I appreciate this post’s broad strokes. I think it’s worth distinguishing between different types of coordination failure, because their causes and solutions are quite different.
(This sort of makes me want to make an alternate version of the post called “Tabooing ‘Coordination Failure’” whose thesis is less ‘these are the particular types of coordination failure’ and more ‘be more clear about what you’re talking about when complaining about it.’)
One solution that applies to most coordination problems is to have a leader direct everyone. Then no one has to coordinate; they only have to do what the leader says. The leader could ask for input, but ultimately they make the decisions. Sidestepping coordination saves a lot of difficulty, which is why just about every organization has a hierarchy. (Presidents, generals, CEOs, managers, etc.) Hierarchy is difficult to avoid in any group of more than a handful of people.
I’d phrase this differently – a leader is an instance of a coordination solution, not an absence of coordination.
I appreciate this post’s broad strokes. I think it’s worth distinguishing between different types of coordination failure, because their causes and solutions are quite different.
(This sort of makes me want to make an alternate version of the post called “Tabooing ‘Coordination Failure’” whose thesis is less ‘these are the particular types of coordination failure’ and more ‘be more clear about what you’re talking about when complaining about it.’)
I’d phrase this differently – a leader is an instance of a coordination solution, not an absence of coordination.