Cultural Silos Definition

A cultural silo is a group within a company or organization that has its own distinct culture, values, and norms that differ from the rest of the organization. This can lead to communication and collaboration problems within the organization.

The term ‘cultural silo’ was first coined by organizational development consultant Edgar Schein in his 1996 book Organizational Culture and Leadership. He described it as ‘a set of basic assumptions and beliefs that are shared by a group and that determine how the group interacts with its environment.’

Since then, the concept of cultural silos has been adopted by many organizations to describe the challenges they face in trying to create a cohesive culture across different departments or divisions.

There are several factors that can contribute to the formation of cultural silos within an organization. The most common is when there are different values or goals between different groups within the organization. This can happen when an organization goes through a merger or acquisition, or when there are changes in leadership. Other times, it can be simply due to the size of the organization or geographical location.

Cultural silos can have a number of negative consequences for an organization, including:

-Decreased communication and collaboration between departments or divisions.

-Inefficient use of resources.

-Lack of innovation.

-Missed opportunities for cost savings.