The practice of dividing organisations into separate functions dates back to the armies of ancient history, where infantry, cavalry, and artillery first operated as independent units. While this specialisation enabled more formidable armies to take to the field, these divisions could prove fatal in battle if lines of communication didn’t function and attacks weren’t coordinated.
Today's organisational silos might not lead to your civilisation being wiped off the face of the earth, but for ambitious companies, their impact can still be existential.
Ask any leader of a large organisation and they'll tell you that silos hurt their business. When teams become isolated, the problems multiply: development lags, bugs slip through because Jeff never talked to Rachel, and you start falling behind your competitors. The blame game begins, people retreat further into their silos, and the atmosphere turns toxic. Your best talent jumps ship. The employee experience suffers, delivery slows, and product quality drops. This costs money - and executives don't like that at all.
"How do we fix this mess?" they wonder. But here's the catch: unless you address the forces that caused silos to form and become entrenched in the first place, any solution you try will likely fail. You might even make things worse.
Let's look at three common silo-busting approaches that sound good on paper, but often fall short in practice:
- The Tech Solution: "Let's get everybody using this shiny new collaboration tool!" Sounds easy - but people are attached to their current ways of working. Why would they adopt a tool that disrupts their workflow and creates short-term pain? Without genuine buy-in, your expensive new platform becomes just another unused digital dust magnet.
- The Social Solution: "We need more water-cooler moments!" Yes, those spontaneous cross-team conversations were valuable. But forcing people back to the office full-time ignores the benefits of flexible working that emerged post-Covid. And while organised social events and buddy programs aren't bad ideas, they often feel contrived and fail to generate authentic connections.
- The Democratic Solution: "Let's ask the teams what they want!" Workshops are run, surveys are sent, but when nothing actually changes - or changes don't work - trust erodes and things quickly revert to the status quo.
The Hidden Barrier: Psychological Safety
There's one fundamental issue that dooms these well-intentioned initiatives: a lack of psychological safety.
When workers don't feel trusted to give their best, when mistakes are punished rather than treated as learning opportunities, it becomes dangerous to do anything outside the explicit parameters of your role - like point out a problem, suggest a new idea or consult with someone from a different department.
If it’s not your job to tell the cavalry commander they’re charging into an ambush, why risk your head?
The safe option is to retreat into that nice, cosy, familiar place where you feel at least somewhat insulated from danger.
When a workplace lacks psychological safety, no amount of tools or team-building will break down silos. Real change becomes damn-near impossible.
Here are three indicators of poor psychological safety.
Top-down hierarchies where obedience matters more than innovation
Short-term stability being prioritised over long-term success
Leaders who talk about change but don't model it
These are the real entrenched problems that hurt your business. Silos are just a symptom.
The Path Forward
Breaking down silos requires structural change, which is hard. Just as ancient armies needed decisive leadership to unite their forces, modern organisations need leaders who can:
Exercise powerful humility and self-awareness
Take calculated risks rather than clinging to the illusion of stability
Create environments where cross-team collaboration feels safe, not threatening
Model the vulnerable, open behaviour they want to see
The tools, social connections, and employee input matter - but only once you've created the psychological safety for them to work. Without that foundation, you're just rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.
Ready to design better work structures at your organisation? Contact Clearleft, and let's explore how we can help.