The Lean Terrorist Cell: How Startup Companies and Violent Non-State Actors Are Changing the Old World Order

A broad trend fundamentally changing world politics is the decline of the nationstate’s monopoly over political and military force and the rise of the violent nonstate actor (VNSA). The overarching factor contributing to the decline of the nation-state is escalating technological advances. The Islamic State in particular shows how a VNSA can hold its ground in the face of a military onslaught by the world’s most powerful countries. This changing political order is mirrored in the business world, where startups are surpassing legacy companies. To embrace the startup mentality, the state must loosen bureaucratic practices, adjust hiring policies, and allow the incentive structure to work or risk further erosion of its legitimacy and power.