Which one of the below statements best describes the biggest advantage of having a hierarchical organisation?

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BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Exploring the question about the biggest advantage of having a hierarchical organisation, we should evaluate what each statement implies about hierarchy and resilience.
Option 1: 'It allows for spare parts to be available.' While having a hierarchy can aid in organization and inventory management, this statement describes a logistical benefit that is not inherently tied to the core structural advantage of hierarchical design. Spare parts availability can be achieved in many organizational forms, not exclusively due to hierarchy.
Option 2: 'It takes less energy to assemble.' This claim mixes up energy expenditure with organizational structure. The energy cost of assembling something is more about process, workflow, and automation than the mere presence of a hierarchy. Therefore, this is not a robust description of the principal benefit of hierarchy.
Option 3: 'When it collapses, building blocks can be recycled.' This speaks to resilience and post-collapse recovery, but the idea of recycling building blocks is not a defining or unique advantage of hierarchical organization. Recycling pertains to sustainability practices and modularity, which can exist without a strict hierarchical structure.
Option 4: 'When it collapses, it only collapses to the next level down.' This statement captures a key conceptual advantage of hierarchical design: chain-of-command and modular levels mean that a failure at one level confines impact to the next level below, preserving higher levels and enabling containment and easier recovery. It emphasizes fault isolation and structural containment, which are often highlighted as major reasons for preferring hierarchical arrangements over flat structures.
Thus, evaluating the options, the fourth choice uniquely reflects a core principle of hierarchical systems—containment of failure to lower levels—whereas the others describe benefits that are either ancillary, non-unique, or not inherently tied to hierarchy. The emphasis on cascading but contained collapse aligns with how hierarchical organizations are designed to localize issues and maintain overall integrity.
In summary, while the first three options describe potential ancillary or misaligned benefits, the fourth option best matches the defining advantage of hierarchical organisation by ensuring that any collapse remains contained to the next level down, preserving the rest of the system.

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Which one of the below statements best describes the biggest advantage of having a hierarchical organisation?

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