Creating Great Teams: How Self-Selection Lets People Excel

by Sandy Mamoli, David Mole

People are happiest and most productive if they can choose what they work on and who they work with. Self-selecting teams give people that choice. Build well-designed and efficient teams to get the most out of your organization, with step-by-step instructions on how to set up teams quickly and efficiently. You'll create a process that works for you, whether you need to form teams from scratch, improve the design of existing teams, or are on the verge of a big team re-shuffle.

Discover how New Zealand's biggest e-commerce company completely restructured their business through Self-Selection. In the process, find out how to create high-performing groups by letting people self-organize into small, cross-functional teams. Step-by-step guides, easy-to-follow diagrams, practical examples, checklists, and tools will enable you to run a Self-Selection process within your organization.

If you're a manager who wants to structure your organization into small teams, you'll discover why Self-Selection is the fastest and safest way to do so. You'll prepare for and organize a Self-Selection event and make sure your Self-Selection participants and fellow managers are on board and ready. If you're a team member, you'll discover what it feels like to be part of a Self-Selection process and what the consequences are for your daily work. You'll learn how to influence your colleagues and bosses to be open to the idea of Self-Selection. You'll provide your manager with a plan for how to facilitate a Self-Selection event, and with evidence that the system works.

If you're feeling the pain and chaos of adding new people to your organization, or just want to ensure that your teams have the right people with the right skills, Self-Selection will help you create the effective teams you need.

Genres: Management, Nonfiction, Business, Leadership

103 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 25, 2015

Reviews

[Sebastian Gebski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Please keep in mind it's the review of the BOOK, not the METHOD (self-selection of teams).

Once we've cleared that out - this book could have been much better. Let's start with cons:
* author is so enthusiastic with the method, that she didn't address ANY of concerns related with introducing it; she didn't write anything about handling troublesome situations that can happen - books feels like a hippie description of "happy path" only ;/
* book feels very positive (because authors honestly believe in the method - no doubt about that), but sometimes ... it becomes a bit naive ... - want examples? check the section about convincing the management
* half of the book is dumb logistics - I know the goal was to make sure that everyone can execute self-selection from A to Z, but seriously ...

And pros:
* author's enthusiasm felt genuine & honest - that really helps with the perception (you feel "it's something", because you perceive she's emotionally engaged
* there's a lot of good argumentation why it makes sense (but I've found some other arguments that were not presented anyway ;>)
* except for dumb logistics, both form & content remain in proper balance

[Dominik "Dodo" Dopplinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

I REALLY like the fundamental idea of self-selection and I totally agree with all the benefits. I've tried workshops based on the ideas of this book before I have actually read it since I've heard about it and the idea is so easy to convey.

BUT... for me this book focuses too much on this one idea of how to use self-selection to form teams. This is for example simply not possible in a software service provider company with multiple clients with projects. Yet, these ideas can easily flow into this environment, but the one workshop-idea cannot. I would have hoped for other environments, other workshop ideas.

For example: Your team grew too big and you think about splitting it.
Or: If you cannot form teams right now and you don't know what projects and requirements come in the future and you want to move away from manager-selection to self-selection in order to bring as much empowerment and energy into your teams in the future.

[Mohan Narayanaswamy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick video or blog would have covered what is covered in the book. Should be useful for someone who plans to create environment for "Self selecting team". This lacks depth and doesn't cover many questions such as if core engineering team has full of junior engineers, how they could sustain succeed using "Self selection". What is the role of architect and how they would fit? what happens to corporate processes.

[Marijn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice book with hands-on tips around setting the stage for allowing teams to form themselves through self-selection. It's not going to convert the non-believers in believers for sure, and there's still the task of setting the boundaries and focus of the teams, which is often harder than forming the teams themself.

[Nathalie Karasek · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want to use self selection for your teams and are wondering how to do it, that’s your book! Really good explanation and hands on guide! One suggestion for improvement: I felt the section about how to transition from the old team structure to the new teams to short. I think this can be very tricky and I would have appreciated more inspiration on this part. Very good book.

[Johnny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick read with some bold claims that are backed by studies. Next to nothing about troubles or challenges you may run into. It is a “look at us how we did it” book with limited use for other companies.

[Anders · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short and concise guide to self selection for forming great teams with lots of valuable tips on how to apply this in practice.

[Jamie Strachan · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Michiel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy read. Interesting, food for thought.

[Serge Huybrechts · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like how the structure of the book explains the self-selection process and how to facilitate it. Definitely an experiment worth giving a shot!

[Andy Cleff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Sandy and David!,,,,

This is a wonderfully practice book - filed w great advice and a framework to get started. If you doubt that self selection could work in your organization, you owe it to yourself to give this a read.

[Sergey Shishkin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book probably should have been a website or wiki. I wish I borrowed it from a library rather than bought.

It's interesting and useful though. My main critique points are:
- Only the big bang self-selection approach is covered;
- Theory of team design is very shallow and only presents studies supporting the book idea;
- Authors insist on stable, long-term teams and by doing that ignore potential issues of why some individuals don't like to work with other individuals and what can be done about that;
- Too much focus on facilitation and logistics made me read it very cursory.

I still liked the book and found it useful, I probably just had to high expectations of it to begin with.

[Christophe Addinquy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very short book, focused on one and only one practice : how to form self-determined team, through a step by step process. I like very much the way the authors goes deep inside each step, making very real the way it happens. On the other side, we miss patterns or anti-patterns on the way it happens, everythings looks very much like sunny day. We all know it's not always the case
Ma note de lecture en Français ici

[David Mole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creating Great Teams is a great combination of a tool-kit and the story of how they went about it. I found it to be a fascinating read, it challenged the way I thought about how teams are selected and I am excited to try out the techniques they talk about. It is less than 100 pages and I read in a single journey when I was travelling. Overall it is a great book, a great read and an inspiring story.

[Chris Downey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good, concise book full of tips and practical advice for running a self selection event - well worth a read.

[Edward Dahllöf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick and easy read.