# Organizational network analysis

> Organizational network analysis maps how work really flows between people, beyond the org chart. Find hidden experts, bottlenecks and silos, free.

Source: https://netgraf.isik.co/uses/organizational-network-analysis
Updated: 2026-09-24

Organizational network analysis (ONA) maps how work actually flows between people, as opposed to the reporting lines on an org chart. It shows the informal experts everyone goes to, the bottlenecks everything waits on, and the teams that never talk to each other.

## What ONA finds

| Pattern | What it looks like | Measure |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Hidden expert | Many people go to them for advice | [Degree](https://netgraf.isik.co/learn/degree-centrality) on advice ties |
| Bottleneck | One person links two teams | [Betweenness](https://netgraf.isik.co/learn/betweenness-centrality), [cut points](https://netgraf.isik.co/learn/brokers-and-bridges) |
| Silo | Teams with dense ties inside and few across | [Communities](https://netgraf.isik.co/learn/community-detection) |
| Overloaded hub | The network runs through one manager | [Centralization](https://netgraf.isik.co/learn/network-centralization) |
| Peripheral newcomer | Few ties, all within one team | Degree, closeness |

## How to run a small ONA

1. Pick one question per network: "Whom do you go to for advice on X?" or "Whom do you work with weekly?"
2. Survey everyone in scope, allowing up to five names each.
3. Build an edge list (person, named person) and [import it](https://netgraf.isik.co/import).
4. Add each person's team as the subtitle so the groups are readable.
5. Colour the map by group in Insights and compare the groups found with the teams on the org chart. Where they differ is the finding.

Krackhardt's classic study of a small firm found that the person with the most advice ties was not the person with the most power; the [kite](https://netgraf.isik.co/m/krackhardt-kite) is a textbook reduction of exactly that problem.

## Questions

### Is ONA ethical?

It can be, with consent and care. Tell people what is collected and why, report patterns rather than rank individuals, and never use a network map for performance reviews. Keep the map unlisted and share it only with the people who need it.

## Example maps

- https://netgraf.isik.co/m/krackhardt-kite
- https://netgraf.isik.co/m/zachary-karate-club