Prsonas

Miscommunication costs U.S. businesses an estimated $1.2 trillion every year. Per employee, that works out to roughly $9,284 annually. And according to Grammarly's 2024 State of Business Communication report, 100% of knowledge workers experience it at least weekly. Not most. All of them.

Most of that conversation focuses on internal communication, teams talking past each other, misaligned expectations, and unclear instructions. Valid problems. But there is a version that is even more immediate and even more preventable: the moment your organization meets the people it exists to serve.

The patient who cannot communicate with the intake staff. The visitor who cannot find where they are going. The employee who makes uninformed benefits decisions because the explanation did not land.

These are not email problems. They are access problems. And the report makes a compelling case that the organizations treating communication as operational infrastructure, not a soft skill, not a personality trait, are outpacing the ones that aren't.

There is a lot worth reading in this one:

The 2024 State of Business Communication Report This year promises to bring about transformational benefits in the way we communicate and the way we work—for those who seize the opportunity. While some businesses have experimented with generative AI, few have unlocked its full potential.

Here is a number that should bother everyone in healthcare: 34% of patients with limited English proficiency say language barriers made it hard to fill out forms for their provider.

33% struggled to communicate with medical office staff.

30% couldn't fully understand their doctor's instructions.

These aren't edge cases. There are 29.6 million people in the U.S. with limited English proficiency, and a significant chunk of them are navigating one of the most complex, high-stakes systems in existence -- healthcare -- with one hand tied behind their back.
The good news is that when patients receive care in their own language, outcomes measurably improve. Less confusion. Better adherence. Fewer errors. Fewer of those deeply avoidable moments where someone leaves a hospital more lost than when they arrived.

Language should never be the reason someone doesn't understand what's happening to them.

Full report worth reading:

Language Barriers in Health Care: Findings from the KFF Survey on Racism, Discrimination, and Health | KFF In the U.S., 26 million people have limited English proficiency, representing about 8% of people ages 5 and older. Those with limited English proficiency report worse overall health status than those who are English proficient, but data suggests that having access to providers who speak their prefer...

Chatbots answer questions. But do they connect?

We're talking about fewer errors, greater trust, and users who actually want to engage.rmth, clarity, and natural flow of human communication into digital spaces.

We're talking fewer errors, greater trust, and users who actually want to engage.

We just published a new blog post breaking it all down: https://bit.ly/41q5MQx