Coordination Costs
Organizational coordination costs typically scale superlinearly - approximately as N^1.5 to N^2, where N is organization size.
Large organisms face coordination limits due to neural transmission speeds and network complexity. Beyond certain sizes, coordination becomes limiting - a blue whale's nervous system processes information slowly not because neurons are inferior, but because distance imposes physical delays. Very large organisms need specialized systems (circulatory, nervous) to coordinate; at extreme sizes, coordination becomes limiting.
Business Application of Coordination Costs
Organizational coordination costs typically scale superlinearly - approximately as N^1.5 to N^2, where N is organization size. When coordination costs scale faster than value creation, organizations experience decision paralysis, information silos, and ultimately governance failures like VW's Dieselgate.