Book Review: The Starfish and the Spider

The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations by Ori Brafman and Rod A. Beckstrom is a fascinating book about how decentralization can be a very strong benefit, if not necessary for survival, for companies, organizations, and even countries. The authors discuss how such organizations as Wikipedia, CraigsList, and even Alcoholics Anonymous have become such strong and powerful entities. They show how centralization can lead to collapse and even predicted the fall of General Motors.

There are two primary types of organizations: spiders and starfish. Spiders are centralized; when you cut off their head, they die. However starfish don't have heads; if you cut off one of their arms, the starfish survives and the arm can even turn into another starfish. Starfish are almost impossible to kill and so are starfish organizations.

The book gives a great example of how the Apache Native American tribe has survived for centuries because they are a starfish organization, unlike the Incas and Aztecs.

An interesting and easy read, I recommend The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations.