When asked, “Whatâs broken?” too many leaders instinctively reach for the org chart. They point to silos, titles, unclear lines of responsibility, or a lack of centralized ownership as the culprits. But hereâs the uncomfortable truth: the org chart is rarely the root cause. Itâs just a reflection. Like blaming the mirror for a bad haircut.
Letâs be clear: organizations donât succeed or fail because of boxes and lines on a slide. They thrive or flounder because of behaviors, incentives, systems, andâmost importantlyâhow people communicate and make decisions under uncertainty.
The Org Chart Is a Map, Not the Terrain
The org chart shows you who reports to whom, but not how work gets done. It tells you the hierarchy, not the hustle. Teams often collaborate cross-functionally, circumvent formal structures, and build shadow systems to actually deliver value.
So when something breaksâwhen deadlines slip, when innovation stalls, when morale dipsâblaming the structure is like blaming your GPS for traffic.
You need to ask deeper questions:
- How are decisions made?
- Where do ideas go to die?
- Who is afraid to speak up?
- What incentives reward risk aversion over impact?
These are not questions your org chart can answer. But theyâre exactly where the real dysfunction hides.
Fix the Flow, Not the Form
If your product delivery is stalling, the answer may not be to move âProductâ under âEngineeringâ or vice versa. It might be that there is no shared understanding of goals. Or that metrics are competing rather than aligned. Or that feedback loops are broken.
Organizations that fix problems effectively look at flow of valueânot just whoâs in charge. They visualize dependencies, communication bottlenecks, and decision latency. They ask how to remove friction, not just how to rename departments.
Culture Eats Org Charts for Breakfast
You can reorganize all you want, but if fear, confusion, or apathy are culturally ingrained, nothing changes. If people donât trust leadership, donât feel safe giving honest feedback, or donât believe their work mattersâyou could give them the best org chart in the world, and theyâd still disengage.
Culture is what happens in the hallways, not in the hierarchy. So instead of shuffling titles, ask:
- What behaviors do we reward?
- What failures do we learn fromâor punish?
- How do we show we value collaboration over control?
Rethink the Reflex
The next time youâre asked âWhatâs broken?â and you find yourself reaching for the org chart, pause. That reflex often indicates a desire for simplicityâan easy lever to pull. But organizations are complex systems. You donât fix complexity with rearrangement. You fix it with reflection.
You fix it by listening to the frontline. By examining your assumptions. By understanding where your strategy, systems, and signals are misaligned.
In short, you fix it not by pointing at structureâbut by addressing substance.
TL;DR
If your answer to “What’s broken?” is the org chart, you’re not solving the real problem. Youâre just rearranging the furniture in a burning house. Look deeper. Diagnose system dynamics, not structure. Address culture, flow, incentives, and clarity.
Because itâs not about who reports to whom.
Itâs about whether anyoneâs really talking, building, and solving the right problems together.