Hi Reader, It was a crisp November morning in one of Seville's most iconic locations exactly two weeks ago. Inside a historic bullring ā a place where tradition has reigned for centuries ā a different kind of revolution was brewing. One hundred people. Fifty companies. Fifteen countries. All gathered not to witness the spectacle of bulls and matadors, but to challenge something equally entrenched in our culture: traditional management. The irony of our location wasn't lost on us. An arena...
about 1 month agoĀ ā¢Ā 4 min read
Hi Reader, Self-management: itās a buzzword until itās not. When you pull the rug of hierarchy out from under your organization, things get real. Fast. Transforming to self-management isnāt a utopia either. It can be messy. It exposes weaknesses in your culture and strengths you didnāt know were there. It forces everyone to level up (and some middle managers to step down). But if you get it right, the payoff is huge: a team of equals that owns their work, drives results, and actually cares...
about 2 months agoĀ ā¢Ā 5 min read
Hi Reader, Ever noticed how too much of a good thing can become a challenge? That's exactly what we've been experiencing lately with self-management. Picture this: A group of passionate people, each pursuing their expertise with full autonomy. Sounds perfect, right? Well, we started noticing something familiar ā a pattern we've seen in countless other self-managing organizations. We had become like an out-of-tune jazz band. Great musicians playing exciting tunes, but each performing a...
2 months agoĀ ā¢Ā 5 min read
Hi Reader, One of my favorite voices in the field of self-managing organizations is Lisa Gill. I first met her many years ago in Barcelona, over a few beers, where we bonded over our shared fascination with self-management. Since then, I've closely followed her inspiring work, especially her deep thinking about what it takes to make self-managing organizations truly successful. For years now, Lisa, alongside Karin Tenelius, has emphasized a key principle: to successfully implement...
3 months agoĀ ā¢Ā 4 min read
Hi Reader, Imagine this: A 160-year-old pharmaceutical giant with 100,000 employees decides to throw out the traditional playbook. It's a story that's shaking up the corporate world and challenging everything we thought we knew about how big companies should operate. They're ditching middle managers, slashing 99% of their 1,362-page corporate handbook, and asking their workforce to... wait for it... self-manage. Yes, you read that right. Bayer, the company that gave us aspirin, is now giving...
3 months agoĀ ā¢Ā 3 min read
Hi Reader, Every so often, we uncover a truly pioneering workplace story that captivates and inspires. This month, I encountered another such gem. Let me give you a snapshot thatās sure to blow your mind. In the heart of Brazil, a family-owned waste management company with over 1,000 employeesāmostly essential workersāhas successfully transformed into a self-managing organization over the past decade, delivering outstanding business results. This realization hit home earlier this month during...
4 months agoĀ ā¢Ā 6 min read
Hi Reader, You know what we do by now. We research companies that defy conventional management wisdom. After visiting hundreds of self-managed organizations worldwide, one thing's clear: there's no one-size-fits-all approach. These trailblazers fall into three distinct camps: The accidental rebels: These are the mavericks who stumbled into self-management, fed up with traditional top-down bullshit. They didn't read a book or follow a guru. They just said "fuck it" and forged their own path....
4 months agoĀ ā¢Ā 3 min read
Hi Reader, In about a month, the ZeroDX awards will take place in Qingdao, China. This eventāinitiated by the Chinese manufacturer Haier, Gary Hamel & Michele Zaniniās MLab, and Thinkers50ās Business Ecosystem Allianceācelebrates the most forward-thinking companies around the globe. Not long ago, they threw down the gauntlet, asking us to nominate companies for these awards. We didnāt just take up the challengeāwe ran with it. Together with our community and our colleague Svetla, we dove into...
4 months agoĀ ā¢Ā 4 min read
Hi Reader, Working in a self-managed organization is fun, liberating, and extremely rewarding. Both our companies, Corporate Rebels and Krisos, are set up as self-managing teams. No bosses. No hierarchy. Instead, everyone takes initiative within their own roles, leading their areas of the business and involving others where necessary. Most people see why that's a great environment to work in. And if youāve been following this newsletter for some time, you know we love it. That being said,...
5 months agoĀ ā¢Ā 5 min read