Decentralized Success: The Target Teal Model

Joost Minnaar
Written by Joost Minnaar July 01, 2024

As pioneers in self-management and organizational design, Target Teal challenges traditional business models by embracing decentralization, transparency, and collaborative decision-making. Their work is transforming organizations into adaptive, people-centered systems that thrive in complexity.

This blog post is part of 50+ case studies of self-managing organizations we created for the 2024 inaugural ZeroDX awards. These organizations embody the principles of RenDanHeYi in their work structures:

  • Zero Distance to customer: Decision what to build is based on insights from the marketplace

  • Autonomy: Small teams with full decision-making autonomy enable speed in execution

  • Shared Rewards: Everyone in the micro-enterprise participates in its financial success.

Introducing Target Teal

Target Teal stands out in the field of organizational design consultancy, redefining traditional business structures through its unique approach to self-management, decentralized decision-making, and a collaborative work culture.

At its core, Target Teal aims to transform how organizations function by promoting evolutionary social systems, autonomy, and a healthy organizational culture. Their principles are deeply rooted in radical transparency, shared ownership, and adaptability. By operating as a collective of 10 interdependent consultants and facilitators, Target Teal emphasizes the power of collaborative work and shared purpose.

Target Teal is a prime example of RenDanHeYi in the management consultancy industry. They fully walk their talk by decentralizing decision-making, organizing fluidly around customer needs, committing to radical transparency, and sharing the value created in their work. Additionally, they continuously reinvent the tools they provide to clients on their own road to self-management—one of their latest innovations being an AI assistant trained to guide clients in their journey with the O2 model.

Organizational Structure

Target Teal operates as an unincorporated joint venture, where each facilitator is an autonomous entrepreneur running their own company. This structure eliminates traditional hierarchies and allows for a high degree of decentralization. Key aspects of their organization include:

  • No Owners, bosses, or employees: Target Teal has no central ownership or hierarchical positions. All members are equal partners, contributing to the collective without rigid job titles.

  • Role and circle-based structure: Instead of a fixed hierarchy, work is organized around roles and circles that evolve as needed. This structure fosters agility and adaptability, as you can see in this presentation.

  • Decision-making through O2 social technology: Target Teal uses O2 (Organic Organization), a social technology that facilitates collaborative decision-making, ensuring all voices are heard.

Client Approach: Empowering Organizations Through Self-Management

Target Teal's approach to client engagement and project management is deeply aligned with self-management principles. Each consultant operates with full autonomy, generating income through individual projects, partnerships, and collaborations. This model empowers consultants to take ownership of their work, fostering stronger client relationships and higher-impact solutions.

Target Teal is not just about consultancy; they are also educators and thought leaders in the field of organizational design. Their offerings include:

  • Courses and workshops: Target Teal offers courses that disseminate their knowledge and methodologies to other consultants and organizations. These courses cover topics such as self-management, organizational culture, and O2 social technology.

  • Model Book and open source meta-agreements: They provide resources like the "Model Book" and open-source meta-agreements, making their practices and principles accessible to a broader audience.

  • AI assistants trained in the O2 model: They help people self-learn and navigate the model and their specific organizational challenges.

  • Public drive: Target Teal maintains a public drive where they share their content, further promoting transparency and knowledge sharing.

This commitment to transparency and open knowledge-sharing further reinforces Target Teal's partnership-driven approach.

O2 Method: A Flexible Framework for Organizational Evolution

The O2 Method is one of Target Teal's most powerful tools for organizational transformation. While O2 enables a full transition to self-management, its true strength lies in its flexibility. It provides a modular set of tools that can be applied to specific organizational challenges, making it adaptable to various industries.

Key features of the O2 model:

  • Flexible application: While O2 is designed as a catalyst for self-management, its components can be selectively applied to address specific organizational issues without necessarily implementing the entire system of Roles, Circles, and Meetings.

  • Library of patterns: O2 includes a constantly evolving library of design patterns. This library serves as a repository of solutions that organizations can draw from to address particular challenges they face.

  • Diverse influences: O2 is built upon various management and organizational theories, including Holacracy, Sociocracy 3.0, Agile Software Development, Getting Things Done, and others. This diverse foundation makes it applicable to a wide range of organizational contexts and problems.

  • Solving challenging issues: For clients facing specific organizational challenges, anyone can leverage O2's concepts to provide targeted solutions. This might involve implementing certain meeting practices, decision-making processes, or role-definition techniques without overhauling the entire organizational structure.

  • Simpler and more adaptive than Holacracy: O2 recognizes and proposes strategies for both organizational and interpersonal or relational spaces while maintaining a simpler and straightforward language.

This flexible and pragmatic approach makes O2 a powerful solution for organizations seeking incremental change or full self-management adoption.

Internal Culture

At Target Teal, trust, openness, and mutual support define the internal culture. Without a traditional hierarchy, every consultant’s voice matters, creating an environment where innovation thrives. Their radical transparency and collaborative decision-making processes empower members to take ownership of their work and continuously evolve the organization.

All members are accountable for their results, and the organization practices radical transparency. Key practices include:

  • Transparent information sharing: All information about projects and contracts is openly shared among members. This transparency fosters trust and collective responsibility.
  • Internal banking system: Target Teal uses an innovative internal tool that functions as a bank. This system collects taxes from consultants and provides a means to circulate money within the collective. A special fund, created from 15% of every invoice, is used to pay partners working in supporting roles.
  • Revenue sharing through the Money Pile method: Revenue from courses offered by Target Teal is shared using the "Money Pile" method, and more than 50% of consultancy projects are shared this way. In this method, not only effort and value added by each partner is compensated but also the personal financial situation is taken into account by all involved.
  • Fully remote and distributed Team: Members operate independently, contributing to Target Teal’s collective mission from anywhere in the world.

This culture of autonomy and mutual accountability has created a sustainable, resilient, and continuously evolving organization.

Conclusion

Target Teal is redefining how organizations operate by embracing self-management, radical transparency, and decentralized decision-making. By removing hierarchical constraints, fostering collaborative leadership, and continuously refining their O2 methodology, they provide a practical and proven pathway for businesses looking to evolve beyond traditional management models.

As they continue to push the boundaries of organizational innovation, Target Teal stands as a leading example of what the future of work can and should look like—agile, self-managed, and deeply human-centered.

Written by Joost Minnaar
Joost Minnaar
Co-founder Corporate Rebels. My daily focus is on research, writing, and anything else related to making work more fun.
Read more
Read more
Jan 19, 2025
Self-Managing Organizations and Steward-Ownership: A Perfect Match?
Joost Minnaar Written by Joost Minnaar
In December, the Dutch self-managing organization Regionaal Energieloket (REL) announced a transformative step in its journey:…
Read more about Self-Managing Organizations and Steward-Ownership: A Perfect Match?
Dec 01, 2024
Fair Pay Through Self-Management: Mindera's Salary Comparison Model
Joost Minnaar Written by Joost Minnaar
We recently launched the Salary Model Insight course on our platform for members. In this course, we explore 10 real-life case studies of…
Read more about Fair Pay Through Self-Management: Mindera's Salary Comparison Model
Nov 10, 2024
Voys Steps into Steward-Ownership: A Bold Move for Equality and Purpose
Joost Minnaar Written by Joost Minnaar
Voys, one of the Netherlands' most remarkable startup success stories and a member of the Dutch Rebel Cell, has taken a bold, unprecedented…
Read more about Voys Steps into Steward-Ownership: A Bold Move for Equality and Purpose
Sep 08, 2024
The Future of Work: 50+ Case Studies of Self-Managing Organizations
Joost Minnaar Written by Joost Minnaar
As I mentioned in a recent newsletter, we were issued a challenge by Haier's Model Institute (HMI), Gary Hamel & Michele Zanini's MLab,…
Read more about The Future of Work: 50+ Case Studies of Self-Managing Organizations
Aug 18, 2024
Handelsbanken: A Budgetless Banking Pioneer
Joost Minnaar Written by Joost Minnaar
In the landscape of corporate innovation, Handelsbanken stands out as a prime example of a company that has successfully embraced a…
Read more about Handelsbanken: A Budgetless Banking Pioneer
Jul 01, 2024
Gaiax: a Publicly Listed “Community” of Entrepreneurs
Joost Minnaar Written by Joost Minnaar
In a world where businesses are increasingly seeking ways to innovate and stay ahead, Gaiax stands out as a trailblazer. From its…
Read more about Gaiax: a Publicly Listed “Community” of Entrepreneurs
Read all articles

Download: Free Guide

Unlock our in-depth guide on trends, tools, and best practices from over 150 pioneering organizations.

Subscribe below and receive it directly in your inbox.

    We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe at any time.