Communication has always played a vital role in our society.
Every development that we have achieved arose from groups of people communicating with one another. Since the earliest times of existence, the human race has invented ways to better communication so as to make it as effective and efficient as possible. If we look at the past twenty years, communication has definitely changed gradually to what we have today.
Communication Change over the Past 20 Years
In the past two decades, the world of the internet had started to evolve but it was neither popular nor as effective as it is today. Only a small portion of the world's population could make the use of e-mail. During the time, people made physical letters, and it took days to reach the recipient. However, there was the invention of mobile phones, which were an improvement to the normal telephones, since people could carry the phones with them whenever they went. This was a great improvement in the world of communication. However, with the consistency in new technology and the rise of social media, communication has changed from being physical and verbal to virtual communication where people communicate using email, Facebook, texting, twitter, and many other channels. The current communication entails less of face-to-face interaction, but there are great innovations in incorporating video calls where people who are miles away can communicate with their friends through video calls or face timing (Fasouli, 2016).
Effective Communication by Leaders and Organizations
For any system or firm to be successful, effective communication is needful. As such, leaders are often encouraged to have good communication skills to pass information and new policies to their subordinates and partners. In the previous years, communications in organizations involved having physical meetings only; as this was the only effective way to ensure everyone got the information right. Today, things have shifted into the paradigm of the internet and technology. As such, leaders have to communicate effectively using different channels of digital communication. This includes being proficient with the features of the computer to send emails and links, and even communicate to larger masses through tweeting facts about the organization.
Problems Caused by the Changes in Communication
Changes in communication have been very beneficial to our society because it has made the world a global village where people across continents can be in touch. Companies have been able to sell themselves across countries due to new communication channels of social media. Leaders have spread their message to their people through the available communication channels. However, with every great invention, there are some problems that come along with it. The main problem that we face as a result of changes in communication is the overreliance on the technology tools that keep most people tethered to work. Unplugging is important as it allows people to connect on a human level, something which seems to lack these days (Romero-Ruiz, K. et. al. (2017).
Conclusion
It is, thus, undoubted that how people communicate has changed since the late nineties to date. These changes are attributed to technological innovations and most importantly, the internet. It might seem like we are at the peak of communication technologies, but it is guaranteed that the future still holds a lot regarding creating new and improved means of communication.
References
Fasouli, D. (2016). Communication has changed during the last 20 Years. Which factors have caused the biggest changes? Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/299389172_Communication_has_changed_during_the_last_20_Years_Which_factors_have_caused_the_biggest_changes
Romero-Ruiz, K. et. al. (2017). Information and Communication Technologies Impact on Family Relationship. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, Volume 237, Pages 30-37, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2017.02.007.
