A Flat Structure Instead of "Bosses"

Banks in our country used to be highly hierarchical, much like the army: a rigid structure with many layers of management.

When I joined the Bank, we had 8 management levels, and there were about 4 specialists per boss.

Changing a company's philosophy happens very slowly, and the process can take a long time. There is one word I hate: "boss." A boss doesn't do the work, doesn't create value and holds back innovation. For me there are managers, experts and specialists. A manager's job is to organize the process, exercise control, motivate employees and sometimes act as a leader. An expert's job is to create, to be the best in a narrow field and sometimes to be a leader. A specialist's job is to do the work and aspire to become either a manager or an expert in the future.

The future belongs to flat management structures, which allow a company to respond quickly to events and to turn ideas into reality fast and without distortion.

I often have to explain to employees that what matters now is not the position you held in the hierarchy, what kind of boss you were or how many people reported to you. What matters is which projects you delivered, what you accomplished and what value you can bring to the company. That is why, when a résumé emphasizes job titles rather than projects, I try not to look at it.

Managers differ from one another in their planning horizon and the scale of their thinking. Ideally, there should be no more than 4 management levels; anything beyond that is a product of inefficiency and bureaucracy.

I remember the skirmishes I had with directors who wanted to keep 50 different types of positions and bosses. In the end, many accepted it, though many still view the change warily, but they have no choice: they are building a flat structure.

And what do you think: which structure is more effective?