When it comes to empowering teams to self-organize, how do you strike a balance between granting autonomy and maintaining alignment with overarching strategic objectives? Can you share specific strategies or approaches you have found effective in achieving this delicate balance?
Director of IT in Healthcare and Biotech, 10,001+ employees
We have implemented a strategy by which we clearly communicate the strategic goals and key outcomes to every team in the organization. This offers a distinct feeling of direction and provides the staff with the freedom to design their own strategies for achieving these objectives.We meet regularly as a cross-functional team to discuss both our success and the issues we face. This assures exposure, helps to foster learning, and offers a chance to realign if it is necessary to do so. This strategy has shown to be successful, resulting in the establishment of a culture that emphasizes individual agency, personal responsibility, and congruence with overarching strategic goals.
Chief Information Security Officer in Healthcare and Biotech, 1,001 - 5,000 employees
Striking a balance between granting autonomy to teams and maintaining alignment with strategic objectives is indeed a delicate task. Here are some strategies and approaches that can help achieve this balance and empower teams to self-organize effectively:Establish Clear Strategic Objectives: Ensure that the overarching strategic objectives are well-defined, communicated, and understood throughout the organization. Teams should have a clear understanding of the overall goals and direction, which serves as a guiding framework for their autonomy. This alignment helps teams make decisions that are in line with the organization's strategic vision.
Define Boundaries and Constraints: While granting autonomy, it is essential to establish boundaries and constraints to provide teams with a framework for decision-making. These boundaries define the scope of their autonomy and prevent teams from veering off-track. Clearly communicate any non-negotiable elements, compliance requirements, or specific limitations to ensure teams operate within those parameters.
Foster a Culture of Trust and Psychological Safety: Building trust and psychological safety within teams is crucial for enabling autonomy. When team members feel trusted and safe to take ownership and make decisions, they are more likely to embrace autonomy and align their actions with the strategic objectives. Encourage open communication, value diverse perspectives, and create an environment where mistakes are seen as opportunities for learning.
Empower Decision-Making at the Team Level: Provide teams with the authority and resources needed to make decisions and take ownership of their work. Delegate decision-making power to the appropriate levels within the team, allowing them to determine the best approaches and solutions. This autonomy fosters a sense of ownership and accountability, driving alignment with strategic objectives.
Encourage Collaboration and Cross-Team Communication: While teams have autonomy, it is essential to foster collaboration and communication across teams. Encourage knowledge sharing, cross-team coordination, and regular interactions to ensure that teams are aware of each other's work and can align efforts when necessary. This helps maintain a broader organizational alignment while empowering individual teams.
Regularly Review Progress and Provide Feedback: Establish a feedback loop that includes regular check-ins, progress reviews, and performance evaluations. This allows for alignment and adjustment as needed. Provide constructive feedback to teams, recognizing their achievements and offering guidance to realign their efforts when necessary. This helps ensure that teams are continuously moving in the right direction while adapting to changing circumstances.
Foster Learning and Continuous Improvement: Encourage a culture of learning and continuous improvement within teams. Support experimentation, provide opportunities for knowledge sharing, and celebrate learning from both successes and failures. By encouraging teams to reflect on their actions and outcomes, they can continuously refine their approaches and align them with strategic objectives.
Leadership as Enablers and Coaches: Leaders play a critical role in empowering teams to self-organize effectively. Instead of micromanaging, leaders should act as enablers and coaches, providing guidance, support, and resources when needed. By fostering leadership at all levels and empowering individuals, teams can better navigate autonomy while staying aligned with the overarching strategic objectives.
By combining these strategies, organizations can create an environment that encourages autonomy, collaboration, and alignment with strategic objectives. The key is to provide teams with the necessary guidance, support, and trust while allowing them the freedom to make decisions and drive their own work towards the shared vision of the organization.
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Director of IT in Manufacturing, 5,001 - 10,000 employees
key performance indicatorsSignificant increase12%
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Slight decrease1%
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Director of IT, Self-employed
One thing I do is include them in the meetings about the changes that will take place and get their opinion. I also lay out the pros and cons of the changes and how it will effect us as a team moving forward.Community User in Software, 11 - 50 employees
organized a virtual escape room via https://www.puzzlebreak.us/ - even though his team lost it was a fun subtitue for just a "virtual happy hour"
We grant autonomy to the product management team because they're the ones that should be driving the value for that Agile Release Train.
The product owner should be accountable for making sure that the user stories and the features deliver the benefit. But the product managers need to be accountable for ensuring the value of the business case is delivered.
We use the analogy of looking up the ladder, not down the ladder. We want the product owner to be looking up at the feature and make sure it’s delivering value, and we want the product manager looking up at the business case of the epic to make sure it's delivering value. This is what looking up the ladder looks like.
Looking down the ladder means the product owner is looking down at the user story and saying, “I did all the user stories.” It means the product manager is looking down at the features saying, “look at all these features are done.” In a looking down model, you’re just delivering scope and not delivering value.
We need to focus on looking up the ladder, not down the ladder.