A major shift has occurred in the way we work since 2020. From remote work to flex schedules, organizations have become playgrounds for new ways to thrive (and stumble). One of the ways we are playing with work is organizational leadership structure. Beyond the traditional top down or vertical model, emerging models include shared and distributed.
The shared and distributed models are what you’d expect by their titles. They are organizations where all decision making is shared or distributed among many people. And these models will be examples of stumbles for both team members and the organization. Don’t get me wrong, all models can be beneficial is specific circumstances. But in most cases, I believe the desire for shared or distributed models is more about being trendy or an escape from leadership.
Supporters of the shared or distributed model believe they promote more collaborative and productive work environments. What they are missing is that any model can include a collaborative and productive work environment. This is because the success of the team and organization has to do with the people, not the model. Similarly, if everyone on the team fears leading, there is a culture problem.
The CEO (or President, owner, head honcho, or whatever you want to call it!) is not more essential than any other team member, but it is essential. He or she is the chief culture, vision, mission and strategic plan officer.
A dynamic leader seeks input from others, has others lead their area of expertise, is inclusive, respects and acknowledges effort from team members, moderates and coalesces ideas from others, instills purpose; the list goes on and on. A dynamic leader does not just delegate and control. A dynamic leader is almost using the shared model because he or she truly believes in the power of shared input and discussion making. He or she knows how to develop and sustain a collaborative, productive environment. And when there are hard times, and there will be, one person needs to be accountable so the organization can make decisions very quickly (hello, 2020!).
An orchestra is made of many players. All are instrumental to making beautiful music. (Did you catch what I did there?) And an orchestra absolutely needs a conductor.
Taking a step back and asking why we use a leadership structure is always valuable. I am a huge advocate for giving any reason other than “because that’s the way we have always done it”. And if your organization is considering a shared or distributed organization model, also ask why your organization lends itself to an alternative structure? Or are you missing the source of the problem, a lack of effective leadership?