Relevance of Hierarchy!!

Often our mind dabbles with Utopian thoughts. Establishing a system with no hierarchy is one such doing the rounds for many days. I can recall some comments form our own city's technocrats when the software industry was in its infancy; there were many who spoke proudly about the non- existence of hierarchy in their organizations. "Radical, great, that's how organizations must function, wonderful philosophy" - many more such epithets had rent the air then. Interestingly, such notions are expressed, quite vociferously, even today. I cannot fathom how a system can work without hierarchy, without roles being assigned. The objects or the people, their attributes, their relationships and the environment they are in are integral to a system. So long as these remain important to a system one cannot ignore the value of interdependence - the most important characteristic of systems. The system may be a 'whole' but it also involves interaction among the 'parts'. This is where hierarchy is useful - for resolutions. Each member of a system may have one or multiple roles to play. Conflicts are bound to exist, but conflicts have also to be resolved- Hierarchy comes in handy. If a small unit like family cannot run sans hierarchy how can a huge organization function without it? To work efficiently and effectively roles assigned must be stuck to and played accordingly, trouble starts when boundaries are transgressed.