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Analyzing how communication happens (or doesn't) in organizations, Max Boisot discusses corporate communications in terms of a set structure or pattern, describing how bureaucracies differ, and how members of any organizations can expect to impart or receive information within their given structure. The book also examines international communication, looking at multinational corporations and national business operations which have dealings with foreign partners or subsidiaries. Whatever the organization, Boisot shows the many preferred ways of spreading information - memos, meetings, face-to-face encounters - but stresses that these will differ vastly in consideration of company size, location and type of transaction carried out. Ultimately, he demonstrates how a company's mode of communication is a telling indication of how it thinks.
How does the structural configuration of an organization dictate the flow, codification, and diffusion of information among its members? Max H. Boisot, an expert in organizational theory and knowledge management, utilizes an anthropological lens to examine the firm as a social system. He argues that the specific methods of communication—ranging from informal face-to-face interaction to rigid bureaucratic protocols—are not merely operational choices but are fundamental reflections of the organization's cognitive framework and internal culture.
What You Will Find
This work provides a dense, analytical framework for understanding the intersection of social anthropology and corporate management. The text serves as a specialized resource for students and practitioners interested in the structural determinants of organizational communication and knowledge diffusion.
Page Count:
224
Publication Date:
1994-01-01
Publisher:
HarperCollins
ISBN-10:
0006371264
ISBN-13:
9780006371267
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