Hierarchical systems direct the flow of information and connection vertically, and inhibit horizontal connections. For instance, in hierarchical organizations, information and leadership usually moves from the top down. In information systems, hierarchical systems create knowledge silos that put walls between potentially related facts that don't roll up to the same parent folder or structural unit. Whether in organizations or in file folder structures, this makes it far more difficult to share information in that the number of relationships a node can have is effectively limited to to its parent and those other nodes with which it shares a parent.
Related
- innovation-thrives-in-open-environments - Open societies tend to be more innovative than rigidly hierarchical societies.
- rigid-systems-are-fragile-systems - Hierarchical systems may be more rigid than flat or horizontally organized systems.
- zettelkasten - A method of knowledge management that eschews hierarchies and instead emphasizes connections between notes
- principle-of-atomicity
- how-to-take-smart-notes
- writing
Reference
Ahrens, Sönke. How to Take Smart Notes: One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking – for Students, Academics and Nonfiction Book Writers. Sönke Ahrens, 2017.
Johnson, Steven. Where Good Ideas Come from: The Seven Patterns of Innovation. London: Penguin, 2011.
