A holarchy is a hierarchy of holons where a holon is both a part and a whole. The term was coined in 1967  by Arthur Koestler in his book The Ghost in the Machine.  Holons have a "nested" nature, where one holon can be considered as part of another.  For example, the universe is an example of a holarchy, or holarchical system, in which a galaxy is part of the larger universe and a solar system is part of the larger galaxy and so on.

Since a holon is hierarchically embedded in larger wholes, it is influenced by and influences these larger wholes.  It follows then that a holon must also contain subparts and is both influenced by and influences the subparts and whole-parts bidirectionally, as Information flows between smaller and larger systems.  When this bidirectionality of information flow and its associated understanding is compromised, for whatever reason, the system begins to break down: wholes no longer recognize their dependence on their subsidiary parts, and parts no longer recognize the organizing authority of the wholes.  Examples include cancer, which creates such a breakdown by aberrant and rapid cell division, and dropped cell phone calls during peak traffic periods when the network can no longer communicate between its parts in a timely manner due to information overload.

Holarchy Consulting has adapted this view of organizations to facilitate them and their leaders achieving breakthrough results toward a common purpose in a short time.  We are able to do this because we can quickly diagnose and address the communication breakdowns noted above.  And since each holon’s value to the larger system comes from its individuality and unique functionality including the capacity to engage and interact with the other holons, we can facilitate addressing these broken interactions to accelerate making deep and sustainable transformation possible.  This also has the benefit of addressing what is at the heart of why such transformations may have not occurred before and thus freeing up the organization to be more creative and productive overall.