Break Away from Silo Thinking

Have you heard about the 'Functional Silo Syndrome'? In a team of five members, when one individual shoulders all the responsibility voluntarily and refuses to seek help or divulge project details. Or on the floor when everyone is engaged in a ‘team building activity’, but this one team member will be sitting in his/her cubicle furiously typing away an email and complaining about all the ‘noise’ occurring in the name of bonding. 

Myth

If you are independent, you are more susceptible to becoming a loner. 

Reality

 Alienation (by any means) will cause you stress and adversely affect your health. 

Business Dictionary defines ‘Silo thinking’ as a mindset present when certain departments or sectors do not wish to share information with others in the same company. Carelessly tossed around for the past three decades, this situation does not originate at the bottom of the corporate ladder. Rather, it is said to trickle down from the top. 

It is said that “leadership is not a position or a title. It is action and example”.  Organisations have been trying to implement various means to eliminate silos at the workplace. How can you as a manager help in changing the silo mentality? 

Work towards unifying the team

Address the issues that are central to the organisation. Encourage employees to align themselves with the same vision. As their leader, steer the wheel with conviction and lead by example. Support cross-departmental collaboration for various projects and activities. The goals of all employees must be aligned in the direction of general progress of the organisation and not just be limited to the fulfilment of their individual departmental objectives.

Enhance the X-Factor of Your Workplace

Merely celebrating ‘Employee Day or Family Day’ doesn’t make the cut anymore. Organisations, especially start-ups need to think and do something out of the box to keep their workforce motivated. There is a need to interact, engage, and build a robust employer brand. 

Does it involve a grand gesture? Maybe, maybe not. But relooking and analysing how your workforce functions can give you the answers. Here are a few tips that start-ups can use to bring out the company’s X-factor.

Ask meaningful questions

Have you ever questioned yourself, “What makes my workforce happy?” Diving straight into the emotions of your employees can trigger an idea. Take an approach that is more introspective and solution oriented. Bring in the empathy factor and put yourself in your employees’ shoes for a day. Take a while to figure what’s lacking or how you can simply improve their daily work experience. By asking yourself and others these questions that are casual, yet thought-provoking, one can gain an understanding and get a pulse of what is happening in other's lives.