Four functions of communication in organizations. What they are, how to use them effectively and to your advantage

Failures in communication processes in organizations, both internal (between the entire structure: top, intermediate and base) and external (customers, suppliers, government and society in general), can lead to lost opportunities that will never return or to unforeseen costs or even very difficult to measure and/or determine.

In organizations, communication performs several functions and all of them are necessary for its proper functioning.

Stephen P. Robbins, in his book entitled “Organizational Behavior”, points out 4 basic functions in communication in organizations. They are: control, motivation, emotional expression and information.

The control function occurs in the behavioral issue of teams. For example, when an employee intends to complain to their direct leader or address a certain situation in their work performance, because of a certain policy of the institution, this relationship is considered control communication.

As for the motivation function, this occurs when each team member knows what they should do or be done, know how far their progress is, and what they can do more to increase their performance levels. The definition of specific (achievable) objectives and goals in organizations, the provision of information to employees regarding their performance and the behavioral reinforcement required boost motivation.

It is said “If you want to go fast, go alone. But if you want to go far, go together.” It is clear that we must work as a team, this being the basic source of social interaction. The communication that occurs between team members is a basic mechanism, where participants demonstrate their disenchantment and feelings of satisfaction of social needs. Here we find the function of emotional expression.

Looking at the ultimate function of communication, we realize that its role is to facilitate decision-making. In other words, it provides the necessary information to all team members (vertical and horizontal leadership, employees, among others) so that they can, at their level, make appropriate decisions.

It is important for teams to perform effectively and to this end, they need to maintain some way of controlling their members, stimulating them on topics such as performance, promoting means of emotional expression, as well as decision making. Therefore, we can conclude that none of these 4 functions should be seen as more important than the others.