Can Decentralization Work in Research Administration?

I recently shared thoughts on applying the principles of High-Reliability Organizations (HROs) to research administration, framing our work as an adjacent high-reliability function. But what happens when you’re operating within a highly decentralized institution, school, or college where sweeping change isn't an option for the foreseeable future? 

Decentralization in higher education often has a bad reputation—and for good reason in my opinion. At its worst it can lead to inefficiencies, duplication of effort, and inconsistent policy interpretation, implementation, and enforcement. Yet, it also brings advantages, such as flexibility, localized problem-solving, and responsiveness to unique departmental needs. If decentralization is here to stay, the real question is: how can we make it work better and how can we apply it more intentionally?

Maybe the answer is structured decentralization where departments retain autonomy but operate within a shared framework that enhances coordination and mitigates risk. Instead of treating decentralization as an all-or-nothing proposition, schools and colleges for example could focus on building structures that allow for localized decision-making at the unit level while ensuring collaboration, efficiency, and risk mitigation at the school or college level.

Leveraging Decentralization More Effectively: putting it into practice

1. Shared Resource Networks

Instead of every department building its own administrative expertise in isolation, create cross-departmental resource pools for specialized knowledge areas like grant management, compliance, or budgeting. This model maintains flexibility while ensuring departments have access to expert guidance without redundantly building the same expertise across units.

2. Collaborative Knowledge Hubs

Establish best-practice hubs where departments document what works and what doesn’t. This prevents one unit from solving a problem while others continue to struggle with it. A repository of tested solutions (such as a playbook for NIH grants or international research compliance) makes decentralized structures more efficient by reducing redundant effort.

3. Interdepartmental Risk Assessment

Decentralized units often don’t share risk insights and lessons learned, creating avoidable blind spots. Implementing routine cross-unit risk reviews—where departments flag emerging challenges—can create an antifragile system that adapts proactively rather than reactively. For example, a sudden policy change from a federal agency could be assessed across multiple departments to identify compliance risks before they become a problem.

4. Flexible but Aligned Policies

Avoid rigid, top-down mandates, but also prevent full decentralization from leading to inconsistency. Create adaptive policy structures that allow customization within a core framework. For instance, study subject gift card programs could be standardized against known best practices and vendors across departments while allowing localized flexibility as needed.

5. Incentives for Collaboration

One of the biggest challenges in decentralized environments is that departments operate in silos. Offer institutional incentives for cross-departmental collaboration—whether through shared funding pools, recognition programs, or efficiency-based bonuses. Encouraging departments to work together toward common goals reduces fragmentation.

6. Crisis Simulation & Joint Response Drills

A major failure of decentralization is that when a crisis hits, no one is prepared in a coordinated fashion—I've seen this play out during sequestration, government shutdowns, COVID, and now currently with the new administration. Running interdepartmental stress tests—such as how departments would respond to sudden federal budget cuts or a cybersecurity breach—strengthens collective responsiveness. This ensures that decentralized units can act cohesively when needed.

By shifting from “every department for itself” to “autonomy within a coordinated system,” institutions can harness the strengths of decentralization while mitigating its weaknesses. Structured decentralization allows for efficiency, sustainability, and adaptability—positioning research administration for success in an increasingly complex environment.

The challenge isn’t centralization vs. decentralization. It’s about building systems that balance independence with shared accountability that can adapt quickly to change.

Further Reading

Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder, Nassim Nicholas Taleb