You’re Not Scaling Culture. You’re Scaling Chaos. What your childhood toolset and your flat org have in common.

Flat orgs feel empowering—until they fall apart under their own weight. As companies grow, the nostalgia of early connection often gets in the way of the structure required to scale. This post uses a childhood toolset as a metaphor for why clinging to “flatness” is less about culture and more about control—and how SHIELD Illinois grew fast by adding structure, not red tape.

Operations Strategy, Leadership in Action, Strategy, LeadershipLen MusielakMay 19, 2025#OrganizationalDesign, #Leadership, #Growth, #FlatStructure, #CommunicationHierarchy, #OpsLeadership, #SHIELDIllinoisComment

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