Heterarchy
Description 1
If hierarchy is the power system of centralized systems, then heterarchical power is the power system of decentralized systems and Responsible Autonomy is the power system of distributed systems.
This distinction is derived from the work on 'triarchy', distinguishing three forms of rule and governance,by Gerard Fairtlough, former CEO of Shell Chemicals UK and founder of biotech firm Celltech.
"there are three ways of getting things done in organizations and the combination of the three is called triarchy, which means triple rule. The Three Ways of Getting Things Done: Hierarchy, Heterarchy and Responsible Autonomy in Organizations. When I was young I thought hierarchy was the only way to run organizations. Although in those days I’d barely heard of the great sociologist Max Weber, I unknowingly shared his belief that an organization couldn’t exist without a hierarchical chain of authority. Now, after over fifty years working in organizations of many different kinds, I’ve come to realise there are two other, equally important, ways of getting things done and that it’s vital for us to understand these other ways. We also need to understand why hierarchy always seems to trump the others." (http://www.triarchypress.co.uk/pages/triarchy.htm)
Next to hierarchy, Fairtlough distinguishes:
"heterarchy" and "Responsible Autonomy". Heterarchical systems share power--for example, a board that votes to decide issues, or different branches of government that have checks and balances through separation and overlap of power. Responsible autonomy is purer self-organization--i.e. it has no inherent structure. It distinguishes itself from anarchy by holding decision-makers responsible for the outcomes of their decisions.'
Description 2
1.
Karen Stephenson:
"“an organizational form somewhere between hierarchy and network that provides horizontal links that permit different elements of an organization to cooperate whilst individually optimizing different success criteria.”
2.
Carole Crumley:
heterarchy is “the relation of elements to one another when they are unranked or when they possess the potential for being ranked in a number of different ways.”
See the commentary on these competing definitions by Ross Dawson at http://rossdawsonblog.com/weblog/archives/2009/04/an_argument_for.html
More Information
- Karen Stephenson: Neither Hierarchy nor Network: An Argument for Heterarchy: examines how heterarchies, that bring together elements of networks and hierarchies, are the most relevant organizational structures for our times.
- Heterarchy and the Analysis of Complex Societies, Carole L. Crumley, Archeological Papers of the American Anthropological Association, Volume 6. Issue 1. January 1995