What is the metaphoric meaning of silo?

Solution 1:

Yes, silo is being used as a metaphor here, not an actual silo. According to the Oxford Dictionary, there is a literal meaning of silo:

• a tower or pit on a farm used to store grain.
  ** a pit or other airtight structure in which green crops are compressed and stored as silage.

Then there is also the metaphorical meaning:

• a system, process, department, etc. that operates in isolation from others

You can read the dictionary entry for another example of a metaphorical usage.

Solution 2:

I have came across this term when I attended a workshop on "Balanced Scorecard" for performance measurement in a non-for-profit organization a few years ago. My study manual for the course put it as this: "A functional group or department within an organization that acts as a silo or island in its lack of interaction with other groups and in not sharing its internal data or processes".

Solution 3:

"Silo" in this context needs to be understood along with the word "functional silo":

A functional silo exists when the business processes of a functional unit within the division of labor of an organization focus inwardly on their functional objectives. This becomes problematic when the direction of focus creates barriers that do not serve a reasonable business purpose and negatively impacts the unit's ability to serve their role in the broader mission of the organization.

"Functional silo" is a technical term, and further explained here why process-oriented organizations particularly one to avoid it:

A term used within business process re-engineering (BPR) to denote areas within an organization where managers occupy a privileged position in terms of resources and influence, and where they use this for their own, self-interested, functionally-oriented motives rather than for the wider benefit of the business. BPR recommends the removal of a function-focused approach and its replacement with a process-focused approach, thereby destroying the functional silos and encouraging cross-functional integration.