Organizations as Information Processing Systems

1
Organizations as Information Processing Systems

• Managing effectively in a complex, competitive
  environment requires the ability to get critical
  information, especially information that signals
  a possible need for organizational adaptation.
• Employees/middle managers may have early
  information about organizational issues or
  problems that they acquire through their contact
  with clients or with coworkers (Dutton and
  Ashford, 1993 Dutton et al., 1997 Dutton et
  al., 2001).

2
Issue Selling

• Why Selling Issues May Not Be So Easy A Look at
  a Study of Silence in Organizations
• Frances J. Milliken
• Elizabeth Wolfe Morrison
• Patricia A. Hewlin
• Please do not use these slides without permission
  from the authors.

3
Shutting down upward communication An example of
learned silence

• I raised a concern about some policies and I
  was told to shut up and that I was becoming a
  troublemaker. I would have pursued the issue
  further but presently I cant afford to risk my
  job. This has made me go into a detached mode,
  making me a yes man.
• Male respondent, Information Systems

4
Why Information Does Not Flow up Hierarchies
Easily

• The mum effect .
• People are less inclined to convey bad news than
  they are to convey good news.
• The authority effect .
• There may be distortions in information flowing
  up hierarchies as people tell managers what they
  think the managers want to hear.

5
Why Information Does Not Flow up Hierarchies
Easily

• The incentive effect .
• When organizations punish employees for poor
  performance, they give individuals an incentive
  to withhold information that might be interpreted
  as reflecting negatively on their performance.
• The consensus effect .
• There is often a norm that consensus is good and
  dissent bad.
• People may self-edit edit out their own
  concerns.

6
Why Information Does Not Flow up Hierarchies
Easily

• The loyalty effect .
• There may be a desire to preserve an illusion of
  social cohesiveness (Janis, 1977).

7
Organizational Silence

• When the norm within an organization is for
  employees to withhold opinions and concerns about
  organizational problems
• Rooted in a set of shared beliefs
• These beliefs stem from organizational
  structures, processes and practices
• Beliefs solidify and intensify through
  collective sense-making

8
Consequences of Silence

• Lower quality decision making
• Lack of variance in informational input.
• Lack of critical analysis of ideas (importance of
  minority influence in creating high quality
  decisions Nemeth and colleagues)

9
Consequences of Silence

• Reduced organizational learning.
• Lack of internal negative feedback ? inability to
  detect and correct errors.
• Increased probability of crises.
• Inability to capitalize on pluralism
• Minorities may be more likely to be silent.

10
Preliminary Evidence of Silence

• Ryan and Oestreich (1991)
• Interviews with 260 employees from 22
  organizations.
• 70 indicated an unwillingness to speak up about
  certain problems or issues at work.
• Morrison Milliken (2000)
• Approximately 71 of the part-time MBA students
  surveyed could think of an instance where they
  had remained silent about an issue or problem at
  work.

11
How Common is the Experience of Silence?

• Do you feel generally comfortable speaking up
  about issues or concerns to those above you?
• Yes 51
• No 23
• It Depends 26
• Have you ever felt that you could not speak up
  about an important issue or concern?
• Yes 85
• No 15

12
Reasons for Being Silent

• Fear of being labeled or viewed negatively
• Fear of losing ones job, not getting a
  promotion, etc.
• Recipient would not respond or be supportive
• Fear that negative feedback might damage future
  relationships
• Fear that the boss would blow up

• 30.0
• 22.5
• 17.5
• 17.5
• 10.0

13
Encouraging Voice

• Actions that convey sincere interest in hearing
  opinions and concerns
• Top management support for upward communication
• Formal mechanisms for upward communication
• Ombudsperson
• 360 Feedback systems
• Communication audits
• Suggestion boxes

14
Encouraging Voice

• Make voice safe by removing disincentives
• Convey safety in communicating negative info.
  no punishment for conveying info about problems.
• Seek to improve manager-employee relationships
• Employees often dont speak up because they
  perceive the boss as unsupportive of particular
  significance to women
• Flatten the hierarchy