Mercer estimates that an astounding 93 percent of companies are actively working to “flatten” their organizations in the coming years, and for good reason — there have been some remarkable successes in this approach, including by the home appliance company Haier.

Haier established over 2,000 “micro-enterprises” with as few as 10 to 15 employees, aimed at more effectively serving local consumer needs and drive innovation. Similarly, Netflix leverages an autonomous management approach that allows team members below Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos to green light new series or purchase streaming rights.

To be sure, it is more challenging to depart from typical command and control style management since departure from this approach can cause less clarity and more anxiety (which at scale, could be fatal). A countering move companies are making to ensure success is rethinking HR, starting with the chief people officer.  

In recent years Viacom, Lyft, and Tesla all named their first chief people officers (CPOs) — a new breed of executive with a broader remit over employee engagement and company culture. With both Uber and CBS naming their first CPOs in 2018, this C-suite trend does not show any signs of slowing down.