Glossary
Key terms and definitions for self-governance and Role Based Management.
Accountability
The obligation to justify actions and decisions, both shared and individual, with the goal of fostering transparency.
Agile
A qualifier used to define that a process, practice, or any element follows the best practices of agile methodologies.
Agile Methodologies
Iterative, adaptive approaches that promote collaboration and flexibility within the organization.
Brian Robertson
Co-creator of the Holacracy method, influential on topics related to organizational change and management.
Change Management
Change management involves a guided transition aimed at ensuring smooth adaptations to evolve the organization effectively.
Checklist
Aviation, surgery and project management run a checklist to take every step in the same order, every time, from a written record.
Circle
A circle is a group with its own mission and the authority to decide in its domain. It contains the roles its members fill and coordinates with other circles.
Consent
Consent is agreement without objection in collaborative decision-making.
David Allen
He created the GTD method for organizing tasks and set it out in 2001 in his book Getting Things Done.
Decision
Decisions are choices based on consent at the end of a meeting or on a circle's autonomy, influencing direction or action.
Design Thinking
A creative, user-centered approach that fosters innovation and problem-solving.
Domain
A domain is the scope of action and decision of a circle or a role. It separates what that circle or role decides alone from what belongs to others.
Facilitator
A collaboration catalyst whose purpose is to foster smooth processes and collective decision-making during meetings or on a given topic.
Feedback
Feedback consists of constructive responses, essential for learning and continuous improvement.
Feedback OSCAR
The OSCAR method helps deliver constructive and engaging feedback. A valuable asset for collaboration and tension resolution.
Frédéric Laloux
Author of Reinventing Organizations, promoting an evolutionary model of conscious enterprises. Influential in organizational thinking and management.
Governance
Governance is the distribution of authority into decision-making structures to guide the organization and foster collaboration.
Governance Meeting
A structured exchange aimed at making key decisions and ensuring alignment according to the organization's governance model.
Holacracy
An organizational management system aimed at employee autonomy, based on roles, circles, and distributed decision-making.
Horizontal Organization
A flat structure where responsibilities and influence are distributed equally to encourage autonomy and collective decision-making.
Indicator
Indicators are metrics that evaluate the progress of a role, circle, or member in order to guide the organization toward its goals.
Meeting
Meetings are collaborative gatherings that facilitate information sharing and coordination to advance toward shared goals.
Muda
Muda is any activity that uses up resources without creating value for the customer. The Toyota Production System sorts it into seven categories.
Note
A note is a written record of an idea, a decision or an action to take. People write notes in meetings, while reading, or to follow up on work.
Org Chart
An org chart is a diagram of an organization's positions or roles, the people who fill them and the reporting lines between them.
Poka-Yoke
Discover Poka-Yoke: a smart approach to error prevention in system and process design.
Purpose
The vital foundation of a circle or role, it motivates action and expresses its deeper meaning.
Quaker
Practitioners of Quakerism, favoring consensus, equality, shared values, and influences on sociocracy.
Role
A role is a piece of recurring work with a purpose and accountabilities. One person holds it and can hand it over without changing jobs.
Sociocracy
An organizational management system based on participatory governance, consent, circles, roles, equal voice, and adaptability.
Tactical Meeting
An operational meeting aimed at coordinating actions and optimizing processes to achieve organizational objectives.
Task
It is a one-off action that stems from a role. A single member takes it on, often with a deadline.
Teal Organization
A self-organized model aligned with values that encourages responsibility and collaboration within the organization.
Tension
A tension is the gap between how an organization works today and how it needs to work. Members bring tensions to a governance meeting.
Toyota Production System
Discover the Toyota Production System (TPS): a globally recognized management method focused on eliminating waste.