The volume of online communication is steadily growing, and many digital practices have already moved from the category of advanced ones to must-haves for any company. But how effective is this kind of communication in general? Does it keep employees productive? To what extent does it correspond to the goals and values?
What is online communication for?
Building corporate communications online is, first of all, creating an environment and an accessible infrastructure for employee interaction through:
- Implementation of complex digital solutions to support the achievement of goals and the transmission of company values.
- Integration of new rules and norms of communication into current business processes to increase their efficiency.
In both cases, typical errors can be found:
- The desire to implement digital solutions without changing the norms of corporate communication, which leads to its stratification (for example, employees have a task tracker, but they do not have a single standard for working with it, and it exists on its own).
- The desire to change the norms of corporate communication, turning a blind eye to the imperfections or heterogeneity of the toolkit (for example, employees are expected to respond quickly, but they regularly face the inconvenience of work).
Specifics of online communication
Online communication has several socio-psychological differences compared to traditional offline communication. Therefore, an attempt to “easily” transfer face-to-face dialogue to online sometimes becomes a reason to become disillusioned with individual digital tools.
Some features of online have the greatest impact on corporate relationships:
- Unauthorized opinion. Online, it’s easy to hide your emotions behind an avatar. On social networks, anonymous trolling and bullying often lead to dire consequences, and the company will not always be able to track this. On the other hand, this same characteristic of online makes pulse surveys and research convenient: anonymity allows you to get more truthful answers.
- Delayed reaction. In face-to-face communication, people have to react faster, and they will immediately know if the interlocutor is busy and cannot immediately answer. Online allows an employee to pause for reflection, but if he is overloaded, and tasks and messages accumulate, then desynchronization gradually leads to burnout.
- Virtual depreciation. Face-to-face communication increases the commitment of the parties, and employees can set up meetings with you online, not because they need to, but only to make their issue a priority and make sure that their interests are not ignored.
- Reaction deficiency. Online, it’s easier to run into a misunderstanding due to a lack of reaction. For example, it may seem to the manager that the employee is not responding because he reacted poorly to the remark, although the interlocutor may already be deeply disturbed or depressed.
In face-to-face communication, one glance is enough to assess the state of another. Therefore, the transfer of communication online involves the formation of new norms of behavior, which, in turn, should be reflected in business processes.
Ways to Improve Online Communication
To improve the online communication of the company’s board, your best bet is to look towards corporate software for this. Programs allow you to hold online meetings, make decisions, make polls and votes, store documents and work with them together, sign with an electronic signature. The portal https://boardroommind.com/responsibilities-of-board-directors-for-risk-management/ will help you find the best option for your case.