Better Together! – Extraordinary Results Through Highly Effective Teams
In today’s global business world we face many challenges which cannot be overcome by one individual acting alone. The truth is that we need teams!
FACT: Only 18% of business teams consider themselves highly successful.
According to a study published in the MIT Sloan Management Review, all over the world teams disappoint themselves and their stakeholders due to entirely predictable and avoidable causes of failure.
FACT: A “group of people” is not the same as a “team”.
Working in teams brings a special set of challenges outlined by Patrick Lencioni in “The 5 Dysfunctions of a Team”. Overcoming these dysfunctions requires a shared purpose and shared values, and sometimes requires individuals to put the good of the team above their own self-interest.
FACT: Diverse teams win.
Teams composed of people of different genders, cultures, and work styles generate enormously better results than those that lack diversity.
Highly effective teams enlarge what’s possible and increase the speed of business results. No matter what your position or title, you can significantly increase your team’s performance through the simple and effective approaches shared in this program.
More details . . .
Overcoming the 5 Dysfunctions
• Building Trust – What reduces or destroys trust in teams? Learn to avoid destroying trust, and build trust instead, through engaging exercises involving mouse traps, team problem-solving, making decisions in teams.
• Healthy Conflict – Conflict is unpleasant for many people, however healthy conflict is critical to building support among team members and making the right decisions.
• Commitment to Action – Clear commitments lead to increased trust and better results. Defining a plan and assigning clear roles and responsibilities increases commitment and follow through.
• Accountability – Team members need to hold each other accountable for keeping their promises. Trust increases as promises are made and kept.
• Focusing on Results – Teams share common goals and help each other achieve them. Keeping everyone focused on results reduces unproductive behaviors in teams.
The Phases of Team Development
•Forming – How teams form, and what’s important at this early stage of teamwork.
•Storming – The unavoidable healthy conflict involved in moving from a group to a team.
•Norming – Learning to work together effectively, leveraging the strengths of each person.
•Performing – The most productive phase of a team, where great results are generated and people truly respect and enjoy working with each other.
•The “Team Challenge” exercises push teams through all 4 phases so they can learn to recognize them and perform effectively while moving through each phase.
Dealing Effectively with Change
•The pace of change, and the challenges people face as a result.
•Change is uncomfortable, but changing is necessary. The “Change Exercise” helps people experience the feelings as well as thinking about the importance of change.
Additionally . . .
Professional Effectiveness
• Setting a Good Example – People listen to our actions more than our words. The “OK” exercise makes the conflict between words and behavior real
• Inspiring a Shared Vision – Teams work together on a shared vision. The “Hunter-Gatherer” exercise helps teams realize that they need to create a shared vision before jumping into action, and help each other accomplish the results.
• Challenging the Process – Thinking “out of the box” is a critical skill for people who need to achieve more with less time and less resources. Being willing to experiment with new ways of working helps teams become more effective
• Enabling Others to Act – Doing our own job is not sufficient for success. We need to be aware of the other people working around us and how our work impacts them. The SIPOC model helps participants understand the importance of working together. The “Pole” exercise shows how we need to consider how we are impacting the situation when things go wrong.
• Encouraging the Heart – Recognition and Appreciation is critical to nurturing high performing teams. It’s easy and costs nothing to say “thank you”, and people needs 11 times more positive comments than negative comments in order for them to feel they are equal.
Execution Excellence
• Putting Ideas into Action – Without action nothing happens. Implementation brings new challenges, and the “Traffic Jam” game helps participants understand the difficulty of getting other people to work together with them effectively.
• Tracking Status and Progress – People and teams are more motivated when they see their progress against a goal. Track and report progress in a way that motivates people to do even better.
Professional Effectiveness Plan – Individual plan for continued improvement.
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