Swarms

Working at Patagonia is not like working at most other companies. There are many reasons, but one is the lack of rigid hierarchical structure. The office doors of upper management are always open (when there are doors), questions are encouraged and the company’s managers rarely issue edicts or micromanage employees. This decentralized system of doing things may go against conventional wisdom, but Patagonia's system has not only worked, it's worked pretty well.

There are however plenty of dysfunctional democracies in the world, at every level, so I often take interest in ones that seem to work. For that reason, I found Peter Miller's article "Swarm Theory" in this month’s National Geographic a great read.

In taking a look at the behavior of different insects and animals, the article looks at the some of the necessary ingredients for any group to make the best collective decisions – such as a diversity of ideas, an independent mindedness among members, and the use of an effective mechanism to narrow choices.

It also subverts a commonly held truth that, to make the right decisions, individuals need a group leader with a plan to coordinate and help them see the big picture. Instead, it concludes, if individuals live simply, follow some simple rules of their own and act on local information, the end result will be a well functioning system.

In my experience this often seems to be the case, even if it doesn't appear so at first glance. When I was in Cambodia, most people still drove motorbikes. For someone visiting the capital of Phnom Penh, the roads seemed like pure chaos. Hordes of Cambodians drove on intersecting streets mostly without lanes, traffic lights or stop signs. They drove at any speed, often on the wrong side of the road, on sidewalks and through parks. Anywhere was fair game.

Yet the longer I was there, the more I saw that there was a system and that system seemed to work, and worked pretty well. I still saw and heard about accidents, but they were definitely no more common than in the U.S.  My initial theory was that everyone drove in a heightened state of alert because at any minute a motorbike with five family members, including a child on the handlebars, could plow into you. But the longer I was there, the more I understood the rules of the road…however difficult they were to explain to visitors.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the article and it makes you think a little about how the swarms around you function!

Comments

[Steven]

Growing up it was my scoutmaster who introduced me to the outdoors and who fostered my love for them. He was an entomologist at the University and infused us with loads of information about bugs; this post reminds me of something he'd say. Thanks for the insight. On that note, I wish we'd consider with greater seriousness the lessons to be learned from Earth's more experienced creatures.

[John Mirk]

There's an interesting caveat towards the end of the National Geographic article:
"...Crowds tend to be wise only if individual members act responsibly and make their own decisions. A group won't be smart if its members imitate one another, slavishly follow fads, or wait for someone to tell them what to do..."
I think one of the things that sets Patagonia apart is that the employees tend to be self-motivated and highly responsible individuals, with a great sense of respect for the company and what it stands for.
Conversely, I don't think the swarm concept works very well in public life, where masses of people seem to make rather bad decisions (c.f. California's Prop. 13, the effects of which we are still trying to overcome 30 years later...).

[TomE]

That National Geographic article was one of the most interesting and enlightening I've read in a while.
Partnered with the in depth and heart rending one on Malaria, this month was a great read.
What caught me was how the times that humans display best the skills of the bee, are the times they concentrate least on the self, and most on the action. Be that driving a moped or moving in protest with a common voice etc. Sport often brings us closer to that state too, and there are perhaps lessons there for us to learn:
The runner in a crowded Marathon, should not think about how to beat the bloke in front, but about the simple task of running beside others. Place one foot in front of the other. Don't make sudden moves to one side. Stay close to others of the same speed. Etc. It's much easier that way.
As waves become more crowded, the simple 'rules' of the surfer become even more potent: Don't get too close to one another, don't sit directly inside another, watch the ocean and the pack around you, don't drop-in and don't snake, if you're wide enough paddle for the shoulder, if not clear the face and aim for the white water. As the hungry swell arrives, do as the caribou do with an approaching wolf, follow the rules and leave the line clear for the surfer in the right place.
I remember clearly a surf I've had was in a 'well functioning' pack of 30 at a famous Sumatran wave - the take off spot could have had a nail driven into it, but nobody was fighting to get there, and even as the very novice grom in the crowd I caught my few waves with others calling me in, and the line clear for me to wobble down. But witness the carnage when one or two surfers paddled out and sat just inside the take-off, thought of themselves above the swarm. Within minutes people were taking off too deep, some made it, some didn't, so others start dropping in down the line. Surfers sit close, the novice gets none, I saw 1 board broken and a fin stuck into another. The 2 or 3 pros might have got more, but the swarm got less.
That article will be re-read many times I'm sure.

[DG]

I think you under-estimate the shared vision at a company like Patagonia.
There may be no need for the typical mission statement/ vision stuff because it is already ingrained and shared by all members of the 'swarm'. The fact that you guys rarely need to micro-manage may suggest that the goal is already shared and understood and that your hiring process is effective.