| |
| | | | | | | High Performance teams | | For several decades now we have had a love affair with "Corporate teams." We have gone to great lengths to differentiate "Corporate teams" from "groups" and other such half useful label jockeying intended to help us all focus on the one supreme work structure. Corporate teams trump individuals - that's the punch line we've been sold - and it's wrong. Understanding "Corporate teams" versus "groups" isn't nearly as useful for your organization as understanding "high performing" Corporate teams from "not so high performing" Corporate teams. Though we do see some variance in terms of the defining characteristics of any given high performing corporate team, research has uncovered a list of common characteristics. | For several decades now we have had a love affair with "Corporate teams." We have gone to great lengths to differentiate "Corporate teams" from "groups" and other such half useful label jockeying intended to help us all focus on the one supreme work structure. Corporate teams trump individuals - that's the punch line we've been sold - and it's wrong. Understanding "Corporate teams" versus "groups" isn't nearly as useful for your organization as understanding "high performing" Corporate teams from "not so high performing" Corporate teams. Though we do see some variance in terms of the defining characteristics of any given high performing corporate team, research has uncovered a list of common characteristics.
High performing corporate teams:
Share challenging goals
This is the backbone of the "group" versus "Corporate team" garbage. The terms are synonymous. The point is the same regardless of the label you choose. Is there a clear and compelling shared goal (or goals) being pursued? It must be crystal clear in detailed language, understood consistently across members, and be meaningful enough to supersede individual goals.
Know that size matters
Most groups are too large. There are too many people on the corporate team because of politics, over inflated belief in the potential need for a particular type of expertise, etc. Listen closely. It is far easier to add members to a corporate team than to remove members from a corporate team. Start small and build as needed, never err on starting with twenty people on the corporate team when five could effectively handle the job.
Effectively build bridges
If you take my advice on corporate team size, bridge building becomes important. Just because we put five people on the Corporate team instead of twenty does not mean we will not need some help from the fifteen folks not chosen. The ability to reach out to individuals and groups not directly involved in your work is a terribly important skill - and proof that high performing Corporate teams are not just experts on the task side, but usually experts on the soft-skill side as well.
Leverage individual time
Though a well constructed corporate team can be an amazing thing, it still needs to leverage individuals first and the Corporate team second. Translated: a strong majority of project time is dedicated to individuals (or at least subgroups) working alone on their well defined tasks, not sitting in long bureaucratic meetings with every member of the Corporate team. Virtual meetings and tools become higher quality and lower cost every day. There is no reason to have even the best of Corporate teams having "all hands on deck" meetings more than twice per month.
Fill roles flexibly
Many discussions about corporate teams will revolve around knowing the key roles which need to be filled if you are to achieve high performance. That's not the most interesting perspective. The roles are well known. You need a leader, a process analyzer, a referee, etc. A few books or articles and a little Googling and you'll find the short list of useful Corporate team roles. It's not about filling those roles per se. It's about how many roles each member fills. Average Corporate teams are lucky to have each role filled by even one person. High performance corporate team members typically fill 2-3 key roles. No member is a one trick pony.
Exhibit rapid, honest, and constructive communication
Great Corporate teams do not run from conflict, yet they actually don't have much conflict - how? The reason is that they are, by personality and by agreed upon work norms, genuinely open to debate and vigorous questioning and discussion. Ideas are not "shot down," they are positively debated. The motivation is rarely personal, it's objective. They communicate in real-time when something needs to be said, they don't "beat around the bush," and they don't merely tear apart ideas or plans but offer tangible new possibilities. Under these circumstances conflict can happen, but it is far less likely and when it does pop up it is typically diffused very quickly.
Are empowered to act
The greatest corporate team ever assembled will fail - or at least come closer to failure than need be - if they are not given the authority to act. One of the fundamental beauties of high performing corporate teams is that they reduce or eliminate the need for someone to fill the traditional leadership role over the group. When half or more of the members are willing and able to share leadership with others on the corporate team, the traditional "boss" is not needed to guide the corporate team. As a result the corporate team can become empowered to do what only the "boss" used to do - including hiring, budgeting, evaluations, etc.
Display mutual accountability
Most organizations rely on what I call a "performance management system" to maximize productivity (incidentally, most performance management systems are weak and only modestly effective - but that's another article). High performing corporate teams have no need for traditional employee evaluations and similar devices intended to move people successfully towards goal completion. High performing corporate team members tend to be achievement oriented and very aware of the interdependent nature of their work. As a result they do not hesitate to point out deficiencies, seek to help others with performance issues, or seek help when they themselves reach difficult obstacles.
Pay attention to process and content
Work is not only about the tasks that must be completed to reach our goals. In fact, the tasks really are only half of what you must consider. The other half is process. Many common corporate team processes include: Corporate team member support and feedback practices, managing the critical path of tasks and associated timelines, the process of knowledge management, the process of communicating progress upward in the chain of command, etc. Just to make the point clear, consider the classic case of problem solving. Without a great "process" observer, it is often the case that Corporate teams spend too much of their finite time expanding the possibilities as opposed to narrowing their alternatives, selecting one and planning the implementation.
Take calculated risks
Put simply, great corporate teams do not become great by pursuing safe, incremental paths. However, abnormally high performance is not the result of reckless risk taking. Great Corporate teams do their homework, collect the data, confer with the relevant experts and then take a leap - a highly educated and well informed leap in the name of innovation and improvement. Please don't get me wrong, not all risks pay off. The point is that high performing corporate teams are more likely to take needed risks and are more likely to execute effectively. Nice punch line too: the better you execute, the lower the actual risk.
Take a long hard look at that list and ask yourself how many of them actually remind you of your corporate team or of most corporate teams in your organization. If you can only relate to half or fewer of these characteristics - you need an intervention to build successful corporate team skills. If you think you're consistently nailing seven or more of these - congratulations, you're among the rare few deserving of the title "high performing corporate team."
Dedicated corporate team building high performance
Venues such as the Kubunye Corporate team building venue have been purpose built to facilitate awesome outdoor corporate team building high performance.
Call us today 0824639102 or email info@kubunye.co.za
| | | | Written By:Dr Charles Lubbe | | Date Posted:7/20/2010 | | Number of Views:192 | | | Return |
|
| |
|
|