Evolving the Agile Organization [1]: Organizational Design and Culture - Forget building trust, focus on psychological safety

Question 1

What is Psychological safety?

Answer 1

• the belief that no one will be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns or mistakes
  
  • group-level construct → something experienced by the entire group
  • As a group, each individual perceives that the group will give them the benefit of the doubt when they take a risk
  • group based characteristic based on the level on interpersonal safety each of the members of the team experience

Question 2

Difference between trust and safety

Answer 2

The presence or absence of psychological safety tends to be experienced at the group level of analysis (Edmondson, 1999a), unlike trust, which pertains primarily to a dyadic (interaction between two things) relationship –whether between individuals or collectives such as firms (as in supplier relationships).

Question 3

How to build psychological safety?

Answer 3

• Frame the work as a learning problem, as opposed to an execution problem
  
  • Acknowledging that we know less then we do know frames the work as a learning problem
• Acknowledge you own fallibility
  
  • Acknowledge you don’t know everything and inviting people to come to help
  • e.g. ask people what abbreviations mean
• Model curiosity by asking a lot of questions
  
  • Scrum framework
  • focussed events where asking questions and engaging in conversation is facilitated

Question 4

Psychological safety - in general, what does this mean?

Answer 4

letting up on the breaks - free others to speak up and engage!

Question 5

Are psychological safety and accountability different?

Answer 5

should be consider two separate aspects! i.e. no trade off needed

Question 6

What is the Learning Zone?

Answer 6

High psychological safety and high motivation and accountability

Question 7

What is the Comfort Zone?

Answer 7

High psychological safety and low motivation and accountability

Question 8

What is the Anxiety Zone?

Answer 8

Low psychological safety and high motivation and accountability

Question 9

What is the Apathy Zone?

Answer 9

Low psychological safety and low motivation and accountability

Question 10

When is psychological safety crutial?

Answer 10

If you have uncertainty and interdependence