..."Help, we don't have a boss!
For six years now, we at Great Place To Work Switzerland have embraced self-organization. But what does that exactly entail? Is it now chaos and anarchy? How did it come about, and what does collaboration look like for us in practice? ...
In our last article, we told you why we at Great Place To Work Schweiz took the leap into self-organization - and how we managed it.
Now, we want to show you what this actually means. How do we take decisions? How do our teams work together? How do we lead without manager? And what principles guide our daily work?
We're excited to share many insights and learnings with you.
If you're not familiar with our Circles and "CCC" sounds more like a typo than a body ensuring cross-circle communication? -> Click here to read part 1 of our series!
To everyone else: Welcome back, let's dive in!
How we work together
Effective collaboration is crucial for the success of our organization. Our way of working is based on clear principles and values that guide our daily actions and collaboration. Accountability is particularly important in our setup. And to make informed decisions, relevant information is transparently accessible. For example, everyone has access to business figures (revenue and expenses, including salary costs), contracts with suppliers, actively contributes to the business strategy, etc.
Let's take a closer look at the different aspects to understand how they interconnect.
The concept of roles
At Great Place To Work Switzerland, we don't think in terms of traditional job positions or hierarchies, but in terms of flexible roles that enable us to work in a flexible and effective way. One person can hold or take on different roles, depending on their needs, skills and interests.
We manage ourselves and are responsible for the diligent and meaningful execution of the roles and tasks we have taken on. This self-organization applies both to individual roles and to the roles within our Circles, our self-organized teams. It is crucial that we act autonomously and do not rely on instructions "from above". Instead, we actively take ownership of our tasks and work independently to fulfill them.
To ensure that we have a shared understanding of our roles, we have defined each role and documented its purpose, responsibilities and decision-making powers in writing. A clear understanding of roles enables us to work in an efficient and focused manner and ensures a clear structure and accountability within our team.
By ensuring that everyone understands their own role and the role(s) of their colleagues, we know who is responsible for what and what impact this has on achieving our strategic goals.
Here are some principles we follow:
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No one should have too many roles to ensure a balanced workload.
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Everyone should feel confident and motivated in their role, allowing team members to flourish and feel empowered to make decisions.
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A role is based on competence, preferences, and appropriate resources. It's not cherry-picking!
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Even if team members feel comfortable in their roles, they know they can seek advice if they're uncomfortable making a decision.
Example: Circle Coordinator
Mission: Ensure that internal processes are followed and communication within the own Circle, as well as between Circles, runs smoothly.
The Circle Coordinator is responsible for organizing Circle meetings and coordinating resources, as well as distributing tasks and projects within the respective Circle. They acts as the interface to the other Circles and represents the own Circle in the Cross-Circle-Council (CCC). He/she defines and improves processes together with the other Circle members. The Circle Coordinator changes every year.
Guiding Principles
In this section, we take a closer look at how we integrate the aspects for successful collaboration into our everyday work and why they are crucial for the success of our teams.
These are some of our guiding principles for successful collaboration:
1. Accountability and Entrepreneurship
Especially in an environment without formal hierarchies, a high degree of accountability is crucial, as it allows us to work flexibly, effectively, and independently.
Accountability means that we actively manage the planning and execution of our tasks. We are not only responsible for implementing our own tasks, but also for resource planning, communicating with stakeholders and coordinating with other team members. Personal responsibility means proactively approaching colleagues with questions, informing them at an early stage, actively asking for support if we are unable to meet deadlines, making our own decisions and bearing the consequences.
Every employee is encouraged to think and act like an entrepreneur. We must be aware that our actions have a direct impact on the success of the team and that we must therefore be able to act independently and make decisions that contribute to the overall success. By fostering an entrepreneurial spirit, we strengthen team dynamics and create an environment in which everyone is encouraged to actively contribute and take responsibility.
And we are convinced that every team member has the ability to act like an entrepreneur - regardless of age, experience or area of expertise.
We even go one step further: with us, every team member has the opportunity to become a co-owner. In this way, we not only take responsibility for the fulfillment of our tasks, but also have a personal interest in the long-term success of the company.
And indeed, over 50% of our employees are already co-owners of Great Place To Work Switzerland.
2. Transparency
"Information, often used as a tool of power, becomes a tool to foster collective intelligence and responsibility through transparency."
Patrick Mollet, Co-Owner and Consultant
In order to act entrepreneurially, we need access to all the information that is relevant to us. Regardless of whether it concerns decisions, business figures, projects or strategies.
Transparency creates trust, promotes cooperation and motivation. Transparency enables everyone to understand the big picture, actively involve employees in decision-making processes and make their own contribution.
At Great Place To Work Switzerland, we have been "radically" transparent (including salary transparency) for several years!
This means that at our company everyone has access to all information (with the exception of particularly sensitive employee information). If for example, I'm interested in how we're on track with our budget, I can find the information on our cloud. If I want to see what we decided in the 2022 strategy workshop, I can find the information on our cloud.
Our strategic goals and plans are visible to everyone so that every employee understands where the company is heading in the long term and how their own tasks contribute to this. The same applies to financial data such as turnover, profit, costs, budgets and salaries. Or for vacancies to be filled (including where we are in the recruitment process). To name just a few examples.
How do we implement transparency in practice? And how can companies become more transparent? Check out the 30-minute deep dive by Patrick Mollet and Tobias Véron here -> Radical Transparency: What it brings and how companies can be more transparent.
3. Communication
The flood of information that comes with absolute transparency should not be underestimated.
You probably can all relate: you come back from vacation and are inundated with emails. Now imagine receiving all the information, from the whole company, from every department & from every person. This makes it all the more important to set up the right channels for information exchange and communication.
So how do we ensure an effective exchange of information and functioning internal communication?
We work with different (digital) tools for collaboration and information exchange: There are the classic Teams channels, where information is proactively shared with the appropriate importance in the right place, there are "info slots" in meetings, and then there's information that isn't actively shared. The latter often includes documentation of processes or decisions, where everyone can inform themselves if they deem it necessary.
Internal Communication: Teams Channels
Our internal communication happens via teams. We have different channels that we use in different ways. For example, each Circle has its own channel in which Circle-relevant information is shared. Of course, everyone has access to all channels.
In addition, we have a cross-circle "must-know" channel. Information that affects the entire company is shared here. And we assume that everyone knows about every piece of information shared here (and derives the resulting to-do's where necessary).
And then, of course, we also have a few "fun" channels where we announce internal aperitifs or share funny memes :D
Outlook is primarily used with customers and other external contacts.
Project Management & Documentation: ClickUp
We use ClickUp for internal and external project management and for documenting meetings, processes, and decisions.
We are all responsible for documenting things in ClickUp and sharing them with the team. Each document has a "Page Owner." This person is responsible for updating information and informing about adjustments.
Documents: Cloud
We store all our documents, presentations, pitches, contracts, designs, and everything else in our cloud. To ensure that everyone can find the final version of a document, there are "rules" for correct naming and storing of files, folders and documents.
As part of our absolute transparency, everyone has access to all folders.
Cross-Circle Communication: Cross-Circle-Council (CCC)
With the Cross-Circle-Council, we ensure cross-circle communication.
Once a month, all Circle Coordinators meet and exchange information about what's happening in the respective Circles, and what might affect one of the other Circles.
But sometimes it's just about sounding an idea and getting feedback that includes the perspectives of all Circles. This way, we quickly know if we might have overlooked a perspective.
Meetings: Circle Meetings and All Hands
The Circles decide for themselves how often they "formally" exchange information in the form of team meetings. Once a month, we have a meeting with all employees, the All Hands.
Here, there's a specific structure (Information Only / To discuss / To Decide). Successful meetings depend on all participants being prepared, actively participating, and contributing to decisions. To ensure that everyone has enough time to prepare, topics must be entered into the meeting notes at least 24 hours in advance (if a decision is to be made, at least 48 hours in advance).
To find out exactly how we work with individual tools and what we can improve, listen to our podcast episode on transparency.
Die Circles entscheiden selber, wie oft sie sich "formell" in Form von Teammeetings austauschen. Einmal im Monat haben wir ein Meeting mit allen Mitarbeitenden, das All Hands.
Leadership without management?
In a traditional company, management is often in the hands of executives with certain titles and positions. But (how) does leadership work without managers?
We will show you how we make decisions and lead our organization without managers.
Competence-based Leadership
No hierarchy doesn't mean no leadership. At Great Place To Work Switzerland, we adhere to a competence-based leadership model and emphasize that everyone can take on additional responsibility and make decisions based on their skills and interests.
In our understanding, agile doesn't equal lack of leadership. We've found that a competence-based leadership model works well with agile principles. It enables us to react flexibly to changes and make decisions based on competence and experience.
In an agile context, taking responsibility means that every team member has the opportunity to take on additional responsibility, depending on their skills and interests.
Some team members can take ownership and lead in specific areas, while others focus on their specialized tasks. This flexible model allows everyone to contribute to the team's success in their own way and creates a dynamic work environment that benefits from diverse skills and perspectives.
In traditional organizations, the final decision is often made by the leader, as they also bear the responsibility. But how does that work in a self-organized company?
Consent-based Decision Making:
Sometimes decisions affect the entire company and must be supported by everyone. How do we make efficient decisions in these cases?
At Great Place To Work Schweiz, we rely on a decision-making model based on consent.
What is consent-based decision making?
Based on our understanding of roles and competence-based leadership, our decisions are based on the "consent" principle. In consent-based decision-making, the goal is to make a decision that is acceptable to all stakeholders, even if not everyone needs to fully agree. This allows us to make faster and more flexible decisions without lengthy discussions or disagreements.
More specifically, our process is as follows:
When it comes to decision-making, we have a few principles:
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We trust the Topic Owner and assume that they know the topic best.
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We assume that the Topic Owner has involved all relevant stakeholders.
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We ensure that all opinions, feedback, and enrichments are heard and formulate a final "Proposal for Decision."
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We adopt a "Save enough to try" approach.
Pros and Cons of Agility: The Two Sides of the Coin
Agility and the abolition of hierarchies have brought numerous advantages for us. The flexibility and adaptability achieved through the distribution of "powers" to smaller circles enables us to act very quickly and reduce bureaucratic hurdles. Well-prepared ideas can be presented, discussed, accepted and implemented within a meeting on the same day.
In addition, the decentralized nature of decision-making promotes a sense of personal responsibility and commitment among team members. Each of us can have a say, make decisions and make a tangible contribution.
Nevertheless, there is also a flip side to the coin, especially with the constant and rapid growth we are currently dealing with.
The lack of a clear hierarchy can lead to problems in ensuring clear responsibilities and accountabilities. In addition, traditional leadership roles are less clearly defined in a less hierarchical structure, making it important for individuals to proactively take on leadership roles. This ambiguity can be challenging for those who prefer clear hierarchies.
Alignment with the overarching corporate strategy can be more nuanced in an agile structure and requires a delicate balance between decentralized decision making and a coherent vision.
Joining a self-organized organization can be challenging for new employees as they have to adapt to a new working environment and a new way of working. To make this transition easier, we have revised our onboarding programme and tailored it specifically to the needs of newcomers to our organization.
Our onboarding programme focuses not only on imparting specialist knowledge and skills, but also on introducing employees to our organizational structure and way of working. New employees are given a comprehensive insight into our Circle structure, our decision-making processes and our cultural values to help them get off to a good start in their new working environment. Through targeted buddy programmes, we help them to settle in quickly and find their feet in our self-organized environment.
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