Recent technological developments and low cost of communication do play limited role in increased de-centralization of organizations and processes. However, I think there is an important factor that has been influencing organizational design long before rapid advancements in technology.
The environment in which human organizations have to operate dictate the design of the organization. If we assume that the organization managed by humans takes rational action, then we can expect the organization to adapt to the environment within which it had to survive, exist, operate, create value and benefits. One may argue that a clear distinction had to be made between natural and business environments, where the latter can be easier to influence and change. I do not discount a possibility of dynamic interaction between the organization and its outside environment. Nevertheless, if we assume that there are many different companies operating within specific business environment, it is more likely for the business environment to change the shape of the organization than the opposite.
In theory, the very same organization can operate as centralized organization in one environment and de-centralized under different “environmental” conditions. In reality, organizational culture, business model, structure, procedures and practices do not allow such dynamic to take place rapidly. However, my key point is that technological development and low cost of communication do not solve this problem either. Cheap and low cost communication can actually enforce centralization process and prevent much needed evolution (i.e. General Motors operations in Europe). In the same way, availability of new communication tools may not necessarily push meshed organizations to higher level of coordination, which could be beneficial, sustainable and competitive decision in the long term (i.e. Air-traffic control system in the US, independent sustainable energy generators in China or crab fishing in the Pacific).
Decentralization may also not necessarily bring freedom to a particular individual. Human societies are much more complex than we actually perceive. Such complexity is embedded by blood, physiological, religious, regional, ethnic, cultural, hierarchical, professional, and many other relations and interconnections, which often create multilayer structure of the particular society (what some call “the fabric”). Greater in size, cheaper, faster and interactive communication may change some of the interconnections, but not necessarily all of them. As in organization, such interconnection can actually strengthen old forms of interconnection (religious broadcasting, ethnic global-reach media, etc).
Moreover, better communication does make an individual more aware (or misinformed), but not necessarily lead to more independent decision or action. As the result, it does not directly make the individual more or less free.
Of course we need to define common understanding the meaning of freedom. Let us simply limit the understanding of freedom as “as freedom of choice and decision in an open market.” But even in this limited context, there are number of barriers that new means of communications are not yet able to solve (difference in trade regimes, currency exchanges, environmental and labor regulations, etc). As for an ideal global citizen, his/her consumer choices are even more standardized within a list of corporate products (Procter and Gamble, Gillette, Nestle, Coca Cola, McDonalds, etc), whereas individual entrepreneurship opportunities are narrowed down to marginal and meaningless service providing.
In sum, technology and innovation brings illusion of freedom and decentralization on both on global and national scales. Such illusion definitely helps to manipulate and control most informed and active groups of consumers by restraining them in a virtual sand box. As in American Idolä, the public is just given an illusion of contributing to the decision-making, which in reality has already been made by the producers and “the corporate”. At the end of the day the food has to be harvested and served, the electricity and nuclear plans have to be run, the planes and air traffic have to operate safely, cargo ships from China have to be navigated to ports and uploaded to Wal-mart trucks.
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