as a system design challenge: you need a structure that allows local autonomy while maintaining systemic coherence. Decisions at one level can’t require perfect information about all others, yet they still need to nest into the broader context. Hierarchy works best when local optimization and global optimization point in the same direction.

Hierarchical systems can over-optimize for local concerns. Isolated subsystems can be so well optimized for their own function that they lose alignment with the whole and undermine system-level goals. Subsystems can also become sources of change resistance when gatekeepers use their power to resist changes they oppose.