How to Communicate Successfully in a Traditional or Web-Structured Corporation or Company
© Emily Thrush
How a company deals with communication is part of its overall structure and organization. Appreciating the underlying values and beliefs in the workplace can help you make good decisions about communication strategies.
When Traditional Communication Fails
An extreme example of violating traditional communication models comes from the near-disaster at the Three-mile Island Nuclear Power Plant in Pennsylvania in the 1970s. After the incident, government investigators revealed that an engineer had filed a report detailing the circumstances under which such a problem could arise.
When the recipients of the report were asked why they hadn't acted, one said that the form the engineer had used was supposed to go to a different office, so he had simply forwarded it. When the head of the second office was questioned, he said that the report came in on the right form, but was the jurisdiction of the first office. The use of the wrong form had made the engineer's report completely ineffective.
How Hierarchical and Web-Structured Organizations Work
Traditional organizations are usually hierarchical, with clear differentiation between the roles and responsibilities of various members and offices. Recently, however, many upstart companies have used a "web" structure - that is, the members of the organization are connected in a radiating pattern around the owner, often with roughly equal status, benefits, and responsibilities.
In these organizations, more people have direct access to the top decision-maker, and communication processes are often more open. Sometimes this can result in unclear communication, but it can also make some processes more efficient.
In hierarchical organizations, proposals are passed up through each level of supervision, with changes requested and approved at each stage. In web organizations, a proposal writer meets with upper management and experts to make decisions about the document prior to draft. Everyone reviews it together and finalizes in one round of changes.
Successful Appeals to Supervisors
Approved proposals depend on anticipating your supervisor's criteria. Is cost the biggest factor? Public relations? Employee morale? Safety? Quality? The organizational identity and culture of the company can also suggest a communication strategy. How are employees dressed? How do employee and management work areas differ? How do people at various levels of the organization address each other? What is the tone of the employee manual? What are the rules of employee behavior? Is there an vertical or horizontal organizational chart? These clues inform your mode of communication.
When Traditional Communication Fails
An extreme example of violating traditional communication models comes from the near-disaster at the Three-mile Island Nuclear Power Plant in Pennsylvania in the 1970s. After the incident, government investigators revealed that an engineer had filed a report detailing the circumstances under which such a problem could arise.
When the recipients of the report were asked why they hadn't acted, one said that the form the engineer had used was supposed to go to a different office, so he had simply forwarded it. When the head of the second office was questioned, he said that the report came in on the right form, but was the jurisdiction of the first office. The use of the wrong form had made the engineer's report completely ineffective.
How Hierarchical and Web-Structured Organizations Work
Traditional organizations are usually hierarchical, with clear differentiation between the roles and responsibilities of various members and offices. Recently, however, many upstart companies have used a "web" structure - that is, the members of the organization are connected in a radiating pattern around the owner, often with roughly equal status, benefits, and responsibilities.
In these organizations, more people have direct access to the top decision-maker, and communication processes are often more open. Sometimes this can result in unclear communication, but it can also make some processes more efficient.
In hierarchical organizations, proposals are passed up through each level of supervision, with changes requested and approved at each stage. In web organizations, a proposal writer meets with upper management and experts to make decisions about the document prior to draft. Everyone reviews it together and finalizes in one round of changes.
Successful Appeals to Supervisors
Approved proposals depend on anticipating your supervisor's criteria. Is cost the biggest factor? Public relations? Employee morale? Safety? Quality? The organizational identity and culture of the company can also suggest a communication strategy. How are employees dressed? How do employee and management work areas differ? How do people at various levels of the organization address each other? What is the tone of the employee manual? What are the rules of employee behavior? Is there an vertical or horizontal organizational chart? These clues inform your mode of communication.
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