The challenge with continued decentralization is that eventually there will be no organization.  It will consist of a dispersed field of points.  It’s not chaotic because I presume that people are at least connected through technology.  Does the form of a company matter if you are still getting paid?  Maybe not.

If you are a leader in this organization and your goal is to create an engine for sustained growth, then you need to ensure that you are taking care of your people, pleasing your customers, and effectively developing new work or expanding your range of services.

It’s possible to effectively balance a loose and decentralized organization with the reality that you need to be profitable in order to survive.  It must be done with intent.  Building a clear culture is the key.

Why clear?  When the core values and expected patterns of behavior are apparent and understood by all participants in this system, then people have are better able to understand what they need to do to adapt.

In this environment, it’s presumed that some amount of individual control is ceded to the organization (for protection?) in order for it not to devolve into chaos and even more complexity.  Not having a sense of the fine line between too much control or too little can break an organization.  It becomes either too oppressive or too unorganized to survive.