NOTE: In this article, I am focusing on organizational silos and not information silos. Information silos are problematic as well, but the solutions are different as they are technical in nature rather than operational alone.
In agriculture, you can see silos protruding up throughout farming communities. They are used to store bulk materials that are harvested from the farms. They are designed to protect that which is inside from the weather and elements that may deteriorate it before it can go to market. They provide a way to separate – not integrate.
In IT, silos result in much the same. They often result from the need to solve a particular problem, which launches a group to solve the problem, which results in a group separate from others and non-integrated into the overall IT operation.
Each silo has it’s own objectives and measurements (KPIs) used to measure success. Often one silo has KPIs that conflict with other silos within the same IT operation. The result is conflicts and, sometimes, the inability for any silo group to achieve the needed results.
One solution to the silo phenomenon in IT is to focus on universal KPIs within the organization. That is, all project KPIs must map to organizational KPIs. If the KPI cannot map to an organizational KPI, it is not used. By implementing this constraint, it is less likely that individual group KPIs will conflict with other group KPIs. Of course, it can still occur, but the problem will be significantly reduced.
Another solution is the use of a PMO (project management office). The PMO acts as the central repository for all projects and can provide for arbitration and conflict resolution between projects. It is inevitable that the silo effect will occur and that conflicts will arise between projects. Having a PMO helps to resolve these conflicts and determine a win-win solution (or sometimes a win-lose solution – because we live in the real world and not a fantasy land).
The ultimate solution is to prevent silos in the first place. While silos are likely to occur from time-to-time regardless of your efforts, doing a few things differently can reduce the number of silos that are erected within your organizational structure. Some silo prevention methods include:
Use cross-functional teams: by utilizing the same people on many different projects (for example, one DBA is involved in seven different projects) means that the team members are aware of other projects in the organization. This awareness can reduce the number of bad decisions related to inter-project conflicts.
Implement agile practices where applicable: many agile practices have been developed to ensure that iterative changes do not result in unforeseen problems. Look into the many agile methods and determine the ones that will best help to diminish the silo effect in your organization.
Consider “public commenting” on projects: this action simply takes advantage of a common practice in standards development, which provides the “plans” to the public so that they have opportunity to provide feedback. Inside the organization, the “public” is simply the entire IT group and allowing them to provide feedback on your plans can prevent many solo effect problems.
These methods should be enough to get you started. Do you have methods that can help to reduce the silo effect as well? Feel free to share.
-Tom