Everyone loves the idea of self-managing teams

Self-Managing Teams: Autonomy with Structure

Explains how self-managing teams thrive with autonomy balanced by structure, highlighting the need for clear goals, accountability, and alignment within frameworks like Scrum.

Published on 18 March 2025

Written by Martin Hinshelwood

1 minute read

https://nkdagility.com/resources/xETx_jwnIHO

Everyone loves the idea of self-managing teams. Give people autonomy, let them decide how to work, and everything just falls into place, right?

Not quite.

Scrum isn’t about letting teams work however they like. It’s about bounded autonomy—freedom within a framework. Self-management means teams decide how to deliver value, but within the constraints of Scrum events, commitments, and organisational needs. The alignment comes from shared goals, accountability, and structure. Without it, self-management becomes chaos.

Too much control? Teams disengage, becoming passive executors. Too little? Work becomes fragmented, directionless, and ultimately ineffective. True agility is the ability to adapt while staying aligned with the bigger picture.

If your teams are struggling, ask yourself: Is the problem too much control, or too little alignment?

Also published on: LinkedIn

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