Impact of Informal Communication on Employee Motivation and Transgressions at Workplace

[Document title]
[Document subtitle]
[DATE]

Table of Contents
Introduction:....................................................................................................................................2
Unconscious Organisation...............................................................................................................3
Emotional Labor..............................................................................................................................5
Transgressions.................................................................................................................................7
Conclusion:......................................................................................................................................9
References........................................................................................................................................9
1

Introduction:
1.1 In any organization information circulates backwards, forwards and sideways which is
known as communication. Formal communication can be defined as the communication that
occurs by following predefined or official or prescribed rules, regulation and policy of the
organization. Such kind of communication generally takes place between employees or managers
2

of same level or between subordinate ad superior and vice versa. It may be written or oral but
full record of such communication is kept in an organization(Saleem & Perveen, 2017).In
contrast, informal communication is a communication that does not follow any formal lines or
predefined channel to share information in an organization. It generally takes place between the
workers to share their ideas and to satisfy social needs. Example: Coworkers talking about the
behaviors of their seniors(Lunenburg, 2010).
Communication channels is the way in which information transfers in the organization. There are
several communication channels which are being used to circulate information(Chand, n.d.).
Formal communication channels generally transfer information like policies, goals, reporters and
procedures of an organizations etc. The most commonly used technology for formal
communication are communication newsletters, formal meetings, company magazines, memos,
letters etc. There is always an informal communication network within a formal working
environment in an organization(Weedman, n.d.). Team work, quality circles, several training
programmes etc. fall under this category. Informal communication media includes telephone,
email, voice messaging, chat etc.
Formal communication is flow of information’s through different levels of organizational
hierarchy and sticks to predefined rules and regulations, policy and standards of the organization.
While the informal communication does not follow any kind of set patterns. The main purpose of
formal communication is to pass the information among several departments of an organization.
While the purpose of informal is to maintain relationship inside and outside of the organization.
The formal communication is not flexible and can be changed according to the situation(Surbhi,
2015).The preference of individual differs based what they are communication with whom.
According to a survey in June 2009 on marketing 24% of the customers communicate more often
3

through text. Out of them 33% are using email more often than they were 6 months ago in
comparison to the 10% people who uses email occasionally. Further, majority of people i.e. 67%
wanted the permission-based promotions via text.As per the survey conducted by ethics resource
center, stated that the half of the people who were surveyed had witnessed some kind of ethical
misconduct(Rodriguez, 2015). The result also stated that most of the employees or workers of
America perform their job in correct manner and also reported those who did not follow the
ethical standards of behavior.
The motivation level in employee is vital for any organization as its significant for the growth of
both individual and the organization. It is important for any organization to understand the
requirement of its employee to cope different challenges so that the policies are developed
according to their needs. This paper briefs on different aspects of informal communication and it
impact on employee motivation and transgression at workplace.
Unconscious Organisation
The unconscious and hidden sentiments is defined as an aspect of an individual’s behavior and
thinking which affects his action in a certain way towards some individual (Dalal, 2017). The
people are generally unaware about their behavior towards certain races of people which may
seem discriminatory.
2.2
The flow of information among employees or between the employee and employer in an
unprofessional or informal manner is know as informal communication. Though this
4

communication style is carried out in friendly manner, it has its drawbacks. The more the
informal communication within the organization the more people gets involved in rumor and
gossips about other employees(Mikkelsen, et al., 2015). This sometimes leads to situation when
employee becomes rude and hurt others feelings and emotions. This certainly, hampers the
working environment and eventually affecting the employee performance. The gossips and
conversation of longer duration affects both organization and individual’s productivity. The
impact of these kind of activities also affects the performance of employee who are true and
dedicated towards their job. Informal communication also give rise to conflicts affecting the
relationship between fellow employees(Jones, 2017). The communication style of this nature
gives undue advantage to employee while communicating with their superiors thus affecting the
relation between them. Informal communication mostly consists of gossips which may be vague
that could harm the productivity of the organization. Thus, there is use of both informal and
formal communication for any organization to succeed. It becomes difficult at time to control the
flow of informal information and its origin(Iasmina, et al., 2010). All these activities affecting
the overall performance of the employee and the organization which eventually hampers the
motivation level of the employee.
2.3
Grapevine technology that have used as informal communication
5

It is a type of informal communication which is comprised of rumor and gossip. It is popular in
most of the organization as it does not follow any kind of defined rules and spreads any message
very quickly(Smith & Smith, 2014). It happens through both external and internal channels. It
mostly passes information, rumors, suspicions which do not flow in case of formal
communication. This type of communication is not governed by formalities and official
regulation but by personal and social relationship(Anon., 2015). The flow of information in
grapevine are either vertical, horizontal and even diagonal linking almost everyone of the
organization. The existence of this style of communication is due to sense of belonging between
managers and staffs brings. Thus, it builds corporate identity and helps in teamwork.
Most of the information passing through this channel are true due to its style of communication.
However, it can also lead to passing wrong information at times which can affect the working
environment within the organization.
2.4
There are several factors which has impacted business communication in todays world. One of
the factor which is reshaping the communication world is the introduction of technology or the
digital transformation(Eisenhauer, 2014). The following are the current trends which the current
generation uses for communication at workplace are as follows:
Cloud base communication system
The introduction of cloud commutation has replaced the costly and premises-based system of old
days. Most of the companies in today’s context has realize the value of cloud-based
communication services because it requires less capital, low operating expenses, user friendly
and faster than the previous modes of communication.
6

Mobile devices
The use of smart phones has revolutionized the business and commercial world. The various
mobile applications ahs further made the exchange of messages or in information faster that can
reach to desired number of people within the fraction of a second.
Instant communication
There are many messaging applications which the employees use on daily basis and remain
connected even after their work time. The options like video calls for conferencing, sharing of
documents, storage, and transfer of data, project management tools etc. have replaced the older
age systems with newer team collaboration tools.
The fall of the face to face meetings:
It is not odd to state that the face to face meetings has been mostly replaced with the introduction
of emails, video conferencing, mobile or landlines, messaging applications. According to a
survey, 95% of people wishes to use communication tools instead of meeting person face to face.
Emotional Labor
Emotional labor can be defined as the process by which workers manage their expressions and
feelings to fulfill the emotional needs of a job according to the defined guidelines and rules of
7