The Meaning Gap Study

When Communication Fails Quietly

You sent the message. You clarified expectations. You repeated the priorities.
And still, teams moved in different directions.

Some acted immediately. Others waited. Some complied quietly. Others disengaged. From leadership’s perspective, the message was clear. Across the organization, meaning fractured.

This is rarely resistance. It is interpretation.

Communication is sensemaking. People filter messages through their role, their proximity to power, their exposure to consequences, and their history with how similar messages have played out. Before they act, they assess risk. They decide what the message means for them.

When those interpretations diverge, action fragments — even if the message sounded clear.

The space between leadership intent and lived interpretation is the Meaning Gap.

Most communication problems are interpretation problems

The Meaning Gap Study

The Meaning Gap Study is a system-level diagnostic that reveals the gap between what leaders intend to communicate and how employees actually understand it. Instead of asking whether a message was “clear,” we examine how communication is interpreted across roles, departments, and levels of authority — and how those interpretations shape trust, risk-taking, and action. Because communication does not end when a message is sent. It continues as people decide:

What does this mean for me?
What is expected now?
What is safe to say or do next?

When those answers vary across the organization, misalignment grows.

What this Study Tells Us...

Through structured interviews, targeted surveys, and systems analysis, we identify:

Where leadership intent diverges from employee interpretation
Where decision rights are unclear
Where trust signals are weakening
Where perceived risk prevents honest dialogue
Where strategy and daily operations disconnect

We do not assess communication and how it actually functions.

Why Meaning Gaps Matter

Misalignment is rarely about resistance or incompetence.

It is often the result of how messages shift as they move across teams and power levels.

During growth, restructuring, strategic pivots, or periods of pressure, organizations move faster than shared understanding can keep up.

What follows looks like:

Leadership says one thing. Teams experience another.
Burnout driven by unclear expectations.
Hesitation to speak up.
Repeated decisions and stalled execution.
Strategy that looks aligned on paper but fragments in practice.

The Meaning Gap Study™ measures this dynamic and makes it visible — before it becomes cultural drift.

Closing the Gaps of Communication

What Leaders Gain

The Meaning Gap Study provides:

Clear visibility into hidden misalignment
Data-backed insight across roles and power levels
A prioritized roadmap for correction
Practical recommendations for strengthening clarity, trust, and accountability

When to Use It

The Meaning Gap Study is most valuable when:

Your organization is scaling
You are implementing strategic change
Trust feels fragile or inconsistent
Decisions are revisited repeatedly
Leadership senses friction but cannot locate its source

The People Praxis

If everyone heard it but acted differently — was it clear?