I’ve read a few articles asserting that the better solution to implementing Holacracy is developing better managers. Developing good managers through teaching values based leadership and self-reflection, by teaching managers how to have difficult conversations and lead by example. All of this sounds great, but why does it make sense to limit this skill development to managers?
A great manager is someone that pushes you to fulfill your own potential. What you if you could do that for yourself? What if you understood your potential and were willing to step into opportunities to allow you to embrace and develop that potential? Could you, through self-reflection, develop a strong understanding of your areas for growth and regularly invite experts in those areas to provide feedback on your work? Would your team mates be willing to hold you accountable for the work they need from you? What if you invited coworkers to surface tensions directly with you, and engaged in a respectful, non-judgmental process to resolve these tensions?
I’m not trying to bash managers. I think there is a world of subject matter expertise and experience that should be respected and leveraged in organizations. I know based on my own experience that there is power in people taking ownership for their experiences at work. There is value in supporting all people to develop self-management skills and I believe it would greatly reduce organizational overhead.
If all of this sounds hard — it’s because it is. It’s much easier to assign everyone a manager and in exchange for a pay bump and a little bit of glory, let them become the scapegoats for your company. I saw this play out ad nauseam in the public education sector. Districts failing year after year to make the kind of change they aspire to, or making incremental growth, and deciding it isn’t enough. Fire the Superintendent. Two years later…fire the Superintendent. Stop it. It’s like moving around deck chairs on the Titanic. Even the most unicorn Superintendent, those rare visionary, compelling, and amazing ones, will not be able to save the ship if they are trying to influence behavior change through limited and bureaucratic mechanisms. If you are ready to stop the madness, embrace self-management. Instead of creating an exclusive club for developing leadership potential, create a structure that supports everyone’s growth and development into becoming their own leaders. Holacracy is one system, but it’s not the only one. Companies like Valve, Spotify and MorningStar all have integrated principles of self-management into their companies with strong results. It’s no surprise that more agile, self-organized companies are more productive, and ultimately more profitable.
This isn’t for everyone. Some people like to be told what to do. Others really like telling people what to do. If you are into that sort of thing, self-management is going to be hard for you. And if something else is working for you, great. Keep doing that. If it’s not…maybe consider breaking the cycle and investing in an operating system that develops ALL of your people.
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