TribalLeadershipTechniquesThroughtheEyesofanAgilist GAËTANBELBÉOC’H,ADEOGroup

Afterspending15yearsleadingAgileteamsaroundtheworld,IspentclosetoayearintheheartoftheAmazonjungleintwoofthemostremoteindigenousreservesinBrazilvisitingandlivingwithindigenoustribes.Iobservedtribalritualsandleadershippracticesthroughtheeyesofmyexperienceinagility.IwishtosharesomeofthoseinsightswiththeAgilecommunity.

1. INTRODUCTION

During the year I spent on a social projectwith indigenous tribes in theBrazilianAmazon rainforest, Iwasinspiredbytheirpeculiarleadershippractices.Nightlycirclegatheringroundsofdiscussions,regularvisitstoneighboringvillageswithritualizeddiscussionsaswellasmanyintriguingdailypractices.

WhenIcamebacktoEurope,Ihadtoquicklyreturntoamuchdifferentreality,goingbacktoleadingAgileteamsonacomplexproject.Theprojectwasquicklygrowing.Inalittleoverayear,Iwasinchargeofleading10featureteams,withthechallengeofbalancingautonomyandalignment.IdecidedtoexperimentpreservingthesimplicityofXPby implementingsomeof thepractices Ihadseenduringmyyear in therainforest.Thisreportisanattemptatsummarizingthreeyearsofexperiments.

Mystaywithinindigenoustribeswasdividedintwomajorindigenousreserves.Thefirstone,closetotheRioNegrowhereIwasinvitedbytwoNGOs(ISAInstitutoSocioambiental,andCCYPComissãoPró-Yanomami).The first one aimed at installing a radio relay at a summit close to the highestmountain of Brazil (Pico daNeblina)inthemiddleoftheYanomamiReserve[Leite],with6indigenousSherpascarryingequipmentand2anthropologists. The second one aimed at installing andmaintaining HF antennas and radio stations in 11remotevillagesintheYanomamireserve,10dayscanoeupstreamoftheRioMarauia,alonewithaShamanandan indigenous “interpreter” speaking rudiments of Brazilian Portuguese. The second part of my stay wasupstream of an affluent river of the Rio Solimoes,which is itself themain tributary to the Amazon River. IfollowedmywifeonamissionfortheUnivaja[Univaja]tohelpdocumenttraditionalagriculturalprocessesofMarubotribes,twoweeksbymotorboatupstreamofRioCuruça.Itookpartintheprojecthelpingdocumentritualsandtraditionalprocessesintheareasoffishingandhuntinginvolvingmostlymen.

Figure1.YanomamiIndigenousTerritoryFigure2.ValedoJavariIndigenousTerritory Author’saddress:GaëtanBelbéoc’h;email:gbelbe@gmail.comCopyright2021isheldbytheauthor(s).

TribalLeadershipTechniquesfromtheAmazonRainforestthroughtheEyesofanAgilist:Page-2

ThesetworegionsareamongthemostpreservedindigenousareasinBrazil.AccordingtoFabricioAmorimfrom Fundação Nacional do Índio [Wikipedia], the region contains “the greatest concentration of isolatedgroupsintheAmazonandtheworld”.Althoughwehavevisitedmanydifferentethnicgroupsduringourstay,we spentmost of our timewith the Yanomami and theMarubo. Coming from far away regions, they havedifferentcultures.

2. BACKTOREALITY:FROMTHEJUNGLETOTHEOFFICE

ByOctober2017,ourstaywasover;weknewwehadtocomeback.Ourprojectwasfinishedandstayingmorewouldcosttoomuchtothecommunitywhowassupplyingfoodandcaretoourfamily.WewereinvitedbythesonoftheTuxaua(localleader),ashewantedtodocumenttheknowledgeofhisculturewhenitwasstilllively.Meetingwithotherscommunitiesclosertocivilization,heknewthedamageitcoulddotoit,attractingyouthoutsideoftheforestandleavingvillagesdeprivedoftheiryouth.Involvingtheyouthtoshareanddocumenttheircommunity’sknowledgehelpedthemrealizehowprofoundandinterestingitis.Ourrecurrentquestionsand astonishment at many basic parts of their life (at least for them)made us look silly, and—we hope—contributedtovalorizetheirfantasticknowledge.

Thewaybackwashard.Ourfamily(mywife,myself,andourtwodaughters4,and7yearsold)sharedthespace of a smallwooden canoewith aMarubo family of 6.Wewent downstream the CuruçaRiver for twoweeks,stoppingonlyatnight,sleepingonthebanksoftheriver,hangingourhammocksclosetogetheraroundasmallcampfire.Ourfriendscaughtfishandhuntedalongtheway,stoppingatthesmellofgame.Foodwasscarceandthemeatspoiledquicklymakingussufferlonglastingstomachproblems.Duetoextremehumidityandheat,Isufferedfromafootinfectionthatquicklyrenderedmeunabletowalk.Thankstotheoldestwomansharing our canoe, I recovered after a few days, but soon—in the middle of the night—the boat capsized,hurtingtheriverbanksideways.Therewasstilloneweekoftraveltocomebackhome.

AmonthlaterIwasbacktomyhomecountry,France.Myprofessionwasnotanthropology.Myexperiencewasofalmost15yearsofleadinglargetech/digitalteams.BeforeIcouldrealizewhatwashappening,Imetaformercolleaguethathadbecomethegroup’sCTO.HeknewwhatIhadachievedattheBrazilianSubsidiary[Belbéoc’h],andofferedthatItakeoverastrategicprojectfordevelopingthedigitalpublicationplatformforthegroup,aprojectthatwasfamousinthecompanyforhavingfailedthreetimes,overaperiodof10years.Ihadnotyetreconnectedwithmyowncultureandwasstrugglingwiththebureaucracyneededtoconnectthefamily back to the French system. After a year in the middle of the forest with no money, no stores, nocommunicationwhatsoever, Iwas left in a state ofmental distress, feeling a profound loss ofmeaning andisolation.IbelievethisisthereasonIjumpedontheopportunity.TomeitwasalmostlikecomingbacktotheAmazonRiver.IwouldexperimentmanagingtheprojectandtheteamthewayIlearnedfromtheYanomamiandtheMarubo.

3. INDIGENOUSTRIBEORGANIZATIONS

WiththeadventofAgile,smallteamsizeshavebeenpreeminentinsoftwaredevelopmentorganizations.Thenow famous “two-pizza-team”, coined by Amazon, has brought it into common tech culture. There is lessagreement when we speak on larger scale organizations. Although the Spotify Model has been adopted ormimicked,othershavefavoredamorestructuredapproachwiththeSAFeframework.

MorerecentlyinteresthasgrownonmultipleAgileteams’organizationandcollaboration,notablywiththebook, Team Topologies [Skelton], and the growing popularity of dynamic governance frameworks such asSociocracy orHolacracy, and its growing adoptionwithin the Agile community. (See for example the BossamodelfromJuttaEckstein[Bossa]).Thesehigher-scaleteamstructuresshareincommonsomeprinciples;theytrytoalignmanysmaller(pizzateams) intoacommonobjective,whilepreservingasmuchaspossibletheirautonomy.Speakingaboutsizinginthesehigher-levelorganizations,theredoesn’tseemtobealotofcommonknowledgeofthe“rightnumbers’’evenintermsofpizzasoratleastanidealnumberofpizza-teams.Oneoftheinsights regarding larger-scale team sizing was brought by Robin Dunbar, a British anthropologist whoproposedamaximumof150personalrelationshipshumanscanmaintain.Thisnumber,knownasthe“Dunbarnumber”, came from extrapolating the relationships developed by primates to humans. Although having aspecific number inmind canhelp, it shouldbe takenwithmuchmore caution at this scale. For a two-pizzateam,itiscommonlyacceptedthatanAgileteamcanbefromaround3toabout10members(afactorof3).Atthehigherscale,ifwehaveinmindtheDunbarnumberthatwouldmeanbetween50to150people.Itshould

TribalLeadershipTechniquesfromtheAmazonRainforestthroughtheEyesofanAgilist:Page-3

betakenonlyasaguidingreferencebutshouldnotunderminethechallengetodefinetheappropriateteam’sorganizationinanefficientway.

Staying with more than 40 villages from more than 10 different ethnic groups was a little like an“acceleratedculturaltraining”whereIhadtointeract,communicateandcollaboratewithpeoplehavingverydifferentculturesthanmine.Ihavetriedtosummarizesomeofreflectionswithasimplifiedmodel.

Figure3:Asimplifiedmodeloftribalorganizations.

Thismodelshowsthreelevelsofimportanceinthetribalorganizations.Intherealanthropologicalsense,itisofcoursemuchmorecomplexwithmanyparentallinksandcrossrelationshipsbuttheaimistomakeiteasiertograspandtocompareitwithAgileteams’environments.Iwillfollowthelayersoforganizationofatraditionalcommunity,showingsomeoftheirritualsandpracticesandhowitcanbeinspirationalforAgileteams:thefamilyorindividuallevel;theCommonhouselevel;andtheCommunitylevel.

Idecidedtofollowabottom-upapproachstartingwithindividualpracticestowardlargergrouppracticesalthoughtheorderdoesn’thaveanythingtodowithimportanceandthethreelevelsaresimplydifferentwaystounderstandtheorganizationoftraditionalindigenouscommunities.

Wewillstartbylookingatindigenouseducationandhowtheydevelopautonomyandresiliencefromtheyoungerage.Wewillthenexplorewhathappenatthecommonhouselevel,whereleadershipandcollaborativedecisionmakingtakeanimportantrole.Thenwe’llfinishourjourneybylookingatsomecommunityritualsandhowtheycanstrengthenthecultureofthetribe.AftereachsectionIwillexplainhowIhaveintegratedtheseinsightsinmypracticeofAgile.

4. INDIVIDUALANDFAMILIALLEVEL

Families are the smallest nucleon in indigenous tribes; they raise their children and take care of their ownsurvival.

4.1 Survivalskills:autonomyandself-responsibilityOnce, after a10-hour exhausting journey carryingheavy radio equipment, I felt upset thatweweren’t evenproposed food or beverage by theYanomami communitieswe visited.When I askedmy expeditionmate, aShaman,whythetribeswerenotwelcomingusandwhytheydidn’tofferussomefood,heexplainedthatthecommunitywouldn’tbewilling tooffendusbyoffering food,but that theywouldbehappy to giveus ifweaskedthem.ThiswasashockformeasthisisthecompleteoppositeofalltheculturesIhadbeenincontactwith. FromEurope toAsia or evenNorthAfrica. In every country I visited, especially in traditional or ruralparts, the stranger that arrives from far away is alwayswelcomedwith somekindof foodandbeverage. InAmazoniantribes,learningtoberesponsibleforhisownsurvivalispartoftheprimalresponsibilityofeveryhumanbeing.Itissuchanimportantprinciplethatitwasconsideredimpolitetoproposefoodtoaguest,asifitwassaying,“Isupposeyouarenotabletotakecareofyourself”.

IndigenoustribesintheAmazonencourageself-sufficiencyandautonomyfromearlychildhood.Beingabletofeedoneselfisofprimordialimportanceintherainforest.MostAmazoniantribesarenomadic,

theywill regularlymove toanewplace for food,hiding fromenemiesorother reasons.Tostaynimbleand

TribalLeadershipTechniquesfromtheAmazonRainforestthroughtheEyesofanAgilist:Page-4

resilient,theymustbeabletosurviveindifficultconditions.Youngchildrenareencouragedtoeattheirownfood to encourage them learning the skills required to gather it, often requiring long practice such as forcatchingfishesandanimals,orriskyclimbingforpickingfruitsatthetopofpalmtrees.

My daughters were trained just like the other children to catch their own fish by hand. Just like otherchildreninthetribetheycouldeattheirowncatchproudlyforlunch.

Following the same principle, Marubo families are responsible for bringing and preparing food forthemselves. Even when they eat together as a community, each family brings and shares the food theyprepared.Theremaybesomesharingbetweenfamiliesbuteachoneisresponsibletobringitsshare.

4.2 TriballeadershipstyleLeadership or responsibilitieswithin the tribe doesn’t bring relief frommaterial and physical duties. In thetribe, children,adults,even leadersorShamans—howeverrespected theymightbe—takecareof theirown.Theygohuntingfortheirownfood,prepareit,maintaintheirhomespaceandequipment...WesawtheoldandrespectedChiefofthetribecleaningandsweepingtheexternalspacearoundthecommonhousehimselfeveryday while other young people were playing nearby. Similarly, during our expedition, the Shaman alwayscarriedheavycarbatteriesonhisshouldersjustasanyoneelsewoulddo.Thishadnothingtodowithprideorbeingarespectedleader.

WhatdoesithavetodowithAgile?Aswithindigenoustribes, it isthedutyofelderstoshowthewaybydoing it for themselves.Oldmembers of the team should show thewayby resolving “seemingly lowvalue”issuesso thatnewcomerscan take thesamespirit.A teamable toavoidbeing “blocked”by low importanceimpedimentswillreduceitsoverallleadtimeandincreasetheflowofdeliveryof“high-value”outcomes.

The simple fact of seeing a respected leader doing a basic chore in front of its team conveys a strongmessage to the team. After seeing a Product Owner waiting weeks for his “white board” to arrive afterrespectingtheformalorderingprocessofthecompany,Iinvitedhimtojoinmeinmycarandwetookadrivetotheclosestofficesuppliesstoretobuy it, thendidanexpensereportwithhimandscreweditonthewallmyself.TheteamwasamazedatwhatIdid,asitwasnotthenormtopurchaseofficefurnituredirectlywithoutfollowingthestandardprocess,andevenlesstodrillholesinthecompany’sopenspacewalls.Theresultswereincreasing the spirit of initiativeofmy team to ahigh standard, recognizedby thewhole company for theirefficiencyandreliability.

Agileculturemeansautonomouscross-functionalteams.ButperformingAgileteams—especiallywithintheXPculture—meansmorethanthat.Itmeansautonomousandreliableindividuals.

Every teammember should be responsible for doing the “dirty” jobswhen it needs to be done. In largebusinessenvironmentsitisoften“blurry”whatteammembersareallowedtodothemselves,especiallywhenthey are not on a permanent contract. This practice can help them take back their responsibility. Teammembersshouldbeeager tosolveproblemsby themselves, so that theycanmoveon.Theyshouldnotwaituntil they receive food from their backlog or that someone else will solve their “bureaucratic” issue.Conversely,theyshouldnotbeafraidtoaskandlookforhelpbythemselveswhentheyneedit.

4.3 Strengtheningrituals,preparingpeopletofacediscomfortDuringmystaywithMarubo,Iobservedsomestrange“physical”rituals.Suchaspeoplebrushingthemselveswithstingingnettleseachmorning,orchildrenhavingtorunthroughwaspnestsoneaftertheother,orgameswhereoneparticipantwastryingtothrowinflamedresinbyagitatingatorchmadefortheoccasion.Physicalritualsarepresentinthedailylifeoftheindigenous.Itisawaytopreparethemforthehardshipoftheirlifeintheforestwheretheyfacemanybitesandscarificationsfrominsects,plantsandwildanimals.Being“trained”fromtheyoungeragemakesthempreparedtosupportfuturehardmoments.

ThisprinciplecanbeveryusefulforXPteams.Ofcourse,thepointisnottoprepareteammemberstothehardnessoftheirofficechairorthebiteofamechanicalkeyboard,butwhatmakestheofficeenvironmenthardfor young XP practitioners is more psychological. They’ll often have to face a very different culture in thecompanytheyworkfor.IftheywanttokeepworkingwithinXPvaluesinsuchanenvironment,theymustbepreparedtoresistbitesandcutsfromdeliverypressure,officepolitics,bureaucracy,communication,andhaverecognized and got accustomed to these dangers. Fatigue, timidity, impatience, bad communication, lack ofcourage to communicate problems in face of external pressure, all these aspects can beworkedwith smallrecurring rituals, so that new team members can recognize them and face them more easily when theyencounteritintherealjungleofahigh-stakesproject.

Inourcurrentteam,forinstance,therearemanyopportunitiesforsuchrituals:fromtheself-presentationspeechinEnglish(foreignlanguageforus)attheweeklydemoinfrontof40+people,tothe“wheelofchance”

TribalLeadershipTechniquesfromtheAmazonRainforestthroughtheEyesofanAgilist:Page-5

random selection for the organization and facilitation of Agile rituals, cross-teamPR validation, face-to-faceinterviewandrecruitmentparticipationfromtheteams.Theobjectivesaretodevelopandtrainemotionalandrelational intelligencewithin our teammembers tomake sure they are fit for thrivingwithin our businessenvironment,notonlyfortechskills.

5. THECOMMONHOUSELEVEL(THEMALOCA)

Common houses, or “Malocas” are wood and palm constructions that host one to a few families. Elders,grandparents, andyoungcoupleshave theirownplacearound the construction.Each familyorganizes theirplacewithafireplaceinthemiddlearoundwhichtheytietheirhammocks,smallbelongingsandfoodreserves.Theyleavetogetherasanextendedfamilysharingstrongties.

5.1 LearningfromyourpeersAgreatdealoftheeducationofchildrenisdoneatthislevel.Childrenfromthesamecommunityplaytogethermixingageandsex.Theyoungeronestrytocopythemoreexperiencedclimbingtreestocatchfruits,catchingfishwiththeirhand,orplayingwithsmallbowsandtheblowpipe.Thiskindoflearningbycopyingsomeoneclosetoone’sageandphysicalabilityisextremelyeffective.Withthesupportandemulationofallchildrenthelearningspeedis impressive.Mydaughters,4and7yearsold,managedtocatchfishbyhandandlearnedtoswimintheriverbysimplyplayingwithotherchildren.

Tospreadgoodpracticesinalargeteamwithoutimposingthem,itisveryefficienttofavorthiskindofpeerlearning.Justlikeindigenouschildrendo,startoffwithabaseofopen-mindedteammembersalreadyattunedto the practices, and let newcomers work with them through pair programming or other collaborativepractices.Theywillquicklyadoptthepracticeandformanewhabit.Latertheywillbeproudtospreadthemtonewcomers,justasthechildthatfinallymanagedtoclimbthetreeiseagertoteachittohisfriends.

5.2 CraftsmanshipmentoringMymissionwiththeMarubowastofollowanddocumenttheircraftsmanship.AlthoughIwillnotdiveonthistopic, craft is to be found almost everywhere in the life of indigenous people, from house constructions tobeautifulwoven sieves, hammocks, pottery for cooking, arrows, body painting, etc.Most of these crafts aremade fromhighly complex andpreciseprocesses,with a goal ofmixingusefulness andbeauty. Passing thisknowledgeisveryimportantfortribes,ascraftispartoftheirculture.Thistransmissionisdonefrom“elders”toyoungsterswhentheyareenteringteenageyears.Theywillspendhoursclosetotheelderslearningsidebyside with direct feedback from them, until they are able to make their own craft by themself. Sometimesachievingtheirfirstcomplexcraftlikeawovenhammockisaproofofreadinessforenteringadulthood.

TransmissioninXPteamscanbenefitfromtheselearnings.Growingteamsshouldbedonewithgreatcare,alwaysunderstandingwellitscomposition.Beforegrowingateam,weshouldbecarefulofpreservingagoodbalance of senior and junior members. Seniority and juniority should be understood in terms of overallexperience aswell as time spentwithin the team.One solution is sometimes tomove an experienced teammembertoanotherteamsothathewillbeabletomentornewcomersandpreserveoverallcraftsmanship.

5.3 Decisionmakingandthe“councilofelders”In almost every village I visited, the Cacique, leader of the tribe, was a very respected man. Many times,however,whenIaskedanimportantquestionthatneededapreciseanswer,heseemedelusiveorindecisive.Iwasperplexed:ifhehadthepowertodecide,whywouldn’thejustanswermesimplyyesorno.Havingspentyears inAsia, I knew it has something todowith culture andwas very curious todiscoverhow indigenousdecideimportantmatters.

One of those situations arose when we were preparing an expedition to install radio stations on someremotetribesupstreamtoariverthatcrossedtheborderfromBraziltoVenezuelaintheYanomamiterritory.Iwantedtoknowwhenwewoulddepart,howlongitwouldtake…howwewouldorganizeforthefoodofmyfamily. Being from very different cultures we were not used to drinking water directly from the river norskippingbothbreakfastandlunch.IknewIhadtobepreciseinthethingsIwantedorneededtomakesuretolimittherisksandbadsurprisesformyfamily.Theleaderseemedindecisiveonmanyofthosequestions.Hewouldnotanswerorsaidhedidn’tknowyet.Iwasstartingtofeelanxious,notknowinghowlongwewouldstayinthisplaceorevenifwewerefinallygoinganywhere...

Afewdayslater,theleaderorganizedsomethingthatlookedtomelikeaninformalgatheringwithvariouspeoplefromthetribe,adultsfromdifferentages,includingmenandwomen.Aboutanhourlater,thedecision

TribalLeadershipTechniquesfromtheAmazonRainforestthroughtheEyesofanAgilist:Page-6

wastaken.IwasgoingtoleavethetribewithaShamanandanotherindigenouswhospokesomePortuguesethenextmorning.Myfamilywouldstayhereassomesaidthiswastooriskyforwomenandchildrentogoasthere were some recent conflicts with kidnapping of women in the most remote villages. The list ofcommunities,theorderinwhichwewouldvisitthem,howweweretocommunicateandfindfoodduringthetrip…manydetailsweredecidedduringthisgathering.Theleaderhadmanagedtotakeacomplex, inclusivedecision,reducingriskstotheminimum.

Ihadjustwitnesseda“council”.Adecision-makingprocessstudiedbymanyanthropologistsinmanypartsof theAmericas, fromNorth toSouth,withasimilarsetting. Indigenous tribal leadersdon’tmake importantdecisionsthemselveswithoutcallingacouncil.Dependingonthetribeorthecommunityandprobablythekindofmattertobedecided,thecompositionofthiscouncilwouldvary.

The leader’s authority for important decision-making comes directly from the tribe through some of itsrepresentativemembers.TheYanomamicallthemthe“Pata”,whichtranslatesinto“bigguys”.Where“big”isamixof“old”and“great/important”.

Theleaderdeliberatesthedecisionwiththe“Pata”.Oncethedecisionhasbeenapprovedbythecouncil,theleaderhasfullauthorityoveritsexecution.Atthismomentonlyhebecomesan“executive”leader.

How does it relate to Agile? I had the opportunity to explore this kind of decision-making process tomanage important decisions for our global team. The team I managed grew rapidly from 20 to about 120members in three years, partly from external hiring, partlywith the integration of new products and theirteams.Maintainingcohesionwasveryimportantifwewantedtopreserveourinitialcultureandpractices.

Wedecidedtoconvenea“circle”eachtimewehadacommonstandardtodiscussoracommonchallengetosolve.WetrainedourselvesonconsentdecisionmakingfromtheSociocracymovement.Ourteamiscontinuingto“callthecouncil”whenneeded,abouttwiceamonthinthepasttwoyears.ThishasresultedinlightweightgovernanceandadeeperconnectionbetweeneachtechleadandPOwhoparticipatesinthesegatherings.Myroleandtheroleofeachteamleaderisthentocommunicateandexecutethedecisionstakenbythegroup.

5.4 TheKawaAmou,thedailymeetingoftheYanomamiDuring my stay with Yanomami, I witnessed astrange ritual that happened at dusk. To betterdescribethisritual,itisimportanttounderstandthesettingofaYanomamivillage.AShabonoisacircle-shapedvillagehomeforahandfultoafewdozen families. Each family has its own space,around a campfire. The construction is builtaround a large cleared clay court. YanomamiparticipatecollectivelyintheconstructionoftheShabono, but each family is responsible for themaintenanceoftheirspace.

Inthetropicalrainforest,duskcomesquicklyaround6p.m.Soundsof the forestarestill loud,andmost families arebackat theirhome spaceinside the Shabono. Yanomami are veryindependent and this is probably the perfectmomenttogetthepresenceofmostpeople.

Atthismoment,whenobscuritystartstobedeepenoughsothatitgetshardtodistinguishevenneighbors,andwhenpeoplearebusyrekindlingfires,theleadercomesoutatthecenterofthevillage.

AstrongvoiceshoutssothatitcanbeheardbyeveryoneintheShabono.Ittriestoovercomethethickairof the rainforest, blend of bird songs, low voice discussions. In the dark, the speaker looks like a figure ofancientGreece.Iwasaskingmyself:whatishereallydoing?Itlookslikenooneisreallylookingathim,busypreparingdinner,restingintheirhammockandchattingwithneighbors.Thenastrongvoicecameshouting,likeareplyfromsomewhereinthecircle-village.Icouldnottellexactlytheoriginofthevoice,probablyduetothemoistairthatdeformedsounds.Amomentlater,asecondvoicecamefromanotherpointinthecircle,asifitwererespondingtothefirst.Thenaftersometimethestrongchantingvoicestartedoverfromthemiddleofthecircle.Icouldobservethisritualmanytimesindifferentvillagesfarawayfromeachother.AShamantoldmeitwascalled“KawaAmo”.Itspurposewastodiscussandalignfamiliesaroundsomecommongoals,aswellasresolvepotentialconflictsbeforetheygrewtoomuchandbecameserious.

TribalLeadershipTechniquesfromtheAmazonRainforestthroughtheEyesofanAgilist:Page-7

Whatstruckmewasthewayvoicesseemedto“respond”totheleaderinaverydirectmanner.Respondinginsuchawaytoa leader—especiallywhilespeaking inpublic, in frontofhisownteam—couldbe judgedatleast ill-manneredorclearlyrudetosomeonefromourculture.At first, I thoughtthat the leaderwasnotsowellrespectedinthisvillage.ButwhenIsawthesamepatternrepeatedinmanydifferentplaces,Ifeltthatthiswassomethingelse.Somethingcultural.

Theleaderwouldspeakupwithastrong“motivationalvoice”,summarizingwhatwasdoneduringthedayand what was planned for the next, interrupted by the voices of people’s consent, remarks or sometimesdisagreement.Then,sometimes,ifalatentconflictwasperceivedorreportedduringtheday,theleaderwouldgivefeedbackaboutthebadbehaviorandurgetheproponentstoquicklyresolvetheir issuebefore itwouldbecome serious and impact thewhole tribe. Often peoplewould react or deny strongly, but thanks to peerpressure, theconflictwilloftenfadequickly.This isaswellanopportunity fortribememberstounderstandtherisksofmisbehaving.

IfwecompareittoknownAgilepractices,KawaAmolookslikeaninterestingblendofanAgilestand-upmeetingand“radical-candor”feedbacks.IhavetakeninspirationfromtheKawa-Amoutoourdailyinter-teamStandup.TheritualstartedwhenwehadtoallworkremotelyduetotheCovidrestrictions.Insteadofhavingasingle teamrepresentative,everybody iswelcomeandthereareoftenaround30peopleconnected.Like theYanomami, we do it with voices only. The productmanager shares the general Kanban andmakes a quickroundofEpics inprogress.After that,wetaketheopportunity tospeakupforany importantmatter.Latentissues,generallyregardingqualityorcommunicationissuesarebroughtupinafriendlybutexplicitmatter.

6. THECOMMUNITYLEVEL

Communities arewhat resemblemost a village; they consist from a handful to a dozen of common housesdistant froma fewminuteswalk to about anhour.Theyhave close ties, share frequent invites, have familylinks or strong friendly ties, andwork together from time to time (hunting group of animals, sharingmeatwhentheyhavetoomuch).Whensocialdistanceisgreater,peoplemeetonceaweektoonceamonth.

6.1 TheFrog’sbite:Passagerituals,belongingtoateamPhysicalritualsarealsousedbyindigenousasaformof“passage”frombeingachildtobecomingamanorawoman.Thosepassage ritualsaredone in frontof theShamanandother tribemembers to testify.This is astrong,visiblewaytorecognizethebelongingtoatribe.

OncetheShamanofthetribewhereIwasresiding,anoldrespectedleader,invitedmetoparticipateinanimportantritual.Outofcuriosity,butwithoutmuchpossibilitytounderstandwhatwasreallygoingtohappen,Iaccepted. I followedsixadolescents toasmallstreamwhere theShamanhadattacheda living frogontwostickswithsmalllianas.Hetookasmallincandescentstickandpresseditagainstmyskinfourtimes.Then,hescrapedthebackofthefrogwithasmallwoodenstick,collectingawhitegooeyliquid.Heappliedthevenomcarefullyovertheburnmarksonmyskin.AfterafewsecondsIimmediatelyfeltanintenseburningsensationfromeverywhereinsidemybody.Iwashelplesslypassingaway.Aftersometime,Iopenedmyeyesandfoundmyselfsittinginthemiddleofthestreamsupportedbytwoindigenousthrowingwateratmyheadwithabigsmile on their face. I had become one of them. Although Iwas still feeling lost and dizzy, I felt a profoundemotionofprideandbelongingsharedwiththeothersthatsharedtheritual.

WhatdoesithavetodowithAgile?Despitethedistancetoourcommonbusinessenvironment,Ibelievewecanuse some insights from thesepassage rituals.On the teams Imanagedduring thepast tenyears, Ihavestarted a collaborative recruiting process where I joined a few of the most experienced teammembers todefine howwewould select the newmembers entering the team. Year after year, our recruitment processimproved to become highly popular, influencing HR in the company and many other teams. The test andinterviews are designed and passed by teammembers themselves and never outsourced. Aswell,we don’tmakeanydifferenceforthekindofcontractortheposition;everyoneenteringtheteamshouldgothroughit.Thetestmaynotbeperfect,andofcourse, itscontentdiffersaccordingtotheposition,butit isknowntobeveryselective.Passingitisamotiveforprideforthenewteammemberandagreatrecognitionbytherestoftheteamaswellasfrompeopleoutsidetheteam.

6.2 TheShaman,guardianofthetribe’scultureIfyouspendsometimeinanativetribe—whereveritmaybe:Asia,Australia,Africa,orSouthAmerica—youwill quickly notice that leadership is not embodied by the “leader” only. An important figure, the Shaman,sharestheleadershipofthetribe.

TribalLeadershipTechniquesfromtheAmazonRainforestthroughtheEyesofanAgilist:Page-8

Lookingfromtheirmainactivities,Shamanslookbothlikeadoctorandapriest.Theyspendpartoftheirtime praying to attract good spirits and repelling dark ones to help their tribe get away fromdiseases andmisfortune. When somebody from the tribe is severely sick, the Shaman can spend days chanting by thesufferer’sside,untilhemanagestoextractthespiritsthathaveenteredhisbody.Heisalsotheleaderoftheimportant ceremonies that rhythms the life of the tribe. He guides the tribe for the preparation of thecelebrationandleadstheritualwithmastery.

Shamansactasthemainprotectorsofthecultureandtraditionsoftheirtribe.Theyarethelivingmemoryof the history, beliefs and traditions of the tribe. I have been dazzled by the incredible memory they candevelop.DuringoneritualwiththeMarubo,theShamancountedlegendsoftheirtribeduringthewholenight.Shamanapprenticesandtherestofthetriberepeatedinunisonwhiledancingincirclesaroundthecommonhouse.ThisisawayShamanspassthetribe’shistoryandtraditionstonewgenerations

Whilethe“Cacique”playstheroleoftheclassicalleader,unitingthetribetowardsashortormiddletermgoal—likecoordinatingharvestingactivitiesororganizingahuntingexpedition—theShamanisresponsibletoperpetuate the culture andkeep it strong.Without a strong culture, theworkof leading the tribewouldbemuchmore difficult. The leaderwould have to convince, decide and discuss good and bad behaviors everytime. Culture helps facilitate most of the daily decisions, as it defines a common framework helping themresolve most daily social or moral problems. Having a common “cultural framework” provides a commonunderstandingofwhatis“right”or“wrong”,andhowthingsneedtobedoneinmanydifferentsituations.Inanoralculture—wherenothingiswritten—cultureprovidesthebasisformeaningfulcooperation.

In the businessworld,we can use the analogy of the Shaman and the Cacique to help create a resilientsystemthatwillhavelonglastingperformance.Effectiveteamsthatperformwellunderagoodleadercanberuinedwithhisdeparture.Whenastrongculturehasbeendeveloped,anewleadercanjoinwithoutriskingtoomuchtobreakdowntheteam’sperformance.Thisisespeciallythecasewhenthenewleadercomesfromthesame culture. In this case, his people are reassured as they can easily predict how hewill behave inmostsituations.ThisiswhyitisimportanttomakesuretherearesomepeopletoassumetheroleofShamansinsideAgileteams.Peoplethatunderstandwelltheteam’scultureandwillpromoteitintheteam.IntheAgileworld,ShamanscouldbeAgilecoaches,developerswithapassionforcraftsmanship,POwithapassionforcustomervalue prioritization... Somemethodologies such as Scrum have brought awareness to the importance of anongoing “cultural work”. The Scrum Master for example, has the important task to keep an eye on theimportantritualsintheteam,evenwhiletheyareunderpressureofshort-termdelivery.

6.3 ShamanicvisionShamans will often spend a large part of their day entering in deep contact with spirits. After consuminghallucinogens,theybegintoenteratrancethatcanlastforhours.Whentheycomebacktoreality,theyexplaintheir visionwith great details in a somehow theatricalmanner. Their audience is compelled by their story,whichconnectstheirimaginationandcreatesapowerfulcommondream.

Whilestayingwithtribes,wequicklyseehowimportantShamansaretogivefaithtotheirpeople,andkeepthemconnectedwiththespiritsoftheforest,theirmainecosystem.Shamansareprobablykeytomaintainingahappy,joyfulwayoflifeinthejungle,insteadofmerelysurviving,asmostofforeignerscanonlydoundersuchconditions. Indigenous people also suffer from heat, bites from mosquitos, humidity, malaria, infections,hunger... but they leave fully connected to their environmentwithhappiness orwhatwewould call a great“mental health”. We could relate the role of the Shaman to the “Visionary style”, one of the four styles ofresonant leadership fromDanielGoleman’sPrimalLeadership [Goleman].HavingaShamanandaCacique inyour team, or at least having clear roles for themwill ensure you can have action oriented,well-groundedleadershipwhiledevelopinglonglastingcultureanddevelopingandsharingVisionandValuesinyourteam.

7. CONCLUSION

Indigenous people’s traditional knowledge comes from generations of experience of living in harmonywithNature.Theyhavelearnedtoadapttoahostileenvironmentandachievedthefeatofinventingahealthyandhappywayoflife.AdaptingtoacomplexandsometimeshostileenvironmentisoneofthekeyvaluesbroughtbyAgile.IwishthatsharingsomeinsightsfromIndigenouspeoplecanbeagreatsourceofinspirationtohelpusfindamorehumanandhealthybalanceinthisquest,andtobemorerespectfultotheplanetweallliveon.

TribalLeadershipTechniquesfromtheAmazonRainforestthroughtheEyesofanAgilist:Page-9

8. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Iamdeeplyindebtedtothemanytribeswemetduringthis longjourneyandwhohadthepatiencetosharesome of their fabulous knowledge with us. More particularly: Paulo Marubo, Otavio Yanomami and all theMaruboandYanomamithatspenttimeandefforttotrytounderstandmeashardasIhopeIdidwiththem.Inthehope thatwewill beable to listen to their call anduseour time for amoreusefulpurpose than simplyacceleratingthepaceatwhichweproduceandconsumemorewidgets.

ThankyoutotheBrazilianNGO,“InstitutoSocioAmbiental”fortheirhelponourprojectandtheirtirelessworkatprotectingandhelpingindigenouscommunities.

A great thanks aswell tomymentor for this paper, Avraham Poupkowho helpedme realize the valuebehindstheideasIexpressedandhelpedmefocustowritingthem.Aswellasmydearwifewhoproofreadandgavemethetimetowritethisdocument.

Lastbutnotleast,abigthankyoutoAmauryWalgraef,alltheOPUSteamatAdeoandFranckDrecourtfortheirpatiencetowithstandmanyofmylongconversationsandstrangeideas.REFERENCES[Belbéoc’h] Belbéoc’h,G.“XP&ScrumatLeroy.BR”presentedatAgileBrazil2016.RetrievedMay25,2021from:https://www.slideshare.net/gbelbe/xp-scrum-from-the-trenches-leroymerlin-brazil[Bossa]Bossanovawebsite:https://www.agilebossanova.com/[Goleman]Goleman,D.PrimalLeadership:UnleashingthePowerofEmotionalIntelligence.HarvardBusinessReviewPress,2016.[Leite]Leite,M.“Yaripo,theYanomamiAntennatotheWorld”inFolhaDeS.Paulo,September17,2017.RetrievedMay25,2021from:https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/brazil/2017/09/1917756-yaripo-the-yanomami-antenna-to-the-world.shtml[Skelton]Skelton,M.,Pais,M.TeamTopologies:OrganizingBusinessandTechnologyTeamsforFastFlow.ITRevolutionPress,2019.[Univaja]Univajawebsite:https://univaja.com/[Wikipedia]FundaçãoNacionaldoÍndio.Wikipediaentry:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Funda%C3%A7%C3%A3o_Nacional_do_%C3%8Dndio