OrbaOS replaces traditional PM ceremonies with practices designed for autonomous coordination. Less time in meetings. More focus on patterns, meaning, and flow.
Traditional Agile teams spend ~7.5 hours per week in ceremonies. OrbaOS practices take ~5 hours per week—with better outcomes.
Three Types of Practices
Continuous
Practices that run automatically in the background. AI systems monitor, analyze, and optimize continuously.
Rhythmic
Scheduled practices that bring humans together for pattern recognition, alignment, and calibration.
Trigger-Based
Practices activated by specific conditions—inflection points, ethical concerns, or emergent opportunities.
The Practice Catalog
Continuous Practices
These run automatically in the background
Signal Monitoring
ContinuousAI systems continuously monitor work streams for patterns requiring attention
Flow Optimization
ContinuousSystems continuously tune routing and resource allocation based on real-time data
Rhythmic Practices
Scheduled gatherings for human insight and alignment
Sense Circles
Replaces: Daily standups
Brief pattern-recognition gatherings focused on meaning, not status
Flow Reviews
Replaces: Sprint reviews
Examine flow health—how value moves through the system
Consciousness Calibration
Replaces: Retrospectives
Examine thinking patterns and mental models
Narrative Syncs
Replaces: Status meetings
Connect work to meaning and strategic narrative
Trigger-Based Practices
Activated by specific conditions or events
Inflection Response
As neededRapid response to significant changes in context or environment
Ethics Escalation
As neededReview decisions that may cross ethical boundaries
Emergence Capture
As neededRecognize and respond to unexpected patterns or opportunities
Deep Dive: Sense Circles
The practice that replaces daily standups
Traditional standups follow a formula: what did you do yesterday, what will you do today, what's blocking you? In OrbaOS, the system already knows that information.
The Protocol
- System summary (2 minutes): AI presents brief summary of relevant activity
- Pattern check (5 minutes): "What patterns are we noticing?"
- Escalation review (3 minutes): Review items escalated for human judgment
- Alignment check (3 minutes): Quick alignment on priorities
- Dismiss: No go-around-the-room status
What's Different
- No status reporting. The system already knows status.
- Focus on patterns. What's the system telling us?
- Human insight only. We discuss what requires human judgment.
- 15 minutes total. Not 30-45 minutes.
Deep Dive: Flow Reviews
The practice that replaces sprint reviews
Flow reviews focus on flow health—not what was built, but how value is moving through the system.
The Protocol
- Flow metrics review (10 minutes): Rate, time, efficiency, load
- Pattern analysis (15 minutes): What patterns do metrics reveal?
- Customer feedback integration (10 minutes): How does feedback correlate with flow patterns?
- Improvement identification (15 minutes): What experiments should we run?
- Stakeholder questions (10 minutes)
What's Different
- System-level view. Looking at flow, not individual features.
- Metrics-driven. Data informs the conversation.
- Continuous improvement focus. What experiments should we try?
- Less demo, more analysis. Stakeholders see work continuously; reviews focus on patterns.
Deep Dive: Consciousness Calibration
The practice that replaces retrospectives
Consciousness calibration asks deeper questions: "How are we thinking about our work? Are our mental models serving us?"
The Protocol
- Cognitive pattern check (15 minutes): What assumptions are we making?
- Belief examination (15 minutes): Choose one belief to examine
- Consciousness adjustment (15 minutes): What cognitive adjustments should we make?
- System calibration (15 minutes): Are autonomous systems reflecting appropriate consciousness?
What's Different
- Meta-level thinking. Examining how we think, not just what we did.
- Belief exploration. What assumptions are driving our behavior?
- System alignment. Do autonomous systems reflect our values?
- Deeper than "what went well." Examining cognitive patterns.
Traditional vs. OrbaOS Practices
| Traditional Agile | OrbaOS | Time Saved |
|---|---|---|
| Daily Standup (30 min) | Sense Circle (15 min) | 50% |
| Sprint Planning (2-4 hrs) | Continuous planning | 100% |
| Sprint Review (2 hrs) | Flow Review (1 hr) | 50% |
| Retrospective (1.5 hrs) | Consciousness Calibration (1 hr bi-weekly) | 67% |
| Backlog Refinement (2 hrs) | Continuous refinement | 100% |
| ~7.5 hrs/week | ~5 hrs/week | ~33% reduction |
Implementing OrbaOS Practices
Start Small
Week 1-2: Sense Circle
- Replace one recurring status meeting with a 15-minute Sense Circle
- If you don't have AI briefings yet, have the facilitator prepare a 2-minute summary
- Focus on patterns, not individual status
- Track: Do people feel this is more valuable than standups?
Week 3-4: Flow Metrics
- Establish basic flow visibility (dashboard or board)
- Begin tracking: flow rate, cycle time, WIP, blocked items
- Make metrics visible to the team
Week 5-8: Flow Reviews
- Replace sprint review with Flow Review
- Use the protocol: metrics → patterns → feedback → improvements
- Track: Are we identifying systemic improvements?
Week 9-12: Consciousness Calibration
- Hold first Consciousness Calibration session
- Examine one belief or assumption
- Adjust practices based on learning
Ready to Transform Your Practices?
Start with Sense Circles. Replace one status meeting this week.