This week I’ve had the pleasure of working on a group initiative with highly productive people committed to achieving an ambitious goal in a brief timeframe.
There have been times in my career when I have had difficult group experiences. Dealing with different personalities, inequality of effort and conflicts is often frustrating.
However, this weeks’ successful outcome reminded me once again that effective teams are essential for accomplishing business objectives and goals.
It’s well established that the wisdom of the room is better than any one of us and being part of a great team allows us to leverage skills, experiences and perspectives, and formulate innovative ideas to solve complex problems.
In today’s world, particularly during COVID-19, teams are dispersed and having to embrace digital offerings. We are experiencing new challenges, new environments and distractions (home schooling), trouble shooting IT issues and adjusting to an unprecedented merger of our home and business lives.
Nevertheless the success of team collaboration remains dependent on core fundamentals:
A Common Goal – Work together towards a common goal that is clear, challenging and far-reaching.
A Common Approach – Team members have a shared understanding of how the team operates (i.e. roles, systems, values and ‘norms’).
Complementary Abilities – Team members value diversity and inclusivity to bring an optimal mix of skills, experience and diversity of thought to succeed.
Mutual Accountability – Team members support each another and are invested in its success.
Openness to Feedback – Team members are open to receiving and providing feedback and are not afraid to think differently.
Finally, an Inspiring Leader, who delegates, encourages team development and celebrates success.
When the above fundamentals are harmoniously combined the team shines and elevates its performance.
Does your team demonstrate these fundamentals? Or are there some adjustments you can make? Contact me for more on ensuring your team rises!
