HP's organization and culture act as both a facilitator and a barrier to knowledge sharing. The company has a relaxed, open culture that facilitates knowledge exchange. All employees, including the CEO, work in open cubicles. Many employees are technically-oriented engineers who enjoy learning and sharing their knowledge. Moreover, the company is perceived as being somewhat benevolent to its employees, and fast growth has obviated the need for major layoffs.
All employees participate in a profit sharing program.
However, the company also is known for its decentralized organizational structure and mode of operations, which works against knowledge exchange. Business units that perform well have a very high degree of autonomy. There is little organized sharing of information, resources, or employees across units. HP managers feel that the strong business-specific focus brought by decentralization is a key factor in the firm's recent success. Still, company decentralization seems to have heightened the demand for knowledge.