Bradley Scott discusses people policies to support agile transformation. Originally, Peopleware discussed how sociological factors are major problems in systems work. Culture is a big contributor to agility and effectiveness. Cash bonuses often don't work for talented people and companies should replace them with better incentives. Management should solve as few problems as possible and use their talent elsewhere. Engagement surveys should not be annual events but instead ongoing. The document encourages examining your organization's culture and finding ways to improve agility through people policies and incentives.

1. Peopleware 2015
People policies to support agile transformation
Bradley Scott
Xero
@bradley_scott

2. What was Peopleware?
Originally published 1987
“Maybe … the major problems of
systems work are not so much
technological as sociological”

3. Coding War Games
People from the same organisation tend to perform alike

4. Why talk about Peopleware in 2015?
Opinion: Culture is the single biggest contributor to agility and effectiveness

5. Ditch incentives that don’t work for
talented people

6. Why Xero got rid of cash bonuses
We didn’t do it well. And even if we did, would it be worth it?
“Once the task called for even
rudimentary cognitive skill a larger
reward led to poorer performance”
Federal Reserve Bank of Boston Working Paper, July 2005

7. What (I hope) will take its place
Bonuses from your mate not the man
“Results suggest that a minor adjustment to employee bonuses –
shifting the focus from the self to others – can produce measurable
benefits for employees and organizations”
Harvard Business School working paper, 2013
“It's great that the managers know who's super-effective and contributing
the most, but, quite frankly, we know better, so let us reward and
recognize our peers”
Greg Silva, IGN Entertainment

8. Solve as few problems as you can
as ‘management’. Use your talent

9. Team self organisation
A case study that isn’t Trademe - Self replicating Pods

10. Team self organisation
A case study that isn’t Trademe - Self replicating Pods

11. Team self organisation
A case study that isn’t Trademe - Self merging Pods

12. Team self organisation
A case study that isn’t Trademe - Arranging around the work. Understand

13. Team self organisation
A case study that isn’t Trademe - Arranging around the work. Organise

14. Team self organisation
A case study that isn’t Trademe - Arranging around the work. Review

15. Culture is not HR’s problem to
solve. It’s yours

16. Happiness engineer
Deliberate engineering of organisational culture

17. Happiness engineer
Deliberate engineering of organisational culture

18. Happiness engineer
Deliberate engineering of organisational culture

19. You wouldn’t do a retro yearly. Don’
t do engagement surveys that way

20. Annual engagement surveys
Asking Xeros to ‘Have your say’. But only once a year

21. Annual engagement surveys
Surely it should work something more like this?

22. In Summary
What you should be thinking about...
● Culture is a big contributor to effectiveness. So work on it
● Culture is not HR’s problem to solve. It’s yours
● Ditch incentives that don’t work for talented people. Create better ones
● Solve as few problems as you can as ‘management’. Use your talent
● You wouldn’t do a retro yearly. Don’t do engagement surveys that way

23. Coding War Games
So where is your organisation? And what are you going to do about it?

24. Questions
And hopefully not awkward silence

25. Thanks for listening…
Bradley Scott
Xero
@bradley_scott