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?
If you've made it this far, it's worth connecting with our principal consultant and coach, Martin Hinshelwood, for a 30-minute 'ask me anything' call.
We partner with businesses across diverse industries, including finance, insurance, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, technology, engineering, transportation, hospitality, entertainment, legal, government, and military sectors.
Deliotte
Trayport
Boxit Document Solutions
Emerson Process Management
Slicedbread
Hubtel Ghana
NIT A/S
Big Data for Humans
Brandes Investment Partners L.P.
CR2
Schlumberger
Bistech
Higher Education Statistics Agency
Microsoft
Healthgrades
DFDS
Alignment Healthcare
Boeing
Washington Department of Transport
Washington Department of Enterprise Services
Ghana Police Service
Nottingham County Council
New Hampshire Supreme Court
Department of Work and Pensions (UK)
YearUp.org
ALS Life Sciences
Freadom
Cognizant Microsoft Business Group (MBG)
Sage
Illumina