Stop assigning teams. Let people choose (Podcast)
David Mole and I sat down with Biunca Hooper of the Business Agility podcast to talk about self-selecting teams: why it works, where it fails, and the simple guardrails that make it robust, not chaotic.
“Self-selection isn’t a trust fall. It’s disciplined autonomy.”
Listen or watch
Read: Creating Great Teams: How Self-Selection Lets People Excel (Second Edition) : https://www.amazon.com/Creating-Great-Teams-Second-Self-Selection/
Why it matters
Most organisations still assign people to teams. It’s slow. It creates politics. And it ignores the adults in the room. Self-selection flips that. People choose their team using clear constraints and three questions. The result is faster team formation, stronger buy-in, better fit.
The three questions
What can I learn?
What can I contribute?
What is fair to the company?
These aren’t feel-good prompts. They force real trade-offs and surface intent.
What we cover in the episode
How to prepare so “self-selection day” isn’t chaos
The leader’s role: set non-negotiables and then back the outcomes
How to define real options across streams and products
Handling skills gaps and “must-have” roles without gaming the process
Common anti-patterns (and how to avoid them)
Results we see again and again: speed, commitment and happier people
Want help to run it?
We’ve facilitated self-selection across sizes and industries. If you want a dry run, training, or a full event, get in touch!