Words are wildfire that quickly spread throughout humanity. In the democracy where individual opinion is respected, communication has usually resulted in change for the better. Nevertheless, many think that the freedom of speech is not for workers in companies. It is true that challenging a system is not a great idea for a safe and stable work life. However, the status quo from lack of conversation between corporate ladder just leads to stagnancy. I firmly believe that sharing opinions through communication in the workplace is of paramount importance because It is the shortcut to fix problems and boost productivity.
Firstly, direct communication with managers or people on the higher social ladder is a powerful solution to deal with problems. This is because it enables managers to expedite the process to recognize the issues and fix them. For example, in 2019, according to the department of defense of South Korea, the suicide rate of active duty soldiers decreased to 22.7%. The secret lies in Defense Help-Call, a telephone helpline service established by the defense ministry as of 2013. The system was designed to keep irrationality and violence in military barracks at bay and activate communication between the ranks and officers. Thanks to this, the desertion rate also dramatically dropped to 83.7%. This striking number suggests that direct communication can effectively contribute to problem-solving inside an organization.
Secondly, communication in the workplace can lead to productivity increase. Accordingly, companies today have adopted the simplified rank system for efficient and streamlined decision making. According to a research conducted by McKinsey in 2018, the quality of future-ready organizations includes radically flattened structures. For example, Haier, the China-based multinational maker of appliances and consumer electronics shifted away from a traditional hierarchical structure. Also, companies like Google have focused on rebuilding team structure, such as developing the lines of communication running in all directions. With the newly created flexibility, they are able to form, disband, reshape, and experiment easily, correcting mistakes, and trying new approaches. As such, the changes of behemoths in accordance with the trend shows the importance of sharing opinions for alacrity.
In conclusion, vigorous communication freed from pressure should not be something hard to come by. This is because It is the most basic step of solving problems and achieving better productivity in the workplaces. Still, a slew of companies stick to being old fashioned. Probably, The wildfire will not happen as long as the trailblazers in the companies are suffering from lack of fire.