Unbossing videos
An educational video series to help you
unboss your organization.
What problems do we tackle? And how do we handle that?
Unbossing FAQs
The role of a middle-manager
You’d be surprised what happens to an organization when middle managers make this shift from boss to leader.
A value proposition for every team
Thomas Hubbuch explains why both external – and internal facing teams need to understand their value and their customer.
A value proposition for every team
Is it possible to redesign the annual budgeting process?
What is Unbossing?
The ambition of unbossing is to make a significant difference to every organization. In this video, you’ll learn about the three dimensions of unbossing.
Why should you unboss your organization?
An organization is the interface between the external and internal world. In many organization this interface is broken.
How an unbossed leader looks at change
Change is the only constant. What does this mean from a leadership and organization perspective?
What are the breakthroughs of the unbossed organization?
Organizations and the way we look at work evolves over time from one one perspective to another. In this video i explain the major breakthroughs of the unbossed organization.
Why an unbossed leader does not talk in buzz words?
Communication is key. Successful unbossed leaders have a specific way of communicating with the organization. This video talks about the language they use and the words they avoid.
How are decisions made in an unbossed organization?
It’s a common misperception that everybody can do what they want in an unbossed organization. We see 4 types of decision-making processes used in different situations depending on what the organization needs.
Three types of unbossed organization structures
The structure of an organization is a means to end. When we study unbossed organizations world wide we see three types of different organization structures. Which type suits your organization goals best?
Three types of teams in an unbossed organization structure
Unbossed organizations aim to give as much power as possible to the teams that are closes tO the customer. To make this work you need at least two other types of teams in your organization.
What makes a team effective?
Every person in an unbossed organization should understand the dynamics that have a significant impact on the effectiveness of a team. You will learn that what really matters is less about who is on the team, and more about how the team works together.
Similarities between modular software design and unbossed organizations
Both software and organizations are complex and continuously evolving systems. It’s interesting how much organizational developers and software developers can learn from each other.
What are the best unbossed organization systems?
There are several methodologies to organize work and decision making in an unbossed organization. In this video we provide you with a short summary and our perspective on the matter.
What’s the main problem to solve for an unbossed leader?
Unbossed leaders shift from scaling efficiency to scaling innovation. Eliminating bureaucracy and cultivating creativity requires a completely new perspective on organizations.
The role of a manager in an unbossed organization
A common mistake in unbossing journeys is that leaders stop leading and managers stop taking decisions. Here’s why this is wrong and what leaders and managers should be doing in stead (and no longer be doing).
Where to start Unbossing?
You are a believer. You want to unboss your organization, but where do you start? At the top, at the bottom or in the middle? In this short video, I provide some practical insights.
What are 21st century skills, and why are they crucial in Unbossing?
You are a believer.Every organization that wants to unboss should invest in training every person in the organization in these 21st century skills.
The nine characteristics of an unbossed leader
Research shows that leaders and managers matter. They have a significant impact on business outcomes and employee engagement. But what does this mean in an unbossed organization in terms of management style? Here are the 9 characteristics your leaders and managers should.
What are the most common root causes for unbossing failures?
What can we learn from organizations that have tried to unboss, but failed? In this video, you’ll get the essence of tens of studies worldwide as a source of inspiration for you not to make the same mistakes again.
Four key unboss questions every unbosser should answer!
Self-aware leadership is the corner stone of the unboss journey. Here are four key questions every leader in the organization should reflect on.
The Unbossing Game
Hiring the CEO
A real #business problem to solve, hiring a new CEO. We have two leaders with two different approaches – and YOU helping us to make the right decision.
Troubles between Sales & Innovation
On his very first working day as #unbossed CEO of the troubled family-owned Cookie Company, Kris Debisschop will be heavily confronted with silo-thinking between the Sales Director Nick Van Langendonck and R&D Director Charlotte Verhaeghe.
Why Hifluence gifts all this knowledge for free?
Similarities between modular software design and unbossed organizations
Both software and organizations are complex and continuously evolving systems. It’s interesting how much organizational developers and software developers can learn from each other.
As a consequence of our drive to help society help create the organizations it needs, Hifluence wants to inspire 1.740.000 people or approximately 3.480 companies in Belgium and 700.000.000 people or approximately 34.600 organizations worldwide.
So we opt to drop these tools in the gift economy: we gift the insights and all the work, knowing that you, like many others, will be generous and gift back in any way or form you can.
So please, watch this stuff, use it to build your own unbossed orgaization and share this content with your peers.
The 7 practices of Unbossing
1. We break up one huge company into flexible, entrepreneurial and modular units
silos, entities and monocultures make a company vulnerable to disruptive competitors and stand in the way of new opportunities.
How:
We create small modular units that are smoothly replacing the traditional company structures as we know them. There are three types of teams:
- Transforming teams: a market-oriented team, focused on innovation within their existing business model.
- Incubating teams: completely new teams that focus on new opportunities.
- Supporting teams: delivering products and services internally, supporting the above-mentioned teams.
Result:
highly diverse and coherent teams of up to 15 people. They make their own decisions and operate within a framework set by non-negotiable rules
2. We transform employees into owners
Research already proved it: profit sharing or autonomy in itself has no impact on the company’s turnover. But do you choose the combination of the two? Then the involvement is no less than 50% higher.
How?
We implement clear structures and consultation processes. These stimulate decisiveness, increase transparency and reduce the need for control. Moreover, we formally define the freedoms of the self-correcting teams in three rights.
- Strategy: the right to determine opportunities, set priorities and enter into internal and external partnerships.
- People: the right to make decisions about hiring colleagues, align people and roles and define working relationships.
- Distribution: the right to decide on wages and distribute bonuses.
Result:
We obtain a new and safe context in which we identify friction – and turn it into improvements for the entire team. In this way, real action and change will take place and innovative ideas will be conceived and tested.
3. We transform unclear expectations into clear and ambitious goals
Objectives are often set on the basis of past experiences. This only changes when something goes thoroughly wrong. A lack of support for daring thinking and acting has negative consequences for the entire company.
How?
We put ambitious goals for growth and transformation on the table, and make sure that every team is driven by them. That’s how we do it:
- We get the teams to write a ‘dream-promise-value’ statement. This includes matters such as (among others) the degree of user involvement, the degree of unique customer value and the generated profit.
- We set objectives based on market statistics. In this way we encourage teams to grow four to ten times faster than the market average.
- In addition to selling products and services, we focus on building an ecosystem from scratch. arktstatistieken. Zo stimuleren we teams om vier tot tien keer sneller te groeien dan het marktgemiddelde.
Result:
Each employee has a clear view of objectives – and his/her own responsibility to help achieve them.
4. We’re going from internal monopolies to internal suppliers
In most organisations, many employees work in internal monopolies (HR, ICT, …). However incompetent they may be, they cannot be evaluated by the teams they serve.
How?
- We leave everyone free to buy or not services from other teams/external suppliers.
- We draw up predefined and non-negotiable rules on margin sharing and minimum performance standards in collaboration with internal suppliers
- This reduces friction during negotiations.
Result:
This approach discourages mediocrity, unites around the common goal of great customer experiences and maximizes flexibility.
5. We opt for voluntary collaborations instead of top-down coordination
Large investments are often seldom synchronized. This creates even more management layers, mandates and functions. Which in turn leads to cumbersomeness, delay and fear of renewal.
How?
We open up all clusters to all teams. Teams can register where they wish: teams in a similar sector – or focused on exploring new opportunities.
Result:
Knowledge, investments and opportunities are shared and tackled together. Which in turn stimulates team spirit, self-esteem and involvement.
6. We break down tight boundaries – and strive for open innovation
There is often secrecy and reluctance to involve external parties in strategic matters. This closed system provides a quenching of futility and an extinction of innovation.
How?
We will tell you all about why your organization is not a stand-alone entity, but a hub in a larger network. We talk about crowdsourcing and other ways to get prototypes validated by users – before investing solid budgets in them.
Result:
Your network of external experts will help the company address challenges and pain points. In this way, problems will be put on the table faster – and feedback will be provided and recorded more quickly.
7. We overcome resistance to innovation and opt for large-scale entrepreneurship
Our companies are generally very conservative. Not ‘daring’ leads to a lot of missed opportunities – and a stagnation of growth.
How?
We transform organisations into a large ecosystem of modular start-ups. We stimulate internal innovation in three different ways.
- An intrapreneur puts an idea online and asks others to contribute to the implementation of the business plan.
- An entire cluster invites internal teams and outsiders to exploit untapped potential.
- A candidate-entrepreneur presents his/her idea at business events that connect local innovators with cluster leaders and internal teams. ter nodigt interne teams en buitenstaanders uit om onontgonnen potentieel te benutten.
Result:
These teams now have a solid basis in terms of entrepreneurship. They can then benefit from the company’s leverage by signing contracts with development, sales and administrative support teams.