????你還記得公司剛剛起步時的工作情形嗎？一切都很好。面對變化，你反應(yīng)迅速。你有能力在幾周、甚至幾天內(nèi)推出新的項目，而且經(jīng)?？梢宰龅竭@一點?？焖俚恼{(diào)整只需要老板點頭即可通過，然后就能迅速看到成果。

????接下來，你到了一家大公司，開始擔任要職。從此，情況有了變化——速度下降，成本上升，受到繁文縟節(jié)的束縛，不那么實際，也不那么有試驗性。這是因為大公司比較復(fù)雜。面對復(fù)雜局面時，我們就會變得緊張。我們需要結(jié)構(gòu)、政策、責任和條例方面的確定性以及合作，以便消除我們的緊張情緒。

????我們無法改變我們對復(fù)雜事物的恐懼，也無法改變我們的控制欲。那么，怎樣做才能讓我們的公司保持活力呢？甚至是在它不斷增長的情況下？怎樣做才能確保創(chuàng)新能力不消失呢？

????1. 工作指南，而非政策

????隨著公司增長，人們通常會試圖通過政策和程序讓公司的成員保持活力。規(guī)定帶來一致性，從理論上講，這會讓整個公司保持統(tǒng)一。

????我們對合作以及控制有自然而然的傾向性，對此我們不應(yīng)試圖予以抗拒。實際上，幾乎不會有人對整齊劃一的好處提出異議。但和緊抱嚴格規(guī)定不放相比，有一種做法更勝一籌。

????四年的時間里，Atlassian的員工人數(shù)從100人增加到了700人。我們設(shè)法不讓條例那么僵硬，而且我們更青睞于提供指南。區(qū)別在哪里？舉例來說，我們的《Atlassian設(shè)計指南》（Atlassian Design Guidelines）就是一個提供設(shè)計組件和設(shè)計原則的在線資源庫。它指導(dǎo)人們?nèi)绾螛?gòu)建Atlassian的產(chǎn)品和插件。這個工具不會干擾開發(fā)人員的設(shè)計，它只是幫助他們加快工作進度（他們可以迅速地對代碼進行剪切和復(fù)制），這樣開發(fā)人員就能在自由進行嘗試的同時保持基本的一致性。指南和規(guī)定不同，規(guī)定的意思是“你必須這樣做”，指南則讓人獲得回旋余地，從而更好、更快地完成工作。

????2. 自由活動

????Atlassian每個季度都會舉辦一次名叫ShipIt Day的活動。公司會選擇在某個周四的中午開始這項活動。人們放下手中的工作，每個參與團隊都會按照自己的業(yè)余愛好著手開展一個項目。24小時后，每個團隊都要向同事們介紹他們的創(chuàng)意，然后由大家投票選出獲勝者。六年來，700個出自這項活動的點子成了我們的產(chǎn)品。

????給人們自由和空間，讓他們實施自己的項目，培養(yǎng)自己的興趣愛好，這樣能鼓勵他們采用新方法來開展工作，同時在不受到負面影響的情況下嘗試自己的想法。大多數(shù)公司都抹殺了人們思考新事物、嘗試新事物的空間——結(jié)果導(dǎo)致太多的人變成了日常要緊事務(wù)的奴隸。

????Remember working for that start-up? Things were good. You responded quickly to change. You could, and often did, roll out new programs within weeks or days. Your boss approved quick changes with a simple nod. And you got results -- fast.

????Then you moved to an important role at a big enterprise. Things were different -- slower, costlier, stuck in red tape, less tangible, less experimental. That's because big organizations are complex. And when we are accosted by complexity, we get anxious. We need certainty and coordination -- in the form of structures, policies, responsibilities, and rules -- to push that fear away.

????We can't change our fear of complexity, nor our desire for control. So, what can we do to keep our organizations agile -- even as they grow? How can we ensure that innovation doesn't get crushed?

????1. Practical guidelines, not policies

????As organizations grow, they typically try to align people though policies and procedures. Rules offer consistency and, so the theory goes, coherence throughout the organization.

????We shouldn't try to fight the natural tendency toward coordination and control. As a matter of fact, few people will argue against the benefits of consistency. But there's a better way to do this than to insist on rigid rules.

????At Atlassian, we've grown from 100 to 700 staff in the last four years. We try to limit hard rules. We favor guidelines instead. What's the difference? Take, for instance, our Atlassian Design Guidelines, which is an online resource with design components and principles. It provides guidance on how to build Atlassian products and add-ons. The tool doesn't interfere with the developers' design process; it just helps them work faster (they can quickly cut and paste code) so they can experiment freely while still retaining a base level of consistency. Unlike rules—which say "you must do this"—guidelines give your people latitude to get the job done better and faster.

????2. Ritualize autonomy

????Every quarter, Atlassian goes through a ritual called ShipIt Day. The organization halts at noon on a Thursday and every participating team starts working on a pet project of their choice. Twenty-four hours later, teams present their idea to the rest of the organization and everyone votes for a winner. Over the course of six years, 700 ideas have made their way into production.

????Giving people the freedom and space to pursue their own projects and interests encourages them to anticipate new ways of doing things and test their ideas without repercussions. Most organizations eliminate the space to think up new things and experiment -- too many are slaves to the urgent matters of the day.