LibraryScenariosWhen teams struggle with authentic power-sharing despite good intentions
Scenario

When teams struggle with authentic power-sharing despite good intentions

My department keeps saying we want to 'flatten hierarchy' but every time we try to implement something more collaborative, the same people end up making the decisions anyway and the rest of us are just consulted after the fact. Our manager thinks they're being participatory but it feels performative and I don't know how to say that without seeming ungrateful or difficult.

Juana
Online
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More people experience this than they realize.

What we've seen

A group committed to changing their power dynamics is stuck in patterns that reproduce the same hierarchy while everyone pretends the change is happening.

Ideas that help explain it
Worth thinking about

“Where Are You with First-generation identity?”

If this sounds familiar, the Library can help you find the bigger picture.