An Information-Task Approach to Organizational Communication

Considering communication as an organizational task, this article suggests three variables (availability, uniformity, and independence) that characterize the information task at the work unit level and explicates their dependence on strategic choices by work units. Three sets of propositions are developed relating information task characteristics to: (a) organizational task variables; (b) the organization's communication structure; (c) power and influence in the organization. Implications of the framework are considered.