Time-span of discretion measures work level
Jaques measures the true weight of a role by the longest time before someone's judgment is checked by results. This time-span gives an objective yardstick for the level of work a job actually requires.
Why Organizations Fail: Organizational Studies Based on Theories of Dr. Elliott Jaques
6 ideas
Requisite organization has natural strata
Healthy hierarchies have a right number of layers, each a genuine step up in complexity of work. Too many or too few managerial strata produce confusion, bottlenecks, and failure.
Structure, not personality, drives dysfunction
Ivanov argues most organizational failure comes from mis-designed structure and accountability, not bad individuals. Fixing roles and reporting lines matters more than blaming or replacing people.
Manager-once-removed and fair felt accountability
Each employee should have a manager one level up whose complexity of thought exceeds their own, and roles must carry felt-fair accountability and pay. Misalignment between capability and role level breeds distrust and breakdown.
Cognitive capability grows in predictable steps
People's capacity to handle complexity matures over a lifetime along measurable curves. Matching a person's current capability to a role's required level is the key to placing them well.
Bureaucracy can be made humane and efficient
Against the reflex to flatten hierarchies, Jaques holds that properly designed managerial hierarchy is the most effective and fair way to organize large work. The problem is bad hierarchy, not hierarchy itself.