Understanding Collegial Leadership

Collegial Leadership.
Clear. Structured. Effective.

Leadership does not have to come from the top. Collegial Leadership distributes responsibility across everyone, creates clear structures and makes organisations more resilient.

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Distributed Leadership Work

Decisions are made where the need arises. Not at the top of the hierarchy.

Personal Accountability as a Core Principle

Every person takes responsibility within their own area of accountability. This strengthens motivation and quality.

In Practice Since 2016

me&me supports organisations on their path to Collegial Leadership. With experience, not theory.

The Core Principle

What Collegial Leadership really means

Collegial Leadership is not a fixed system you implement. It is an organisational mindset lived in everyday practice. Three principles are at its core.

Decentralised Decisions

Decisions are made where the need arises. Not at the top of the hierarchy. This makes organisations faster and closer to the market.

Shared Responsibility

Leadership work is distributed across all employees. Every person takes responsibility within their own area. This strengthens accountability and engagement.

Clear Structures

Collegial Leadership does not mean chaos. Clear roles, circle structures and processes create orientation. Structure and agility are not mutually exclusive.

Identifying Features

How you recognise Collegial Leadership

These features show whether Collegial Leadership is truly lived in an organisation. Expand the items to learn more.

Radical Decentralisation

Direct communication between the relevant people. No long escalation paths. Whoever knows the need makes the decision.

Value-Creating Teams

Cross-functional teams cover all functions and disciplines relevant to the value chain. No waiting for other departments.

Effective Team Sizes (10/200)

Teams have a maximum of 10 members. Business units a maximum of 200. These sizes are no coincidence: they enable genuine connection and direct communication.

Absolute Personal Accountability

Freedom to shape and decide within one’s own area of accountability is a core principle. Whoever bears responsibility can also act.

Internal Transparency

The more responsibility is shared, the more important it is that everyone is well informed. Without information, self-governance does not work.

Agile Planning

In a dynamic environment, long-term planning offers little certainty. The ability to respond quickly is more valuable than detailed annual plans.

Collective Profit Sharing

No individual bonuses or performance-related pay. Success belongs to everyone. This strengthens collaboration instead of internal competition.

Circle Structure Principle

The circle symbolises equality and connection. It effectively prevents the concentration of power in a few individuals. Addition by me&me.

External Reference

The organisation increasingly orients itself around the question of where value is created for customers. Not around what would be easier internally. Addition by me&me.

No certificate, no threshold Unlike Holacracy, Collegial Leadership has no certificate. These features are reference points, not a checklist. Collegial Leadership is a mindset, not a blueprint.

Background

How Collegial Leadership came about

Collegial Leadership is not a theory from a textbook. It emerged from years of practice. Bernd Oestereich and Claudia Schröder gradually transformed their own company into a self-led organisation.

The story behind the model

Bernd Oestereich and Claudia Schröder developed the oose cooperative in Hamburg over many years towards an agile and self-led organisation. In doing so, they combined ideas from very different schools of thought.

They engaged deeply with Holacracy and Sociocracy and connected these with tools from agile working. Scrum, Kanban, systems theory and reflective practice came together. The result is a synthesis understood as a modern alternative to pyramid or matrix organisations.

Through continuous experiments over the years, a wealth of experience emerged that allowed oose GmbH to mature into a self-directed, learning and adaptive organisation. In the end, both recognised: the company works without them.

me&me contributed its own insights to the second book “Agile Organisational Development”, which was acknowledged with a thank-you in the book.

Influences and sources

Collegial Leadership is a synthesis of several schools of thought: sociocratic and holacratic circle organisation, network organisation, systems theory, systemic organisational development and the reflective practice of agile companies.

This diversity is a strength, not a weakness. Collegial Leadership is not a closed system with a certificate, but an open model that adapts to each organisation.

The book on Collegial Leadership

Oestereich & Schröder have summarised their knowledge in two books. Not a recipe, but thinking tools for a new way of leading.

Collegial Leadership

Oestereich & Schröder. Thinking tools for a new way of leading.

To the book

Classification

Collegial Leadership and Holacracy: What is the difference?

Both models aim to break down hierarchies and strengthen personal accountability. Yet they differ in important ways. Expand to learn more.

What do both have in common?

Both Holacracy and Collegial Leadership are modern leadership systems that enable organisations to respond faster and more effectively to a complex market environment.

Both distribute leadership work across many shoulders, rely on clear roles rather than titles and promote personal accountability. Both are understood as alternatives to the classic pyramid organisation.

What distinguishes them from each other?

Feature	Holacracy	Collegial Leadership
Certification	Legally protected, clear criteria	No certificate, open model
Flexibility	Clear rulebook (constitution)	Adaptable to each organisation
Getting started	Full implementation required	Gradual introduction possible
Focus	Roles and governance processes	Mindset, principles and tools
Origin	Brian Robertson, USA	Oestereich & Schröder, Germany

Which model suits your organisation?

It depends on your organisation. Holacracy suits organisations that want a clear, binding rulebook. Collegial Leadership suits organisations that want to transform gradually and adapted to their own reality.

me&me supports organisations on their path to Collegial Leadership. We help you find out which elements suit your organisation and how to get started.

Collegial Leadership and AI

Collegial Leadership has always been a response to complexity

Clear roles, distributed responsibility, personal accountability in everyday work. These are precisely the structures that make organisations more resilient today. AI asks the same questions that Collegial Leadership has long been asking.

More about the me&me model

Question 1

Who bears responsibility?

In collegially led organisations this is clearly defined. Every role has a defined area of accountability. AI does not change that — it makes it more visible.

Question 2

Who decides what?

Decentralised decision structures are more robust against automation. Those who can decide remain relevant. Those who only execute get replaced.

Question 3

How do people stay at the centre?

Collegial Leadership places people at the centre of the organisation. This is not a contradiction to AI, but the prerequisite for its meaningful use.

Your Starting Point

How you get started with Collegial Leadership

Three ways to get to know Collegial Leadership and embed it in your organisation.

Free of charge

Digital Introduction Module

Get to know Collegial Leadership at your own pace. The free e-learning module explains the foundations, principles and tools. No registration, no commitment.

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8 weeks

Empowered Team in 8 Weeks

A structured online programme for teams that want to practise personal accountability concretely. With clear steps, reflection tasks and direct application in everyday work.

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Personal

Support by me&me

Since 2016 we have been supporting organisations on their individual transformation journey. We help you find out which elements suit your organisation and how to make it work.

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Collegial Leadership experience, not just understand

Start with the free introduction module or book an initial conversation with us. We help you find out whether and how Collegial Leadership suits your organisation.

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Next Steps