To centralize or decentralize, that is the question...

I found the following article by Kevin Crowston and James Howiston about the Social Structure of Free and Open Source Software. It explores the implications of measurable communication patterns on the assertions of the Cathedral and the Bazaar metaphor, namely that highly decentralized and somewhat chaotic social structures are capable of creating higher quality and more generally useful products than traditional closed projects that focus on creating competitive advantage through protecting intellectual property. This is a crude definition so I highly recommend following the link above.

Crowston and Howiston examine data associated with bug tracking on a variety of open source projects and develop a methodology for measuring the degree of decentralization of a given project. Some of their conclusions are very very fascinating and made me think.

In The Wisdom of Crowds and Wikinomics the concepts around mass collaboration, ala Linux and the Cathedral/Bazaar metaphor, are explored and the potential benefits of these models are sorted and categorized. This is giving rise to some interesting conversations about organizational operating models and competitive advantage via collaboration. There is the potential here for lots of c-level executives to hop on a very popular but tricky bandwagon. Like everything else the trick is in the execution.

How many companies have adopted the tenets of process engineering or continuous improvement through six-sigma and lean techniques? Many of these companies are seeing the benefits of these tools and methods but they don't really translate to a competitive advantage because their competition deploy them as well. Like these tools mass collaboration, and it's enabling technology, is likely to become a necessary standard of operation rather than a revolutionary competitive differentiator with a few exceptions. As with all things that comprise the standard book of operating principles and tricks execution will be the real test and therein lies the trap.

The real lesson of Crowston and Howiston is that mass collaboration is not a well defined thing with clear boundaries and a cookbook for success. It's an enabler for truly inspirational and robust organizations. If the apple is rotten at the core then you're only enabling more rapid decay. If the apple is strong and fresh then you're getting ready to bake a mighty good pie. The core of any good organization is it's people.

So beware the seduction of techniques, tools and processes that claim to be the key to competitive advantage and cookbook success. Just like late night infomercials it's snake oil. Instead look to your people and the rest will come. In their minds, voices and inspiration lies the real wisdom, centralized or decentralized.