Decentralization is not a structure to implement but a discipline to be sustained - Remarks from the 2025 Drucker Forum

Unlike hierarchy, decentralization is less a structure and more a discipline.

At the Global Peter Drucker Forum's panel on "Hierarchy Busting Pioneers", I shared why sustaining decentralization takes ongoing effort and intent.

In my research, I've found three practices that help organizations move beyond hierarchy
• Drawing clear boundaries around authority
• Reframing authority so that it follows the work, not the person
• Engaging in collective conversations when authority must shift

Each of these practices require ongoing collective attention, and the art of busting hierarchy is less in designing the right structure than in keeping these practices alive.

Grateful to the pioneering Michele Zanini, Michael Lurie, Kevin Nolan, and Karen Massey for a rich and rewarding exchange, and to Richard Straub and the Drucker Forum team for bringing us together.

For those working in or with decentralized organizations - what have you seen? What practices have been critical to sustaining decentralization?