Bridging the Communication Gap for the Early-Career Workforce

Editor's note: Posts published on From the Workplace are written by outside contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of SHRM.

Workplace communication gaps are a common challenge for HR leaders. The issue, however, goes beyond words alone; it reflects how prepared employees are to communicate effectively in real organizational contexts.

The impact often surfaces most visibly among early-career professionals, where expectations for communication collide quickly with workplace realities. While new hires often arrive with strong technical knowledge, many may struggle to navigate feedback conversations, manage conflict, or adapt messages for different audiences. These challenges emerge early, during onboarding, performance discussions, and cross-functional collaboration, creating friction for managers and slowing early effectiveness in the workplace.

What makes the issue persistent is not a lack of awareness. Employees across generations typically recognize that communication matters and have encountered related concepts through education or prior training. Yet knowing about communication has not consistently translated into readiness to use it effectively in real organizational contexts. For HR leaders, addressing the gap with relevant learning and development is crucial to supporting workers at all levels.

Why the Gap Persists

Communication readiness directly influences engagement, productivity, and retention. When employees lack confidence in everyday communication, they may hesitate to ask questions, misinterpret feedback, or disengage during key interactions, slowing development and increasing the risk of early attrition.

However, workplace communication training often emphasizes advanced skills such as conflict resolution or presentations, while early-career professionals frequently struggle with more foundational behaviors, including clear professional writing, appropriate participation in meetings, audience-centered messaging, and professional language use. My work researching authentic and experiential learning shows these skills are best developed through realistic practice supported by feedback and reflection.

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A Workplace-Based Approach

In my action research study, I sought to better understand what supports communication readiness through a workplace-based communication intervention implemented with early-career professionals in a corporate setting. Initially designed as an eight-week program, the post-workshop reflection indicated that extending the experience to 10 weeks would provide additional time for practice and deeper development, particularly in areas such as emotional intelligence and navigating challenging conversations. Rather than relying on lectures or assessments, the program emphasized realistic practice aligned with everyday organizational demands.

Participants engaged in scenario-based activities, role-play, guided reflection, and peer feedback focused on communication styles, emotional intelligence, nonverbal communication, audience adaptation, and conflict navigation. Designed as a learning environment rather than a performance evaluation, the program prioritized psychological safety, enabling participants to experiment with strategies, receive feedback, and refine their approach over time.

Shifts in Communication Readiness

Following the intervention, participants reported increased confidence across key communication domains. Many described being more intentional in workplace interactions, pausing before responding, listening more actively, and adapting messages to audience needs.

Managers noted subtle but meaningful shifts, including increased participation in discussions and greater composure in select high-visibility situations. While these observations were informal, they align with research suggesting that confidence enables skill use. Confidence alone does not equal competence, but it is often a prerequisite for behavior change.

Implications Beyond Communication

Although communication served as the focal skill in this research, the approach has broader relevance. Communication often functions as a gateway capability through which other soft skills, such as collaboration, accountability, and teamwork, are practiced and strengthened. The findings suggest that the conditions supporting communication readiness can be applied to developing various soft skills more broadly.

HR leaders seeking to strengthen soft-skills readiness can apply several practical lessons:

• Embed focused, experiential development into onboarding and early-career programs.
• Reinforce expectations for interpersonal behaviors through regular performance and feedback conversations.
• Equip managers and leaders to model and coach soft-skills behaviors, not just task execution.
• Create psychologically safe environments that support practice, reflection, and learning.

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Closing persistent soft-skills gaps requires moving beyond isolated, traditional, rote training toward sustained, practice-based development embedded in everyday work. When organizations invest in experiential, workplace-embedded learning and reinforce it through leadership behaviors and cultural norms, they strengthen workforce capability in ways that extend well beyond any single skill.

Charna Soifert, EdD, is a human resources and learning and development leader with over 30 years of experience translating applied research into workplace practices that strengthen early-career communication readiness.