The Limitations of the Hierarchical Structure: An Example

After just posting about some of the ways in which the traditional structure of an organization can cause problems, I read this article about an academic administrator at a university in the Northeast.

The author resigned his position, knowing full well it would end his academic career, because of what he refers to as 'The Divide'. What is The Divide? He refers to it as "that almost unbridgeable, us-verses-them gulf between faculty members and those who would lead them."

He goes on to say: As a faculty member, I earned a reputation as a hard-working idealist and a person of intelligence and integrity. As soon as I assumed an administrative position, however, my reputation crumbled. I was simply one of Them.

This is a great must-read article, with some humorous and poignant stories, which demonstrates very well what Greenleaf is concerned about when he writes about the problems in the traditional pyramidal structure.