horizontal communication

(noun)

The flow of messages across functional areas on the same level of an organization.

Related Terms

Examples of horizontal communication in the following topics:

  • Horizontal Communication

    • Horizontal communication is the flow of messages across individuals and groups on the same level of an organization.
    • Horizontal communication, also called lateral communication, involves the flow of messages between individuals and groups on the same level of an organization.
    • Horizontal communication does not involve relaying information up or down across levels.
    • Communication within a team is an example of horizontal communication; members coordinate tasks, work together, and resolve conflicts.
    • Horizontal communication refers to any communication between employees at the same level of an organization

  • Flat versus tall organizations

    • However, as the personnel count grows, the firm's structure typically expands either horizontally (flat) or vertically (tall).
    • Organizations that follow this type of structure have wider spans of supervisory control and have more horizontal communication.
    • As a result, all levels have the potential of working more closely together which enhances a closer working environment with better communication and creativity.
    • Departments can become more compartmentalized, which increases the communication within them, but does not lend itself to communication with other departments.

  • Informal Communication

    • Informal communication occurs outside an organization's established channels for conveying messages and transmitting information.
    • While formal communication follows practices shaped by hierarchy, technology systems, and official policy, informal communication faces fewer restrictions.
    • Formal communication usually involves documentation, while informal communication usually leaves no recorded trace for others to find or share.
    • In the past, many organizations considered informal communication (generally associated with interpersonal, horizontal communication) a hindrance to effective organizational performance and tried to stamp it out.
    • While informal communication is important to an organization, it also may have disadvantages.

  • Layers in an Organization: Tall vs Flat Organizations

    • The risk in tall structures is that departments can become more compartmentalized which may increase intra-departmental communication at the expense of an inter-departmental flow of information.
    • Organizations that follow this type of structure have wider spans of supervisory control and have more horizontal communication.
    • Internally, the organization as a whole encourages more participation between all levels within the organization, promoting closer working relationships that potentially lead to better communication and creativity.

  • Types of Organizations

    • An organization's ownership and management styles can impact its communication structures.
    • At the same time, there are some businesses that support informal and horizontal forms of communication.
    • Therefore the purpose of marketing, or external communications, in an NPO is to build awareness and to demonstrate the company's ability to make a difference with community support.
    • Regarding internal communications, smaller non-profits might lean toward using a combination of both formal and informal methods coupled with horizontal communication strategies.
    • An organization's CSR policy can shape what is communicated in the public sphere.

  • Web, Network, and Ring of Life Models

    • The recognition of the importance of Horizontal gene transfer (HGT), especially in the evolution of prokaryotes, has caused some to propose abandoning the classic "tree of life" model.
    • Ford Doolittle, the "tree of life" arose from a community of ancestral cells, has multiple trunks, and has connections between branches where horizontal gene transfer has occurred.

  • The Existence of Inverse Functions and the Horizontal Line Test

    • Recognize whether a function has an inverse by using the horizontal line test

  • Horizontal Asymptotes and Limits at Infinity

    • The asymptotes are computed using limits and are classified into horizontal, vertical and oblique depending on the orientation.
    • They can be computed using limits and are classified into horizontal, vertical and oblique asymptotes depending on the orientation.
    • Horizontal asymptotes are horizontal lines that the graph of the function approaches as $x$ tends toward $+ \infty$ or $- \infty$.
    • The horizontal line $y = c$is a horizontal asymptote of the function $y = ƒ(x)$ if $\lim_{x\rightarrow -\infty}f(x)=c$ or $\lim_{x\rightarrow +\infty}f(x)=c$.
    • The graph of a function can have two horizontal asymptotes.

  • Adding and Subtracting Vectors Using Components

    • Previously, we saw that vectors can be expressed in terms of their horizontal and vertical components .
    • For example, a vector with a length of 5 at a 36.9 degree angle to the horizontal axis will have a horizontal component of 4 units and a vertical component of 3 units.
    • This can be seen by adding the horizontal components of the two vectors ($4+4$) and the two vertical components ($3+3$).
    • These additions give a new vector with a horizontal component of 8 ($4+4$) and a vertical component of 6 ($3+3$).
    • It can be decomposed into a horizontal part and a vertical part as shown.

  • Stretching and Shrinking

    • Now lets analyze horizontal scaling. 
    • This leads to a "shrunken" appearance in the horizontal direction.
    • In general, the equation for horizontal scaling is:
    • If $c$ is greater than one the function will undergo horizontal shrinking, and if $c$ is less than one the function will undergo horizontal stretching.
    • If we want to induce horizontal shrinking, the new function becomes: