Our AI writing assistant, WriteUp, can assist you in easily writing any text. Click here to experience its capabilities.

How to Build Your Teams as Communities of Practice

View Original View Raw

Summary

This article discusses how organizations can build teams as communities of practice, as well as the challenges that come with switching to an agile approach. It looks at the Spotify model and its similarities to traditional organizations, as well as the advantages of skills-based communities, such as learning opportunities, promotion and status opportunities, skill-based professional development resources, mentoring and coaching programs, and talent acquisition and development. It also goes over the steps organizations should take when introducing this approach, such as determining the goal and building a team, and emphasizes the importance of measuring success and failure.

Q&As

What is the purpose of building a skills-based community?
The purpose of building a skills-based community is to provide learning opportunities, promotion and status opportunities, skills-based professional development resources, mentoring and coaching programs, and talent acquisition and development.

How do skills-based communities encourage learning opportunities?
Skills-based communities encourage learning opportunities by providing learning assets and training opportunities to support team members' professional development. The leadership of this community will build strategic learning plans connected to skill families and roadmaps.

What are the differences between the traditional and Spotify model of team building?
The primary differences between the traditional and Spotify model of team building are that teams are long-lived in the Spotify model, skill-based communities have both power and prestige, incentives are aligned with the model, and there is a focus on building strong, agile teams.

What are some of the steps to consider when introducing a skills-based community?
The steps to consider when introducing a skills-based community include determining what success would look like in a realistic timeframe, building a team, starting small and aiming for incremental progress, and measuring success and failure.

What is the role of leadership in building a sustainable, effective, agile organization?
The role of leadership in building a sustainable, effective, agile organization is to invest focus, leadership and money in the skills-based communities that surround their teams. Leadership should also take an incremental approach to introducing a skills-based community, build a team that includes people from the delivery teams, HR and learning & development professionals, and measure success and failure.

AI Comments

👍 This article provides an insightful look into how to best build teams in an agile environment and how to develop a skills-based community to support their success.

👎 This article is overly long and provides too much detail on the implementation of a skills-based community, making it difficult to understand the main points.

AI Discussion

Me: It's about how organizations can build teams as communities of practice to better deal with uncertainty in the digital age. It suggests that organizations invest in skills-based communities to support team members' professional development and to provide learning opportunities and mentoring programs. It also discusses how to start an incremental approach and measure success.

Friend: Interesting. It makes sense that organizations should invest in skills-based communities to better support their teams. It could help build stronger affinity to the problem, customers, and each other. Plus, it could be beneficial for team members to have more learning opportunities and professional development resources.

Me: Absolutely. It could also help foster a culture of collaboration and help teams work more efficiently. Plus, it could help with talent acquisition and development, and provide promotion and status opportunities. It could also help with incentives being aligned with the model, and provide an environment of support and development.

Friend: Yes, these would all be great benefits of investing in skills-based communities. It would be interesting to see if organizations actually follow this model and how it will play out in the long run.

Action items

Research and implement a skills-based community model in your organization.
Develop a team of professionals from HR, learning & development, and delivery teams to help build and roll out the skills-based community.
Create a plan to measure success and failure of the skills-based community and track progress against the goal.

Technical terms

Agile: A set of principles and practices for software development that emphasize collaboration, customer feedback, and iterative development.
Scrum: A framework for managing software development projects that emphasizes collaboration, customer feedback, and iterative development.
Cross-functional: A team composed of members from different departments or areas of expertise.
Generalists: People who have a broad range of skills and knowledge.
Specialists: People who have a deep knowledge and expertise in a particular area.
Skill hoarding: The practice of keeping knowledge and skills to oneself rather than sharing them with others.
Guilds: A group of people who share a common interest or profession.
Chapters: A local branch of a larger organization.
Squad: A small team of people working together on a specific project or task.
Tribe: A group of people with a shared identity, purpose, or goal.
Mentoring: A relationship in which an experienced person provides guidance and advice to a less experienced person.
Coaching: A relationship in which an experienced person provides guidance and advice to a less experienced person in order to help them reach a specific goal.