Abstract: Attempts to scale agile company-wide show that agile has a profound effect on management leadership. Are the fundamental legal concepts such as exclusive control of corporations by shareholders still appropriate? In general, the exclusive control of corporations by shareholders seems to create challenges for all companies not just those trying to use agile.
Should a totally agile company have a hierarchy, a matrix, a network, or something else? If the whole company is constantly focusing on the customer, what happens if the shareholders are expecting quick return on investment? Should the voices of customers and staff have equal voice with shareholders? How can efforts to expand agile company-wide deal with conflicts around values and structure, the traditional stockholder value focus versus an egalitarian and customer focus?
Sociocracy, developed originally in the Netherlands, offers theory and methodology to support agile expansion in addressing these issues, especially around questions of structure and decision making. It provides a theory of governance that helps develop new relationships between stakeholders in a coherent way, especially when combined with Beyond Budgeting, Open Space, and Agile. It supports each individual, the company, and the company’s relationship with the larger society. This workshop introduces fundamental concepts, including some methods that participants can use right away.
Learning Outcomes: - Understand the four principles of sociocracy
- Discuss how those principles can address current problems with implementing company-wide agility, particularly the conflict between shareholders and customer focus.
- Learn new immediately applicable meeting skills such as rounds, consent decision making, selection of persons by consent.
- Understand how sociocracy together with agile and other methods can support the use of company-wide agility.
