Pattern for Agile Organizations

Read this text to see the idea of sociocracy as a form of organizational design. This is a way for organizations to transcend the traditional approach to organizational change. While the model is primarily applied to software organizations, it can be used by other organizations that want to be sure that information flows to and from the appropriate parties and ensure that experts can participate in the decisions that affect them. The text considers governance, teams, and collaboration internally and externally. The graphics make the complexity of the linkages easy to understand as the author presents consent decision-making, double linking, and governance in iterations.

What is Sociocracy 3.0?

A pattern-based approach to organizational change

S3 offers a pattern-based approach to organizational change.

A pattern is a process, practice or guideline that serves as a template for successfully responding to a specific kind of challenge or opportunity. S3 patterns are discovered through observing people working together in organizations to solve problems and respond to opportunities they face. When you find that your habitual ways of doing things fail to bring about the outcomes you expected or hope for, you can look to S3 for patterns that might help.

Patterns are modular and adaptable, can be used independently, and are mutually reinforcing, complementing one another when used in combination. S3 patterns can be evolved and adapted to address your specific needs.

In this guide, the patterns are grouped by topic into ten categories to help you more easily identify those that are useful to you:

  • Co-Creation And Evolution
  • Peer Development
  • Enablers Of Collaboration
  • Building Organizations
  • Bringing In S3
  • Defining Agreements
  • Focused Interactions
  • Meeting Practices
  • Organizing Work
  • Organizational Structure

By providing a menu of patterns to choose from according to need, S3 encourages an organic, iterative approach to change without a huge upfront investment. It meets people where they are and helps them move forward pulling in patterns at their own pace and according to their unique context.