How to Build a Decentralized Organization

Summary

“Not finance. Not strategy. Not technology. It is teamwork that remains the ultimate competitive advantage, both because it is so powerful and so rare.”
— Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable

If you are in the process of having to build a decentralized organization start with the culture, followed by training your teams in collaboration, communication and facilitation skills. Last but not least don’t forget to develop the individual people this will provide the most ROI.

Note: This article is written from the point of view of culture, team and individual development. Acknowledging that governance processes, decision making, and dispute resolution are also very important to decentralization. We will parse that out for another article soon.

On Decentralization

Futurists have been predicting a decentralized world for some time. In his 1982 New York Times Best Seller, “Megatrends”, futurist John Naisbitt’s made a case for the world moving from “centralization to decentralization.” His book sold 14 million copies. Open source software like Linux and peer to peer platforms like Napster and Bit Torrent have been good examples of decentralization in software and now Blockchain companies are pushing decentralization front and center in how companies, teams and eco-systems work.