You can facilitate the development of extensive intraorganizational networking opportunities such as online communities, mentoring programs, job rotations and enterprisewide networking events. What can L&D do to make silo-busting networking part of the culture?Īs an L&D professional, you can be a catalyst for creating a culture of silo-busting networking. Figures 1 through 3 provide an overview of silo-busting networking behaviors at three organizational levels: leader, a person who heads up a major function or business unit manager, someone below the leader level who has people reporting to them and individual contributor. And individual contributors use silo-busting networking behaviors to create internal networks. Managers model leaders’ behaviors and champion the culture. The organization’s leaders use silo-busting networking behaviors to create a supportive culture. Who is responsible for silo-busting networking? Everyone They set an example by working across the organization, shifting from a focus on the success of their particular function or business unit to ownership over the success of the entire enterprise. In a silo-busting networking organization, leaders create a culture of cross-company collaboration. They see leaders’ behaviors as the formula for success. Employees will emulate a leader’s behaviors because they want to fit in and be successful. Organizational behaviorist Larry Senn said, “Culture is the shadow of the leader.” The executives of the organization set the group norm through their words, but more importantly through their behaviors. And they share a common purpose: supporting enterprisewide success. They are connected to colleagues throughout the organization through a network of relationships.
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People are curious about what is going on in other parts of the organization and feel free to ask questions about the organization’s goals and plans. In a silo-busting networking culture, collaboration replaces competition and the power dynamic breaks down. And while they may feel a sense of belonging to their team, they often don’t know what’s happening in other parts of the organization and don’t see themselves as part of a greater whole. People are competing for knowledge, dollars, talent and recognition for achievement because all of these are sources of power. In a typical hierarchical culture, there is a power struggle among silos. People will collaborate across functions, locations or business units only when such behavior is supported by the culture. It starts with the right culture: curious, connected, purposefulĪs with all things related to the way work gets done in an organization, internal networking or a lack thereof is part of the organization’s culture. In this way, silo-busting networking is a powerful tool to attract and retain diverse, high-performing, high-potential talent. Severing these ties by leaving the organization represents an emotional sacrifice. Perhaps most importantly, the interpersonal nature of the interactions provides fertile ground for friendships and other emotional support, generating a strong sense of belonging. The “Personnel Psychology” study points out: “the exchange of interpersonal resources via networking helps employees develop greater comfort with work-related tasks and their social environments, which increases perceptions of ‘fit’ within the organization.” These resources include information, services and influence that help people achieve their goals and get work done. Silo-busting networking, even in traditional hierarchies, encourages cross-company collaboration and a continual exchange of resources between and among employees. Internal networking that isn’t bound by functional silos or hierarchy - what we call “silo-busting networking” - creates organizations people are happy to be a part of. The research further indicates that retention is closely linked to the extent to which people feel attached, or feel they belong, to the organization that employs them. Research published in “Personnel Psychology” has shown that internal networking increases employees’ desire to stay with an organization, reducing the likelihood of costly turnover by 140 percent. It’s a matter of curiosity, connection and purpose. They don’t know the “who, what, why and how” of the organization, much less how they fit into it.Īs we’ll explore in this article, you, as a leader in learning and development, can break down these barriers. Employees isolated in roles, functional areas and hierarchical tiers can lack a sense of belonging and inclusion. In many organizations, there are structural barriers that keep people siloed from one another.
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