Everything I Know About Self-Organizing Teams I Learned from WHITNEY

Tommy Norman I WORK FOR A COOL COMPANY HERE ARE A FEW SOMEWHAT MEANINGFUL CERTS I GOT I DID SOME VIDEOS USER GROUPS! I BLATHER ON THE INTERWEBS

How does this apply to Project Management? Project Teams Short Lived Time/Budget Focused Less Collaborative Product Teams Long Lived Results Focused More Collaborative

What the heck does Whitney Houston have to do with self-organizing teams?

What are Self-Organizing Teams?

“Build projects around motivated individuals. Give them the environment and support they need, and trust them to get the job done.” Agile Manifesto

“The best architectures, requirements, and designs emerge from self-organizing teams.”

“ I believe the children are our future…”

“Teach them well And let them lead the way…”

“Show them all the beauty they possess inside…”

“Give them a sense of pride to make it easier…”

“ Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be.”

( Take a moment to collect yourself )

“Teach Them Well” “Let them Lead the Way” “Give Them a Sense of Pride”

“Teach them well…”

“What if we train all our employees and they leave?” “What if we don’t train them and they stay?”

“Teach them well…” “The trick is not to give tasks fitting a person’s exact capabilities, but to give them space and support to reach a little higher to foster improvement, continual mastery, and growth.”

“Teach them well…” “The Multiplier extends challenges to their team, breeding opportunities for their people to stretch and grow.”

“Teach them well…” “[Kaizen] is a methodology promotes the sustainable continuous improvement as a daily way of life for every member within the organization.”

“Teach them well…” “You need slack in your system to enable continuous improvement.”

“Teach them well…” Build in Time For Improvement Multiple Paths for Learning Cross Functional Training Inspect and Adapt

“Let them lead the way…”

“People have an innate desire to be autonomous and self-directed, and giving employees autonomy will lead to increased productivity…”

“Let them lead the way…” “[Multipliers] give other people the ownership for results and invests in their success.”

“Let them lead the way…” “…decentralized control typically results in better responsiveness.”

“Let them lead the way…” “…self-organizing groups that become passionate about a possibility and are allowed to make it a reality.”

“Let them lead the way…” TRUST VERIFY but

“Let them lead the way…” Standards Guidelines Recommendations

Standards “Let them lead the way…” Guidelines Recommendations Single Vision Deterministic Stifles Innovation Slow Moving

Standards “Let them lead the way…” Guidelines Recommendations Utilizes Experts Centralized Control Splintered Vision Elitist Culture

Standards “Let them lead the way…” Guidelines Recommendations Inspires Innovation Fast Moving Synchronization Less Deterministic

“Let them lead the way…” Standards Guidelines Recommendations

“Let them lead the way…” 1 Year ? ? ? ? ? ?

1 Month “Let them lead the way…” 1 Month

“Let them lead the way…”

Backlog ProposedApproved This Month (5) To DoIn Progress Deployed Done Design (3) In ProgressDone Dev (4) In ProgressDone Test (3) In ProgressDone

“Let them lead the way…” Less Rules, More Results Short Feedback Loops Lateral Communication Visualize Your Work

“Give them a sense of pride…”

“…it’s connecting to a cause larger than yourself that drives the deepest motivation.”

“Give them a sense of pride…” “If [the team’s] work is to provide intrinsic motivation, they need to understand and commit to the purpose of the work.”

“Give them a sense of pride…” “If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.” -Antoine de Saint-Exupery (But I heard it from Mark Nemecek)

Vision “Give them a sense of pride…” RoadmapGoals

“Give them a sense of pride…”

Clear, Shared Vision Cross Functional Understanding Results Driven Accountability

“Teach Them Well” “Let them Lead the Way” “Give Them a Sense of Pride”

“The Greatest Love of All.”

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