Removing horizontal silos between different parts of the organisation is getting pretty common. We see ops and test integrated in development teams, shifting all the work needed for a product to one team. Disciplines in the team are shared and taught to each other and greater knowledge of the product and the process is obtained. The customers are benefitting from these results and are receiving better quality products.
But there are still hindrances when it comes to organising all this. We are still keeping old structures of hierarchy in organisations and push operational tasks to the teams. Impediments are solved through escalation processes and there are still change advisory boards and other boards that try to direct the operation. We call this vertical silos.
To get rid of vertical silos we need to do something. We need to scale. One way is to scale with the use of frameworks like SAFe, Nexus or LeSS. The other way is to de-scale. Let's have a look at the latter one.
First step: leading from behind
De-scaling is a multistep operation. The first step is changing how we lead the organisation. We should lead as wolfs do: Lead the pack from behind, not from the front. Teach and show, don't impose. This means that leaders let teams do their work, ask them if they can help them achieve their goals. Leaders must start propagate their visions and goals, and explain why those goals are important.
They should not do any operational work, or influence the work being done. They are here to support the teams in improving their performance. Leaders need a bit of know how of the work, but not too much. They need to be experts in leading.
Second step: reduce layers
When the leaders are thinned out, the next step can be taken. We start to remove management layers in the organisation, these layers are making your organisation slow to respond to the market. Each layer is a processing step in the vertical organisation. Information is consumed, processed and given to the next layer. We see that all these layers don't add any more information on problems and only make communication more complex. Thus resulting in a slow performance.
Take a critical view on the management layers that are in place, think outside the box, have a look around to find answers to how to reduce layers. As a rule of thumb, try to have a maximum of three layers from management to teams and less if possible.
Third step: autonomy
In order to make teams perform better, they need autonomy. In a complex IT environment the best engineers thrive if they are given enough autonomy. This is a two way street, autonomy and responsibility. Whilst they get autonomy they are becoming more and more responsible. They need the right people in the team, they need to do the right things and they need to raise impediments when problems occour.
Fourth step: small startups
With great vision from the top, middle management reduced and teams than can find the way themselves because they have the autonomy to do so you are ready for the third step, creating small organisations within the bigger whole.
Then it is possible to look at teams as small startups, little companies within the company that are trying to achieve something. Those small startup should be fairly self sufficient, they will ask support from the organisation when they need it, not the other way around.
De-scaling in short:
- Start showing vision, mission and goals
- Remove surplus of management, reduce layers
- Reorganise autonomy and responsibility
- Make teams independent as small lean startups
