Clearer Thinking with Spencer Greenberg Do organizations have to get slower as they grow? (with Alex Komoroske)
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Dec 28, 2022 
Alex Komoroske, a seasoned product manager from Google, dives into the intriguing dynamics of organizational growth. He discusses why companies often slow down as they expand and draws fascinating parallels with slime molds that thrive in decentralized systems. The conversation explores the balance between top-down and bottom-up decision-making, emphasizing the need for flexibility and fostering serendipity to enhance creativity. Komoroske suggests that embracing unexpected opportunities can significantly improve innovation and collaboration in the workplace.
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Organizational Slowdown
- Organizations get slower as they grow due to increasing coordination overhead.
- This overhead stems from the need to align more people, communicate information, and build trust.
N-Squared Rule
- The n-squared rule describes how communication overhead increases with the square of the number of people.
- While not always literal, it reflects the growing complexity of interactions.
Trust and Attribution Error
- Trust issues exacerbate organizational slowdown.
- The fundamental attribution error, where we judge others' mistakes more harshly, undermines trust and collaboration.