At Google, effective information sharing still correlated to proximity

... information is shared most easily and effectively among office neighbors, even at an Internet company where instant messaging and e-mail are generally preferred to face-to-face discussion.

It is an argument, the authors say, for giving greater importance to “microgeography,” or how people interact in the workplace. The finding that information moved fastest among people who were the closest together is also an endorsement of the company’s “third rule for managing knowledge workers: Pack Them In,” the authors say.