Having spent over 20 years in the corporate world, I've found that silo mentality is one of the most frequently discussed and challenging issues leaders face.
Silo mentality refers to a situation where teams or departments work in isolation, withholding information and generally holding back when collaborating with others.
At an individual level, it is about personal success rather than collective success.
Enron is an extreme example; despite their ambitious goals, things did not turn out well for them. Leadership failed their people.
It was not their commitment to excellence that broke down the system.
Enron’s leaders fostered a culture of intense competition and individual success.
Sure, Enron is hopefully the exception but let's keep in mind that Gallup continues to report organisational silos being a big barrier to engagement.
In their 2023 survey, only 33% of employees reported being engaged, and 16% were actively disengaged.
How can you avoid the “silo mentality”?
If the team’s goals are not clear and unified, individuals will create and focus on their own goals or agenda.
Providing team members with a clear purpose and a common goal unites the team, and empowers them to achieve something greater success together than they could individually.
Silo mentality is ultimately about fear.
People become reluctant to share knowledge when isolating themselves from their colleagues or other teams and departments.
Instead, they hoard knowledge, breaking down communication and hindering collaboration and collective growth.
This restrictive attitude is a deep cultural issue that builds up silently and under the radar.
Leaders find it challenging to identify the patterns and, even more so, to discover the root cause.
There are diagnostic tools which can help you gain clarity about what is amiss and why.
However, if you want to make a truly positive change, you need to go further than that and address the “silo mentality” head-on.
☑ Create shared vision and goals and align everyone with them
☑ Nurture trust and transparency
☑ Open communication channels
☑ Support and train people on how to collaborate
☑ Incentivise and celebrate collaboration
Those are just a few general directions on how to break down the silos and foster a truly collaborative work environment.
Each case is unique and has to be addressed in the context of the specific teams or organisations.
In any case, it’s not an overnight change but requires intentional effort and commitment.
If you’re ready to transform your leadership style from reactive to proactive and achieve greater impact with your team(s) - with personalised, context-specific support, let's talk ⤵️
It’s free and can provide immediate insights and actionable next steps, regardless of your decision to work with me as your coach.
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