Distinction Dynamics: A Form Analysis of Self-Descriptions in Agile Teams

Abstract Teams are the backbone and the most successful form of cooperation in contemporary product development organizations. Based on the agile mindset, many best practices of team organization have emerged. However, real teams do not always follow the blueprints of the methodology. They represent the complexity they face, which becomes evident in a situation where a global pandemic brings about dramatic changes in the contexts they operate in. This study is based on consultations with teams that sought outside support maneuvering their way through this complexity, and it looks for patterns in how they coped. How do teams describe their own journey? How do they set a focus and develop as teams? The study aims to identify and describe functional dynamics of decision-making in teams, to understand how structure and semantics, traditionally seen as separate, are interrelated in their morphogenesis.