The features of an organization are examined in order to understand it and the way it affects information flow. The basic premise is that a typical organization fosters two opposing conditions--condition of stability and orderliness in order to protect its functioning and internal relationships; and a condition stimulating creativity and innovation in order to keep up with the myriad of changes that affect it. Furthermore, knowledge and information flow can be on the one hand inhibited by organizational features that preserve the status quo and, on the other hand, facilitated by the methods that encourage innovation. The flow of communication into an organization may be impeded by different status levels and coding schemes between organizations and rigid social relationships, lack of openness to outsiders, local pride, anticipatory personal threat, poor training strategy, and the organization's economic situation. Knowledge input may be improved by appeal to profit, chief administrator changes, administrative decree, crisis perception, examination of organizations, good training techniques, usage of external agent, invasion from outside, knowledge seeking subunits, and enhanced professionalism. Information transmission out of the organization depends upon its goals. (Author/DM)