The Silo Effect: The Peril of Expertise and the Promise of Breaking Down Barriers

In the age of Twitter, smartphones, and 4G, many people think we’re more connected than ever, but Tett (Fool’s Gold), the U.S. managing editor for the Financial Times, says that’s not necessarily so. In fact, she asserts, that popular narrative has lulled us into a false sense of security, when in fact our lives have become increasingly fragmented. Her main focus is on the downside of allowing an organization to divide into silos—operational groups with too little contact and planning between them. Told through a series of silo-driven disasters, such as a segmented government bureaucracy leading to structural fires in buildings in the Bronx, “unmarriageable” bachelors in 1950s France, the downfall of Sony, failing Swiss banks, and a U.K. housing crisis, the book demonstrates the need to identify, name, and work towards integration of these silos. As to the question of how individuals can escape from silos, Tett has multiple answers: change careers; work toward cross-work within your own organization; be willing to change and learn from mistakes. Innovation and profits, she writes, depend on being willing to do something—otherwise, you miss both risk and opportunity. A complex topic and lively writing make this an enjoyable call to action for better integration within organizations. Agent: Amanda Urban, ICM. (Sept.)