Enterprises have a problem: On those 5 years exploring space on your own, the captain holds all power. Normally, a board of directors would challenge a head's decisions every now and then. Starfleets' admirals are too far away to accomplish that job. As long as the Enterprise is not near any space station, Captain Picard can only be a tyrant. There is only his voice. Omnipotent entity Q therefore offers the first officer Riker omnipotency. As a result, Riker could become that missing board of directors, and challenge Picard's decisions. Don't confuse senior staff meetings in Star Trek (which do happen all the time) with the missing board meetings. Captain Picard would NOT chair those.
Review of Hide and Q
