The game-changer was "informal coalitions" of the sort that stem from talks in break rooms, coffee shops or fitness centres.
You have those doors you cannot get behind, those assistants or receptionists that control access - or executives are in meetings a lot of the time.
"People in PR and marketing as well as in other departments catch top executives in the hall, at Starbucks or fitness centres," she said.
The study appeared in the journal Public Relations Review.