A communication barrier is anything that stops a message being sent, received or understood as intended. In a case question, the skill is to find the clue, name the barrier it points to, and say what happened to the business as a result.
This lesson sits in organisation and communication. It builds on reading an organisation chart, because the number of levels a message must pass through is itself a possible barrier.
How do you find a barrier from evidence?
Work in three steps, in this order:
- Find the clue. Quote or point to the exact fact in the case, such as a time, a channel or a word.
- Name the barrier that the clue supports. Use a recognised name: jargon, wrong channel, too many levels, overload, no feedback.
- Link to the effect. Say what went wrong in the business, ideally with a figure.
Common barriers and the clue that often reveals each:
| Barrier | Typical clue in a case |
|---|---|
| Jargon or technical language | Staff ask what a term means, or make errors after a technical memo |
| Wrong channel | The message goes where the receiver does not look |
| Too many levels | The message passes through several managers and arrives late or changed |
| Overload | Staff receive many messages at once and miss one |
| No feedback | Nobody checks that the message was understood |
Worked example
Wira Plastik is a factory in Shah Alam with 40 machine operators. At 5:45 pm on Friday, the production manager emails new machine settings to all 40 operators.
Operators work on the factory floor and check email only in the office, which most do not visit during a shift.
On Monday, a batch of 5,000 units is made and the defect rate rises from the usual 2% to 9%. A later check shows that only 28 of the 40 operators knew about the new settings. Nobody asked operators to confirm they had read the email.
Step 1, find the clues. Three facts stand out: the message was sent by email, operators do not check email on the floor, and no one asked for confirmation.
Step 2, name the barriers. The clue “email to staff who rarely use email” shows a wrong channel. The clue “nobody asked operators to confirm” shows no feedback.
Step 3, link to the effect. The unaware operators, 40 − 28 = 12 operators, which is 12 ÷ 40 = 30% of the team, used old settings. Defects rose from 2% of 5,000 = 100 units to 9% of 5,000 = 450 units, which is 350 extra defective units.
Step 4, suggest a fix. A short briefing at the start of the shift, and a signature sheet, would use a channel operators actually see and give feedback.
The mistake to watch for
A common slip is to name a barrier the case does not show.
Mistaken answer: “The barrier is language differences, because some operators may not read English.”
The case says nothing about language. The answer is guessing, and the real clues, the email channel and the missing confirmation, are ignored.
Correction: “The barrier is the wrong channel. The manager sent an email to floor operators, who do not check it during a shift. So 12 of 40 did not know the new settings, and defects rose from 100 to 450 units.”
Check yourself
1. A new cashier asks her supervisor, “What does SKU mean?” after reading a stock memo full of abbreviations. Which barrier does this show, and what is the clue?
Show answer
Jargon (technical language). The clue is that the cashier did not understand an abbreviation used in the memo.
2. A message from the owner passes through 4 managers before reaching the shop floor. By the time it arrives, it is 3 days old and the wording has changed. Name the barrier.
Show answer
Too many levels in the chain of command, which delayed the message and changed it on the way.
3. In the Wira Plastik case, what percentage of operators did not know about the new settings?
Show answer
12 of 40 did not know: 12 ÷ 40 = 0.3 = 30%.
Where this leads next
Once you can find a barrier from a clue, move on to choosing a communication method for a stated audience, which is how a business avoids the barrier in the first place. Then try the organisation and communication practice set. When a case also gives defect or cost figures, the cash versus profit bridge and the ratios tool help you keep the arithmetic clear.
Some students recognise every barrier on a list but still lose marks because the clue never appears in the answer. You can practise quoting evidence with a teacher in online one-to-one Business tuition.