In Humanocracy, Updated and Expanded: Creating Organizations as Amazing as the People Inside Them, authors Gary Hamel and Michele Zanini argue that bureaucracy—characterized by rigid hierarchies, strict rules, and centralized control—is no longer fit for purpose in today’s volatile, fast-changing environment.

They contend that such structures suppress creativity, slow decision-making, and fail to tap into the full potential of individuals. Drawing from decades of research and updated case studies, the book presents a compelling case for dismantling the bureaucratic status quo and replacing it with more human-centered organizational models.

Hamel and Zanini lay out a roadmap based on five building blocks: Motivation, Models, Mindsets, Mobilization, and Migration. These are designed to help organizations cultivate principles such as ownership, meritocracy, experimentation, openness, community, and paradox.

They show how companies like Roche, Barnes & Noble, Haier, Ingersoll Rand, and public-sector examples have transformed by distributing power, empowering frontline teams, embracing failure as learning, and aligning incentives with human potential. The result, they argue, is organizations that are more resilient, adaptive, engaging, and capable of outperforming in turbulent times¹.