Our brains needs mental models in order to interpret and understand the world around us. Each one of us have our own way of seeing the world, which means that each one of us have our own mental models.
Language, either written or spoken, demands a lot more effort in terms of expression and interpretation. And this is not just perception, is a proven fact.
There numerous surveys about that. Here are just a few examples:
- The top three reasons why people do not like their jobs are communication related: lack of direction from management, poor communication overall, and constant change that is not well communicated. (2014 survey from About.com)
- A survey of 400 companies with 100,000 employees each cited an average loss per company of $62.4 million per year because of inadequate communication to and between employees. (David Grossman, “The Cost of Poor Communications,” The Holmes Report, July 17, 2011.)
- A business with 100 employees spends an average downtime of 17 hours a week clarifying communication, translating to an annual cost of $528,443. Seventy percent of small to mid-size businesses claim that ineffective communication is their primary problem. (HRDQ)
On the other hand, there is a compelling relationship between effective communication and a strong financial performance.
- Companies with highly effective communicators had 47 percent higher total return to shareholders compared to the least effective communicators. (Towers Watson)
- Businesses with effective communication practices are over 50 percent more likely to report employee turnover levels below the industry average. (Watson Wyatt)
- Companies with highly effective communications are three and a half times more likely to significantly outperform their industry peers than firms that are not effective. (Towers Watson 2013-2014 Change and Communication ROI Study Report)
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