The Tribal Oil Change
A quarterly three-question ritual that maintains tribal health, surfaces emerging problems, and p...
The Oil Change is a quarterly tribal maintenance ritual based on three simple questions asked of the tribe in an open forum: (1) What is working well? (2) What is not working well? (3) What can we do to make the things that are not working well, work? Like changing oil in an engine, the practice is preventive maintenance that keeps the tribe running smoothly. It surfaces small problems before they become cultural crises, reinforces what is working so the tribe does not take success for granted, and generates actionable solutions from the people closest to the work. The Oil Change also functions as a cultural diagnostic: how people respond reveals their stage. Stage Two people will avoid being on the hook for anything. Stage Three people will argue for solutions that put them in charge. Stage Four responses focus on tribal solutions. The practice maintains alignment with values and noble cause by periodically asking whether daily work still connects to what the tribe cares about.
- Cultural health requires maintenance; even Stage Four tribes will regress without periodic check-ins
- Starting with what is working well creates a positive frame that makes it safe to discuss what is not working
- Solutions should come from the tribe, not from the leader; the leader's role is to facilitate the conversation and ensure follow-through
- How people respond to the three questions is itself a diagnostic of their cultural stage
- The practice works best when it is a ritual: same cadence, same format, different content each time
- Schedule the Quarterly SessionSchedule the Quarterly Session
- Ask What Is Working WellAsk What Is Working Well
- Ask What Is Not Working WellAsk What Is Not Working Well
- Ask What We Can Do About ItAsk What We Can Do About It
- Follow Through and Close the LoopFollow Through and Close the Loop
A Stage Four technology team had successfully implemented a new product strategy but was beginning to show signs of complacency and early Stage Three regression.
The Oil Change emerged from observing how successful Stage Four tribes maintained their cultures over time. The researchers noticed that even tribes that had made the leap to Stage Four would regress without periodic maintenance. The metaphor came from the simple automotive practice: regular maintenance prevents breakdown. The three questions were refined through hundreds of tribal sessions and proved to be the minimum viable set for surfacing issues and generating solutions without the overhead of elaborate strategic reviews. The quarterly cadence was based on the natural rhythm of tribal attention: too frequent and the sessions become rote, too infrequent and problems fester undetected.