D(esign) Playbook - Workflow
Establishing Values/Foundation
Personal Statement: Lorem ipsum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.
Keys to Establishing Values:
The purpose of discussing your team’s rules isn’t to determine the one right way of running a team. It’s to agree on the one consistent way you’ll run this particular team.
Establishing a set of team values or agreed “rules of conduct” will clarify how to make decisions, keep everyone informed, run meetings, play nicely, hold one another accountable, assess progress, continually improve and more.
Without deliberate collaborative agreement, standards will be adopted in an inconsistent manner according to modeling of certain high-performing or high-visibility team members. Additionally, it is crucial that the values that are agreed to are reinforced by all levels of team members. If a leader routinely show up five minutes late for meetings, lateness becomes the norm, overriding any notion that punctuality is important. Rules also evolve according to what you reward. By listening to a team member complain about another member, you reward that behavior—you’re giving the complainer your attention. And that kind of exchange becomes an accepted way of operating, even if the team originally agreed otherwise.
A recommended method for developing and agreeing could include:
Asking team members to do their own assessments: Which values/rules have already been expressed from the get-go? Which would they like to add? Which would they rate as their top 10?
At a meeting, post everyone’s lists on the wall.
Have team members walk around, view everyone’s lists, and put checks next to the 10 values/rules they value the most
The values/rules with the most votes become the team’s top 10.
Even if the makeup of your team doesn’t change, it should become a regular ritual to reassess on a regular interval. Perhaps as a regular activity as part of a QBR. That keeps the values/rules relevant and will also help to quash undesirable behaviors that emerge.
Citations/Learn More:
*Last updated 4/24/2020, please note this is for the purpose of allowing me to document and evolve my thoughts, experiences, and approach. I’d very much appreciate the opportunity to learn from you sharing yours. Reach out to me at jaydubois@gmail.com or @jaydubois