Management is Dead 
Management is Dead 
Stephane Rondal 
November 2014
Stephane Rondal 
18+ years of experience 
Java architecture 
Team leading 
Agile 
Co-founder of Arexo 
Co-founder of Wajug 
@stephanerondal 
stephane.rondal@arexo.be
Look around and observe 
observing
Demotivation 
demotivation
Unmotivated 
(70%) 
70% of employees are unmotivated
disengDaisgeengmageemnetnt
Project Failure 
project failure
Projects failure 
65-80% of IT projects fail 
Source: http://www.it-cortex.com/Stat_Failure_Rate.htm
Management Failure 
management failure
Brighter future? 
looking brighter?
It’s your lucky day! 
You can change the world 
techniques 
#lead, don’t manage 
#why first 
#task assignation 
#empower
management 3.0 
techniques 
• Energize people 
• Empower Teams 
• Align Constraints 
• Develop Competence 
• Grow Structure 
• Improve Everything
Lead, don’t manage 
lead, don’t manage
Source: http://blog.corporater.com/blog/2013/12/04/manager-or-leader/ 
lead, don’t manage
Benefits 
• Truly understand how your team works 
• More efficient at removing impediments 
• More efficient at fostering productivity 
• Gain respect 
lead, don’t manage
As a manager, it’s your job
How 
• Sit with your team 
• Take some of their tasks 
• Pair with a team member 
• Don’t say what to do, act 
lead, don’t manage
Example 
Pairing with a team member acting 
as Release Manager 
lead, don’t manage
First WHY, then HOW 
start with why, not how
« Why » communicates original intention 
« Why » help people understand better 
« Why » motivates people powerfully
« How » directs people to one direction 
« How » helps focus on one solution 
« How » risks loosing the global picture 
« How » helps the less experienced 
« How » may frustrate the more 
experienced
WHY or HOW ??
Example 
Confidential Project Architecture
Team 1 View 
Confidential Project Architecture
Team 2 View 
Confidential Project Architecture
Team 3 View 
Confidential Project Architecture
People keep complaining?
listen 
(or not) 
show empathy 
something wrong going on?
Responsibilize 
Empower 
Put them in a position to change 
things 
…. And then watch!
Scaling Agile @ Spotify 
with Tribes, Squads, Chapters & Guilds 
Example 
Henrik Kniberg & Anders Ivarsson 
Oct 2012
Example 
« Your small family of people having 
similar skills and working within the 
same general competency area »
task 
assignation
team roles 
(Belbin)
Management is not dead 
Evolve to more Agile Leadership to 
foster motivation and productivity 
#lead, don’t manage 
#why first 
#task assignation 
#empower
THANK YOU ! 
AREXO CONSULTING 
Stephane Rondal 
stephane.rondal@arexo.be 
@stephanerondal 
www.arexo.be

Management is Dead

Editor's Notes

  • #2 What do you expect?
  • #3 Who knows WAJUG? Next talks with Bruno Sbille
  • #4 I’m going to present a few observations based on previous experience
  • #5 Demotivation
  • #6 70% of employees are unmotivated partly due to poor leadership, micro management, poor communicated, feeling under-valued
  • #7 Disengagement
  • #8 Project Failure
  • #9 Project fail, mostly due to communication problems, but also partly due to poor management
  • #10 If projects fail, people are unmotivated and not engaged, it’s also a management Failure
  • #11 Time to say good bye to the traditional manager
  • #12 Can we hope for a brighter future?
  • #13 Lead, don’t manage What works well What does not
  • #14 Lead, don’t manage What works well What does not
  • #15 Lead, don’t manage What works well What does not
  • #16 Lead, don’t manager
  • #17 Lead, don’t manager
  • #18 Lead, don’t manage What works well What does not
  • #19 Lead, don’t manage What works well What does not
  • #20 Gemba
  • #21 Example: pairing with a release manager
  • #22 Lead, don’t manage What works well What does not
  • #25 Give the example of clearpriority rule engine: temporal operators, specifications, algorithms, but without knowing why it would be used
  • #32 People keep complaining in your team or in your organization? Who has a colleague who’s always complaining?
  • #33 What can you do about it? It may be a sign something is wrong
  • #34 Give the example of spotify chapters at Lampiris Point to Ronan
  • #35 Give the example of spotify chapters at Lampiris Point to Ronan
  • #36 Give the example of spotify chapters at Lampiris Point to Ronan
  • #39 Needs to rebirth