2-Day Intensive Training:
Patterns for Self-organising Teams
Denver, CO | Location TBC | Nov 4-5th New dates - December 2 & 3
This intensive 2-day training is ideal for people working with less hierarchy and more collaboration: DAOs, cooperatives, self-managing teams, Teal organisations, Agile teams, startups, collectives.
You will find practical guidance on how your team can share leadership, distribute decision-making, stay aligned on priorities, deal with conflict, and create a thriving culture that cares for everyone.
Your Guide
He has worked with activists, educators, and entrepreneurs on the edge of change for over a decade. Originally a technologist Drew followed his passion for building cultures of belonging from the technical systems to the people systems within organisations.
A systemic problem solver, he loves to discover and work with power within groups to find harmony through system and cultural interventions.
Drew Hornbein
What people say about us
Irem Tumer
UNFPA
"The training was the perfect way to equip our team with tools to overcome challenges of organizing in a decentralised and value-driven way. Rich and Nati guided the journey with commitment and positivity at every step and we supported us with their vast experience and knowledge. The atmosphere of safety and trust they created was inspiring and set the tone for our follow-up plans."
Sean Andrew
Forum for the Future
Nicola Round
Adfree Cities
“Participating in The Hum's course brought home and demystified questions of what new forms of governance and organising for change can look and feel like. Their way of grounding theory into practice through simple and clear language, applied learning opportunities and sharing examples from the field encouraged me to try new things out in my own organisational context."
"I have come away from the course understanding that deciding to have a flat structure was just the first step for us. There is a lot of work to be done to build the structures and processes that we need to thrive. The Hum has given us the tools and the inspiration to help us on this journey. I feel much more confident about trying new ways of organising."
Book your place
To make this workshop more accessible we have a tiered ticket price $550 /$750/ $950.
We have limited availability, please choose the ticket price according to your financial circumstances.
When you buy a course you are contributing to our scholarship fund.
We provide scholarships for low income people working on social impact projects, who wouldn't otherwise have access. If you would like to apply for a scholarship, fill in this form.
Self-organising Teams
We’ve been on a research project, working with self-organising teams in more than 20 countries to understand the patterns of decentralised organising. We wanted to know:
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What are the common challenges that people face when they try to organise with decentralised authority?
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And what are the tools, practices, and mental models that make the most difference?
We’ve found some concrete, reliable answers. The self-organising teams that are really thriving have some common patterns:
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They’re guided by a more meaningful purpose than simply maximising profit.
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They have the heartbeat of a living organism, with a regular practice of reflecting and learning from experiments.
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They can switch between decision-making methods depending on context, sometimes building consensus, sometimes acting autonomously.
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They know how to create psychological safety. They treat work as a place to learn about themselves and to grow.
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They prioritise transparency and use dependable planning & communication rhythms to prevent information overload.
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They have clear ways to distribute tasks and roles, and keep them fluid and adaptable, not set in stone.
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They create accountability through peer-to-peer agreements instead of the threat of punishment.
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They can break the taboos that make it hard to talk about subjects like money & team power dynamics
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They prioritise relationships, and recognise that building a healthy culture requires real work.
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They have a culture of feedback, with reliable processes to transform conflict into a source of growth.
In this 2-day intensive training, we’ll introduce tools & practices for each of these 10 patterns. You will leave with a much clearer understanding of your team challenges, and a plan for how you can implement these new practices that have been tested and proven in other teams.
Our training methodology
Our training method combines four elements:
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Our knowledge is rooted in our lived experience in our own organisations at the forefront of collaborative work practice.
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We bring examples from different groups around the world, as well as research from academic studies.
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We host participatory learning exercises for participants to reflect on how these lessons apply in their group context.
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We don’t arrive with predetermined solutions, instead we facilitate conversations for people to co-design solutions that are right for them.
