How Liberating Structures Flattens Hierarchy

Short personal thoughts, reflections, and ideas

Conventional meetings — whether open discussions, brainstorming sessions, or status updates — make it easy to spot the HiPPO (Highest Paid Person’s Opinion) in the room. More often than not, the HiPPO also holds the highest position in the hierarchy.

So, how do you spot a HiPPO in traditional meetings? A few telltale signs:

They sit in a central position, or sometimes at the back, where everyone can see them — and people frequently (and nervously) check their reactions.
Before sharing sensitive opinions, participants wait to hear what they think first.
When a decision is on the table, the room naturally pauses, expecting their approval.

These behaviors aren’t always dramatic. Sometimes, the waiting lasts just a few seconds — but it’s enough to notice the influence of hierarchy. 🔍

What happens when you use Liberating Structures?

With Liberating Structures, identifying the HiPPO becomes significantly more challenging. And that’s a good thing! Everyone is engaged, sharing ideas, and participating equally. I often have no idea who holds the highest rank in the group — because it simply doesn’t matter.

Even a foundational structure like 1–2–4-All already flattens hierarchy. It gives every participant time to think independently, discuss in pairs, refine ideas in quartets, and bring them to the whole group. If you’re the boss, you can still push your ideas in smaller groups — but it’s much harder to dominate the conversation when the structure naturally amplifies all voices.

Another great example is 25/10 Crowd Sourcing. Everyone writes their idea on a card, then participants rate it anonymously. Even if someone wants to prioritize the HiPPO’s idea, they can’t — they don’t know which one is theirs! 🤷‍♀️

Including and unleashing everyone is principle #1 of Liberating Structures. It also means that a hierarchical position shouldn’t be a reason to include or exclude someone.

Hierarchy isn’t always intentional

It’s worth noting that most HiPPOs don’t want special treatment. Many genuinely want to hear others’ opinions and create space for collaboration, but traditional meeting dynamics often make it difficult. Even when leaders try to step back, their presence alone can influence how people engage — whether through subtle body language, unspoken expectations, or the fact that their opinion carries more weight.

Recently, after a workshop, a participant approached me, clearly excited. She told me how much she had loved the experience — finally, she was just “one of the participants” rather than “the boss.” At that moment, I realized she was actually the highest-ranking person in the room. Without the usual pressure of leadership, she felt more connected to the team and noticed that people were more candid and creative in their contributions. Instead of shaping the discussion from the top down, she had the rare chance to listen first, gaining insights she might not have heard otherwise. In her view, the workshop led to better results because everyone felt safe sharing ideas and taking action.

This is one of the reasons I ❤️ Liberating Structures! Removing unintentional hierarchy creates an environment where the best ideas — not just the loudest or most senior voices — can surface.