Magnetized teams
The
Wikipedia definition for magnetism is:
Every electron is, by its nature, a small magnet (see
Electron magnetic dipole moment
). Ordinarily, the countless electrons in a material are
randomly oriented in different directions, leaving no effect on
average, but in a magnet the electrons tend to face the same way,
so they all pull together, thus creating a strong total magnetic
force.
In an unmagnetized material the magnetic dipole
moments are randomly aligned:
|
In a magnetized material the magnetic dipole moments
are aligned in parallel and in the same direction:
|
Imagine for a moment that every magnetic dipole moment is a
person in a team. In a
magnetized team everyone shares
the same vision and pulls in the same direction, working together
to achieve the same goal as shown in the following image by
Mike Griffiths .
Posted by Simon Baker -
Permalink
2 Comments
Yup. Alignment is only good if it's in the right direction. That's why chartering and goal-driven planning (and development) are so important. They set the strategic direction - a shared vision, and the direction of each tactical step - release and iteration goals, respectively.
If a team is trying to find the best direction, e.g. which technology to use, I wouldn't term that dis-alignment. It's exploration using spikes. The team is still aligned but the shared goal is to find 'the right technology to solve the problem'. Dis-alignment is destructive.
An 'aligned team' is great...provided it is aligned in the right direction .
If the best direction is not clear, maybe a little dis-alignment helps a team explore what is the right direction.