Self-Selecting Teams at Scale

SELF SELECTING TEAMS AT

THE TROUBLE WITH COMPONENT TEAMS AND SCALED RELEASE PLANNING

3This information is confidential and prepared by Uptake solely for the use of the intended recipient

AT FIRST, OUR RELEASE PLANNING EVENTS LOOKED LIKE THIS…


Team Plans

ProgramPlans

…. AND OUR RELEASE PLANNING OUTPUTS LOOK LIKE THIS


WE KEPT ‘FEEDING THE BEAST’ AND OTHER CHALLENGES GREW FROM THERE…


we had been listening to teams

we heard a desire for

lesscommand & control

moreautonomy more

networked and organic structure

lessdependencies

morepurpose

moreadaptation to plans

SIMULTANEOUSLY….


Problem statement

Description

KPIs

Value Proposition

WE DECIDED TO SET TEAMS UP FOR SUCCESShelping teams own a business problem, not a singular feature

Stakeholders

Use cases

User Pains and Gains

Relevant workflows

Acceptance criteria

morepurpose

more context

Personas

less command & control

moreautonomy


market featureteams

platform serviceteams

tool & infrastructure teams

market driven features & enhancements

Respond to the Market

re-use driven frameworks &services

Build the Platform

velocity driven tools & infrastructure

Enable our Teams

WE DECIDED TO STOP MANAGING DEPENDENCIES, AND START BREAKING THEMMoving from component to feature teams


Team n

On Deck(1) Developing (2)Discovery WIP “Done”

Program Backlog

Grooming Groomed

Production

Live ReviewDoing “Done”

Team A

On Deck(1)Selected Discovery

Developing (1) “Done”

Flow

Product Packages

Trifecta Teams

Development Teams

adapting ourplans continuously

T R

J H

S

P

U

R

O

N

M

L

KT needs to be split into MMF A

B

E

D

C

Let’s crush it with G!

We’re going live!

WE DECIDED TO STOP CREATING BIG RELEASES, START CREATING CONTINUOUS FLOW


SELF SELECTING TEAMS

Jon movesto Team A

Like most organizations, we usually formed and rearranged teams like this...

We saw an opportunity to better fullfil desires for more autonomy in who people work with and what they work on

lesscommand & control

morenetworkedstructure

moreautonomy

TEAMIFICATION DAY


10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone B

10:30amand 2:30pm

Zone C

11:00amand 3:00pm

Zone A

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone C

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone A

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone B

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone H

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone G

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone F

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone K

11:00amand 3:00pm

Zone I

10:30amand 2:30pm

Zone E

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone L

11:00amand 3:00pm

Zone J

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone D

11:00amand 3:00pm

Zone E

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone A

10:30amand 2:30pm

Zone B

11:00amand 3:00pm

Zone C

10:00amand 2:00pm

Zone D

x 6

law of two feetgo to where you’ll be engaged and learning the most

be curiousengage in the market and with each other

20 min

choose teamautonomy in what you work on

choose workfind a few Product Packages you’re interested in working on

TEAMIFICATION DAY PART I - CURIOSITY MARKETproduct pitches


CURIOSITY MARKET


x 430-60 min

moreautonomy in who you work with

morenetworked and organic structure

empowered to do what’s right for Uptake

empoweredto do what’s right for you

TEAMIFICATION DAY PART II – OPEN ENROLLEMNTself selecting teams form

FACILITATING SELF SELECTION


SETUP (10 MIN)

OPEN ENROLLMENT – FACILITATORS GUIDE

• Central Facilitator walks through plan and instructions

• “Developers” pick up own picture from “Not yet on a team" section

• Set big visible timer with audible alarm set for first 10 min


Step 1 - Team Members go to a station to join a team. (10 min time-box)

Step 2 - Teams Members fill out “Team Profile Sheet” (10 min time-box)

■ Product Owner and Anchor indicate if "constraints" met

■ Team Members fill out their “Team Adjustments Log”

Note: Anyone who has not yet selected after ‘Step 1’, goes to back to the ‘Not Yet in a Team’ area

SELF SELECTION PROCESS - ROUND 1 (30MIN)


SELF SELECTION PROCESS – ROUND 1 (30MIN)

Step 3 - Central Facilitator leads “team readouts” making visible skill and size imbalances across teams (10 min)

Note: Team Members stay in selected team area till readout is complete


SELF SELECTION PROCESS – ROUND 2 & 3 (30MIN)

Repeat steps 1, 2 and 3 from Round 1 to address any remaining team adjustments and achieve new formations


BREAK & HUDDLE (20MIN)


Break - All Participating Team Members should take a break

Huddle - Facilitators and managers huddle to choose to take one or more of the following actions:

1. Run another selection round with everyone (steps 1, 2 and 3)

2. Send away any “completely formed teams”, i.e. agile teams where there has been no movement for 2 rounds and do another selection round with people who are left in the room.

3. Choose to be satisfied with all the success on getting most team to a “Done” state and decide to deal with the rest tomorrow…


SELF SELECTION PROCESS - ROUND 4 (20MIN)

Last - What happens here is based on decisions made during “huddle”.

This is also the time where anyone who has expressed “I don’t want to choose, please tell me where to go” that Managers would place them.

Note – There are no other circumstances under which we want someone other than the individual to direct a decision.

PREPARATION TIPS


SOCIALIZE IT, FAR IN ADVANCE

Socialize it!

Town Hall Meetings

Q and A Sessions

FAQs and Wikis


PLAN YOUR PHYSICAL SPACE


ALIGN ON FACILITATION PLANS


Mindset - As a facilitator, your primary role is to highlight areas where adjustments are needed and make it easier for team members to make the “right” decisions.

At no point is it you job to “tell” anyone what to do, only to create transparency into available options, bring people together, and help move the event along.

Remember all of this is under the mind-set of two overarching principles:1. Do what best for Uptake, first2. Then do what best for yourself


Scenario• In Round 2 at station one 10 developers showed up who can offer FE skills• At station seven only 1 person with FE skills showed up and 2 are “desired”

As a facilitator what would you do? What options do you have?

1. Bring people from station seven over to station one to ask for help, face-to-face

2. Bring the PO from station seven over to station one to make their pitch again in case anyone

missed it earlier or needs to be reminded of it

3. Ask (or encourage the Anchor or PO to ask) who feels really strongly they want/need to be on

this team?

4. Remind everyone “you are not signing your life away” team transfers and new work types are

certain

ALIGN ON FACILITATION PLANS


Would we do this again?Will We do this again?

What Next?


seeking change team openings

For IndividualsAn invitation for Team Members to enter the transfer market, and for New Hire graduates to join their first team

For teamsOpportunity to recruit people from the job market to existing or new teams from the available seeking change pool

NEXT: BIG VISIBLE JOB BOARD XMonthly

∞

Self-Selecting Teams at Scale

Leadership & Management

Transcript of Self-Selecting Teams at Scale