introduction to holacracy
TRANSCRIPT
HOLACRACY TASTERAPRIL 2015
DIEDERICK JANSE
When it comes to organization, it often seems like there’s really only ...
Introducing Holacracy
A set of design principles & practices
for organizing around purpose
1. Agile & adaptive
2. Distributed authority
3. Disciplined & data-driven
From centralized to distributed
Organizing around people...
... vs. organizing around purpose
Evolution fuelled by... tension
Tension: the
perceived gap
between how
things are and
how they could
be
Processing tensions
“More organizations
die of indigestion
than starvation”
- David Packard
Co-founder of HP
The promise of Holacracy
Processing any tension, sensed by
anyone anywhere in the organization,
into increasing clarity and
evolution toward purpose, rapidly,
reliably, and continuously.
RoleRole
Distributed authority...
Role
Accountability
Accountability
Project Project
Action
Action
Action
Action
Area of focusSocial media
Ongoing activityPromoting our products on social media
Desired outcomeTwitter profile updated
First next stepEmail Tom about new company logo
Governance
Operations
RoleRole
... in short, disciplined cycles
Role
Accountability
Accountability
Project Project
Action
Action
Action
Action
Let’s try it: simulation setup
Welcome to “The Better Way Company”which provides training & coaching for the “Better Way” method
The company has just adopted Holacracy…… and there are lots of tensions to process …
Board Circle
General Company Circle (GCC)
Coaching Delivery
Circle
Event Delivery Circle
Rep Link
Lead Link to GCC
Lead Link
Lead Link
Rep Link
Rep Link
Other Roles:· Training Design· Marketing· Customer Engagement· Website Manager· Finance
Other Roles:· Training Design· Marketing· Customer Engagement· Website Manager· Finance
The Better Way Company
Governance meeting structure
• Check-in
• Building the agenda
• Processing agenda items
– Item 1
– Item 2
– Etc.
• Check-out
One tension at a time, by one person at a time
Workable in 5 steps (or 6)
1. Proposal*
2. Clarifying questions
3. Reaction round
4. Amendments or clarifications*
5. Objection round
6. Integration of valid objections (if any)
* Only the owner of the tension speaks here
Objection or no objection?
• We’re going to try it, unless...
1. ... You have data...
2. ... that it creates a new tension...
3. ... for one of your roles!
Implementing Holacracy
Adopt the Holacracy Constitution
Define the initial structure
Initiate regular tactical and governance meetings
Train internal Facilitators
Offer additional training & coaching as needed
The Holacracy Constitution
“This Constitution documents
the core rules, structure, and
processes of the Holacracy
‘operating system’ for
governing and managing an
organization. It provides a
critical foundation for an
organization wishing to use
Holacracy, by anchoring the
shift of power required in
concrete and documented
‘rules of the game’, which
everyone involved can
reference and rely upon.”
Holacracy in contrast
Traditional management
Centralized
Managers x
Design
Predict and control
Tension = problem
Holacracy
Distributed
Self-management
Evolution
Experiment and adapt
Tension = fuel
For more info...www.energized.org
www.holacracy.org