Invisible Structures: What Every Leader Can Learn from America’s Scaffolding

Too often, the scaffolding of an organization is inherited, not examined. A hiring manager recruits based on ‘culture fit,’ unaware that this unspoken criterion usually means hiring people who look, talk, or think like them. A feedback process rewards confidence but penalizes candor, nudging women and people of color to self-silence. A mentorship program informally thrives among golf buddies and happy hour regulars, quietly excluding those juggling caregiving, second jobs, or simply navigating spaces that weren’t built with them in mind. These structures aren’t necessarily malicious. But they are consequential. And if leaders fail to question them, they quietly reinforce exclusion.