The author, Markus Reitzig, is a German organisational scientist, and professor of Strategic Management at the University of Vienna, where he has served as subject area chair since the group’s establishment in 2012. He is best known for his research on the strategic management of corporate innovation, and for his studies on the design of new organisational forms.

The author explains that his motivation was to write about a topic he feels passionate about. He has studied novel organisational forms for most of his career, teaching students how to manage hierarchy and has seen many executives struggle with these challenges. He hopes this book will provide a scienced-based actionable guide to design flat structures.

Robin Colgan, Managing Director, Asia Pacific Importers at Jaguar Land Rover said: “An eminently readable book that addresses one of the big issues faced by managers; making organisations ‘match-fit’ for a new generation of talent in a post-covid world. Professor Reitzig blends theory, primary research and his own industry experience to inform and provide clear, actionable insight.”


The author suggests two separate approaches to reading the book. His ideal approach is the normal method, read every chapter in order. The alternative approach, for the time poor amongst the readers, is to read chapters 1 & 2, and skip to chapter 9 and refer back to earlier chapters focussed by references from the author where questions arise when applying his framework.

The book depends on examples and case studies to illustrate the points that the author is making and takes the book from a purely theoretical work to a work proven by real life, although based on context which has an influence on outcomes.

The second part of the book talks about the ‘journey’ towards decentralisation, a key component of flatter structures. The author asserts that it is essential that all key people are taken along on the journey and describes some essential human characteristics which is helpful and indicates some of the human resource challenges of changing from traditional hierarchical structures to a flat model.

Having given examples and illustrations the author draws the readers’ attention to the theory behind the actions to help illustrate the wisdom and value of flatter structures.

There are a mass of notes and references throughout the book which make the reading challenging and it does require a high-level of concentration, and not a small dose of perseverance, to plough through to the end. There are some excellent illustrations and tables that help visualise the concepts, which I found helpful.

It’s not an easy read and the reader will need to devote a lot of time and mental energy to get the best value out of the book and really get their heads around what the author is seeking to explain.

I found the book quite hard going and I took the second approach recommended by the author. I read the early chapters and skipped to chapter 9, the guide to successful decentralising, referring back where appropriate and it worked for me.

If decentralising your organisational structure is a high priority for your business this will be a good guide but it’s a tough journey if you’re just looking for something to read.