We organize with hierarchies; we manage through networksMore or less, that idea is the theme of historian Niall Ferguson's book "The Square and the Tower".
Simply said, the orgainizing principle of bureaucracy is the hierarchy -- span of control; process flow-down; interchangeable people (to an extent) such that no one is indespensible -- everyone ages out!
But effective management more or less ignores the organization chart. Effective management reaches and influences any and all who can make a difference.
Hierarchy is way too restrictive for effective management; it promotes stovepipes and "we/they" stresses that are not value-additive. And, it's one dimensional: command and control. Networks, on the other hand:
- Are multidimensional: cultural, financial, personal, professional, political (and, all of the above)
- Are fluid with circumstances
- Respond to multiple cultures -- virtual, domestic, foreign, business
- Convey power in multiple ways: real power (hierarchy); associative power (who you know, and how well you know them); cultural or personality power
- Facilitate promotion: way more people get to know you
Read in the library at Square Peg Consulting about these books I've written
Buy them at any online book retailer!
Read my contribution to the Flashblog
