Monday, November 24, 2014

4CS Team Manifesto






4Cs is currently in the pre-launch phase.  Over the past few months, our purpose has become clearer and has evolved.  This document is created as the next stage of growth from our original Coordination Services Proposal.  The intention of this document is to communicate who we are and what we do.

 
 

Who We Are

Our Purpose

[The impact we’re trying to make in the world.]

Our key purpose is to help people develop and grow through effective communication, coordination, care, and culture.


We do this with a very unique approach that we like to call

4C Services (‘Foresee’) a.k.a. 4Cs: Communication, Coordination, Care, and Culture.

 
Our Mission

[Our core strategy to fulfill our purpose.]

We facilitate communication between our teams while encouraging respect and connection.  We thrive on coordinating our people, projects, and processes to elevate our team’s goals through organization and collaboration.  In everything we do, we seek to spread an inspirational culture of enabling virtuous life cycles.  We encourage growth through love and personal care.  We seek to continually raise the bar while serving with a refreshing dose of humility.

 
          A Word about Virtuous Life Cycles

A virtuous life cycle describes a series of stages in the life of a person, product, or process that are continuously nurtured to enhance the value of each step along the way, thus increasing inspiration throughout, while evolving it to create higher value for all constituents.  We want people to grow and be happy.  A Virtuous Life Cycle is a means to that end.  By making a life cycle virtuous, each action is elevated to a higher purpose.  Creativity is empowered through alignment with a much greater perspective.  Use of time is freed up to step back and look at the big picture, expand accomplishments, and develop on higher levels.  We enable virtuous life cycles.  We uncover them, improve their well-being, and make them vibrant.

 

Our Vision

[Our view of what we want to achieve and how will it look when our purpose is largely realized.]

Our constituents feel supported and inspired to grow.  Our virtuous life cycles are very well organized, nurtured, and each produces more energy than it takes to create and utilize.  We are empowered to share our services with more of the world, therefore making a bigger impact on the well-being of our loved ones, communities, and planet.

Our work empowers synergy amongst our team members, our clients, our client’s customers, our stakeholders, and our community.  Our approach is to not only improve our employee’s day-to-day activities, but to also empower every level of all that we do.

 
Our Mantra

[Our guiding instrument of thought – what we embody and inspire in others.]

Clarity, Focus, Confidence, Courage, Health, Love, Peace.

By bringing clarity to our team members, we clear the path for them to be able to see their goals and an effective approach.  This leads directly to them being able to have focus in what they are doing because they have alignment and clarity on our global purpose.  Having clarity and focus on their pursuits and knowing they are aligned with our purpose and mission, will boost everyone’s confidence in what they are doing as well as empower their strength to move forward with courage.  Achieving aligned goals and having success through virtuous life cycles will provide an increase in energy level and happiness which as a proven positive impact on our team’s health. Having a happy and healthy team where love is a driving force will enable our company and everyone connected to it (clients, community, the world we are touching) to achieve a peaceful state.
Our Tenets:

[Our fundamental truths, values, and foundation.]

Participate Radically.  Active participation is a must.   There are no spectators.  All participants must seek and pursue the knowledge and understanding of how to participate in a virtuous life cycle.  We believe that transformative change can occur only through deep personal participation.  We achieve being through doing.  “Be the change that you want to see.”  

Communal Effort.  Our community values creative cooperation and collaboration.  We strive to produce, promote, and protect social networks and methods of communication that support such interaction.

Be Genuine.  The path of growth itself is something to celebrate.  We believe the journey of improving is way more important than being the best.  Rather than over-exaggerating that something is accomplished while it is still in progress, we are honest with where we are at.  Being genuine at all times is core to what we do.  We wouldn’t have it any other way.

Serve with White Gloves.  Make the experience of others extremely pleasant by putting yourself in their shoes and making their participation very simple.  We feel that being in service is something to be proud of.  Helping people understand and come to quick answers is what we want to do.  We do not serve as a substitute for others’ participation – we are a partner.  We help others to understand the value of what we do and how it benefits them.  We serve as your partner.

See Opportunities.  As you run into challenges or obstacles, demonstrate your ability to overcome them by asking the right questions, researching solutions, and helping others to see the “why” rather than jumping to the “how” (action).  Rather than plowing ahead and following assumptions, step back and ask yourself beautiful questions that may shift the way we think about something and serve as a catalyst to bring about positive change.  Change problems into opportunities for growth.

Adapt to Change.  The only constant in life is change.  We are comfortable in a state of continuous growth and change.  We are never overly attached to things being a certain way.  We are able to quickly pivot with a good attitude, see the value in change, and exhibit patience. Be the example of improvement.  “Resistance to Change = Pain”

Elevate and Refine.  Go beyond ‘checking things off the list’ and think about why we are doing them to elevate their purpose.  With anything that comes across your plate, look for options to expand achievement and improve it.  Research best practices and refine accordingly.  Improve everything you touch and make sure integrity is included in every aspect of what you do. Being proactive is one of our main characteristics!

Set the Bar.  Be the example of excellence in every action that you take.  Be humble with your actions and positively encourage growth in everyone.  See the value in each person’s personality, role, and opinion and seek to create balance for the team by integrating them all.


What We Do

Planning

Bring awareness to the purpose of what our teams are doing by asking “why” questions that help people to understand and come to quick answers.

Seek and help to understand the “why” and look for the most virtuous solution to “how”.

Help the alignment of plans to our best practices and build in reuse.

Make sure the “why” is clearly communicated and the “how” is aligned with the “why”.

Facilitate communication of assignments in SMARTER format in system.

Coordinate daily check in and check out processes so that teams have clear prioritization and communication.

Collaborate with managers to create a 2 week of backlog for each individual that they are inspired to get to and have clear prioritization while keeping the alignment with our strategic processes.

Review updates on WPAs and suggests changes to meet management goals.

Execution


Evaluate execution is aligned with the planned “why”.  Make sure it’s accurately executed.

Update system and action plans to show progress and accurate estimations (when required/suggested by managers or leads).

Help managers identify misalignment.

Work closely with leaders to ensure implementation of their decisions are handled smoothly and followed through.

Remove friction points and ensure smooth handoffs between processes and areas.

Act as living example of humility, respect, and collaboration and encourage this behavior within our teams.

Bring awareness to the teams about processes and projects.

Facilitate meetings that are well prepared and schedule them to advance projects with appropriate reviews.

Serve as strong support to management to keep them in their genius zones.

Reflection and Improvement


Identify and suggest improvements to templates and processes so that each produces more energy than it consumes including identification of opportunities for standardization and reuse.


Implementation of Naming and Numbering Convention


Organization of documents so that the information the team needs to find is easy to find quickly.


Provide useful reports


Work with managers to identify which reports will be useful to them, work with teams to coordinate updates on a regular basis, and review with managers to evaluate opportunities for improvement based on reports.
 
Definitions

[This is how we define our use of these key terms.]

A Beautiful Question – An ambitious yet actionable question that can begin to shift the way we perceive or think about something -- and that might serve as a catalyst to bring about change.


Caring – Providing mindful attention that is rooted in interest and love with shared responsibility.


Communication – The activity of conveying information through the exchange of ideas, feelings, intentions, attitudes, expectations, perceptions, or commands.


Coordination – The act of skillfully organizing and connecting people, projects, and processes together to elevate the results of a common goal.


Constituents – A component of our community including our associates, our vendors, our clients, our clients’ customers, our stakeholders, our families, our neighbors, and our friends.


Culture – This term comes from a Latin meaning of “cultivation of the soul”.  It refers to the betterment or refinement of individuals, especially through education.


Foresee – A high level of awareness and ability to not only to visualize future possibilities, but also what steps can help bring them into reality.

Stories/Quotes About Us

Charly, ESP Program Manager: “Estefania is helping me to forget about those everyday tasks that are not the core of my role and I shouldn’t be focussed on, that frees time to work on my genius area.  Estefania has also improved the performance of the teams by collaborating with tasks like translation in the ESP Console for the Tracfone Site and creation of internal process forms in the ESP Console allowing us to free other resources that can focus on more technical tasks."
 
Damian, IT Manager: “A few days before I went on vacations, I had my doubts on whether to postpone them or not, since we had one of the company´s most important projects coming up. I was worried that the fact that I was out of the office, with almost no connectivity, could be a big problem. However, thanks to Sol Altamirano (and taking into account her performance during her first days as a Coordinator), these doubts vanished. She kept me informed about all the important and urgent items that needed my attention or participation, in a way that it only took a few minutes of my time to take care of them.
 
The help provided by the Coordinators team is undeniable, because they assist managers allowing them to focus on essential responsibilities, and they reduce the time we usually spend on administrative tasks (such as checking e-mails and AtTask, doing projects follow-up, etc.). I really appreciate the way they contribute on a daily basis.”
Roy, Director of Client Solutions:  “I cannot express enough how much I appreciate the fact we have talented coordinators to keep the meetings flowing, take notes (that are invaluable a day or two later), and most importantly, follow up on the action items including scheduling and rescheduling meetings to accommodate everyone's schedule. It would be a nightmare to do these things myself likely resulting in things getting dropped or forgotten.
 
Fede’s expertise in AtTask stands out.  He can take any of our processes and quickly add them as reusable templates for the entire company and his willingness to understand quickly what the request is and then to make a very fast iteration with a new version. Last but certainly not least - all coordinators keep our meeting series going by consistently resolving conflicts across the attendee list nightmare.”
 
Mariana M., Manager of Product Development: “Estefania has been taking a lot of things from my plate. It’s great to have such confidence in someone, knowing that everything you request will get done; you just forget and can focus on the things where you can add more value.
 
She has also been of great support for my team; she helps them with administrative stuff they don’t like and brings such positive spirit and energy, that you can’t help smile at least once per day when she’s around.”
 
“Nicole is like a bridge between ARG and USA; no matter the time zone, she’s always there to help coordinate the communication between the countries.“
 
Jesse Crowe, CEO:  “Through Andrea’s service and support, she allows him to stay in an abundance mindset, provides him confidence in follow through, and creates inspiration to elevate feedback and focus. She has positivity in all that she does and her follow through is good as well as her engagement inspiring”.
 
Melinda Chelliah, CFO:  “Kelsey has been a godsend!   The productivity and response rate for requests and projects has risen dramatically since she has arrived.   Two examples of her work in action are the lease negotiations for the US office and the Talent Development & JAD project facilitation.
 
Kelsey has taken care of facilitating the lease renewal including meeting with our lease agent to identify and visit potential new properties, analyze current offerings, and to ensure timely negotiations between all parties. This has allowed me to focus on the strategic aspect of the negotiations and on our VMBC business operations.
 
In addition, Kelsey has become very proficient with our Strategic Initiatives and is a key team member in drafting 2 high profile projects with Ale and Clara.  Her understanding of the keystone process and templates has proved invaluable in keeping the projects moving through the process.  In addition, her research into the Virtuous Lifecycle and Conscious Capitalism have transformed our team’s implementation of concept into daily action and these 2 projects.”
 


Thursday, October 30, 2014

Defining A Company's Culture


From Conscious Capitalism

Step 1 – Our Higher Purpose


 

A purpose is a simple definitive statement that refers to the difference we’re trying to make in the world.   It is the amniotic fluid that nourishes the life force of the organization.  It gives great energy and relevance to a company and its brand.  Great purposes are transcendent, energizing, and inspiring for all the interdependent stakeholders. 

 

Everyone craves meaning and purpose in life, but few people find such fulfillment at work.  To tap this deep wellspring of human motivation, companies need to shift their emphasis from profit maximization to purpose maximization.  People are most fulfilled and happiest when their work is aligned with their own inner passions. 

 

When an organization communicates its purpose clearly and consistently, the organization naturally attracts people who align with its purpose.      

 

Examples:

·       Disney:  To use our imaginations to bring happiness to millions.

·       Johnson & Johnson: To alleviate pain and suffering.

·       BMW:  To enable people to experience the joy of driving.

·       Container Store:  Help people get organized so they can be happier.

·       REI:  To reconnect people with nature.

·       Southwest Airlines:  To give people the freedom to fly.

·       Charles Schwab:  A relentless ally for the individual investor. 

·       American Red Cross:  Enabling Americans to perform extraordinary acts in the face of emergencies.

·       Ford:  Opening the highways to all mankind.

 

Action Steps:

·       Define our purpose statement this week and get executives to agree on one.

 

Step 2 – Our Mission

A mission statement is the core strategy that must be undertaken to fulfill that purpose.

Step 3 – Our Vision

A vision statement is a vivid, imaginative conception or view of how the world will look once your purpose is largely realized.
 
·       Example:
o   Whole Foods - Whole Foods Market's vision of a sustainable future means our children and grandchildren will be living in a world that values human creativity, diversity, and individual choice. Businesses will harness human and material resources without devaluing the integrity of the individual or the planet's ecosystems. Companies, governments, and institutions will be held accountable for their actions. People will better understand that all actions have repercussions and that planning and foresight coupled with hard work and flexibility can overcome almost any problem encountered. It will be a world that values education and a free exchange of ideas by an informed citizenry; where people are encouraged to discover, nurture, and share their life's passions.

 

Core Values

 

·       Examples:

 
o   Zappos:
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
8.     Do More With Less
 
 
10.  Be Humble
 
 
1.     We Sell the Highest Quality Natural and Organic Products Available
 
2.     We Satisfy, Delight and Nourish Our Customers
 
3.     We Support Team Member Happiness and Excellence
 
4.     We Create Wealth Through Profits and Growth
 
5.     We Serve and Support Our Local and Global Communities
 
6.     We Practice and Advance Environmental Stewardship
 
7.     We Create Ongoing Win-Win Partnerships with Our Suppliers
 
8.     We Promote the Health of Our Stakeholders Through Healthy Eating Education
 
 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

Monday, October 6, 2014

Action Plan Review


Coordinators help to prepare before Review Meetings so that the time spent in the review high quality.  This is done by first reviewing the quality of the action plan.  After the action plan is agreed to and approved, the Coordinators help to ensure actions are progressing according to plan by double checking the deliverables are what were agreed upon.  If a deliverable is lacking per the plan, they work with the responsible parties to help guide it to a higher quality. 

 

High Level Plan Review by Coordination Team

·        Review the document with a fine-toothed comb on own, prepare a list of questions for the project leader/team

o   Go through each item on the Action Plan and confirm if it is intuitive and understandable by someone who has not been exposed by the project

o   Review the HLP, rate it, and provide suggestions for improvement.  Provide a service by which you improve the plan.

·        Review criteria – with fresh eyes, validate every single cell on the plan:

o   Is the plan clear and organized?

o   Are action items clearly stated and easy to understand?

o   Does each action have a corresponding deliverable?

o   Sequencing:

§  Are the steps relevant to each other

o   Naming:

§  Does each step say what the attachment/responsible party is actually doing, not what not doing

§  Does each tab’s name make sense?

§  Does each column header make sense?

§  How is the categorization/hierarchy?  Could it be improved to be more intuitive?

o   Updated dates – make sure all dates are realistic and in the future.  If in the past, confirm what is the updated expected completion date?

o   Confirm that predecessors are listed and are accurate (each row needs a reference number first)

o   Are you able to comprehend what they are asking for?  If not, have them slow down and rewrite it.

o   Completed deliverables are linked, have appropriate headers (draft, project name), etc.

o   Are priorities clear?

.

 

Friday, September 19, 2014

Holacracy Workshop Notes

Background

  These notes are an outline of the content that was covered at a Taster workshop in San Fran given by Margaret Ryan of yWonderWorks.com to share with others and for reference.


Overview – Holacracy Basics and Key Concepts


·         PurposeOur purpose as a company must be clearly defined as a first step.  It guides us to what we prioritize.  Holacracy is all based on and centered around purpose – the company’s and that of individual roles. (Example purpose:  Create together the tools that improve quality of life.)  One clear, simple sentence is ideal.

·         The Goal of HolacracyAnything, sensed by anyone, anywhere in the company, is rapidly and reliably processed into meaningful change (if relevant to the purpose).

·         Holacracy is:

o   One set of rules for everyone.

o   Operating on a set of practices, not theories.

o   A systematic set of meetings to sync members and create accountabilities.

o   Integration of perspectives and distribution of autocratic authority through governance meetings.  (Ex:  John is in charge of newsletters and can make all decisions about them, but must integrate the opinions of Susan and Sarah as contributors)

o   A bias toward action in iterations (not perfection).  Instead of planning, process tension, determine next action, do, repeat.  Not using scenarios.

·         Tension

o   Definition: The felt-sense of a specific gap between the current reality and a sensed potential.

o   Tensions are not negative, but are a gap between what is and what could be.

o   There is great power in processing tensions and processing them is a focus of Holacracy.  Many times they can be relieved by simple expression and asking, “is there something needed to resolve that tension?”  Note the answer and confirm resolved.

o   Tensions are processed in organized settings including tactical meetings and governance meetings.

o   Any tension is trumped by policy and agreements.  Some initial agreements should be required to join/participate.  Can include in employee handbook. 

§  Great examples of agreements to include are the purpose statement and having an open mind.

·         Dynamic Steering

o   Main focus is to keep things iterating forward.  Rather than holding off for a grand plan, take the next step.

o   Deliver in fast, small increments and get feedback.

o   Delay decisions to the last responsible moment – address each role holder’s opinion.

o   Any issue can be revisited at any time.

o   Based on agile methodology.  Check reality, true up, deal with daily.


 

Groundwork


·         Every tension that we face is one of two things:

o   A problem to solve

§  Not going, have an end point, and can be solved.

o   A polarity to leverage

§  Ongoing, no end point, not solvable, always contain mutually inclusive opposites. Examples:  Cost and Quality, Individual and Team, Compete and Collaborate, etc.

o   As an organization, our goal is to leverage all talents of the individual and collective.

§  We need a balance of all of these energies – our own fit.  We don’t want to only encourage one extreme or the other.

§  Honor polarities and have them play well in the sandbox.

§  Holacracy reduces fear by integrating perspectives and incorporating many practices that support the team.

§  Holacracy shines a light on both extremes and creates balance by integrating both.



Picture:  Leveraging Polarities.  This describes the flow when extremes are in balance.  If one is over emphasized, the energy can plunge down into fear.

“I believe the central leadership attribute is the ability to manage polarity.” –Peter Koestenbaum

·         Clear roles and accountabilities are a key component of Holacracy. 

o   All role holders consciously prioritize what needs to be done.

o   People self-police.  In Holacracy, we trust them to do so. 

o   The system is intricate in design (see details in “Structure/Roles” section below).  There is no single point of failure.

Structure/Roles




·         Each role has these items defined:

o   Purpose (one sentence)

o   Accountabilities –

§  What you are expected to take care of

§  All must end in “ing”

o   Domain (optional) - This is only used if someone has total ownership over something so much so that no one else can touch it.  (Example:  Website changes are under the domain of a website manager.)

·         General Company Circle (GCC)

o   The GCC is composed of those that currently manage our company – executives.

·         Sub-Circles

o   Each functional area or product has its own sub-circle.

o   Circles pull what they need rather than assignments being push based.

·         Governance – To dynamically steer, governance must be: distributed, evolutionary, focused on the present, grounded in the organizations purpose.

o   Sets up roles and accountabilities (does not associate to particular people)

·         Lead Link – Represents the team in the GCC.

o   There is one Lead Link per circle.  This person is a member of the GCC (management).

o   Allocates the circle’s resources

o   Assigns people to the roles that are defined by Governance.  Monitors the fit for the role, provides feedback to enhance the fit, and removes partners from roles.

o   Ensures the circle delivers on its purpose.  Assesses and defines priorities and strategies for the circle.

o   Defines and assigns metrics for the circle.

o   Cannot add accountabilities (done by governance)

o   There is a lead link for each sub-circle and one for the GCC.  The GCC Lead Link assigns the sub-circle lead links.

·         Rep Link – Represents the team in the GCC (avoids misrepresentation due to being elected in).

o   There is one Rep Link per circle.  This person is voted in by members of the circle for periods of 3, 6, 9, or 12 months.

o   Speaks up to GCC for unresolved tensions.  Helps to process. 

·         Facilitator

o   There is one Facilitator per circle.  This person is voted in for periods of 3, 6, 9, or 12 months.

o   Ensures the meeting follows the process. 

o   Stops cross-talk and discussions.

o   Guides the time during meetings.

o   This person can also have another role but must be neutral to the topics being discussed.

o   Helps to make sure that the person with authority is involved in the discussion/decision.  Projects are added to the correct person with accountability.

o   Asks the secretary to look at records to identify who is responsible when not known.

o   If no one is responsible, suggests to take the item to governance.

o   Drives people toward the next step with the right people to decide.

o   Guides the tension holder to decide the resolution.

·         Secretary

o   There is one Secretary per circle.  This person is voted in for periods of 3, 6, 9, or 12 months.

o   Has access to the database and provides answers when asked during meetings.

o   Takes notes of all action items, votes, etc. during meetings.  Inputs them into system. Distributes them to the team.

·         Misc. Notes:

o   Action items are typically assigned to the person that brought up the tension.  (Ex: Need to schedule a meeting?  They schedule it.)

o   Action items are entered into the project list they are associated with in AtTask. 

o   Each person is responsible for following up on their own action items. Self police.

o   Elections can be requested at any governance meeting.

o   It is key for the CEO to understand what distributed authority is and to give others authority for their accountabilities.

o   CEO can move into roles that are needed to energize the company and they enjoy doing such as speaking, sourcing acquisitions, etc.  They focus on their role.

 

Meetings


·         Meetings are the method by which all sensory inputs are collected.  By running them in an organized manner, each voice can be heard. 

·         Meetings centered around making the team aware of tensions and addressing the next step toward resolving the tension. 

·         A neutral facilitator is key to making this work.  This role will require training. 

·         Meetings are not mandatory but everyone is encouraged to show up.

·         When things get heated, take a “Process Time Out”.  Someone can leave if they feel heated and may not add value.

·         Each circle has their own tactical and governance meetings.  Some circles can have them less often than others.  The GCC typically has tactical meetings once per week and governance meetings once per month.

 

Tactical Meetings (for Operations)


·         Tactical meetings are typically held weekly.  There is one for the GCC and another per circle.

·         Tactical Meetings Process

o   Check in Round (Get Present)

§  Sacred space

§  Each person notices where their attention is and lets it go

§  No cross talk

o   Administrative Concerns (Clarify Timing)

§  Time allowed for meeting, breaks (if applicable)

o   Checklist Review (Transparency)

§  Facilitator reads checklist of recurring actions by role. 

§  Participants respond “check” or “no check”.  There is no discussion here.

§  First item is “Weekly review done” or “systems in place” (Each person confirms they are caught up on all information including checking emails and team reports)

§  Any other critical items that should be confirmed prior to starting (and can alter in frequency of weekly such as email blast sent).

o   Metrics Review (Visibility – where we are now)

§  Each role assigned a metric states their one #

§  Is future focused, not accounting history

§  Reports are written and linked for viewing but not reviewed as a group in detail

o   Project Updates (Communication)

§  Facilitator reads each project on the circle’s project board and asks “any updates”

§  Project owners respond “no updates” or progress since last meeting.  No general status reports, just updates. 

§  Facilitator asks each member if they have any projects to add at this time.  Secretary notes the projects.

§  Each should be worded as a past tense, completed project (such as “New team member hired”)

o   Agenda Building (Placeholders)

§  Go around in a circle and each member states any tensions that they have – in 2-3 word phrases.  These phrases are just place holders to discuss in the future and just need to be recognizable by the person that wants to bring them up.  If none, just say “none”.

§  Facilitator notes the tensions as agenda items to discuss.

§  No discussion happens yet.

o   Triage Issues (Process Tensions)

§  To process each tension:

·         Facilitator reads one tension from the list and asks the tension holder “what do you need to resolve your tension?”

o   Resolutions of tensions (examples):

§  Do something

·         Share something that was not listed on the agenda

·         Have an open discussion (if more than a few minutes, ask to continue in separate meeting)

·         Discuss in a smaller meeting with required parties

·         Capture next action step

·         Capture project

·         Share appreciation or feedback

·         Have a reaction round to something they want to share

§  Work differently

·         Governance meeting (if this is a pattern, bring it to a governance meeting)

§  Change course

·         Strategy meeting

§  Change context

·         Rep link to broader circle

·         Agenda item owner engages others as-needed.

·         Secretary captures any next-actions or projects requested and accepted

·         Facilitator asks tension holder, “Did you get what you need?”

§  The facilitator must make sure all agenda items are processed in the allotted time.  Allow time on each accordingly. 

§  Facilitator is seeking to guide the tension holder to identify the next action, not resolve the tension for all time.  Rapidly and reliably process all tensions to clarify next action and movement forward.

o   Closing Round (Harvest Learning)

§  Each person may share a closing reflection about the meeting.  No discussion.

Governance Meetings


·         Governance meetings are typically held monthly.  There is one for the GCC and another per circle.

·         Governance Meetings Process

o   Check in Round (Get Present)

§  Sacred space

§  Each person notices where their attention is and lets it go

§  No cross talk

o   Administrative Concerns (Clarify Timing)

§  Time allowed for meeting, breaks (if applicable)

o   Agenda Building (Placeholders)

§  Go around in a circle and each member states any tensions that they have – in 2-3 word phrases and rates their topic (3-1).  These phrases are just place holders to discuss in the future and just need to be recognizable by the person that wants to bring them up.  If none, just say “none”.  Ranking:  3 – greatest priority for you to complete, 2 – medium, 1 – low priority.

§  Facilitator notes the tensions as agenda items to discuss.

§  No discussion happens yet.

o   Integrative Decision Making Process:

§  Present Proposal

·         Proposer speaks – describes tension and states proposal to resolve it.

·         No discussion.  Proposer can request discussion to help craft a starting proposal, but not build consensus or integrate concerns.

·         Stated as “ING” (ex: Accessing)

·         If only a problem is stated, facilitator asks, “Do you have a starting proposal?”

§  Clarifying Questions

·         Anyone can ask a clarifying question (not give reaction, only ask question)

·         Proposer answers or states “not specified” (in the proposal)

·         No discussions/reactions/cross talk

§  Reaction Round

·         Everyone except for the proposer states their reaction, one at a time (go around the circle) or states “no reaction”

·         If someone asks a new question, it’s not answered

·         No discussions/reactions/cross talk

§  Amend and Clarify

·         Proposer can optionally clarify the intent of the proposal, further amend based on reaction, or leave as-is.

·         No discussions/reactions/cross talk

§  Objection Round

·         The facilitator asks each person in turn, “Do you see any reasons why adopting this proposal would cause harm or move us backwards”

·         Each person states “objection” or “no objection”

·         If there is an objection, it is tested and captured without discussion or cross talk. 

·         Note, most objections are not valid.  The facilitator will test it out (see below).  This is the hardest step to learn for a facilitator. 

·         An objection is valid if:

o   The proposal would degrade the Circle’s capacity

§  Is there a reason this causes harm or moves us backward?  How?  (valid)

§  …Or is it a better idea or something else we should consider as well? (if so, this is a tension, not objection – and therefore should be brought up in agenda as separate item)

o   The proposal specifically creates the Objection

§  Would that issue be created by adopting this proposal?  How?  (valid)

§  … Or is it already an issue, even if we don’t adopt this proposal? (if so, this is a tension, not objection – and therefore should be brought up in agenda as separate item)

o   The objection is either based on presently-known data or is necessarily predictive because we can’t adapt later

§  Is that based on presently known data?  (valid)

§  … Or are you anticipating what might happen (see below)

·         If anticipated, is there a reason we can’t adapt once we get more data?  (valid)

·         … Or is it safe enough to try, knowing we can revisit it at any time (not valid)

o   The objection would be a valid tension for your role to process

§  Does it limit one of your roles?  Which one? 

·         Share a concrete example of when this got in the way of you energizing one of your roles. (valid)

§  …Or are you trying to help another role in the circle (not valid)

o   The proposal breaks the rules of the Holacracy Constitution

§  Example:  NVGO – Not Valid Governance Output  -

·         Accountabilities must be ongoing activities that start with an –ing verb.  Not action steps or projects (those are handled in tactical meetings). 

·         Additional question to help objector realize the validity of their objection – “knowing this proposal is not allocating any resources, assigning roles, prioritizing work, and/or determining organizational talent, is it safe enough to try, knowing you can revisit it at any time?

·         Valid Objection Categories:

o   Causes harm

o   Moves us backwards

o   Degrades clarity

o   NVGO

o   Outside Circle’s authority

§  Integration 

o   Closing Round (Harvest Learning)

§  Each person may share a closing reflection about the meeting.  No discussion.

 

Strategy Meetings


·         Rare – used when a strategy is needed to be determined

 

Special Topic Meetings


·         Meetings that are one-off for a specific topic

·         Must know who has the accountability for the topic first and make sure they are there

·         Before start, must be clear who says when the meeting is over/done

 

Next Steps/Recommendations


·         Half day/Full day workshop on-site for Executives (need to confirm alignment/buy in before move forward.  Need them to be very aware of what this is we are getting into).

o   After that draft action plan that includes implementation and team training

·         Dani

o   Review with Jesse – get feedback

§  Sample Accountabilities doc https://glassfrog.holacracy.org/people/52

o   Test out Glass Frog Meeting system https://glassfrog.holacracy.org/organizations/621

o   Review against Tuesday/Thursday Meetings draft

 

Resources


·         Website http://holacracy.org/

·         Holacracy Resources

o   http://wonderworksconsulting.com/holacracy-resources (This is the site of the coach that we learned from.  She also helped to facilitate Zappos into becoming a Holacracy.  There is no book on this, is a blend of online info and coaching.)


·         Great introductory article on Holacracy https://medium.com/undercurrents-greatest-hits/what-is-holacracy-f50cca674f0c

·         Recommended Reading:  Getting Things Done by David Allen

·         Glass Frog – Meeting system, searchable database