How to Build Self-Organized Teams

The main objective of Self-Organized Teams is to promote self-actualization and foster the empowerment of team members. When the team members can influence the decision-making process and are allowed to adjust their workload at least at some level, they feel more responsibility for the decisions made and, thus, are more motivated to execute them.

In simple terms, a self-organizing team is one which identifies the work it needs to do or is important for the team and then manages the plan and execution on its own. Such a team asks for what it needs to realize its goals – competency building, resources, tools – or anything else which can make it faster and better suited to meet its customer needs.

Here is what distinguishes a self-organizing team:

1. A self-organizing team invests time in understanding each other and being sensitive to each other’s perspective
2. Communication and collaboration are fostered from within the team
3. Competency building is highlighted from within the team
4. The team demonstrates a strong sense of ownership for everything – each team-member volunteers to take work and not wait for being assigned
5. The team is ready to let go of individual egos and work towards team goals

How to Build Self-Organized Teams

Self-organizing teams require careful strategic thought – this is not an outcome of a random or a by-chance endeavor.

1. Vision and Goals: Focus on the business priorities, broad vision, overall goals – share these with the team early and often – communicate periodically
2. The whole team: Involve the team – brainstorm often – you will always be positively surprised at the plethora of ideas you receive from the team and this will also give the team a sense of mastery
3. Team Formation: Management needs to exercise subtle control over team formation by ensuring that the required skills are adequately represented on the team
4. Trust: Trust the team to play their role well – especially once the team has been carefully formed with all relevant due-diligence
5. Diversity: Encourage heterogeneity – encourage diversity of thought and ideas
6. Training – Coaching – Mentoring: In the journey towards self-organization, team and team members might still need some guidance – investing in providing this guidance will go a long way for organizations
7. Macro-Manage: Allow the team to identify “how” they would like to meet their goals – never micro-manage
8. Outcomes: Never measure “productivity” – this is a killer for motivation and easy to game – measure outcome instead
9. Manage the system: Partner with the team on analyzing and resolving systemic challenges – these will help the team become faster
10. Encourage innovation: Foster innovation, foster creativity – encourage the team to come with process and product innovation ideas
11. Apples and Oranges: Do not compare apple and oranges – not every team will self-organize the same way – look at the outcomes and let the teams figure out the how
12. Retain a working team: Strive to keep the winning combination together

With the pace of product development and the all-over disruption, self-organization seems to be the need of the hour. For sure, this requires guidance and careful strategic direction – but given the conducive system, it is possible to nurture self-organizing teams.

(Refrenece: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-create-self-organizing-teams-meghana-parwate/)