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Glite Dictionary
to break down the stovepipe

to break down the stovepipe

8.4
To remove communication barriers between teams so they can work together
  • phrasal verb
  • Jargon
translation icon : eliminar barreras
  • After hiring a new director, the organization started to break down the stovepipe between development and marketing.

Examples

  • To innovate successfully, companies must break down the stovepipe mentality that keeps teams isolated.

  • The management team hopes to break down the stovepipe and encourage collaboration across departments.

  • We need to break down the stovepipe between departments!

  • The manager wants to break down the stovepipe for better collaboration.

  • The leadership team organized workshops to break down the stovepipe between departments and improve communication.

  • To enhance teamwork, the company is making an effort to break down the stovepipe that separates its various sectors.

  • Effective leaders know how to break down the stovepipe and foster open dialogue among their staff.

Synonyms

to bridge the gap
vsto break down the stovepipe
  • Informal
17 4.0

To make it easier for two groups or ideas to understand each other

focuses on removing internal communication barriers within organizations rather than general connection
to cultivate teamwork
vsto break down the stovepipe
3.9

To help people in a group work well together

targets removing communication barriers between departments rather than building internal cooperation

How Connected

to integrate
179 4.1
to break down the stovepipe
  • Jargon
8.4
to share
711 1.0
to work in a silo
  • Jargon
7.0

Surface Forms

break down the stovepipe infinitive
breaking down the stovepipe present participle
breaks down the stovepipe third person singular
broke down the stovepipe past
broken down the stovepipe past participle

Morphology

break + down + the + stovepipe

The verb phrase 'break down' conveys dismantling or removing, and when combined with 'stovepipe' (used metaphorically for an isolated unit or silo) the intended meaning of removing communication barriers is compositionally sensible. However, 'stovepipe' is specialised organizational jargon and the metaphorical sense may be unfamiliar to a B1 learner, so the phrase is only partly predictable from its parts.

Etymology

Break down the stovepipe gives the image of a long, narrow stove pipe that moves heat only up and keeps rooms or groups apart. So to break down that pipe means to remove the barrier between teams, which is why the phrase means 'to eliminate barriers to communication' and help people share ideas across the organization.