Prime/OS defines a repeatable technique for introducing change into your organization. It is based on the power of invitation and the ability of teams, departments and organizations to achieve high performance quickly when they are engaged in helping to create the process.
Prime/OS is a methodology. It can be used to introduce any kind of procedural or cultural change. It works with what you are currently doing, and can be added at any time. A hypothesis of Prime/OS is that increases in engagement drive increases in productivity, after a brief delay. The purpose of Prime/OS is to increase levels of engagement on the part of everyone involved.
The core concept of Prime/OS is the rite of passage or "passage rite". A passage rite is a cultural event (and a kind of social game) that helps people who have membership make sense of complex social transitions. Agile adoptions are complex social transitions.
Prime/OS Core Elements
- Prime/OS Phase 1: Introduction. Experiencing engagement via opt-in participation and OpenSpace.
- Opening Consulting with the Leadership by Consultant.
- Game Mechanics: Goal, Rules, Scoring, Opt-in.
- Invitation as Primary Opt-in mechanism.
- OST-1 (initial OpenSpace meeting):
- Minimum of 1 day of OpenSpace (2 is preferred).
- Minimum of 90 days of experiments playing with practice, between the scheduled OpenSpace events.
- Output is learning and some deliveries.
- Leadership signaling with Storytelling (and other highly symbolic behaviors).
- OST-2 (second OpenSpace meeting, which terminates "Chapter 1" of the process change and opens "Chapter 2" of the organizational "story" of the change.)
- Follow-up. Closing consulting with Leadership.
- Processing the proceedings.
- Leadership signaling with storytelling (and other highly symbolic behaviors.)
- The Coaching consultant delivers on what to possibly consider next.
- The coaching consultant vacates the org and does not communicate with it for at least 1 month, to trigger self-sustaining self-organization behaviors on the part of the org.
- Prime/OS Phase 2: Competence. Recurring OST events.
- Minimum 1 year.
- Evidence must be present first that the org has processed and completed Phase 1.
- Several "Chapters" of learning, bound by 2 OpenSpace.
- Repeat Prime/OS's OpenSpace events approximately every 6 months, typically in January and June until the org reaches Phase 3.
- Prime/OS Phase 3: Mastery. No more scheduled events, due to a maturing of the org.
- Instead of scheduling OpenSpace events in a fixed schedule, the org senses and response t the need for periodic, "as-needed" OpenSpace events.
- Evidence must be present first, that the org has reached Phase 2.
- The scheduled OpenSpace events become less interesting.
- The org can consistently demonstrate "safe space".
- The org has made substantial changes to the HR policies with the intent to support Prime/OS Phase 3 culture.
- The org is hiring and firing based on cultural fit.
- The org has established norms for dealing with the ongoing conflict which is a natural consequence of independent thinkers working together in a volatile, high-change business environment.
