Building an effective team

TEAM CONCEPT

The best outcomes are achieved when people come together as a team! Teams that succeed spend time getting to to know one another. This includes their strengths, interests, areas of challenge, passions and mannerisms. They also learn about each other’s goals, values, preferences, communication, thinking, and preferences. The ability to develop positive relationships leads to better understanding and greater trust.

Key Points

1. Spend some time getting to know one another on a deeper level (social and non-work-related activities are great for team building).
2. Consider your role as an individual and how you can contribute positively to your business on a daily basis.

BENEFITS OF TEAM WORKING

Effectively working in a team has six benefits.

1. Collaboration: people who want to work well together and identify with the team
2. Communication: allowing information to flow in any direction
3. Use of Skills and Resources: people bringing and having the opportunity to use and develop their strengths
4. Solutions and Decisions: Enhanced Creativity with Ideas Leading to More Effective Results
5. Commitment People who feel empowered to make decisions are more likely to be committed to achieving their goals.
6. Quality: Concern for accuracy and quality due to the feeling of personal ownership

DO YOU FULLY ACHIEVE THE BENEFITS OF YOUR TEAM?

WHO PLAYS IN YOUR TEAM?

Each business has its own organizational structure. Whatever you call your team, they all have roles and responsibilities that contribute to the company’s mission. We don’t work in isolation from other areas. Our success depends on our ability to recognize how dependent we are on each other every day, and to respect and seek to understand the work of other individuals and teams. Sometimes we feel that there is a lack in service. If they only did their jobs, it wouldn’t be so bad for us. This is a common feeling. Is it staff turnover? Have they made a mistake or forgotten to communicate? Do they fully understand what is happening (have they been communicated to effectively)? How can you help them instead of judging?

Key Points

1. Everybody depends on the other.
2. The effectiveness of the internal players is crucial to our ability to engage with the customer.
3. To understand, first seek.

Communication can be defined as the ability to transmit or pass information by using words, writing, or any other means. Every moment is communicated through body language, tone of voice, and words. We communicate our thoughts and feelings through body language, tone of voice, facial expressions, smiles, confusion, or even crossed arms. There are many ways to communicate and share information. These include face-to-face, memos and phone calls, radio, radio, and e mail. Climate is a key skill for effective team members. Climate is the ability to communicate and treat each other with respect, trust and kindness. The team must feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and feelings without fear of repercussions, conflict, or backstabbing. The following three key elements are critical to team communication (climate).

1. Communicate openly and effectively to build trust, respect and openness.
2. Give each other feedback on performance (never as jokes).
3. Each other.

UNDERSTANDING INTERPERSONAL COMUNICATION

Communication is something we can improve by practicing. These strategies are examples.

Learn

Everybody has their own preferred communication style. Some prefer to interact with people face-to-face, while others enjoy the benefits of e mail. Some prefer facts and details, while others prefer emotions. We are all unique. Communicators who are effective recognize their own preferences and take the time to learn about others’. They are open to learning and accept differences.

Example: I need communication with a coworker who prefers to talk face-to-face and likes asking questions. E-mail is my preferred medium. My preference is facts. My communication goal is to ensure that my coworker understands the new procedure. In accordance with my preferences and his, I send an e-mail outlining how the procedure works. He is then invited to come face to face to discuss any questions. When everyone has the mindset to seek understanding of the other, it is effective. Respect for others is a way to value our individuality.

CONSIDER COMMUNICATING WITH A PERSON ON YOUR TEAM THAT YOU ARE NOT AS EFFECTIVE. MIGHT BE YOU HAVE DIFFERENT PREFERENCES. STUDY EACH OTHER.

Step out

Information about ourselves and others is shared and received all the time. We can choose to be open or not. Each member of a performing team works to bring everyone to an environment that allows for free and open information exchange. As more information is shared, especially personal information that each person finds valuable, trust increases.

DO YOU HOLD BACK INFORMATION THAT AFFECTS YOUR TEAM’S POSITIVE BENEFITS?

Respect

How you say it is the final strategy. Respect can be transmitted by assertive-responsive communication. It means that you can share your thoughts and feelings on a topic and ask questions to encourage the other person to share his. When you communicate on a topic where you disagree, this means that you share how your behaviour may be affecting your relationship, as well as what you can and cannot do to change it.

The concept of commitment is sharing leadership and creating a sense ownership. Although all team members can have equal voices, some may have greater influence due to their particular skills and experience.

Cohesion is directly related to commitment. It’s the glue that binds a team together. To be committed, one must first get to know and accept what a team does and how it functions. One team might define its way of working as being honest, open to solving problems, hard worker, and appreciating the contributions of others.

Commitment goes beyond just showing up to work on time and fulfilling the essential duties of your job. High performing team members are able to see how their actions and behaviors affect the team. The “bar of performance” is set at the lowest common factor. If you are passionate about helping your team achieve its best, you will take ownership of and be accountable for sharing areas that are holding it back with peers and overall. You will also offer solutions and be present at every opportunity to avoid missed opportunities.

1. What are the roles of your team?
2. How does your team function together? Are there values and standards that everyone in the team can understand and agrees with?

CONSENSUS

Consensus can be described as a skill that allows for increased creativity and ideas to produce better outcomes. It also gives you a greater sense of ownership (commitment), and empowers you. It can be defined as an agreement to support 100% of a decision’s implementation. It does not mean that you are the loudest, first or easiest to make a decision. All players contribute and build on each other. It’s acknowledging and challenging each other’s contributions, and then being able to leave with a decision saying “This may not be the right thing that should happen, but I recognize the process and understand this is the best choice and will support 100%.”

1. Teams can solve problems and take decisions by building consensus skills.
2. Teamwork is a great way to stimulate creativity and increase commitment.

A PERFORMING TEAM, NO SPECTATORS! EVERYBODY PLAYS THE GAME!

CONFLICT

Do you feel compelled to avoid conflict or do you think negatively when you hear it? “Conflict” can be defined as “a fight or contest, strife, quarrel and emotional disturbance, to be at variance with, to clash with, or to struggle.” Our first reaction is not expectant or excited, it is clear!

It is possible to be healthy when there is conflict. There will be times when there is disagreement. The performing team is comprised of people who are aware of who they are and what their collective goal is. They also know how to get there. Because they are involved in a relationship, there will be times when disagreements are inevitable. High performance teams understand the benefits and potential growth that healthy conflict can bring. You can conquer conflict to:

Energize

Explore new ideas and perspectives.

Make decisions

Energize

It is easy for teams to fall into a rut and become comfortable with their current ways of doing things. Healthy conflict can spark new ideas or strategies. It can also allow team members to reflect on areas that are not performing well.

Explore New Ideas, Viewpoints, and Perceptions

Ever been in a conversation where one person seemed to dominate or hear the reply “yes, but?”? When members of a team can constructively challenge one another’s ideas, brainstorm together, listen without interrupting, and seek to understand others’ viewpoints, it is a sign that there is healthy conflict. If you find yourself reacting with “we can’t do that, yes, but” or thinking negative thoughts next time, ask yourself: “How might we, yes, let’s explore that thought ?

Make decisions

What is your team’s natural way of making decisions? What is your team’s natural approach to making decisions? Is it loudest, first or easiest? Performers are open to new ideas, taking risks and being leaders. They confront difficult issues head-on and challenge the status quo. They come to a consensus about the best decision and then move forward in a united manner.

These are some tips to remember:

Accept and be open to other points of view.

Conflict is not about personalities, but issues.

Look for other options and adopt a “what can you do” mentality.

Focus on the present. It is not about looking back or throwing away everything.

To solve problems, use the power of groupthink.

To reduce defensiveness and finger-pointing that can occur when we use “you”, you should use “I” language.

Accept other people’s feelings, and ask Arif Bhalwani them to validate yours.

Use assertive-responsive communication.

CONFLICT ON A PERFORMING TEAMS, TEAM MEMBERS SKILLED AT ACHIEVING A HEALTHY RESOLUTION.

CHALLENGE:

Unresolved ISSUES or SOLUTIONS are like a UNTREATED DISEASE. THEY FESTER AND GROW THE ENTIRE TEAM DYNAMIC, CREATING BARRIERS FOR EFFECTIVE PERFORMANCE. DO YOU HAVE UNRESOLVED ISSUES THAT YOU WANT TO GO AWAY? TAKE ACTION TO GET WIN-WIN.

WHAT IS THE CHANGE?

The predictable, present (known, comfortable – may prove to be ineffective or effective – may not be) to the amazing future (unknown, and therefore uncomfortable).

EFFECTIVE CHGE MANAGEMENT

Here are some ideas and actions related to changing the world.

1. Recognize CHANGE.

Change agents: They are eager to make a difference and see the great future.

Supporters of change: Ability to recognize the importance of change and help it be implemented.

You can change neutrally: Take it or leave.

Why can’t you change resisters?

While a team that performs well doesn’t aim to be change agents for everyone, it recognizes their preferences and the positive contributions each member can make.