The internet and information
Effective communication is critical in determining the performance and productivity of any business and employees. Poor communication within a company causes catastrophic effects such as poor performance, disengagement of the workforce, and company failures. Therefore, user-friendly intranet access within the hospitality company is an excellent strategy for increasing the flow of information (Weaver, 2016).
Question One
For a company, access to a user-friendly intranet improves communication in three ways. First, they create a social experience by allowing access to social media networks such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram (Weaver, 2016). Nowadays social media platforms are the most popular and powerful means of communication due to their broad audience and instant feedback. Therefore, it has made it easier for information sharing among employees, staff teams, and departments (Weaver, 2016). Secondly, they facilitate multidirectional communication, unlike the traditional methods that allowed the unidirectional flow of information. Due to their higher user engagement rates, they facilitate feedback and comments from employees and management, and hence promoting workplace cohesion (Weaver, 2016).
Moreover, they make business performance visible to the staff. As result, they help the company in cultivating the organization’s culture of performance among employees, thereby improving performance (Weaver, 2016). Lastly, the intranet allows remote access to information for example through smartphones and tablets. Hence employees can communicate and access information, especially self-service information (Weaver, 2016).
Question Two
However, despite its efficiency in improving communication, it can also hinder communication within a company. Information saturation or overload from frequent phone calls, social networks, and text messages can hinder communication since important information can be ignored, forgotten, or deleted (Lockley, 2019). Secondly, employees may not be conversant with the use of communication devices used in the intranet connection for instance tablets, creating a significant barrier in communication (Lockley, 2019). Lastly, due to different technical expertise in a company, the language barrier occurs when communicating technical aspects of the business especially between top executives and junior staff (Lockley, 2019). Therefore, language is a common factor hindering understanding of information when using the intranet.
References
Weaver, K. (2016). 5 Ways an Intranet Can Improve Internal Communication. Retrieved from https://www.codesigned.com/blog/5-ways-an-intranet-can-improve-internal-communication
Lockley, S. (2019). 10 Internal Communication Challenges and How to Master Them with an Employee App. Retrieved from https://insights.staffbase.com/blog/10-communication-challenges-and-how-to-master-them-with-your-own-branded-employee-app