Playing with hierarchies and circles - Experiments of holacracy

‘Playing’ with hierarchies
and circles
Experimenting with organization structures
and motivation to get things done
Alexandra Lederer
Learning & Organisational Development Manager

Would that be a tree hiding
a forest?
#beware of solutions driven approach
#command & control?

Why why why?
#empathize
#never stop questioning

It’s not what you do, but
WHY
you do it?
#find purpose
#purpose not solution

Reduce
costs
Increase
reach &
consistency
Increase
levels of
[competitive]
technical
skills
[Smash silos
of hidden
expertise]
[Create
connections
between
experts]
[Transfer
critical
knowledge]
(90% core
competency training)
(90% external training)
It’s not what you do, but WHY you do it ….

It’s not what you do, but WHY you do it ….
“We need something….
 Effective
 Efficient
 Consistent
 Engaging
 Measurable

Playing with hierarchies and circles - Experiments of holacracy

Restructure? Reorg? FTE?
Budget?

Let’s ‘play’ with a circle
#think outside the boss
#no hierarchy
#experiment
#collaborate

The Learning Curve
Team (May 2011):
 Volunteers
 No hierarchical
reporting
 Min. contributions
required
 No monetary
rewards
Let’s ‘play’ with a circle

Impressive results
#unleash the energy
#1+1=3

All staff regardless of background or
location have access to our new
educational program.
Colleagues are encouraged to get involved in L&D by
sharing their knowledge with others,
which is turn also improves their own
skills.
This year alone I would hazard a guess that our internal education program
has saved Genea upwards of $50 000.
Education the most powerful tool we have at hand, now at a price we can all
afford.
Linda T., Laboratory Manager at Genea – December 2012

Learning Curve : focus on micro peer to peer
exchange of critical knowledge
Embedded continuous transfer of critical knowledge

Learning Curve circle: hyper-active co-creation,
agile and… low cost
$1,079
$957
$778 $774
FY11 FY12 FY13 FY14
28% savings on PD spent/FTE
11 12
28 30
13
18 8 14 14 24 16 11 6 14
146
225 232 233 230 246
131
146
130
158
155
296
92
01/07/2012 01/08/2012 01/09/2012 01/10/2012 01/11/2012 01/12/2012 01/01/2013 01/02/2013 01/03/2013 01/04/2013 01/05/2013 01/06/2013 01/07/2013 01/08/2013
FY13: 206 events - 2,420 participants
Learning opportunities Nb participants

02 Mar 2014: “We need …
[Congrats on the new job]

No restructure. No reorg.
No FTE. $10K

Join the
[serious]
fun!
Celebrate
what we
believe in:
Values Circles
Welcome our
newbies:
Genea
Buddies
Pass on your
knowledge:
Learning
Curve
Foster our
wellness:
Good for You
Circle
Encourage us
to do the right
things: Good
for All Circle
Cultivate the
fun and build
bonds: Social
Club Circle
Let’s play with more circles
#think outside HR
#seriousfun

Anatomy of a circle
#wirearchies
Encourage us
to do the right
things: Good
for All Circle

Anatomy of a circle
 Volunteers
 No hierarchical reporting
 No monetary rewards
 Core members
 From each business area
 Champions + ad-hoc contributors
 HR = Sponsor
 Rules of engagement

Why ‘circles’
may be
working for
you…

We gave a purpose
#deliver outcomes
#purposeful experiences > pay

What do we
expect?
Celebrateour
values:Values
Welcomeour
newbies:Genea
Buddy
12m|18m
Passonyour
knowledge:
LearningCurve
Fosterour
wellness:GFY
Committee
Encourageusto
dotheright
things:CSR
Committee
Cultivatethefun
andbuildbonds:
SocialClub
Committee
Available
spots/Committee
6-7* Unlimited Unlimited 6-7* 6-7* 8-10
Pick your
commitment  Anytime Anytime  
Attend committee
meetings    
Design the strategy   
Develop the plan 3m
| 6m | 18m    
Take ownership to
make activities
happen
     
Have [serious] fun,
learn a lot, meet
people
     

We let employees co-create
the change they wanted to see
#open source change
#employees know best
#smarter together

We let employees co-create
the change they wanted to see
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Corporate L&D (4)
Nursing L&D (3)
Labs L&D (3)
WHS L&D (2)
‘Underground’ or
‘under-the radar’
conception, design
and development
work
Regular learning
deliverables by:
‘abovetheline’‘belowtheline’

We offered them spaces for
innovation
#allow experiments
#spirit of a start-up

Our employees are smart, we
let them shine
#switch on the lights
#empowerment
#sculpt your career
#do something different
#be a leader

What’s in it
for you?
Celebrate
ourvalues:
Values
Welcome
our
newbies:
Genea
Buddy
Passon
your
knowledge:
Learning
Curve
Fosterour
wellness:
GFY
Committee
Encourage
ustodo
theright
things:
CSR
Committee
Cultivate
thefunand
build
bonds:
SocialClub
Committee
Do something different      
Integrity 
Excellence  
Accountability 
Innovation  
Passion  
Strategic thinking*   
Engage and inspire*  
Talent enhancement*  
Collaboration*    
Process improvement
Results
Building relationships
Adaptability
     
Have [serious] fun      

We let them be
#autonomy
#build intrapreneurship
#own it

We kept it informal
#coffee solves everything
#coffee opens conversations

We coached circles to
success
#leader as a connector
#all I know is I know nothing
#contextual leadership

We coached circles to
success
 Leadership
 Collaboration
 Purpose-driven with organisational goals in mind
 Results-orientation
 Autonomy levels
Sponsor
Coach
Drive
Direct
Intervene

We went with the flow
#everything always changes
#it’s OK

Circles life cycles
10Q3 10Q4 11Q1 11Q2 11Q3 11Q4 12Q1 12Q2 12Q3 12Q4 13Q1 13Q2 13Q3 13Q4 14Q1 14Q2 14Q3 14Q4
Forming
Storming
Norming
Performing
Creating
Social Club Good for You Learning Curve Good for All

Members life cycles
11Q2 11Q3 11Q4 12Q1 12Q2 12Q3 12Q4 13Q1 13Q2 13Q3 13Q4 14Q1 14Q2 14Q3 14Q4
Forming
Storming
Norming
Performing
Creating
Creating members
Creating member uneasy
with uncertainty (‘anti-
storm’)
Continuity
gap
Members come & go
continually
New ‘anti-norm’
member

Members contributions life cycles
Observers
Opportunists
Contributors
Creators
• +80%
• Seem inactive
• Read, click, transact
• May be ambassadors
• 10-20%
• Seem annoying but useful
• Provide feedback, ask questions, vote,
forward to others, ambassadors
• 3-10%
• Review, provide feedback, ask
questions, do as told
• Contribute as told
• 0-3%
• Establish, create, innovate
• Drive, plan, organise
• May become bored once in order
Source: The four levels of community engagement, Gartner 2008

We managed to find balance
#dual organisation
#elements of holacracy
John Kotter, Dual organizations

John Kotter, Dual organizations
We were rigorous
#looks messy
#but it’s not

We were rigorous
 “Job ads”
 Internal marketing campaign
 Selection criteria
 Selection process
 Discussion and alignment with
line manager
 Business comes first

We were grateful
#recognize & reward
#celebrate

We were grateful
 Knowledge Sharing Awards
 Participation in ‘circles’ discussed & recognised in performance reviews
 Celebrate achievements
 Celebrate people moves & news

Should you be ’playing’ with
circles?
#win win deal
#give it a try

Should you be ’playing’ with
circles?
Diversity
Visibility
Step-up
Learn & grow
Collaborate
Have fun
Get promoted!
Involve
Democratic
representation
Hit the target
Shared workload
Reduced costs and
FTE
Engaged workforce
Agile and flexible
Fast and iterative
Collaboration
Innovation
Co-creation
Cost savings
? Best Employer
WIIFM for employees WIIFM for HR WIIFM for business

Acknowledgements & sincere thanks to each co-creator of the Genea Circles
Alexandra Lederer
alexandra.lederer@gmail.com

Playing with hierarchies and circles - Experiments of holacracy

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Playing with hierarchies and circles - Experiments of holacracy