The End of Elite Rule? How Decentralization Challenges Oligarchy
By Max Borders

Some days it seems like oligarchy is inevitable. But as we enter the Age of Complexity and decentralization, the Iron Law might be bent or broken.

The extension of democracy often results not in a leveling of the organizational pyramid but in a kind of escalating oligarchy.

—Robert Michels

Power consolidates at the top, whether in political parties, corporations, labor unions, or activist movements. Such creates a self-perpetuating oligarchy.

The Iron Law of Oligarchy is a sobering insight.

First articulated by the German sociologist Robert Michels in the early 20th century, the law states that all complex organizations inevitably become controlled by a ruling elite—even if they were founded on egalitarian principles.

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