What is the process of reducing management levels to create a flatter organization called?

The process of reducing management levels to create a flatter organization is called delayering. This approach involves removing one or more levels of hierarchy within an organization to facilitate faster decision-making, improve communication, and enhance employee empowerment. By eliminating layers of management, organizations can become more agile and responsive to changes in the marketplace, as information flows more directly between various levels of staff.

Delayering is particularly beneficial in today’s fast-paced business environment, where organizations need to adapt quickly to new challenges and opportunities. A flatter structure can enable greater collaboration among employees and foster a culture where individuals feel more responsible for their contributions.

In contrast, downsizing refers broadly to reducing the workforce or the size of an organization, which may not necessarily focus on management levels. Decentralizing involves distributing authority and decision-making closer to the operational level rather than concentrating it at the top, while streamlining typically refers to making processes more efficient and effective, which could include but doesn't solely imply management level reduction. Delayering specifically emphasizes the restructuring of management tiers to achieve a more streamlined organizational form.