is minimized and productivity becomes expedited.
Despite being the backbone of any effective business, workplace communication is ever-
changing. With outside innovations in the past couple decades, non-verbal communication has
become much more efficient through emails, texts, video conferencing and other platforms.
This research paper will delve further into the technological developments and new innovations
in the workplace, address solutions to the generational gap plaguing interoffice discussion, and
speak to the future in workplace communication.

Innovations in Workplace Communication

Although many aspects of a workplace stay constant, communication is one component that is
continuously adapting to new advancements or circumstances. With the internet transforming
how everyone views the world, the geographical boundaries which restricted previous
generations from global involvement are now insignificant (Bauman, 2016). As a result, cross-
cultural communication, defined as “the process of communication ‘that crosses international
borders for business purposes’” (Bauman, 2016), becoming exceedingly important. In the
future, businesses will need to develop a holistic approach to communication in order to
succeed as technology will continue to evolve.

Technical Developments

As technology trends continue to arise, businesses will be forced to adapt to the circumstances
meeting the needs of the modern employee. While communication is a necessity for efficient
company performance, there are many other benefits as well. With clear communication,
employees’ quality of life and productivity will be raised. As the workplace is continuing to get
younger, millennial employees require innovative technologies and collaborative tools to
benefit their companies. Subsequently, when new technology benefitting the workplace comes
to light, it is sensible to adapt.

In a recent study by Dell and Intel (Business Wire, 2016), nearly half of the millennial employees
polled would be willing to quit their job if technology in the office is not satisfactory. One
overarching technological development necessary for good efficiency in the workplace is the
internet of things. Also known as machine-to-machine technology, examples which promote an
efficient workplace include automatically syncing schedules to groups throughout an office,
having identification cards which allow access into conference rooms at specific times, or
turning off lights throughout an office using motion detectors to lower energy output. The
internet of things promotes a unified workplace in which workers can efficiently communicate
and complete tasks.

Reasons for Change

Seeing that work environments will continue to adapt to the circumstances of others,
companies are realizing that their most important assets are their employees. In response,
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many workplaces are incorporating changes to support the needs of their workers helping
maintain good quality of life and the drive to work hard. According to Ebeling (2016), people
are the most expensive factor of a company, while technology is continuing to become cheaper.
By thinking of an office space as a communication tool, businesses who present employees with
the necessary resources to thrive and acknowledge company-wide interaction will develop. By
encouraging communication and investing time into teaching the curriculum, businesses can
improve their productivity by up to 25 percent (Hannah, 2017). Although there are multiple
solutions to create a smoothly run business which have been detailed above, the generational
gap between employees can lead to miscommunication.

Generational Gap Creating Unclear Communication

Given that multiple generations of employees are working together and the older generations
are working later into their lifetime, the generational gap has never been larger. Now that there
are four generations in the workforce including the Traditional Generation, Baby Boomers,
Generation X and Generation Y, also known as the Millennials, the distinct generations often
collide with their values and way of communicating in the workplace.

Workplace Becoming Divided

While new communication outlets speed up the process for the majority of people, the older
generations may suffer as a result of the changes. Although the American people have slowly
changed their values and beliefs, the generation gap between college graduates and people
who have worked for fifty years causes miscommunication in the workplace. According to Kelly,
Elizabeth, Bharat, and Jitendra (2016), the values between the Traditional Generation and the
Millennials are nearly polar opposite whereas Millennials do not necessarily define themselves
through their jobs, rather valuing the impact made through involvement in things important to
them. Despite the fact that the generations may have different values, an effective workplace
would require all employees to provide assistance to fixing each other’s weaknesses.

Possible Solutions

As communication in the workplace is quickly becoming a mainly non-verbal task, the

generational gap between workers has become greater than ever. Since the workforce has
become extremely diverse, accommodating for the ranging generational values has become
difficult. According to Kelly et. al. (2016), the “differences between the generations create
issues and the most problematic being; older generations are often managing younger
generations”. This can result in difficult situations between superiors and new hires because
they possess different values. Simplifying the non-verbal communication process in workplaces
and forming a similar management style company-wide will lead to greater productivity.

Although there may not be a clear solution towards communicating without confusion between
generations in the workplace, businesses should identify the issues to play to the employees’
strengths. By taking into account each of the different communication styles, a company may
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find unique ways to motivate and inspire the workers in order to work efficiently (Salahuddin,
2013, p. 23-24). Salahuddin (2013) continues by recognizing that rather than developing an
understanding of the problems, a workplace should address and resolve conflict to eliminate
any further confusion (p. 23). It is clear that to maintain well-rounded communication
throughout a business, the generational gap must be addressed to effectively incorporate the
entire workplace.

Increase in Non-Verbal Communication

One of the most significant changes to communication in the workplace was the necessity for
non-verbal communication along with the technological advances beginning in the late 1900s.
The introduction of email, texts and video conferencing among other platforms has forced the
modern worker to adapt to the conditions. Despite technology in the workplace creating issues
such as the steep learning curve for older generations when first introduced, any business
today would be insignificant without the internet.

Barriers to Overcome

Despite the fact that virtual communication has been a necessity in the workplace for the past
decade, there is still a learning curve influencing effectiveness in a negative light. Previous
generations which did not grow up in the technological revolution may also suffer from trusting
other employees with tasks because of the depersonalization (Bulkley, 2006). While there are
clear advantages in virtual communication such as efficiency, discussing issues in person allows
coworkers to develop trust in one another. As a result of integrating all forms of
communication companywide, a business would be able to run efficiently and effectively.

The Future in Communication

Since the Millennial generation will represent nearly half of the American workforce by 2020
(Giese, p. 1, 2016), the most effective process for communicating will revolve around their
preferences. In a study developed by Giese (2016) surveying eighty participants of varying
generations to determine preferred communication methods, Millennials favor concise and
targeted information relying on email for their main source of communication. Adversely, the
Baby Boomers and Generation X advocate for more in-person discussion and to learn news
directly from management (p. 31-32). Although workplace communication is necessary in all
facets, the use of technology to spread and discuss information will be paramount.

Adapting smoothly to changes in interpersonal communication in the workplace is a key

determinant in maintaining and building a business. By having informed employees who are in
agreement with superiors, unclear information will diminish and productivity will flourish. This
paper has discussed the technical developments in the modern workplace, examined the
division is the work environment and how to resolve the generational gap, and deliberated over
the future in of exchanging information in business. The key to any successful business begins
and ends with effective workplace communication.
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References

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