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demonstrated in the Emergence discussion. However, the idea that
agents inside a bounded system can self-organize to adapt the task
level of the system has only become popular in the last few decades as
the context-driven need for adaptation at the task level has become
evident. Many management fads have built consciously or by
implication on this idea, such as job enrichment, flattening
organizational structures, empowerment, and so on; all at some level
linked to cost reduction by eliminating managerial structure by
pushing the management function to the worker level.
It could be argued that the solution of using self-organizing local
agents for local adaptation is not new. The underlying realization that
technology and local context needs can shift too quickly for system
leadership to take all the decisions has been at the root of the
continuous process of decentralization (to get local speed of response)
and centralization (to get control and uniformity of response across
the system) that is part of the history of all organizations It is also at
the root of such ancient system constructs as 'subsidiarity' that
underpins the Catholic Church and is at the basis of political tensions
in federal systems (see the current birthing problems of the European
Community and the issue of States' Rights in the USA) and many
global charities that raise money at the country level but spend it at
the global level.
Complexity Leadership
The need for task level adaptation will accelerate. This is why such
constructs as 'complexity leadership; are starting to appear in the
academic literature. The question being addressed is how to achieve
high-speed local adaptation at the task level, inside a total system
framework focused on one or a restricted number of goals without
local interests, coalitions, and cabals breaking down the cohesion of
the system as a whole. Complexity Leadership is outlined in more
detail under Self-Organization.
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