Agile Management: Leading Teams with a Complex Mind

Agile Management
Leading Teams with a Complex Mind
Jurgen Appelo
jurgen@noop.nl

Agile Management Workshop (intro)
Explain to the other people at your table why you are here (instead of somewhere else).

The Management 3.0 Model
Six organizational views based on complexity thinking

Emergent, self-organizing, unpredictable
http://www.flickr.com/photos/judepics/

Sometimes adaptive, sometimes not
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hdr400d/

Complex Systems
“A complex system is a system composed of interconnected parts that as a whole exhibit one or more properties (behavior) not obvious from the properties of the individual parts.”
Sometimes called the sciences of complexity (plural)
http://cfpm.org/pub/users/bruce/thesis/chap4.pdf

General Systems Theory
Study of relationships between elements
Ludwig von Bertalanffy
(biologist)
1901-1972
Autopoiesis (how a system constructs itself)
Identity (how a system is identifiable)
Homeostatis (how a system remains stable)
Permeability (how a system interacts with its environment)

Cybernetics
Study of regulatory systems
Norbert Wiener
(mathematician)
1894-1964
Goals (the intention of achieving a desired state)
Acting (having an effect on the environment)
Sensing (checking the response of the environment)
Evaluating (comparing current state with system’s goal)

Dynamical Systems Theory
Study of system behavior
Stability (stable states versus unstable states)
Attractors (systems getting sucked into stable states)

Game Theory
Study of co-adapting systems
John von Neumann
(mathematician)
1903-1957
Competition versus cooperation
Zero sum games versus non-zero sum games
Strategies (including evolutionary stable strategies)

Evolutionary Theory
Study of evolving systems
Charles Darwin
(naturalist)
1809-1882
Population (more than one instance)
Replication (mechanism of making new instances)
Variation (differences between instances)
Heredity (differences copied from existing instances)
Selection (environment imposes selective pressure)

Chaos Theory
Study of unpredictable systems
Edward Lorenz
(meteorologist)
1917-2008
Strange attractors (chaotic behavior)
Sensitivity to initial conditions (butterfly effect)
Fractals (scale-invariance)

And more...
Study of all kinds of systems
Dissipative systems (spontaneous pattern-forming)
Cellular automata (complex behavior from simple rules)
Genetic algorithms (adaptive learning)
Social network analysis (propagation of information)

The Body of Knowledge of Systems
Complex systems theory enables a descriptive approach to the study of social systems

Complexity
“Complexity is that property of a system which makes it difficult to predict its overall behavior, even when given reasonably complete information about its components and their relations.”
“edge of chaos”
“chaordic processes”
http://cfpm.org/pub/users/bruce/thesis/chap4.pdf

System Dynamics
Study of non-linear behavior of systems
Jay Wright Forrester
(computer engineer)
1918-
Circular feedback loops and time-delayed relationships
Analysis through simulations and calculations

Systems Thinking
Approach to problem solving
Peter Michael Senge
(social scientist)
1947-
“Problems” are part of a system
View systems in a holistic manner
Not a science, but a “frame of mind”

Some Criticism
“The strength of systems thinking is its recognition that human systems are messy, they frequently need focus and alignment; its weakness is that it assumes that the design of that focus and alignment is a top down objective based process. […] The ambiguity of human systems is recognized, but the basic concept of central control or planning remains at the heart.”
Multi-ontology sense-making- David Snowden (2005)
http://kwork.org/stars/snowden/Snowden.pdf

Some Criticism
“Systems thinking contains a fundamental difficulty right at its roots. This is to regard human interaction as a system. This assumption leads to thinking about that interaction as something about which another human standing outside it makes choices.”
Complexity and Management – Ralph Stacey (2000)
http://www.amazon.com/Complexity-Management-Inorganisations-Ralph-Stacey/dp/0415247616/

“Traditional” Systems Thinking
observer
system

Complexity Thinking
observers
system

The Unknowns
Knowns Unknowns
Unknowns Unknowns

Non-linearity

Complexity Thinking
Jurgen Appelo
(idea farmer)
1969-
Don’t separate the designers from the system
Don’t ignore the human part (social complexity)
Don’t ignore the unknown unknowns
Don’t rely (too much) on linear cause and effect
Complexity Thinking = Systems Thinking++

Exercise: Complexity Thinking

View #1: Energize People
People are the most important parts of an organization and managers must do all they can to keep people active, creative, and motivated.

Extrinsic Motivation
Desire to achieve goal G
Reward behavior B
Assumption B leads to G
Problems with non-linear effects

Intrinsic Motivation
Desire to achieve goal G
Reward behavior B
Where B = G
No non-linear effects

“16 Basic Desires”
Acceptance The need for approval
Physical Activity Or exercise
Curiosity The need to think
Power The need for influence of will
Eating The need for food
Romance The need for love and sex
Family The need to raise children
Saving The need to collect
Honor Being loyal to a group
Social Contact The need for friends
Idealism The need for purpose
Status The need for social standing
Independence Being an individual
Tranquility The need to be safe
Order Or stable environments
Vengeance The need to strike back
Steven Reiss. Who Am I? The 16 Basic Desires That Motivate Our Actions and Define Our Personalities. City: Berkley Trade, 2002

“16 Basic Desires”
Steven Reiss. Who Am I? The 16 Basic Desires That Motivate Our Actions and Define Our Personalities. City: Berkley Trade, 2002

“Self-Determination Theory”
Competence The need to feel capable
Autonomy The need to choose one’s own actions
Relatedness The need to be socially involved
Edward L. Deci and Richard M. Ryan. The Handbook of Self-Determination Research. Rochester: University of Rochester Press, 2004

“Self-Determination Theory”
Social Contact /Relatedness The need for friends
Independence /Autonomy Being an individual
CompetenceThe need to feel capable
Edward L. Deci and Richard M. Ryan. The Handbook of Self-Determination Research. Rochester: University of Rochester Press, 2004

10 Intrinsic Desires
Social Contact / Relatedness The need for friends
Independence / Autonomy Being an individual
Competence The need to feel capable

“Drive”
Social Contact / Relatedness The need for friends
Idealism /Purpose The need for purpose
Independence /Autonomy Being an individual
Competence /Mastery The need to feel capable
Daniel H. Pink, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us. Riverhead, 2009

Exercise: 10 Intrinsic Desires

View #2: Empower Teams
Teams can self-organize, and this requires empowerment, authorization, and trust from management.

Self-organization… a definition
“Self-organization is a process of attraction and repulsion in which the internal organization of a system, normally an open system, increases in complexity without being guided or managed by an outside source.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-organization

Organization withoutmanagement?

but…

Self-organization has a dark side…

Self-organization… the dark side
http://www.flickr.com/photos/agder/2783124139/

But people care…about value.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sukanto_debnath/504258852/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/suneko/92395757/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/calliope/104661075/

“Self-organization requires that the system is surrounded by a containing boundary. This condition defines the "self" that will be developed during the self-organizing process.”
http://amauta-international.com/iaf99/Thread1/conway.html

The containing boundary has a chance to direct self-organizationtowards value

Don’t go here!
Go there!
Directed self-organization

Self-organization is the norm

Management is the special case

Three levels ofself-organization
Self-organized
For example: a software development team
Self-selected (= self-designed)
Self-organized and system selects its own members
For example: founders of a start-up business
Self-directed (= self-governed)
Self-selected and no direction outside the system
For example: criminal organization

The Darkness Principle
“Each element in the system is ignorant of the behavior of the system as a whole [...] If each element ‘knew’ what was happening to the system as a whole, all of the complexity would have to be present in that element.”
http://iscepublishing.com/ECO/ECO_other/Issue_6_3_10_FM.pdf

Therefore, management requires…
Distributed
governance and leadership

Seven levels ofauthority in empowerment
Tell: make decision as the manager
Sell: convince people about decision
Consult: get input from team before decision
Agree: make decision together with team
Advise: influence decision made by the team
Inquire: ask feedback after decision by team
Delegate: no influence, let team work it out

Exercise: Delegation Game

View #3: Align Constraints
Self-organization can lead to anything, and it’s therefore necessary to protect people and shared resources, and to give people a clear purpose and defined goals.

The Game of Life
(John Conway)
http://www.bitstorm.org/gameoflife/

The Game of Life
3 neighbors = new life
2 or 3 neighbors = stay alive
0 or 1 or > 3 neighbors = death
simple rules, great results

But does that mean...
management = simple rules, great results?

management = simple rules, great results?
No.

The Game of Life
The actual rules => complicated code

The Game of Life
The constraints => a grid, 1 player

Another example

Settlers of Catan
(Klaus Teuber)
It took minutes to define the constraints
It took years to create and tune the rules
http://www.wired.com/gaming/gamingreviews/magazine/17-04/mf_settlers

complexnon-adaptive system
we adapt the rules

complex
adaptive
system
complexnon-adaptive system
the system adapts itself
we adapt the rules

A manager / team leader is not a game designer
Don’t create rules

Define constraints (playing field, players)
Let the system create its own rules

aim
intent
goal
mission
vision
target
objective
Let’s ignore the (subtle) differences for now…

Keep it simple
Commander’s intent
A goal in just a few lines of text

Goal checklist
specificand understandable
simpleand concise
manageableand measurable
memorableand reproducible
attainableand realistic
ambitiousand stimulating
actionableand assignable
agreed-uponand committable
relevantand useful
time-boundand time-specific
tangibleand real
excitableand igniting
inspiringand visionary
value-basedand fundamental
revisitableand assessable

Bad example 1
We are committed to providing outstanding customer experience, to being a great place to work, a thoughtful steward of the environment and a caring citizen in the communities where we live and work. We are passionate about sustainably connecting people and places and improving the quality of life around the world.

Bad example 2
As a company, and as individuals, we value integrity, honesty, openness, personal excellence, constructive self-criticism, continual self-improvement, and mutual respect. We are committed to our customers and partners and have a passion for technology. We take on big challenges, and pride ourselves on seeing them through. We hold ourselves accountable to our customers, shareholders, partners, and employees by honoring our commitments, providing results, and striving for the highest quality.

Good example 1
Our mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.

Good example 2
We help people save money so they can live better.

Do not allow individual stakeholder goals to replace extrinsic and emergent goals

Goals are not meant to...
Intimidate people if they cannot achieve them

Impress shareholders or others on the sideline

Confuse short-term wins with long-term losses

Distract people from outcomes with action plans

Distract people from outcomes with action plans
Overload people with too many objectives

And...
Goals should not be pushed with financial rewards
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1594488843?ie=UTF8&tag=noopnl-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1594488843

Exercise: Agile Goal Setting

View #4: Develop Competence
Teams cannot achieve these goals if team members aren’t capable enough, and managers must therefore contribute to the development of competence.

Safest traffic in the world
Marshall Islands
San Marino
Malta
Iceland
Netherlands
Sweden
United Kingdom
Switzerland
Japan
Singapore
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-related_death_rate
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bobjagendorf/4122137519/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/quimbo/20555416/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lilidelamora/5320093/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/12386296@N08/4055379221/

We can learn how to
manage software teams
by studying management
of similar systems
(like traffic management)

Subsidiarity principle
“The dictionary defines subsidiarity as the idea that a central authority should have a subsidiary function, performing only those tasks which cannot be performed effectively at a more immediate or local level.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subsidiarity

Subsidiarity principle
And thus…
Delegate decisions until you’ve hit a competency problem
(team members decide unless there is some lack of competence)

Precautionary principle
Assuming that things are risky, in the absence of evidence.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Precautionary_principle
http://kwebble.com/blog/tag/haarlem

Precautionary principle
And thus…
Decide who has the burden of proof for competency
(assume team members are competent, unless proven they’re not)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/38607288@N03/4087457751/

Shared space
Increased risk perception
People are less mindful when they see no risks
Reduced false security / risk compensation
People show riskier behavior when they think they are safe
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shared_space

Shared space
And thus…
Remove rules to increase risk perception and reduce false security

But how do wedevelop competence?

Three maturity levels (for skill)
Shutraditional wisdom, learning fundamentals (apprentice)
Ha detachment, breaking with tradition (journeyman)
Ri transcendence, everything is natural (master)
(last column: three similar levels in medieval European guild system)
Note: the Dreyfus Model lists five levels of skill acquisition:
Beginner, Advanced Beginner, Competent, Proficient, Expert
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuhari
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_craftsman
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreyfus_model_of_skill_acquisition

Six maturity levels (for discipline)
Oblivious “We don’t even know that we’re performing a process.”
Variable “We do whatever we feel like at the moment.”
Routine “We follow our routines (except when we panic).”
Steering “We choose among our routines by the results they produce.”
Anticipating “We establish routines based on our past experiences.”
Congruent “Everyone is involved in improving everything all the time.”
Gerard Weinberg, Quality Software Management: Systems Thinking
(Alternative: six similar levels in “Agile Made Us Better…” by Ross Petit)
http://www.amazon.com/Quality-Software-Management-Systems-Thinking/dp/0932633226/
http://www.thoughtworks.com/agile-made-us-better

Competence = maturity in 2 dimensions

1. Self-development
People must learn...
urgence vs. importance
time management
boosting memory
finding motivation

2. Coaching
Hire external coaches
Develop competency leaders
Note: manager != coach

3. Certification
By itself a certificate doesn’t mean anything, but...
it can catalyze all other competency measures

4. Social pressure
Let people identify with a small group
Give them shared responsibility for shared goals

5. Infrastructure
Tools must be adaptable, not just customizable
Open databases, APIs, scripts, plug-ins, reports

6. Supervision
Have someone sample/check the products of teams

7. Management
One-on-ones to assess problem situations
360 degree meetings to assess collaboration

7 Approaches to competency development
1. Self-Development
2. Coaching
3. Certification
4. Social Pressure
5. Infrastructure
6. Supervision
7. Management

Exercise: Competence Development

View #5: Grow Structure
Many teams operate within the context of a complex organization, and thus it is important to consider structures that enhance communication .

The workplace is a network

Individual competence
“We learned that individual expertise did not distinguish people as high performers. What distinguished high performers were larger and more diversified personal networks.”
Cross, Rob et.al. The Hidden Power of Social Networks. Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 2004

Individual competence
“Engineers are roughly five times more likely to turn to a person for information as to an impersonal source such as a database.”
Cross, Rob et.al. The Hidden Power of Social Networks. Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 2004

Scale-invariant networks (fractals)
Best communication across all scales
http://gut.bmj.com/content/57/7.cover-expansion

<- preferred
Segmentation of teams

Design Principle 1 (DP1)
(through a manager)
Design Principle 2 (DP2)
(not through a manager)
Communication across teams
<- preferred
(Fred Emery)

Style Structure DP
Functional 1 (through manager)
Functional 2 (through team)
Cross-functional 1 (through manager)
Cross-functional 2 (through team)

Value units
System administrators
GUI designers
Project Mgt Office
Community of Practice
Center of Excellence
Human Resources
...
Delivering value to teams

Functional
(DP1)
Draw avalue network
Functional
(DP2)
B
C
A
cross-functional
(DP1)
D
E
cross-functional
(DP2)

Panarchy... network of hierarchies and anarchies

Exercise: Value Network Game

View #6: Improve Everything
People, teams, and organizations need to improve continuously to defer failure for as long as possible.

Fitness Landscape
performance
system configuration

The Red Queen’s Race
“It takes all the running you can do to keep in the same place.”

Three Drivers of Improvement
Adaptation
Looking backward, reactive, responding to change
Exploration
Trying things out, interactive, experience feedback
Anticipation
Looking forward, proactive, imagining improvement

Three Drivers of Improvement

Ruggedness of Fitness Landscapes
Ideal situation
Complexity catastrophe
Normal situation

Most Improvement Models Look Linear

Stuck in the Fitness Landscape
What now?

Nonlinear Improvement
2, 4
Kaikaku
Radical improvement
1, 3, 5
Kaizen
Gradual improvement

The Strategy of Mutation
Disturbing the system

The Strategy of Crossover
Mix multiple good performers

The Strategy of Broadcasts
Copy innovations

Exercise: Improvement Strategy Game

Six organizational views based on complexity thinking

Agile Management
Leading Teams with a Complex Mind
Jurgen Appelo
jurgen@noop.nl

Agile Management Workshop (outtro)
Explain to the other people at your table what you will take away from this session.

This presentation was inspired by the works of many people, and I cannot possibly list them all. Though I did my very best to attribute all authors of texts and images, and to recognize any copyrights, if you think that anything in this presentation should be changed, added or removed, please contact me at jurgen@noop.nl.
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/3.0/

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Agile Management: Leading Teams with a Complex Mind

by Jurgen Appelo on Nov 15, 2010

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Agile Management: Leading Teams with a Complex Mind — Presentation Transcript