Teams on the Freedom Pole
Teams, which shape their sustaining patterns in such a way that primarily the freedom needs of the employees are satisfied, often look like this to the observer:
• Creativity, ingenuity, innovation and the ability to find surprising solutions are often very highly present in such teams. The work motivation is well-developed if the degree of autonomy is high.
• In such teams, a continual engagement with authority, leadership and existing power differences take place. Rarely is there anything self-understood, simple and uncomplicated. Everyone would prefer to only do their thing in their way.
• Alongside this, there is a consistent engagement with the formal and the informal hierarchy in the team. Active and passive resistance to instructions are the rule. There is constant reflection and discussion about the appropriateness and accuracy of decisions taken by the team leadership.
For freedom loving people such work teams are a hit. For all the others, the necessary basic orientation is missing. A dysfunctional insecurity goes with this.
For organisations, such teams are a challenge and, as a rule, only functional in specific product and service delivery environments. Wild, creative clusters, which rub against instructions and wish to be left in peace, can frequently be found in the media and advertising sectors, sometimes in marketing and in preliminary design areas.