1. In the seventeenth century, why were the Spaniards unable to defeat the Apaches? What implications does this have concerning current or future organizational competition? The Spaniards couldn’t defeat the apaches because they were decentralized tribes that didn’t have one specific leader. It gives precedent, even during colonization times that a decentralized organization is harder to take down that a centralized one.

2. Briefly compare and contrast centralized and decentralized organizations. Central • Has a clear leader • Location where important decisions • Rules that are followed by everyone Decentralized • No appointed leader, and any leader doesn’t rule the entire org.

3. List a few of the traits of a decentralized organization. • Leader doesn’t have to be followed or obeyed. • If one leader falls another is appointed. • Leader’s role pushes the organization in the right direction.

4. From a technical perspective, what is the primary difference between Napster and Kazza? Napster had a centralized server, but Kazaa was a peer to peer platform so there weren’t any central servers all the users had pieces of the information being shared.

5. Is this reading relevant to the current competition between new organizations such as Uber and Lyft and existing taxi companies? Why or why not? Yes, Uber and Lyft are decentralized in the sense that drivers own their own cars and operate their own hours as they want. This form of self-governing and almost “self-franchising” is an interesting model and I’m interested to see what other business will adopt these principles in the future.