Check out this video interview between Bas De Baar and Bioteams author Ken Thompson.
I took some broad notes from the video so you have some idea about its relevance to our conversations about VLOs and the future of law firms.
The main question and issue Ken found in leading teams was the command and control model (military) versus nature’s collective leadership model. In nature everybody is a leader.
Ken adds that there is a conceptual line in these teams:
On the left side the team is playing for collective success. On the right side it is playing to avoid individual blame. Ken states that bioteams (ants and bees) don’t cross that line. Everyone looks out for everyone else. Another characteristic is that anyone that has useful information shares it with the whole team. Ken learned from ants and bees, and his experience with teams, that short messages are better than a long message. Lots of short messages are better than one big long message that can be misunderstood. Emails was used as an example. In bioteams, the most important messages to share is if there is a threat and is there an opportunity?
Bas de Baar: How do people work toward same goal in bioteams?
Ken: Very important to have a shared belief systems in which all point in the same direction and passionate about something. Also appropriate behaviours are sharing useful information with other team members immediately.
As for leaders, each person is a leader in a different domain.
Bas De Baar: But then how does leadership get distributed to the right people?
Ken: through facilitated self-organization. What Ken calls the concept of “team karma” or you get out of life what you put into it. In networks, Ken says, people want to get stuff out, but not put anything in.
In a bioteam or distributed leadership team everyone has to assume responsibility for a role, whether to lead a project or follow.
This conversation sounds very much like what we observe in Trump’s show: The Apprentice.
I am convinced that SSFs can best succeed and compete if they can learn to wok in these types of project teams. That’s why I started OBA.
What do you think?
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