While corporations aren't doing an awful lot to correct the problem, they may have to do some serious wrestling with it soon. Listening, a prime survival skill, is under constant assault - and ironically some of its worse enemies are the very tools modern technology has designed to speed up communication. There are so many interruptions - a pager going off, a cell phone ringing. Things like call waiting interrupt people's listening skills. She also wonders just how much value employees get from car phone conversations as they negotiate their ways on thruways, dodging vehicles against a background of beeping horns and screeching brakes.
Listening skills are paramount in today's business world.
That being the case, good communication is more important than ever. Gone are the days when a worker can clarify his or her understanding of a memo just by walking into the boss's office or checking with the gang at the water cooler. Damato is particularly aware of this because she is a telecommuter, keeping in touch with her office from her Florida home. While she enjoys the benefits of modern technology, she also sees its problems. The entire concept of remote listening is especially frightening to her because she's seen what can happen through the experiential learning workshops that she conducts.