A comparison of four different organizational models for co-operative pursuit of goals. Emphasis is on distinguishing "enterprise" as a specific configuration rather than as a catch-all synonym for "business".

1. Strategic
structures for
aligning
Cooperation
Enterprise and non-enterprise
configurations

2. Enterprise or Not
An “enterprise” can have business
outcomes as its common purpose
but it is not necessarily business that
characterizes an enterprise.
In fact, to most clearly define an
“enterprise”, it is also necessary to
know what it is NOT. In that regard,
the fundamental distinction has
nothing to do with “systems”, nor
“complexity”, nor “scale”.
An enterprise model of organization is
a strategic choice for pursuit of a
purpose. But its basic differentiation
from other models stems from the
role of a central authority.
Supervisory authority aligns the tactics
of multiple parties under centrally
declared governance, priorities, and
goals. Without this, the organizational
configuration is not an enterprise.

3. Enterprise Coordination for Purpose
• An enterprise is a structural model for coordinating multiple
organizations to a common purpose under a single supervisory
management authority.
• An enterprise is characterized by its creation, sustainability, and
portfolio of opportunity.
• The role of the authority over the included parties is to direct and
leverage combinations of their otherwise independent autonomy,
production and contribution.

4. goal
Enterprise alignment
of a co-operating party
Stripped of deep-dive VUCA
anxieties about “performance”, the
discussion of using the right model
of cooperation is about
understanding what is reliable in
the way procedures become
“progress”. In the enterprise model,
authority focuses on establishing
balanced coherence through
governance, prioritization, and goal-
setting of participants. Leadership
focuses on making those things into
enablers of the strategy’s primary
objective (opportunity). Finally,
authority is not necessarily dictated;
communication can cultivate it.
© 2023 malcolm ryder / archestra research

5. Other co-operative models (non-enterprise)
Other models of multi-party co-operation are coalitions, consortia, and federation.
Each has a distinctive strategic objective and a distinct kind of commitment to
cooperation.
a Coalition, like an alliance, is
defined by a common mission
of the parties under their
respective independent
management. It expects to be
situationally effective.
A Federation, like a
community, coheres
primarily with contracts
for mutual support
among parties. It expects
to generate synergy.
a Consortium, like a
collaboration, comes together to
share the division of
responsibilities for a specified
set of multiple requirements
(which can be resources or
actions). It expects to offer
capacity.

6. Temporary
on demand
Permanent
in environment
Involuntary
per objective
Coalition
Mission-driven
alliance
Effectiveness
For Operation
Enterprise
Authority-driven
institution
Tactics
For Opportunity
Voluntary
per agreement
Consortium
Challenge-driven
collaboration
Capacity
For Support
Federation
Interests-driven
community
Support
For Synergy
Strategic
structures
for aligning
Co-operation
ORGANIZATIONAL POSTURE
ORGANIZATIONAL
PRESENCE
Business-speak too often
adopts terminology that
creates powerful expectations
based on unexamined
assumptions that turn out to
be unfounded or simply false.
Recognizing the actual
distinctions between types of
cooperation is important, to
avoid adopting organizational
structures that fundamentally
mismatch the prevailing need.
©
2023
malcolm
ryder
/
archestra
research