The hierarchical model, a burden

Jordi Varela

Editor

The current hierarchical model is slowing the good progress of companies and, to support this statement, I will stick to the evidence, through two different sources, one Japanese-Dutch, the iceberg of ignorance, and the other English, the cost of silence.

The iceberg of ignorance

In 1989, a consultant, Sydney Yoshida, carried out a study (reported in a Corporate Rebels post), for Casonic, a Japanese car company, and found that the real problems of the production lines, known by 100% of the operators, are captured by 74% of the team leaders, but only by 9% of the intermediate managers and by a scant 4% of the executive directors, who end up making the budgetary and investment decisions of the production chain. This surprising phenomenon of isolation and impoverishment of organizations was called the iceberg of ignorance. 

Let us accept that this research is too old and that it also corresponds to a world, the Japanese, traditionally very hierarchical, and for this reason, it could be that the figures were not fully adaptable to current times, much more dynamic, but what is worrying is the message that underlies that observation. With this evidence, those who make decisions in today's companies, relying only on complex spreadsheets and sophisticated consultants, should be aware that if they do not perceive what is going on in the engine rooms, the risk of being wrong is very high.

The cost of silence

A group from the Ashridge Executive Education Campus has carried out five-year research involving more than 1,500 English NHS workers through interviews and workshops, based on the premise that information gaps between the bottom and the top can even lead to deaths, as indeed happened in Mid Staffordshire and Shrewsbury-Telford. The results of this qualitative project show that 40% of the interviewees say they know things that, if not changed, could be bad for the organization, but almost half of them have not talked to their bosses and it does not seem that they have the intention of doing so. On the side of improvement proposals, 75% say they have them, but 33% have never communicated them. These figures, from the English public health system, speak of significant pockets of mistrust in their organizations, in which many workers prefer to remain silent, for fear of reprisals, not being marked, or simply out of shame, assuming that their silences may have negative repercussions or lost of opportunities.

Can hierarchical rigidities be alleviated?

As I observe that the health care system is far from breaking the hierarchical models, it has seemed appropriate to propose three recommendations for those in charge, to improve communication with those below and thus contribute to reducing communication barriers:

1. Act with humility and often go down to the arena, being aware, however, that the presence of those in charge among the workers is more intimidating than the bosses think.
2. Occasionally open the circle of trusted people, often flatterers, to listen to other voices, including the opposition.
3. Show, in meetings and visits, an attitude and body language sincerely favorable to active listening.

Pere Vivó in "Four premises to arrive at the autonomous organization of your team", explained to us that, during a visit by President John F. Kennedy to NASA, he asked a concierge what his function was, and he replied "I help carry to the man to the moon", a phrase that reflects confidence and pride of belonging, outside the military hierarchy of the organization. In this line, if you are interested in advanced organizational models, I recommend that you read "Self-management: Buurtzorg identity".

Various professionals, who accumulate a great deal of knowledge, work in health centers, and they should work in a climate of trust enticing them to participate their fair share in the governance of the organization.