Ep. 91 Miquel, Blanca and Pau from Deerns Spain on becoming a self-managing engineering company
Sep 26, 2023
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Deerns Spain shares their journey to become a self-managing engineering company. They discuss their transformation process, self-managing salary process, addressing conflicts, emotional KPIs, and future plans. They also explore the challenges of work-life balance and the importance of self-care.
Collective decision-making and fostering trust have been key in Dan's Spain's successful transformation journey.
Implementing a feedback culture and providing support for conflict resolution has enhanced collaboration and teamwork at Dan's Spain.
Deep dives
The Transformation Journey of Dan's Spain
Dan's Spain embarked on a transformation journey after attending a K2K Emosianando webinar. Inspired by the webinar, the organization's Managing Director, Miguel Castelvi, obtained the mandate from the owners and launched the transformation process in March 2020. The process involved developing a new organizational structure, implementing self-managed salary processes, addressing conflicts, and emphasizing the importance of being a learning organization. Despite initial challenges and resistance, the organization has successfully embraced the new ways of working, leading to high engagement and commercial success. The process of building and evolving the organization is ongoing, with a focus on reducing energy expenditure, prioritizing well-being, and improving processes.
Establishing a Collective and Fostering Trust
One of the key learnings from Dan's Spain's transformation journey is the power of collective decision-making and fostering trust. Through shared goals, trust-building exercises, and understanding each other's perspectives, the organization has been able to make more informed and powerful decisions. The collective approach has also facilitated shared responsibility and accountability, leading to a stronger sense of belonging and a more resilient organization. Dan's Spain values the growth and development of individuals within the collective, allowing freedom to pursue different directions and fostering continuous learning and improvement.
Addressing Feedback and Managing Conflicts
Giving and receiving feedback has been an integral part of the transformation process at Dan's Spain. The organization has implemented group appraisals and individual feedback sessions to ensure open communication and continuous improvement. By creating a safe and supportive environment for feedback, teams are able to address conflicts and provide constructive feedback to enhance collaboration and teamwork. Additionally, the organization is exploring external support, such as mediation and coaching, to navigate conflicts and promote emotional well-being within the organization.
Future Outlook and Words of Wisdom
Looking ahead, Dan's Spain aims to consolidate its transformation journey and focus on smoother operations and employee well-being. The organization is developing policies that prioritize self-care, including the implementation of unlimited vacations. Recognizing the power of sharing experiences, Dan's Spain actively seeks opportunities to inspire other organizations by sharing their story and promoting new ways of working. Finally, Miguel Castelvi offers his advice to others embarking on a similar transformation journey, emphasizing the importance of trust, collective decision-making, and taking the time to develop a strong and resilient organization.
Deerns Spain, a team of around 60 engineers, has been on a transformation journey since March 2020. Inspired by K2K Emocionando, they now work without managers which means that everyone is “creating our company all the time”. I talked to Miquel Castellvi (General Coordinator), Blanca Capdevila (People & Culture) and Pau Riera (Commitment Coordinator) who shared stories about how they changed their organisational structure, their self-managing salary process, giving feedback and dealing with conflicts, and the role of the Values and Culture team.