How the WSPro Frameworks Fit Together
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Summary Answer: The is a management paradigm which outlines the frameworks top performing ICs and managers have mastered.
To start, we should define our terminology and the differences between a framework and a skill.
Rank and Review is a framework - a way of thinking about managing talent that includes ranking your team with a simple metric.
This framework can be carried with you from team to team and you could even apply this mindset at a different company.
‘Doing’ a Rank and Review is a skill, like juggling - some people can do it and some people can’t.
A skill can be taught, learned, and mastered with practice. During Manager RemoteUniversity, you will not only be introduced to the frameworks but also be equipped with the skills to execute them.
In order to graduate Manager RemoteU: managers need to have:
1. Learned the IC-level and manager-level WSPro frameworks on
2. Mastered the skills to implement the frameworks (as evaluated by their deliverable)
3. Successfully integrated into our culture by meeting our aggressive standards and demonstrating the courage to solve the hardest problems
In the WSPro Framework matrix, notice the horizontal element which organizes the frameworks in rows 2 and 3.
Since the job of an individual contributor and a manager are different, there are distinct manager-level frameworks and IC-level frameworks.
Likewise, there are different Remote Universities; managers go to Manager Remote University and engineers go to Engineering Remote University.
The ‘higher-level’ Remote University equips participants with the frameworks and skills for their corresponding level as well as the frameworks and skills for the level below.
This means if you are in Manager Remote University, you are also responsible for developing mastery of the IC-level skills.
Some managers get concerned or frustrated when they see their worksheet begin to discuss the same problem over and over. However, this is actually a healthy pattern that is expected. Great Manager Remote University worksheets have had just a few core decisions which were reinforced over and over with the other slides and frameworks.
Think of each framework and slide as a new perspective - a lens - on the same set of core problems. When analyzing your team’s core challenges, you may put on your Rank and Review ‘glasses’ and record your observations. Then you may pick up your Deep Dive ‘glasses’ and see the problem in a new light. You may very well come to the same conclusion after doing Deep Dives and Rank and Review but they will each give you a unique perspective.
You can also think of each framework as a tool in your manager toolbox. Once you’ve identified the right solution for your team, each framework will help you construct it. Consider all kinds of tools you need when building a house. It’s the same while managing teams here - at times you’ll need to rely heavily on Rank and Review and other times your Gemba walks will deliver exactly what you need.
This list demonstrates how the frameworks flow, or fit, with each other. The point of Manager Remote University is not to memorize the steps for 15 independent frameworks. The point is to learn a new management paradigm - a paradigm that includes 15 interwoven frameworks which are applied at the right time with discretion. (This list is not exhaustive…..what connections between the frameworks have you seen?)
Once you’ve personally reviewed every unit for quality, you should have a clear view and hard data on which IC has the highest quality, which IC has the lowest quality, and everyone in between.
This sets you up perfectly for a Rank and Review. Once you have a clean Rank and Review, you’ve already done the hard work necessary for your S2G decision.
As you enforce the quality bar, you’ll certainly uncover units that failed the quality bar. For each one of these units, you should do a deep dive.
Once you’ve identified the root cause for these failures, you should do Gemba Walks specifically looking for instances of the root cause. Then, you should drive your Daily CiCs with a question that leads to this root cause.
If you’ve found specific examples in your Gemba Walks, your Daily CiCs are a great time to review them with your ICs.
Once you’ve found tools that can 2x your team’s productivity, you are set up to personally produce a unit for your ZBT that will take at least ½ of the time of your TMS.
Once you have an aggressive ZBT, you are ready to reevaluate your team’s TMS based calendar or establish a new one.
Once you’ve personally reviewed every unit for quality, you may notice your team’s process is missing a key step.
This can be confirmed or refined by a fresh TMS. If you find a missing hole, spending the time to deepen your expertise can lead to findings that fix your team’s process.
After reading this, you may be tempted to take an insight you develop early in the program and ram it through all the frameworks. Don’t do this.
Approach each framework as a unique exercise with an open mind. If you attempt to apply a framework looking for a certain outcome, you may miss the deeper learning which will be obvious to your coach.
This is a warning against the well-known phenomenon of human confirmation bias.
For more info on Engineering Remote University, read the .
As you go through Manager RemoteUniversity, you’ll notice themes begin to repeat themselves in your worksheet. Your may have a lot of coaching for specific quality failures, your may reveal a lot of quality mistakes, your may reveal process issues which are leading to quality failures and on and on.
As you use the WSPro frameworks, you may end up proving that an observation you had is not the core problem, rather than using the frameworks to reinforce initial views on a problem. During a you may be introduced to an idea from an IC’s perspective. However, as you , conduct , and do Gemba Walks, you discover that the original idea is totally not the core issue. So in one sense, you’re also looking to disprove your thesis as you execute the frameworks.