The Accademic Paper on The Six Myths on Information Networks

The focus of the two readings, myths and people by Robert Cross, Nitin Nohria, Andrew Parker and Andrew Parker focused mainly on the social aspects surrounding the workplace. Team building, the distribution of information, social patterns and how to properly identify what works and what doesn't work.

The paper took a very academic approach to the subject but was nonetheless useful. What however does surprise me is that the this sort of information is the sort of thing that you find out on your own. Or rather that the information gathered in this study is something that anyone, who runs any sort of competitive organization, would gather.

Let me give you an example. In the business social structure, there are people called "central people". Okay so we don't always call them that but that is the name that was given to them by the people in this study.

These are people who are key decision makers in any social business setting. The person who can make these critical decisions is usually in that position because he or she has built important relationships with other people in other departments.

However, since that person is critical for decision making and contacts, if you give that person unnecessary contact and busywork, then the decision making end of the work process is bottlenecked.

Anyway, point being that this is a no brainier if you've worked in a situation like this. Social connections are very essential in getting information, tips because frankly you trust them more. People work like this and the smart adept people catch on to this stuff and it makes them successful businesspeople.

The Academia Confirmation and Businesses are Already One Step Ahead:

Business is like real life. If you don't keep up with the trend you tend not to be competitive. In fact this paper: "The Six Myths on Information Networks" is probably designed to up to speed people in the business world who did not have the keen insight to discover these business trends earlier. People in academic circles research successful firms and then write about them while the hot businesses are already on to the newest next thing.

I think I once heard it referred to as corporate culture and it is surprisingly similar to regular popular culture. I have someone I know who works for Corporate Hollister and he says that they make him do a lot of weird things like wear certain cloths when they go to work in the office.

I'm not a marketing/PR major but apparently it has something to do with promoting your own brand within the corporate structure. Weird? Outlandish? Maybe but it may be the next great thing that businesses at the bottom struggle to adapt to and someone in the academic world will have to write a piece entitled: "Six Myths on Promoting From Within".