Where departments fragment and isolate, ecosystems adapt, interconnect, and can evolve. 

Too often, organisations are impeded not by lack of talent, but by the invisible walls between teams. Innovation stalls, decisions bottleneck, and people pull in different directions. 

This was the basis of the latest conversation we had with Gisela Montello-Bruce, Co-Founder and Strategic Director at FluxB2B. Building on our first discussion about how to embed flexibility into organisational design, this time we dug into how the most adaptive workplaces are designed more like ecosystems than departments. 

“In the best workplaces,” Gisela says, “people aren’t just operating in a system, they are the system. They’re the rhythm, the heart, and the pulse of the organisation. And so, we must stop thinking in departments and start thinking in ecosystems”.

Beyond the org chart: Why ecosystem thinking matters

Most organisations are structured like machines: linear and rigid. Each department is a cog, expected to perform a function as part of a larger operation. But to work, this model is dependent on (and assumes) stability, predictability, and a centralised source of control. Today, where change is the only constant, this approach is increasingly becoming an impediment to success.

Instead, organisations need to become living systems that are interconnected, adaptive, and led by shared purpose. Gisela describes it as ‘teamship’, which is the idea that high-performing organisations operate through empowering shared leadership, not rigid hierarchy.  It’s enabled by what Flux refers to as 'structured autonomy' - clarity of purpose paired with the freedom to act. Building teams of leaders, not teams with leaders.

“You have to design your organisation for people, not just progress,” Gisela explains. “Because when people are trusted, connected, and empowered, they become engines of innovation and growth. To succeed in today’s business world, there needs to be lots of small engines working together quickly, not just one big engine moving slowly”.   

Culture is more than donuts and Friday drinks

Gisela is quick to reinforce that culture does not live in perks and social events. These add to camaraderie and connection, but are not the life force of culture. 

“Culture is much more than Friday drinks and a ping-pong table. Culture is shared purpose, relationships, clarity, and the freedom people have to contribute meaningfully”. 

That connection to purpose, people, and progress is what unites people across roles, functions, and geographies, and accelerates performance. It’s what makes the team want to step forward, take responsibility, and innovate. Not because they are told to, but because they care to. 

This kind of culture is not accidental. It is designed, and embedded in the way teams are structured, in how leaders show up, and how decisions are made. 

Making the shift from departments to ecosystems‍

Gisela is quick to point out that while this concept is bold, it does not need to happen all at once. The key is to make a phased shift from siloed functions to an interconnected ecosystem.

The team at FluxB2B often begin with a simple but powerful experiment: creating the ‘Market’ team. Rather than viewing Sales, Marketing, Product, and Customer Success as separate departments, they’re brought together around a shared goal of understanding and responding to the market as one unified group. 

“Suddenly you’re no longer at odds trying to achieve separate departmental KPIs,” says Gisela. “You’re co-creating value. Sales brings insights on customer tensions, Customer Success brings verbatim feedback, Marketing brings foresight and trends, Product brings solutions - and together you’re building a fulsome picture”.

This is the ecosystem in action: interdependent teams operating with shared context, strategic alignment, and autonomy. It’s also the starting point for transformation - that initial spark with the Market Team can (and should) inspire change across the organisation. 

Trust in leadership means trust in people‍

Of course, Gisela notes that this mindset and structure shift means leaders must relinquish a degree of control. For many leaders, this may be the biggest and most difficult shift. But she also points out that speed and adaptability come from trust. 

“If people have clarity, context, and psychological safety, they don’t have to run everything up the flagpole. Instead, they move, and grow, and ultimately, they lead”.

That’s not idealism. It’s strategy. Especially in a world where the pathway ahead keeps changing, and the view in the rear vision mirror is no longer relevant. For success and growth in this landscape, leadership is needed at every level without micromanagement. 

Gisela notes that this mindset shift isn’t just for the exec team. Boards too need to move beyond operational oversight and start engaging with market intelligence, customer insight, and long-term positioning. 

“You have to create the conditions for leadership everywhere, not just at the top.  When you do that, the business moves faster because the people doing the work are also empowered to be making impact-led decisions that move the business forward.”

Empowered evolution, not just change

Transforming how an organisation operates may feel risky for leaders, but it's also unsettling for their teams. That’s why Gisela emphasises the importance of psychological safety as the foundation for innovation. 

“Speed and innovation don’t come from process - they come from trust.  If you're needing your team to learn at speed but they are also fearing for their job, it's cognitively heavy." she says. “People need to feel safe to learn, to try, to fail, and have the space and support to grow. Without that, change may stall before it even starts”.

This safety must be paired with clarity of direction, as Gisela returns to time again - shared purpose. When teams know where the organisation is going and are trusted to help shape the journey. Because when they are all aligned, they will move faster, collaborate better, and show up with purpose. 

Design for belonging, performance, and growth

In our mahi here at Best Places to Work™, and indeed for the team at Flux B2B there is one powerful observation we all have: the highest-performing organisations aren’t just efficient - they’re alive. They function like ecosystems that are built on many of the BPTW™ core pillars of workplace excellence:

• Connection with team: where collaboration is the norm, not the exception
• Trust in leadership: where leaders create space for others to lead
• Working environment: where people feel safe, included, and enabled to grow

The future of work won’t be managed into existence. It’ll be grown by design. It will belong to organisations that treat people not as cogs in a machine, but as collaborators and co-creators in the evolving system that is your business.

The shift is already underway, we are evolving how we work and what work means.  

So the question is: are you ready for it?

FluxB2B partners with ambitious businesses to help define their stability and moment and shape strategies that adapt, turn challenges into growth opportunities and drive forward impact and momentum.  They help build the internal systems, rhythms, and team dynamics that allow strategy to move and business thrive amidst constant change.

If you're ready to evolve from structure to system, a good place to start is by listening to your people. Our Best Places to Work™ engagement survey packages provide the insights you need to understand your workplace ecosystem, and the levers to unlock its full potential.