FIELD NOTES
Working notes on the invisible shifts that shape growing organizations.
A CEO may want leaders who build independent teams, while continuing to recognize them for the decisions they personally handle. Both can seem reasonable. The tension becomes more visible as the organization grows.
One person is trusted to make decisions independently. Another is expected to seek approval. Both arrangements may seem reasonable, especially when they reflect how each person has performed in the past.
It can be easy to know who owns a decision when everyone would make the same one. Disagreement can reveal something the roles themselves don't.
When work falls between teams, unclear ownership is an easy explanation. But sometimes everyone has done exactly what was expected of them.
We tend to see recurring tension as something that needs to be resolved. But some disagreements keep returning even when the people involved understand each other's perspective.
When people stop raising a problem, it can look like the problem is going away. But fewer conversations about something don't always mean there is less of it.