Good communication in the workplace can make a huge difference in collaboration and productivity. Advancements in technology have allowed us to use a variety of tools and programs to communicate with each other at work. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that good communication is happening everywhere. 

It’s important to prioritize strong, effective communication between leaders and employees. Employees should also feel comfortable communicating with each other. 

When your organization has good workplace communication, your employees are generally more productive and more satisfied with their role and the company as a whole. To learn more about how it can positively affect employee culture in your workplace, read our communication guide!

Communication in the Physical Office

Working in the physical office definitely has its advantages as far as ease of quick communication. For example, many people talk about how being able to “pop in” to their colleague’s office to discuss something work-related is extremely beneficial to productivity.

However, during our recent Tenant Talks event, Michelle Tribe, Partner at Fraser Litigation Group, talked about the challenges of working in the physical office during the pandemic. “It’s hard to create that relationship when we have to be so guarded about our interactions,” she said. 

Organizations need to be flexible in their communication, even with the employees who are in the physical office. Using chat software and video conferencing can offer flexibility to employees who working from home.

Communication While Working Remotely

Working remotely presents its own challenges in effective communication with employees. It’s important that leaders in your organization provide regular opportunities for open communication with their remote workers. 

At the start of the COVID pandemic in early 2020, companies had to quickly figure out a plan for working remotely. Since then, more strategies and tools have been implemented in the workplace to accommodate remote workers. 

Some companies have offered to supply their employees with physical devices (like laptops and/or cell phones), and/or with tools and programs that allow them to stay connected to their place of work. Platforms like Slack and Zoom have made it easier to communicate with your coworkers no matter where they are. 

Advantages of Good Employee Communication

If you’re wondering why you should worry about good employee communication, we have a few reasons. Keeping your employees informed and involved can increase their overall happiness with the company. 

Employee engagement

Employees who feel involved and included in their organization are more likely to engage. This means that they are more likely to offer praise to friends and family, volunteer on the organization’s behalf, and contribute to positive work culture. 

Employee satisfaction

Your employees will perform better when they are satisfied. Satisfied employees also tend to feel more positive about their role in the company and their duties. 

Better collaboration

With good communication comes better collaboration. When your organization promotes open communication, employees will feel more confident to work together on projects and tasks that need to get done. 

Increased productivity

As previously mentioned, good communication can also increase employee productivity. When employees feel involved, they want to help the company succeed by doing their job well. 

Best Tools For Workplace Communication

Advancements in technologies have made it much easier to communicate with fellow employees. In a recent Tenant Talks about evolving in a post-pandemic world, our panelists discussed some of their organization’s best tools for workplace communication. Here are just a few examples of what they said. 

• Donut allows companies to connect online for things like virtual coffee, peer learning, DEI discussions, and more.
• Slack allows you to create channels for specific departments, meetings, or committees within your organization. You can also send messages to other employees for easy communication while working. 
• With Google Workspace you can work from anywhere, on any device – even offline – with tools to help you integrate, customize, and extend the platform to meet your team’s unique needs.
• Microsoft Teams is a software where you can meet, chat, call, and collaborate with your employees, all in one place.
• Zoom is a video conferencing software where you can hold virtual meetings and share documents with colleagues. 

There are many benefits to promoting open, effective communication between leaders and employees, as well as individual employees. There are hardly any disadvantages, other than dedicating time and effort to providing good communication. Hiring a Communications Manager or a dedicated person to handle internal communication can make this easier.