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The Authors
Laura L. Ricci, MBA
George J. Wilkerson, Ph.D.

CHAPTER 4
When the Chain of Command is a Web

Tim and Judy share an office; their relationship is friendly and sometimes they talk about outside matters, but for the most part, their conversation is work-related. That's how the subject of Tim's inability to get his computer system upgraded came up. "I've been here longer than a lot of other people who got upgrades," he complained. "It's almost as if they intentionally pass me over."

Judy was sympathetic. She didn't get the upgrades either, but had chalked it off to seniority. She had only been with the company for a little over a year. "Have you asked anyone about it?" she said.

Tim nodded. "I sent an e-mail to my Unit Manager and he forwarded it to the Operations Staff Manager, but that was the last I heard of it."

"How long ago was that?" Judy asked.

Tim snickered. "Three...maybe four months."

And that was the end of the conversation. But the next day, when she was dropping off some items at Accounts Receivable, she asked the receptionist who handled purchasing for Tim's division. "That would be Tom Mullins."

The next morning, she dropped by Tom Mullins office. "Just checking on a rumor," she told him. "I hear we're getting another spread sheet upgrade."

Mullins shook his head. "We don't even have the last one distributed," he said.

"What's the hang up?"

"They found a bug in version 2.0," he explained. "So they sent us a patch; version 2.01 actually, though they never called it that. So we had to go back and reinstall the ones we already had in. And those were only put on selected machines."

"By seniority?," she said.

Mullins furrowed his brow at her. "Who told you that?" he said. "It's by project. We get a list of the current projects that require spreadsheets and install on the systems of people on those projects."

"Oh," Judy said. "I see. And the list comes from...?"

"The Operations Staff Managers."

That afternoon she asked Tim if his Unit Manager knew he was using the spreadsheet program on his project. Tim said he thought so; he had requested the upgrade, hadn't he?

"But did you tell him it was for your project?" she asked.

He searched back through the e-mails. No, he hadn't. So Judy explained the situation to him.

Grandmothers quilt in circles; each has her own piece to add, but they work together as equals, chatting across the developing quilt as they go. Grandfathers sit on the porch and whittle; each has his own piece of wood; each is creating something different. The culture of our genders reflects our method of operating. Men see their organization as a hierarchy, with layers and boxes; they must work their way "up the ladder." Women see the organization as a web of people. Some are their subordinates, some are their superiors. The result is that women more naturally think in terms of the network of assistance and resistance they face in completing their work. Their "level" in the organization doesn't indicate the path toward completion so much as it provides them with an understanding of the interactions of the various members. This is a strength which women add to the mix.

Flexibility is greatest for those who see themselves in the organization as part of a network. They don't see just one way up in the organization if they run into a problem. The idea that you can call only on those within your line of control and influence is limiting. Women have the edge in this situation.

Whereas men think it's tidier and more orderly to follow a set of rules, women intuitively recognize the bottlenecks of that approach. Men don't see any need to talk to anyone from another area, so they usually don't. Or if they do, they communicate up, trying to find someone at a level of influence over their area. While this maintains good control, it takes time and routinely involves searching higher and higher to find the level assistance necessary to achieve the objective.

Women have a better understanding of the patchwork quilt which is their workplace. They see the interconnectedness of the whole organization. Because they think more divergently, they can spot the critical pieces of the quilt that affect their needs. The organization isn't a series of building blocks; it's a collection of interconnected units and there's no limit to the avenues of communication available to any of those units.

...you're a mid-level manager who takes on a new client whose main office is in Beauregard, Alabama. You need a rush delivery, so you check the list of approved shipping carriers for overnight deliveries. The only choice is Express Mail. They're one of the largest delivery services, and the contract you have with them provides handsome discounts for your company's business because you maintain high volumes of such rush deliveries. But Beauregard, Alabama is not served by Express Mail; the only one delivering there is Determined Deliveries," and they don't give discounts. So you double-check the company's policy and just to be sure, you ask Burt, in the shipping department, if Express Mail really is the required carrier for overnight delivery.

If you're a man, you're most likely to...

...send a memo to your manager requesting help with this dilemma. He checks with the senior manager who takes it to the managers' group meeting, where they all agree that yes, Express Mail certainly is the exclusive carrier and they see no reason to change that. So you ask your boss to take the issue to the next level, his division manager. But the DM knows this isn't important enough to set aside other priorities, so finally looks at it later in the week and sends a note to the manager to explain that he can't do anything because shipping is handled by another Shipping and Receiving; however, he volunteers to take the issue to his own boss, who also supervises the head of Shipping and Receiving. The head of Shipping and Receiving recognizes that Determined Deliveries is the best solution, but he explains that a change in policy is needed. That's when the process of approving the change in policy begins. And after a couple of weeks, the customer's deliveries start.

Everything is orderly. No one's feathers got ruffled because their territory was intruded on by another department or division. Everyone in management is fully informed of the details necessary to deliver rush packages to the new client...a few weeks or months after the problem was discovered.

If you're a woman, you're most likely to...

...talk to the mailroom guy and explain the situation to him. He calls Determined Delivery and gets a current list of their drop off locations, confirms that they're only ones delivering to Beauregard, Alabama, opens an account with them, and gets the first package out to them the same day. And if he's really on top of it, he gets a supply of their mailing labels.

Of course, if the organization is still tightly hierarchical, a number of bad things can happen. Whether it be a man or woman who takes the latter course of action, others in the organization might see it as thwarting protocol, breaking the rules, going behind someone's back, etc. When it comes time to re-negotiate the Express Mail contract, the new location may not be part of the deal if the manager in charge of the shipping department wasn't told about the problem. And even if the mailroom guy passed it up to his department manager, it's up to the department manager to remember the incident; otherwise, nothing else will happen.

Furthermore, if the mailroom guy is uncomfortable about doing things that don't follow the rules say, he might go to his boss and complain. And yet...the female solution worked. It achieved the primary goal of any business, pleasing the client. It was never a problem for the client.

The way the organization functions is determined by the way it is described internally. In the traditional, male-dominated, hierarchical organization, the only available means for networking is to adopt a "skunk-works" mentality. Open communication is risky in a hierarchy, because the only orders one can legitimately follow are the formal operating procedures dictated from above. Those who circumvent the hierarchy are part of the underground." They get things done, but at great risk to their careers. If our example happened in an organization with a true networked style, the woman's boss would explain to the mailroom guy that her solution is the only way to get the client what they want and if the mailroom guy wasn't responsive, she might even go to the mailroom manager and explain the situation.

--------------------------------- Mail Message ------------------------
To: Laura Ricci
From: George Wilkerson
Subject: Shifting to a Network Style

This is all well and good in a perfect world, Laura, but what do those of us inside the skunk works do if we want the organization to move toward accepting the networked style? (I'm referring to those without the clout to effect a change.)

--------------------------------- Mail Message ------------------------
To: George Wilkerson
From: Laura Ricci
Subject: Shifting to a Network Style

The first step is exactly that... establishing a Skunk works mentality and working underground. The second step is to identify potential defenders within the hierarchy. At some point, some success will come out of the Skunk works that would not have happened if the hierarchy had been followed and that's when the Skunks need to be protected.

After a few successes, even the most entrenched will admit that the Skunkworks has some value. That's when they'll try to indoctrinate you or co-opt you back into the hierarchy. You might have a few defectors then, but if you persist you can make them realize it was the change in approach that caused the success.
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Of course, some organizations never recognize the value of the Skunk Works; others give it respectful distance because they don't want to taint its success, and a few will hold it up as an example for others to emulate. Networked organizations seem chaotic, but they are responsive to the marketplace. Those in charge fear chaos, and rightfully so, since it's sure to lead to catastrophe if it gets out of hand. But, if open communication is the rule (perhaps the only rule), the workforce is empowered to take action. Then managers can begin describing themselves as part of a web, a network, where the value of the hierarchy diminishes. Sitting on the top is seen as the fringe, too far from the action to make rapid changes. Each group and member of each group sees the center of the circle as heart of the organization. Rather than fearing being "stuck in the middle" they aspire to it. Even positions higher" in the organization are easier to understand as less effective because their occupants may be too far removed from the heart of the organization.

More than chaos, some managers in a newly networked organization feel a threat to their rank. It takes a special kind of leadership to administer this. In The Prince and the Pauper," Mark Twain told the tale of two identical boys who traded places—one the prince of the kingdom, the other a pauper—and what the Prince found out as he walked around, unfettered by the royal bureaucracy and spoke to his subjects. Managers can't disguise themselves, but they can promote management by walking around. This is just one way successful managers keep an organization truly networked and maintain an open communication stream.

Men and women communicate differently. Women tend to listen to the content. It's easy for them to establish and maintain rapport with others because they are "active listeners." By nature, they seek to understand the meaning. As a result, they are more likely to find ways to align with and support the direction of the speaker.

Men use the time others are speaking to think about what they can say the next time there's an opening. They may not absorb as much of the content, but simply pick up the initial portion and run with it. Women are less likely to provide a rapid response or a differing position because they were immersed in the content. This does not mean they don't understand or have their own opinions. It simply means they need more time to digest before readying a response.

Men listen to communication methods. They skim over the content (get the gist) and begin preparing their response before the speaker has finished. Sometimes this results in men being accused of not listening. And men more often have a response ready because of this method. This listening can be described as more strategic because it allows a ready response crafted during the delivery of the previous message. It gives them more opportunity for manipulation of the listeners in their response. And it can be hard to get everyone together if many of them are busy preparing responses rather than absorbing the full message first. In her book on womens' leadership styles, The Female Advantage² Sally Helgesen describes the advantage of the networked organization from the woman's perspective: "She has direct access to anyone within the organization without having to resort to channels, and thus avoids the attendant risks of dilution and distortion." Adopting the network expands this advantage to all members of the organization, regardless of gender. And most men find it's a lot easier to let go of the hierarchy and join the web. Insecure males in your organization will have a problem with it. And there also may be a few women, who have bought into the hierarchy and are unwilling to let go too.

As an organizational model, the network makes obvious the many different routes to any particular goal. There's rarely, if ever, just one alternative. Because there are lots of routes to success, more action can take place, and less responsibility can be forfeited with a "that's not my job." In the hierarchy, it's easy to forfeit responsibility for completion of the action. "I've passed the ball to my boss; now it's in his court." But less gets done when everything must be approved by the few who are higher up in the organization.

--------------------------------- Mail Message ---------------------------
To: Laura Ricci
From: George Wilkerson
Subject: Listening so far

OK, Laura. I'm listening. So what do I do when I'm leading a meeting of a mixed group with men and women to make sure they listen to each other?

--------------------------------- Mail Message ---------------------------
To: George Wilkerson
From: Laura Ricci
Subject: Listening so far

One way to do this is to encourage "Active Listening." Get each person to echo back the message of the previous speaker. This way you clarify, for yourself and the group, the speaker' intention, and you give the group another opportunity to hear the message.
This takes the focus off of the individual speaker and broadens the focus of the listeners to the larger group.

If some members of your group aren't willing to do this, you (the group leader) can do it. Furthermore, you can also read back the message in hierarchical language; that might make it more easily digested by those who might stray from the content. (This might explain how "cross-functional teams" came into being; a leader translating a description of a web to language understood by the hierarchical types.)
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For years, the menu was the structural standard for PC software. A Main Menu presented a half dozen choices and each of those presented a menu which branched off to a half dozen more and so on for layer after layer—a nice, neat hierarchical structure. Then came HTML (hypertext markup language) which removed the need for linearity. (We can't help but wonder if it ever existed in the first place; most programmers are men.) In HTML, hot links make it possible for the user to jump around in a document, branching off in a web-like environment with no need to move up and down through the system. Every user defines his or her own path and that path can be different every time.

Businesses worldwide are setting up web sites on the Internet at the rate of more than 3,000 a week and every web site uses HTML to link the information as well as linking to other sites. Furthermore, those same businesses are rapidly adopting Internet Web Browser software (Netscape ©, Mosaic ©, MS-Internet Explorer ©) to create Intranets. Each computer on their LAN (Local Area Network) is linked and now their internal documents, e-mail, and other functions are becoming part of a web. One of the most dramatic results of this new structure is a change in the way people communicate. And that change supports the concept of a unified network, a web of employees. People are learning that you don't have to go up and down, from complex to simple, or top to bottom. You can go just about any way you like, anywhere in the organization you like. As a result, the new majority will function in a very new way.

Keep communication open. This means you need to help the men move toward acceptance of the network of assistance and resistance in which they work.

Give those "close to the action" the freedom to make critical decisions. They're on the front lines; they know the client.

Support the HTML style. Encourage your people to link thoughts and ideas in nonlinear fashion, "outside the box".

Help the men listen; ask them to repeat what others have said. Hold meetings without outcomes; meet today, explore the topic, and come back tomorrow with your thoughts and ideas.

Would you like to see your own web? Download a FREE worksheet in Lotus 123, Excel or Quattro Pro.

We also offer training on this topic for your organization!

Thomas J. Peters, Liberation Management, (Necessary Disorganization for the Nanosecond Nineties), Thomas J. Peters, A.A. Knopf, 1992 [up]

Helgesen, Sally The Female Advantage: Women's Ways of Leadership, Doubleday Dell, 1990 [up]