Chapter 1: Understanding Autonomy in Business

The benefits of autonomy in the workplace are widely recognized. Numerous studies indicate its positive impact, but one recent research project stands out.

How significant is this research?

Conducted by Narayan Ramasubbu and Indranil R. Bardhan, this study monitored productivity and customer satisfaction across 461 software development projects over five years within a prominent software firm.

This research is grounded in real-world applications.

Indeed, conducting long-term studies in such environments poses challenges. This particular firm employed 125,000 software developers globally, working on projects that closely followed a monitored operational model.

How did they set up the study?

Managers from 146 projects were granted the freedom to shape their projects according to their preferences, utilizing three primary controls: managing time and location differences among team members, varying process diversity (such as lean versus structured approaches), and determining the level of managerial oversight.

Thus, managers were able to select the project framework that best suited their team, rather than adhering to a centrally imposed structure.

What outcomes were observed?

The findings were remarkable. In software development, productivity is often gauged in function points, which serve as a reliable indicator of a product's functionality. An increase in function points signifies greater value added to the software.

Teams that embraced autonomy demonstrated a 39% rise in function points!

Additionally, customer satisfaction experienced a notable increase of 2.95%, which is considered significant in this context.

Given these outcomes, why aren't more organizations implementing autonomy?

While many companies recognize its advantages, striking a balance between autonomy, quality, and process control can be challenging. Nevertheless, the compelling results of this study should encourage organizations to reconsider their approach, especially considering the depth of the research conducted.

Cheers to the power of autonomy!

Absolutely! Now, if you'll excuse me, I’ll enjoy a cup of tea after wrapping this up.

Reference:

Narayan Ramasubbu and Indranil R. Bardhan.

Reconfiguring for Agility: Examining the Performance Implications for Project Team Autonomy Through an Organizational Policy Experiment. MIS Quarterly, 2021

Andy shares insights daily on the intersection of the brain, behavior, and business. Follow for your daily updates. For more, see the full list and reviews.

Andy is also the author of "Leading Brains," a monthly e-magazine dedicated to exploring the connections between brain science, behavior, and business.

Chapter 2: The Study's Methodology and Findings

The methodology of this study involved tracking the performance of diverse project teams, providing insights into the relationship between autonomy and productivity.