Signpost 18

In a nutshell:

Information can quietly circulate through an organisation via methods like email, but collaboration is better fostered through face-to-face interactions, which are often noisy. While noise is typically seen as unpleasant, it can be reframed as valuable if it's associated with knowledge transfer.

Key Chapter: 16

• 18.1 The digital by-product of operations (e.g., sending emails, booking rooms), known as ‘digital exhaust’, can be useful to understand organisations. p. 57

• 18.2 A noise is an unpleasant sound. But we could turn noise in the workplace into sound if we are able to assign it a value of knowledge transfer.

• 18.3 Information can travel silently through an organisation (e.g., email) but interactions that underpin collaboration, as opposed to a mere exchange of information are better supported by face-to-face interactions, which are often noisy.