Structuring Complexity as AI Embeds into the Business
Every AI adoption model tells you what to implement. None of them address how your organisation needs to change as a result. As agents move from tools to teammates — appearing on org charts, managing workflows, even directing other agents — the challenge is no longer technological. It's organisational.
Orgplexity is the practice of structuring that complexity. Rooted in organisational cybernetics, it provides a maturity model for understanding where your business sits today and what needs to change as AI embeds deeper into how you operate. Because the antidote to complexity isn't simplicity — it's organisation.
The Orgplexity framework
AI does tasks. Nothing changes organisationally.
Multiple agents in processes. Operational change begins.
The fundamental boundary. Agents appear on the org chart.
Agents managing agents. Human oversight becomes systemic.
The steering function includes AI. The system steers.
Agent as Tool
Agent as Tool
AI does tasks. Nothing changes organisationally.
- Productivity Gains - AI drafts, summarises, and automates simple tasks
- No Structural Change - Same people, same reporting lines, same decisions
- Single-Direction Feedback - Human initiates, agent executes, human evaluates
- Basic Governance - Usage policies, acceptable use, and data handling protocols
Key Outcome: Individual productivity improvements with foundations for responsible AI use across the organisation.
Agents in Workflow
Agents in Workflow
Multiple agents embedded in processes. Operational change begins.
- Operational Redesign - Processes restructured to incorporate AI at defined points across the business
- Role Evolution - People shift from doing the work to overseeing the agent doing the work
- Independent Feedback Loops - Multiple human-agent loops in parallel, each discrete
- Systematic Governance - Each agent needs use cases, risk assessment, escalation protocols, and monitoring
Agents as Colleagues
Agents as Colleagues
The fundamental boundary. Agents appear on the org chart.
- Agents on the Org Chart - Agents alongside humans with defined roles and someone who manages them
- Bidirectional Feedback - Agents initiate, not just respond. They flag issues and escalate proactively
- New Management Questions - How do you onboard an agent? Who is accountable for its decisions? What do you disclose?
- Team-Level Integration - Governance spans hybrid teams, not just individual agents
Key Outcome: The organisation crosses into hybrid human-agent teams, requiring new approaches to management, accountability, and disclosure.
Agentic Hierarchies
Agentic Hierarchies
Agents managing agents. Human oversight becomes systemic.
- Agent-to-Agent Structures - Orchestrator agents delegate to specialists and evaluate their outputs
- Systemic Oversight - Humans govern the architecture, not each individual interaction
- Compounding Accountability - Where does responsibility sit when Agent A instructed Agent B?
- Beyond Human Scale - The organisation processes more complexity than any purely human structure could
Key Outcome: Governing systems of agents rather than individual agents, with human roles focused on architecture and exception management.
Cybernetic Integration
Cybernetic Integration
The steering function includes AI. The system steers.
- The System as a Whole - The distinction between human and agent contributions becomes organisationally irrelevant
- Beyond the Org Chart - Replaced by a cybernetic map of feedback loops and variety management
- Real-Time Complexity - Sense, process, and respond to change at a scale no human structure could achieve
- Embedded Governance - Governance isn't applied to the organisation — it's how the organisation operates
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