Sage Tidbit #21: What Does Your Team Need?
A tidbit is a small morsel…. of inspiration, insights, or lessons learned/tips to reflect on, and digest, over your week.
We work with senior leadership teams a lot, and sometimes, they are hesitant to bring in an outside consultant to support them in reaching their next level of effectiveness. The thinking is, we are smart, ambitious, successful people, so why can’t we do it ourselves? Sometimes, you can.
And sometimes, it’s not about how smart or successful you are. It’s about aligning yourselves and working more cohesively as a team. When the team is not aligned, or when there is conflict on the team, the rest of the organization knows, and the problems typically compound as you look down and across the organization.
Oftentimes, everyone on the team is clear on the organization’s high-level strategy but has not done the detailed work on what it actually means – what it will take to align across and down the organization to execute the strategy. This includes things like designing or redesigning organizational processes and clarifying roles and responsibilities. It’s those detailed conversations in how the team will support each other and coordinate across the organization, in optimal ways, that don’t always happen proactively until there is a problem.
An outside resource can help with a number of things, including uncovering where the root issues lie, structuring a series of team conversations to have the team get at the issues more thoroughly or more quickly and efficiently, and holding the team accountable for resolving any conflicts or misalignments rather than sweeping them under the radar. Realizing you do need support demonstrates team courage and honesty.
Reflection Questions:
What’s working well on your team?
Are there things you can do to enhance your team’s performance?
What conversations do you wish your team would have? What’s getting in the way of having those conversations?
Is there anything you can do to introduce previously not discussed topics in ways that could be heard? Could an outside resource/catalyst help?
Suze Shaner-Brodax is an executive coach and leadership & organization effectiveness consultant. She also teaches yoga and meditation – tools to keep one sane in uncertain times. She helps professionals step up to their fullest leadership, life and growth potential. At times this means getting out of their own way in getting important stuff accomplished. www.sagelead.com.