Creating Great Teams

Creating Great Teams

by Sandy Mamoli, David Mole
Released November 2015
Publisher(s): Pragmatic Bookshelf
ISBN: 9781680503340

Read it now on the O’Reilly learning platform with a 10-day free trial.

O’Reilly members get unlimited access to books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.

Start your free trial

Book description

People are happiest and most productive if they can choose what they work on and who they work with. Self-selecting teams give people that choice. Build well-designed and efficient teams to get the most out of your organization, with step-by-step instructions on how to set up teams quickly and efficiently. You'll create a process that works for you, whether you need to form teams from scratch, improve the design of existing teams, or are on the verge of a big team re-shuffle.

Discover how New Zealand's biggest e-commerce company completely restructured their business through Self-Selection. In the process, find out how to create high-performing groups by letting people self-organize into small, cross-functional teams. Step-by-step guides, easy-to-follow diagrams, practical examples, checklists, and tools will enable you to run a Self-Selection process within your organization.

If you're a manager who wants to structure your organization into small teams, you'll discover why Self-Selection is the fastest and safest way to do so. You'll prepare for and organize a Self-Selection event and make sure your Self-Selection participants and fellow managers are on board and ready. If you're a team member, you'll discover what it feels like to be part of a Self-Selection process and what the consequences are for your daily work. You'll learn how to influence your colleagues and bosses to be open to the idea of Self-Selection. You'll provide your manager with a plan for how to facilitate a Self-Selection event, and with evidence that the system works.

If you're feeling the pain and chaos of adding new people to your organization, or just want to ensure that your teams have the right people with the right skills, Self-Selection will help you create the effective teams you need.

Publisher resources

View/Submit Errata

Table of contents

  1. Creating Great Teams
    1. For the Best Reading Experience...
    2. Table of Contents
    3. Early praise for Creating Great Team s: How Self-Selection Lets People Excel
    4. Acknowledgments
    5. Foreword
    6. Introduction: Self-Selection and Why You Should Care
      1. What Is Self-Selection?
      2. Why Should You Care?
      3. We’ve Done It, and So Can You
      4. Who Are We?
      5. What Problem Did We Need to Solve?
    7. Chapter 1: The Art of Stable Team Design
      1. Today’s Work Demands Stable Teams
      2. The Need for Speed
      3. The Science Behind Team Design
      4. What Next?
    8. Chapter 2: Preparing for a Self-Selection Event
      1. Self-Selection at Scale
      2. Step 1: Conduct a Readiness Check
      3. Step 2: Run a Trial
      4. Step 3: Get Permission
      5. Step 4: Define the Teams to Select
      6. Step 5: Coordinate Logistics
      7. Step 6: Communicate Early and Often
      8. What Next?
    9. Chapter 3: Getting Ready for the Day
      1. Step 1: Define the Rules and Constraints
      2. Step 2: Create a Facilitation Plan
      3. Step 3: Prepare Frequently Asked Questions
      4. Step 4: Prepare Materials and Stationery
      5. What Next?
    10. Chapter 4: Running a Self-Selection Event
      1. Step 1: Set Up the Room
      2. Step 2: Welcome People as They Arrive
      3. Step 3: Introduce the Day
      4. Step 4: Let Product Owners Pitch
      5. Step 5: Explain the Rules
      6. Step 6: Get people started: One, Two, Three, G o!
      7. Step 7: Conduct a Checkpoint Review
      8. Step 8: Rinse and Repeat
      9. Step 9: Tackle the Outstanding Problems
      10. Step 10: Wrap Up
      11. What Next?
    11. Chapter 5: After Self-Selection: Now What?
      1. Making It Real
      2. Defining Squad Start Dates
      3. Kicking Off a New Squad
      4. Supporting Squads
      5. What Not To Do
      6. What Next?
    12. Chapter 6: Insights
      1. People Appreciate Self-Selection
      2. Relationships Are the Deciding Factor
      3. People Respond Well to This Level of Trust
      4. What Next?
    13. Chapter 7: Long-Term Effects of Self-Selection
      1. The Effect on Happiness
      2. The Effect on Squads
      3. The Effect on Managers
      4. The Effect on Productivity
      5. The Effect on the Company
      6. Now It’s Your Turn
      7. What Would You Do If You Weren’t Afraid?
    14. Bibliography
      1. You May Be Interested I n…

Product information

  • Title: Creating Great Teams
  • Author(s): Sandy Mamoli, David Mole
  • Release date: November 2015
  • Publisher(s): Pragmatic Bookshelf
  • ISBN: 9781680503340