Split personality does not seem to be exclusively a human condition. Artificial organisms such as companies can suffer from similar issues, especially when internal communications are disrupted.

Is there any effective therapy for this? Or is it simply a natural state of things which doesn’t actually need to be cured – just properly managed?

Check out:  Companies Have Split Personalities

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Glossary

• stakeholder – a person or group that has an investment, share, or interest in something, as a business or industry.
• encounter – a meeting with a person or thing, especially a casual, unexpected, or brief meeting
• pit against – to set in opposition or combat, as one against another
• vie – to strive in competition or rivalry with another; contend for superiority
• ombudsman – a government official who hears and investigates complaints by private citizens against other officials or government agencies
• flag – to mark (a page in a book, card, etc) for attention by attaching a small tab or flag
• turn a blind eye – refuse to acknowledge

Think about it

Based on the text answer the following questions. Leave your answers in the comments below!

• Historically, what’s the reason behind the isolation of departments within the company.
• How does the fragmentation within companies affect communication with clients?
• What behavior do customers expect of corporations?
• What are internal corporate struggles often mistaken for and what are they in reality?
• What are some proposed solutions to solve the issue of fragmented communications?

Practice makes perfect

 Choose the best alternative. Check your answers with the original article.

If companies (have been/are/will be) individuals, they often seem to (own/have/do) dissociative identity disorder. For many organizations, each division, function and channel has (their/its/his) own personality. And, frequently, there are (not/no/none) core corporate values consistently reflected (into/from/out of) communications (through/across/upon) the enterprise, so that various departments have (none/no/any) common ground (into/from/upon) which to work.

Put the words in bold back where they belong.

for, pitted, actuality, vying, turf, within

Even ______ marketing and communications, these disconnects are significant. Corporate communications, the “digital team,” and the various marketing/advertising divisions sometimes find ______ themselves ­­against one another, ______ to “own” various channels of communication. These internal ______ wars are often mistaken as corporate greed ______ power but, in ______, may determine whose team might expand and who might eventually have to let people go.

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