Collaboration over voice call among diversed teammates

Overview

Effective communication across multinational teams is frequently accompanied by inherent challenges. Misunderstandings stemming from varying degrees of language proficiency are a common occurrence. However, even individuals who excel in face-to-face communication may struggle under specific conditions, particularly during phone or online voice calls. This article will examine the underlying reasons why communication becomes more challenging in voice-only interactions and explore potential solutions from a team-building perspective.

We will analyze key factors such as the absence of non-verbal cues, difficulties in interpreting tone, and the increased potential for miscommunication in voice-based exchanges. Additionally, we will explore strategies that organizations can adopt to mitigate these issues, fostering clearer communication and stronger collaboration in remote or multicultural teams. By addressing these challenges, teams can enhance their efficiency and cohesiveness, ensuring seamless communication regardless of the medium.

Motivation

The motivation for this research arises from the frequent instances of miscommunication we’ve observed, where valuable insights are either overlooked or misinterpreted, and where listeners form unnecessarily negative impressions. This not only results in missed opportunities but also diminishes the overall effectiveness of decision-making processes.

For example, consider the following scenario:

• A proficient English speaker rapidly delivers a detailed and lengthy opinion.
• Non-native speakers struggle to follow along, leading to confusion or hesitation.
• Yet, since the meeting must progress, participants respond with superficial agreement, and decisions are pushed through without fully understanding the nuances of the input.

While the final decision in a meeting may rest with key decision-makers, the fact that critical ideas might be misunderstood or ignored due to language barriers represents a missed opportunity for reaching optimal outcomes. It is regrettable when more insightful conclusions could have been achieved if all participants fully comprehended the discussion. This realization prompted us to explore potential improvements to facilitate more inclusive and effective communication during meetings.

By addressing these challenges, we aim to ensure that valuable contributions are not lost in translation, leading to better decision-making and fostering a more collaborative and productive environment for all team members.

Reasons what makes communication more difficult

• Low sound quality
• No visualization
• Being nervous
• Poor quality of captions
• High context culture
  • More responsibility on the listeners leads to hesitation to ask again

Possible actions

Personally

• Improve listening ability
• Slow down to speak
• Clear pronounciation
• An ideal role model as a speaker

As a team

• No hesitation to ask again
• Being a translater
• Try local language
• Use visualization like whiteboard

Technically

• Plugins of Zoom / Slack
• Better quality headsets

Future actions

• Action prioritization
• Creating structures to promote action adoption
• Collecting feedback
• Gathering supporters

etc...