Self-management motivates! This is evident from research by Effectory among a very large group of employees. Organizations with traditional top-down management receive a lower rating from their employees in terms of leadership. This is in contrast to organizations that work self-managing. Are self-managing teams and companies the future in our drive for success and efficiency? Or is there a hype that has yet to crystallize?

What is self-management, and does it work? 

Management, as we have approached it for centuries, is traditionally focused on tasks, rights, responsibilities and authorities. Hierarchical and not always focused on skill or specialism. In self-management, 'craft' is central. There is hardly any hierarchy, leadership arises spontaneously based on specialization and knowledge. Leadership in a self-managing organization can therefore also differ per project based on the required knowledge. Teams work together as peers (on an equal footing) and the team members each have their own specialty. Especially in the creative industry (agencies), you see self-management increasingly emerging. For example, agile project management teams (SCRUM teams) are often already highly self-managing. But, does it actually work? Unfortunately, practice in recent years has shown that we are not always ready for self-management. It's a shame, because we run the risk that a management model that is in principle very interesting will become a cause for ridicule rather than a reason for change. What's going wrong?

No clear demarcation

A team that works self-managing can only be successful if everyone is on the same page. There must be a defined and common goal. Only then will everyone be sufficiently motivated to make his or her desired contribution to the whole. To make self-management work, the tasks and responsibilities that previously could be 'shifted' to the manager must be distributed within the team. If this is not the case, the annoying chores will be left behind and employees will abuse the space offered for their own interests.

Not everyone is suitable

As with any management model, not everyone is a good fit. There are of course groups of employees who are not suitable for self-management. You shouldn't want to convert everyone. So analyze carefully in advance whether your organization is suitable for an increasing degree of self-management.

We want too fast

A manager or director within your company can make self-management his or her showpiece. Above all, it must be implemented seamlessly and quickly. However, that is not possible. You must take plenty of time to implement self-management, just like with other forms of change management.

New wine in old bottles

Many organizations find self-management interesting. However, they retain their traditional organizational model of hierarchy. So they want to change in the form of a pilot project, for example 1 department, but continue to work in the same way as before. At that point, self-management is doomed to failure.

Self-management does have potential

If it turns out that self-management is usually not successful, does it have potential? Of course! We wrote an article about the Brazilian in the past Ricardo Semler, who has been successfully applying this policy in his company for a long time. Various Dutch organizations, especially in healthcare, show that self-management can work well. As long as everyone participates and the interests are shared.

In recent years, healthcare organizations have been forced to eliminate various management layers due to budget cuts. This annoying fact has led to a high sense of responsibility among many healthcare workers. They realize that they will have to do it themselves and together in order to be successful and to give people the care they deserve.

A good example of such a company is Buurtzorg Nederland. Buurtzorg advocates more space, solution- and neighborhood-oriented work and a mandate for the expert and passionate professional to organize care themselves responsibly and efficiently. Born out of necessity, but now very successful. Without a manager, but with a (regional) coach. This way you optimally promote the independence of clients and employees. A number of striking results: lower absenteeism among employees, a decrease in turnover, a reduction in questions/complaints from citizens and a decrease in the required number of home care hours.

Is your organization ready to implement self-management? Why would you or wouldn't you think that is a good idea for your company? Let us know and join the discussion.