# The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/books/starfish-spider-unstoppable-power-leaderless-organizations/
- Published: 2008-10-10T13:08:00+01:00
- Author: Howard Lake

**Cut off a spider’s head, and it dies; cut off a starfish’s leg and it grows a 
new one, and that leg can grow into an entirely new starfish. **

Traditional top-down organisations are like spiders, but now starfish organisations
are changing the face of business and the world.

What’s the hidden power behind the success of Wikipedia and Skype? What does Ebay
have in common with the women’s rights movement?

The authors have discovered some unexpected answers, gripping stories and a tapestry
of unlikely connections.

_The Starfish and the Spider_ explores what happens when starfish take on spiders
and reveals how established companies and institutions, from IBM to Intuit to the
U.S. government, are also learning how to incorporate starfish principles to achieve
success.

## WATCH: The Starfish and the Spider – Rod Beckstrom in Talks at Google

Video: Talks at Google