In the book The Alliance: Managing Talent in the Networked Age, authors Chris Yeh and Ben Casnocha, along with Reid Hoffman, talk about the relationship between managers and employees and why an alliance style of communication between the two parties is the most beneficial. They refer to this style as the "tour of duty" model. This type of communication consists of a mission objective, which gives the employee a better understanding of what he or she is trying to accomplish. Managers and employees can use this objective as a tool to determine what each party will eventually attain at the conclusion of the process.
One of the most important aspects of the tour of duty model is to set a realistic time period over which the objective gets completed. Another interesting topic discussed in the book is how companies use their employees as "nodes" to gather information about the outside business industry. This can be done by observing other professional's connections and networks. Yeh and Casnocha believe this can be done by using in-depth networking to maintain up-to-date company alumni relations. These alumni can help in recruiting, giving feedback, and referring business.