Effects of poor communication in an organization: Case of Kenya Seed Company

Research Paper (undergraduate) from the year 2012 in the subject Business economics - Offline Marketing and Online Marketing, , course: Organisation communication, language: English, abstract: In workplaces poor communication is a serious problem and can be costly to an organization. The impact can be devastating to the parties involved. Some of the results include: Loss of business, customers, products, goods, services, employee turnover, loss of productivity, absenteeism, sabotage, injury and accidents, sick leave and so on. The main purpose of this study is to identify the effects of poor communication on organizational performance and to find out the strategies for improving on communication at the workplace so that employee motivation can be enhanced. The specific objectives of the study included finding out the factors, levels, types and effects of poor communication at the workplace.

The study was guided by the writings of Elashmawi and Harris, (1993) who have argued that a fuller understanding of organizations is a vital ingredient at every forward step of the career process, and that communication is a primary element for understanding how organizations function and how members of the organization should, even must, behave in organizations if they are to advance their careers. The study was carried out at the Kenya Seed Company Limited. A sample of 300 respondents was involved in the research and they were picked through random stratified sampling save for seven heads of departments who were purposefully selected by virtue of their positions and possession of key information. This sample was deemed representative enough as the total number of workers is 3000. The research used both questionnaires and interviews schedules.

Data was analyzed and presented using descriptive statistics methods. Excel was used to come up with this analysis. To analyze and determine the magnitude of poor communication and good channels of proper communication, the findings of the study will help KSC Ltd and other organizations to improve on communication. This in turn will improve the employee motivation and general organizational performance.