The “Dance” Between Hierarchy and Jesuit Networks

The solution to this eternal tension is a governance capable of jointly providing a double level of apostolic leadership: the coordination of institutions and the dynamization of networks. Increasingly, mission coordination is starting to include both dimensions.

Today we are going to tackle this other “hot topic” that always comes up in our talks, debates and workshops. How can we make our desired networking compatible with the current hierarchies? Don’t they contradict each other? Don’t they question each other? Can we work in networks without appearing to be questioning the traditional hierarchy? Is a strategy that enhances and strengthens both dimensions possible? The answer is yes, of course it is possible, although it is not simple, since this new way of working challenges us to change the way we understand governance, leadership (and obedience), as well as the way we plan apostolically and energize the mission. 

The key to this response is to understand that our apostolic body has two dimensions, the hierarchy and the wirearchy which are not two different realities, but two ways of understanding, connecting and energizing the same group of institutions, two angles of analysis, two views of the same reality. Following expert authors in management, I like to say that our apostolic body is dual, that in addition to our traditional hierarchy, thanks to God, there is a whole dynamic and transversal dimension that has been built up over the years that links and mobilizes different actors in projects and collaborations focused on the mission. This is what we call wirearchy, the understanding of which is fundamental to comprehend any complex and international apostolic body today. 

Already at our last General Congregation we concluded that “in Jesuit networks, we find the intersection between the creativity and initiative that come with networking and the authority that mission gives,” and that “networks engage the ‘horizontal’ and ‘vertical’ dimensions of our ministries and governance.”

This is why for years the delegates and secretaries of the apostolic sectors have understood that their mandate to energize the mission translates into the coordination of the institutions for which they are responsible but also includes the animation of the networks under their mandate. Hence, the delegate or secretary in charge of coordinating the apostolic mission at his level of government must coordinate not only the traditional hierarchy (through those responsible for the works) but also the networks under his purview (a new “wirearchy” through the leaders of the networks). Mission coordination, increasingly, should always include both dimensions.

For this solution to work, we have to ensure that all networks are connected to the Society hierarchy at the appropriate level, which depends on the scope and mandate of the network. That is why one of the basic conditions for being a Jesuit network is to have a formal connection to the governance of the Society. Through this connection Jesuits ensure alignment with the mission and coordination with the rest of the apostolic body.   

In conclusion, if we accept that there are two dimensions of the Jesuit apostolic body: the hierarchy and the wirearchy, our universal mission deployment strategies must take this into account. The hierarchical dimension, over many years, has provided stability, predictability, efficiency and scale for the mission, while the growing wirearchy (network dimension) has the potential to add more creativity and innovation, adaptability and learning capacity. 

While the hierarchy naturally ensures and focuses on synchronization and coordination across the body, the networks encourage and focus on broader participation, innovation and flexibility. Network delegates and leaders embrace this new mix in which we discern how to implement the universal mission collaboratively. Network leaders are allies of delegates in promoting cross-cutting dynamics and supra-provincial projects. Delegates are allies of network leaders to ensure alignment of mission, resources and apostolic mandate. 

Our governance structures are gradually becoming capable of providing this double level of apostolic coordination. In this way, networking, more than a management tool, is an opportunity to formulate and energize the new missional possibilities that come from being an apostolic body in collaboration.