Nerd Empire

Hierarchies have long been a fact of human
existence. From prehistoric chiefs to modern
day heads of state and captains of industry,
there have always been those clinging to what
have been seen as positions of power. Even in
contexts where the leadership swear up and
down that such is not the case. Some even
going so far as to put the descriptor
“people’s” in the official name. There is,
however, subtle but vital difference between
position and power. One which the rapid
digitizations of business and government is
making increasingly clear. 

Ask most people who the most powerful person
in a company is and they will likely say the
CEO or the president. This is a perfectly
reasonable response. Especially given the
current cultural narrative in which those
with the ability to make the most decisions
are seen as the most powerful. Though thisdefinition of power is incredibly limited, based entirely, on perceived respect and the ability to control others. There are several other deviations so far power, such
as the one that puts personal autonomy and choice above all. In this chase the most powerful people in any given company are those responsible for maintaining and repairing the computer systems. 

Corporate IT departments tend to go more or
less unnoticed by the larger corporate
structure. A fact at the heart of the
brilliant British sitcom The IT Crowd.
Despite this overall lack of recognition, and
in some ways because of it, IT workers are in
one of the most powerful and privileged
positions. They might not get the same
respect or recognition as middle-managers but they also don’t really have a dress code, can
come and go as they please and never get in
trouble because a planned merger didn’t pan
out. They are in a rarefied position that has them seen, when they are noticed, as the
solution to a problem rather than the cause. They are powerless in the overall corporate context but are also primarily responsible for the computer systems on which the corporate structure is based, which makes them indispensable. So while even an all 
powerful CEO with six-figure salaries and sweeping decision making powers are still vulnerable  to having their position reminded by a vote by the board, the IT worker’s job is secure, the board members being at least smart enough to know that without a smoothly
operating computer network there would be no
business to run. 

(Edward Snowden )

This is also true in the context of government, particularly in terms of policing and intelligence agencies. In this case, the IT departments tend to staffed by civilians what the appropriate skills working for the agency on contract. Also having been empowered by the agency in some way. Such as the deputation of computer hackers used to entrap online predators. The most high profile case of this, demonstrating the risks, pitfalls and potential good of the system in that of Edward Snowden. A civilian with top-shelf programming skills, Snowden 
was hired by some of America’s most secretive intelligence agencies, monitoring and maintaining their data filing systems. A position which gave him free password access second only to the agency director and the President.