Starting a journey towards better collaboration

06 Mar 2015, by Calum Shepherd

Changing the way you work is tough, as is changing Government.

We began back in 2013 with an ambitious aim of changing the way Government works, but I gave little regard to the I worked prior to arrival and what this would mean. Coming from a waterfall background and having a passion for all things ‘agile’ - I found adopting a new you isn’t easy. It’s not just what you do, it’s how you do it.

We have been through various efforts to reshape how we deliver and collaborate with each other over the last year. There have been highs and lows but one thing is clear - without passionate, motivated people the possible becomes impossible.

Responsive.org is a community of people with a mission and a passion to do things differently.

Reading their manifesto is a refreshing experience.

“..most organizations still rely on a way of working designed over 100 years ago for the challenges and opportunities of the industrial age”

I chose to put pen to paper in a personal capacity to begin to move towards their manifesto principles. I feel this has the potential to benefit me and the people around me.

Principles

• People over profit
• Empowering over controlling
• Emergence over planning
• Networks over hierarchies
• Adaptivity over efficiency
• Transparency over privacy

Interested? Read the manifesto over on the responsive.org website. Recommended reading includes The Alliance: Managing Talent in the Networked Age (my copy is on the way).

I’ll let you know how it goes.