The state of communication between management levels in a municipality

Abstract: A large South African municipality conducted two employee satisfaction surveys in 2012/13 and in 2014/15 to determine the employees' overall satisfaction with the organisation as a preferred employer. The level of communication was one of the areas from the surveys employees indicated as inadequate. This study uses a qualitative enquiry to review the quality of the internal communication between levels of management at the municipality. The findings indicate that although the municipality, through its communication policy, is cognisant of the varied communication needs of employees and the need for differentiated communication according to functions and responsibilities, mass communication is taking place rather than varying the message based on the needs of the employees