5 Ways Miscommunication Costs Your Company And What to Do About It

Miscommunication isn’t just frustrating; it’s expensive. From missed deadlines to disengaged employees and lost customers, the ripple effects of unclear communication can quietly drain time, money, and trust across an organization.

In our recent webinar, “5 Ways Miscommunication Costs Your Company—and What to Do About It,” featuring guest presenter Dr. Debbie McKelvey Brown, Director, Research at Emergenetics International, we explored where the breakdown most often occurs and, more importantly, how leaders can fix them. Below is a recap of the key insights and practical takeaways for organizations looking to communicate more effectively.

1. Miscommunication Wastes Time and Productivity

When expectations aren’t clear, employees spend valuable time clarifying instructions, redoing work, or waiting for answers. Meetings multiply, inboxes overflow, and progress slows.

What to do instead: Clarify the purpose and outcome of every conversation, document decisions, and next steps.  Use consistent channels for specific types of communication. Clarity upfront saves hours downstream.

2. It Leads to Costly Errors and Rework

Small misunderstandings can snowball into big mistakes, missed requirements, incorrect deliverables, or projects that need to be redone entirely. These errors don’t just cost money, but they also erode confidence and morale.

What to do instead: Confirm understanding by asking people to reflect back on what they heard. Slow down communication in high‑stakes situations , avoid assumptions based on role, tenure, or intent. Accuracy improves when understanding is shared, not assumed.

3. Miscommunication Damages Trust and Relationships

When messages are unclear or perceived as inconsistent, trust breaks down. Teams may feel unheard, customers feel overlooked, and leaders appear disconnected.

What to do instead:  Be intentional about tone and timing,  separate intent from impact, and  create space for questions and feedback. Trust grows when communication is transparent and two‑way.

4. It Fuels Conflict and Disengagement

Many workplace conflicts stem not from what was said, but from how it was interpreted. Over time, unresolved miscommunication can lead to disengagement, frustration, and even turnover.

What to do instead: Recognize that people process information differently by adapting your communication style to your audience.  Address misunderstandings early before they escalate. Healthy communication reduces friction and keeps teams aligned.

5. Miscommunication Undermines Results and Growth

When teams aren’t aligned, strategy execution suffers. Goals become fuzzy, priorities compete, and momentum stalls, making it harder for organizations to scale and succeed.

What to do instead: Align communication to business goals by reinforcing key messages consistently and by making clarity a leadership responsibility, not an afterthought. Clear communication is a competitive advantage.

The Implement–Intent Model: Turning Communication Into Action

One of the most practical and applicable frameworks shared during the webinar was the Implement–Intent Model, a simple but powerful way to reduce miscommunication and ensure clarity turns into action.

The model focuses on two critical questions that are often left unanswered in workplace communication:

• Implement: What specifically needs to happen next?
• Intent: Why does this matter, and what outcome are we aiming for?

When either piece is missing, teams are left to fill in the gaps on their own, often incorrectly.

How the Implement–Intent Model Works

1. Clarify the Intent - Start by clearly articulating the purpose behind the message. This aligns people on the why and helps them prioritize correctly.

Example: “The goal of this project is to reduce customer response time and improve satisfaction scores.”

 2. Define the Implement - Spell out exactly what action is required. Avoid vague language and be explicit about ownership, timing, and expectations.

Example: “By Friday, the support team will update the FAQ documentation and escalate unresolved tickets within 24 hours.”

3. Check for Shared Understanding - Before moving on, confirm that everyone understands both the intent and the implementation. This step alone can prevent hours of rework later.

Why This Model Reduces Miscommunication

The Implement–Intent Model works because it does the following:

• Eliminates assumptions
• Connects day-to-day tasks to larger goals
• Creates accountability and alignment

By consistently pairing what to do with why it matters, leaders can dramatically reduce confusion and keep teams moving in the same direction.

Communication Is Both a Skill and a Strategy

Miscommunication isn’t a personal failure,  it’s a systemic challenge. The good news? It’s also one of the most fixable problems organizations face.

By building awareness, slowing down key conversations, and intentionally aligning messages, companies can reduce costly breakdowns and create stronger, more connected teams.

If you missed the live session, be sure to check out the full on-demand webinar replay to dive deeper into each of these areas and walk away with actionable tools you can use right away.

Want more insights like this? Explore additional webinars and resources on the Demio blog to keep improving how your teams connect, communicate, and perform.