‘Wow!!! Thanks a lot. LOL…’
What do these three sentences have in common? They’re all part of the Slack-splaining lexicon of excessive exclamation points, unnecessary capitalization, and informal acronyms that the vast majority of us have adopted since we started working remotely and now rely on messaging apps. instant to communicate with colleagues throughout the working day.
That’s according to Loom, who recently published a study of three thousand knowledge workers in the UK and US on modern workplace communication tools. He revealed that 97% feel the need to spruce up digital communication to help convey their tone and ensure colleagues aren’t reading between the lines or misinterpreting what they’ve said. That equates to nineteen minutes a day re-reading emails and eighteen minutes to resolve any type of miscommunication that may have occurred.
culturally conditioned
This fear of being misinterpreted is not new, especially among working women. According to a 2006 study, 73% of exclamations used in emails come from women, who have been culturally conditioned to believe that not sounding friendly or kind in written communication may seem rude.
Then there are the emojis in the workplace argument. While you may never dream of signing a work email with a laughing crying emoji, you’ve probably relied on it more than once during an online chat with a colleague to cordially illustrate a certain number of subjects. These can include the fine art of self-mockery, a glaring mistake you’ve made, or even ending a conversation when you really need to get on with your work and can’t spend any more time making back and forth on something.
One school of thought says those who use emojis seem less proficient, while another study pointed out that for young professionals, 53% rely on emojis to better express their feelings and view those who use emojis as more approachable. (43%) and kinder (35%). %).
Conversely, 29% of their older counterparts (45+) found the use of emojis unprofessional and 22% said it made their colleagues irritating or less authentic.
Fear of misinterpretation
The irony is that Slack and other instant messaging (IM) apps were originally created to avoid over-communication, while simultaneously speeding up the process by providing an immediacy that traditional email couldn’t. not.
However, the Loom study also found that 93% of respondents believe they have to write several sentences to fully explain something lest it be misinterpreted, which ends up slowing them down in the long run. It also calculated that ineffective, excessive or embellished explanations cost the US economy $128bn (£107bn).
The bottom line? If you feel like remote work is making you paranoid beyond your productivity, maybe it’s time to set up an in-person meeting with your co-workers to blast through the communication cobwebs.
If things have gone too far, it might be time to look for your next challenge – Finextra’s Job Board offers hundreds of opportunities in forward-thinking companies like the three roles below.
Senior Business Analyst, BNY Mellon, Manchester
The Senior Business Analyst is responsible for the ongoing, independent oversight of moderately complex business continuity compliance activities and recovery management governance. The successful candidate will also be responsible for assessing, monitoring and reporting on key indicators of business continuity and recovery readiness.
You will also support business line managers to ensure the business meets both customer and regulatory requirements. See the full specification here.
Android Engineer, Starling Bank, Southampton
As an Android Engineer at Starling, you will be responsible for supporting and improving the bank’s Android application. Working closely with other Android engineers with varying backgrounds and backgrounds, you will validate, review and ship new code from week one.
You will also be empowered to make the necessary decisions for the platform and provide information to team leaders. If this sounds like the right job for you, apply now.
Senior Technical Program Manager, Crypto Finance Engineering, Ripple, London
The Senior Technical Program Manager, Crypto Finance Engineering at Ripple will be required to manage multiple projects focused on finance and compliance solutions. You will also be responsible for the end-to-end planning and implementation of complex projects, and develop the relationships between engineering, technical operations, information security, finance, legal and compliance to develop program milestones, track progress and provide transparency to various stakeholders. . Learn more here.
If you’re looking for your next big role in finance or technology, visit the Finextra job site today.
