Nowa strona 1 » How to Redesign Roles & Accountabilities in a Teal or Holacratic System

Introduction: Understanding Teal and Holacracy Organizational Models

Before diving into the practical steps of redesigning roles and accountabilities, it’s important to understand what Teal and Holacracy models represent and why they are increasingly relevant for modern organizations.

What is a Teal Organization?

The concept of Teal organizations was popularized by Frederic Laloux in his seminal book "Reinventing Organizations." Laloux describes organizational evolution as stages, with Teal representing a highly evolved form of organizational consciousness.

Key characteristics of Teal organizations include:

Self-management: No traditional hierarchical control. Instead, authority is distributed, and teams or individuals manage themselves.
Wholeness: Encouraging employees to bring their whole selves to work, embracing emotional and intuitive intelligence alongside professional skills.
Evolutionary purpose: The organization is seen as a living system with its own purpose that evolves naturally, rather than being rigidly controlled by top-down strategy.

What is Holacracy?

Holacracy is a specific system for decentralized management and organizational governance developed by Brian Robertson. It operationalizes many of the principles seen in Teal organizations by providing a structured framework for distributing authority and decision-making.

Key aspects of Holacracy include:

Roles instead of job titles: Instead of static positions, people hold multiple roles defined by clear accountabilities.
Circles: Teams (called circles) are semi-autonomous units responsible for their own governance and operations.
Governance process: Regular meetings to update roles, policies, and resolve tensions, allowing the organization to dynamically evolve.

Why Are These Models Gaining Traction?

In today’s complex, fast-changing business environment, traditional hierarchical structures often prove too rigid and slow to adapt. Teal and Holacracy models offer:

Greater organizational agility and responsiveness.
Increased employee engagement through autonomy and empowerment.
Clarity and transparency in roles and decision-making.
Alignment with values of openness, collaboration, and purpose-driven work.

For HR leaders and professionals, understanding how to redesign roles and accountabilities within these frameworks is critical to facilitating successful transitions and sustaining organizational effectiveness.

1. Understand the Paradigm Shift: From Static Jobs to Dynamic Roles

Traditional job descriptions tend to be rigid, hierarchical, and slow to evolve. In contrast, Teal and Holacratic systems require dynamic, adaptable roles.

Guidance:

Conduct a diagnostic to understand which legacy assumptions around job titles and authority are limiting adaptability.
Acknowledge that people may hold multiple roles across different teams and these roles may change often.
Shift the mindset from "position-based power" to "purpose-aligned contribution."

Example:

In a traditional org, a Product Manager might have a fixed scope. In a Holacratic org, the same individual could hold the roles of "User Feedback Synthesizer," "Market Opportunity Evaluator," and "Sprint Prioritizer," each with clear accountabilities.

2. Map Existing Workflows and Informal Roles

Before defining new roles, it's important to surface the actual work happening, including informal roles people play that aren't reflected in job titles.

Guidance:

Run interviews, shadowing, or ethnographic observations to identify what people actually do.
Capture dependencies and cross-functional activities.
Focus especially on influence networks, informal leaders, and under-the-radar contributors.

Example:

You may discover that an office administrator also acts as a conflict mediator or culture ambassador – roles that should be formalized in the new structure.

3. Define Roles Based on Purpose and Accountabilities

Roles in Teal/Holacratic systems are not job titles but sets of responsibilities tied to a purpose.

Guidance:

Every role should have a clear purpose (why it exists), and a list of accountabilities (what it is responsible for).
Avoid vague or overlapping duties. Specificity is essential.
Write each role independently of the person who might fill it.

Example:

Role Name: "Customer Insight Curator"

Purpose: Ensure continuous alignment between customer needs and product features.
Accountabilities:
- Conduct weekly customer interviews.
- Maintain insight repository.
- Present trends at monthly product reviews.

4. Use Role Templates to Encourage Consistency

To maintain clarity and ease of role navigation, standardize how roles are documented across the organization.

Guidance:

Develop a simple template for roles that includes: Name, Purpose, Accountabilities, Metrics (optional), and Associated Circle.
Train all teams to create and update roles using this format.

Example:

Role Template:

Name: Talent Acquisition Partner
Purpose: Attract and secure talent aligned with org values and future needs.
Accountabilities:
- Manage candidate pipeline
- Facilitate value-aligned interviews
- Maintain recruitment metrics dashboard

5. Group Roles into Purpose-Driven Circles (Teams)

Rather than hierarchical departments, roles are grouped into circles, each with a clear shared purpose.

Guidance:

Identify the overarching purpose that connects a set of roles.
Define a lead link or facilitator role for each circle, without traditional managerial authority.
Circles should manage their own roles, policies, and priorities through governance meetings.

Example:

A "Growth Circle" might include the following roles:

Content Strategist
Campaign Performance Analyst
User Acquisition Coordinator
Brand Voice Steward

6. Establish Governance Processes for Role Evolution

Roles in Holacratic and Teal systems are not fixed – they evolve through governance.

Guidance:

Set up a rhythm for governance meetings where teams propose, amend, or remove roles.
Teach all employees how to surface tensions (gaps, inefficiencies, or unmet needs) that lead to role changes.
Document all role changes transparently.

Example:

A team may realize that their "Customer Onboarding Designer" role is too broad. In governance, they split it into two roles: "New User Communications" and "Onboarding UX Improvement."

7. Clarify Decision Rights Without Centralized Authority

In self-managed systems, clarity in who can decide what is crucial.

Guidance:

Define decision domains for each role or circle.
Encourage the use of the "advice process" – people can make decisions but must seek input from those affected.
Eliminate blanket "approval chains."

Example:

The "Vendor Relationship Steward" can choose a software tool for the team but must consult the Finance and IT roles before committing funds or integrating with systems.

8. Prepare People for Role Fluidity and Personal Growth

Employees accustomed to stable titles may feel anxious about fluid roles. Support them with clarity and development.

Guidance:

Offer training on role navigation, self-management, and interpersonal communication.
Build developmental pathways around capabilities rather than traditional ladders.
Acknowledge the emotional transition and coach leaders in letting go of control.

Example:

Instead of a traditional promotion, a person may evolve by acquiring new roles such as "Team Facilitator" or "Process Optimizer" based on their interests and skills.

9. Align Roles to Organizational Purpose, Not Just KPIs

In Teal and Holacracy, alignment to purpose is as important as performance metrics.

Guidance:

Ensure that each role’s purpose links to the broader purpose of the circle and the organization.
Use story-based reviews: what did this role contribute to the org’s purpose this quarter?
Integrate personal purpose exploration into performance conversations.

Example:

During a review, the "Customer Trust Champion" reflects on how their conflict resolution efforts deepened customer loyalty and aligned with the org’s purpose of "building trusted, human-scale digital experiences."

10. Audit and Iterate Roles Quarterly

Role design in Teal/Holacracy is never done. It's a living process.

Guidance:

Run quarterly retrospectives to assess role clarity, overlap, or gaps.
Ask questions like: "Is this role still serving its purpose?" "Are accountabilities outdated?"
Involve people from across circles in role audits to improve cross-functional coherence.

Example:

A quarterly audit might reveal that a role has become obsolete due to automation. Rather than keep it alive on paper, the team dissolves it and reallocates the energy elsewhere.

Final Thoughts for HR Leaders

Transitioning to a Teal or Holacratic system is not just a structural change – it's a shift in how people relate to work, authority, and purpose. Redesigning roles and accountabilities in this context requires courage, clarity, and continuous conversation.

As HR professionals, your role becomes that of a coach, facilitator, and systems thinker. The more you empower others to evolve their roles organically and link them to collective purpose, the more resilient, responsive, and human your organization becomes.