Ideas on How to Start Global Management Warming in #stoos

Our call for help in preparation for the #Stoos Gathering has spurred much discussion throughout the web (see also here and here). Today feedback from

• Andreas Schliep on role models
• Don Reinertsen on not whining and why he gave up on his slide rule
• Roman Pichler on Scrum Start-Ups
• Tom Mellor on the role of Business Schools

Andreas Schliep (@andreasschliep) wrote simply:

“Managers need positive role models, role models who have taken a different, new way, and were successful with that approach.”

Don Reinertsen (@DReinertsen) wrote (modestly):

“I am not sure that I can really contribute a lot to the event other than to encourage you push forward on the hard issues. Having been on both the sending and receiving side of “why can’t management change,” I’d offer two thoughts:

1. It is convenient for us all to externalize the obstacles that are holding back change. I have found it easiest to both obtain and to give support when the party requesting support has already done everything in their own control first. Otherwise, it just seems like whining.
2. I think it might be useful to examine the situations where management has changed quickly and decisively and what conditions were present when this happened. There are plenty of fast changes occurring, if we choose to observe them. When people tell me that ALL new technologies meet resistance to change, I tell them how quickly I exchanged my beloved slide rule for a calculator, and why.”

And BTW he’s right, I needed no convincing to give up a slide rule (or even an adding machine) for an HP-25!

Roman Pichler (@romanpichler) wrote:

“I believe that organizing an agile development effort as a start-up and growing a new agile organization around it offers the best chance of establishing the new way of working.” 

See his thoughts on the Scrum Start-Up on his blog.

Tom Mellor (former Chairman of the Scrum Alliance) wrote on Linked in:

I hope you, Steve and the others explore ideas about how to transform the management education provided by colleges and universities. It seems to me that at the heart of current traditional management thought is a strongly embedded educational curriculum at the undergraduate and graduate levels that will continue to emphasize the traditional philosophies for a long time. MBA programs are especially aggregious about this and their cohort executive programs often promote group think about it.

When I am asked why more universities and colleges do not explore and promote modern, knowledge worker-based mangement philosophies and tenets, I simpy reply “Why should they? They are dependent upon sustaining the status quo.” Couple that issue with the premise that many of the teaching professors have either never worked in the modern environment or have not worked in it for some time, then it is difficult to penetrate that fortress. I keep my eyes out for modern ideas in things like the Harvard Business Review, but I haven’t seen much.

It will be quite difficult to change management cultures in organizations where most of the people in those positions are “classically trained” in management. I have limited experience with this, but the 8 years I have been trying to influence it in my company without much penetration is telling to me.

There must be a compelling, acceptable reason for management to transform. Steve puts forth some of these in his book, but convincing established management of their veracity has been like trying to [perform a non-trivial challenge].

Tom summed up the feeling of many people around the world when he wrote: “I will be very interested in hearing what comes out of this gathering. I do feel it is a noble endeavor and may spawn further work and discussion, which is needed. I wish I could attend. I wish you all the best.”

I wish you could be here too! Thank you all of you for your feedback! I will ensure that this is prominently displayed during the gathering.

Do you have more ideas on how to encourage global management warming? Leave feedback here!