DASHBOARD GROUP

Archive for the ‘Teamwork’ Category

What Does Team Mean?

In Teamwork on May 7, 2012 at 7:45 am

There is a lot written about teamwork. But, most people have never been on a high-performance team, thus they do not have a real framework or experience base to work from.

In addition, there are lots of different kinds of teams:

  • A golf team is a loose collection of individuals all playing their own games. The team wins if enough people play their individual matches well. However, it is possible for an individual to win the overall trophy, yet have their team lose the match.
  • A football team is a interdependent group of very diverse individuals, each of whom have very specialized skills. Some weigh 380 pounds, others weigh 180. In addition, there are sub-teams within the team, such as the offense, defense, and special teams. However, there is only one score … everyone wins or loses as a team.
  • A crew team is, in contrast, much more interconnected and homogeneous group. Each member is very similar, and has a virtually identical build and skill-set. There is only one team, and they must work in perfect harmony in order to win.
  • The US Olympic team is not a team at all; it is just a collection of individual athletes and disconnected teams. Frankly, most of them could care less if the US wins the overall medal count … all they care about is winning their medal.

So, rather than take your executives to a ropes course, perhaps you should simply define what you mean by team. It is harder than you might think.

The Shift Points blog is designed for Fast Lane leaders who want to leave their competitors in the dust.

Shift Your Thinking … Accelerate Your Results.

Et tu, Brute?

In Leadership, Teamwork on April 23, 2012 at 7:55 am

“Et tu, Brute?” is the line supposedly uttered by Julius Caesar to his friend Marcus Brutus at the moment of his assassination.

Immortalized by Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar (1599), this Latin phrase is still used to depict the ultimate betrayal.

In organizations, betrayal comes in all shapes and sizes:

  • Your best customer steals your staff and brings the work in-house.
  • Your top salesperson jumps ship and takes their clients with them.
  • A key member of your inner circle “pulls a Judas” and stabs you in the back.
  • Your partner plots a coup d’état to throw you out of the business.
  • The person you were recruiting joins a competitor instead.

These acts, and countless others, can have devastating impacts. The betrayed can suffer deep wounds. Friendships can be permanently terminated. Cultures can be dramatically altered.

If you were the betrayer, it is time to ask for forgiveness. If you were the betrayed, you must learn to forgive.

The Shift Points blog is designed for Fast Lane leaders who want to leave their competitors in the dust.

Shift Your Thinking … Accelerate Your Results.

A Follower Worth Leading

In Employee Engagement, Leadership, Teamwork on April 16, 2012 at 7:56 am

Last week, we challenged leaders to take a hard look at themselves to see if they are “a leader worth following.”

But, it is equally important to challenge followers with a similar question:

Are you “a follower worth leading?”

In our work, we see all kinds of organizational pathologies.

One of the most damaging is employees who undermine their boss and “throw them under the bus.” This kind of behavior kills organizational performance, and must not be tolerated.

So, what makes someone a follower worth leading?

Great followers:

  • Accept (and implement) decisions that they were not included in making
  • Highlight their boss’s strengths, rather than criticize their weaknesses
  • Express concerns privately and directly, rather than at the water cooler
  • Demonstrate loyalty and respect
  • Give the boss’s initiatives their very best, even if they don’t fully agree with them
  • Keep their word, meet their deadlines, and make their numbers … not one-time, but every time

Great leaders are rare. But perhaps great followers are even rarer.

The Shift Points blog is designed for Fast Lane leaders who want to leave their competitors in the dust.

Shift Your Thinking … Accelerate Your Results.

Debate, Decide and Align

In Alignment, Leadership, Teamwork on March 5, 2012 at 7:52 am

One of the most dysfunctional and destructive organizational pathologies is undermining, especially at executive levels.

Unfortunately, we see this all the time.

Issues are discussed at the executive meeting.  Alternatives are debated.  And eventually, a decision about the best course of action is made.

Far too often, what happens next is that executives who did not get their way undermine the decision.  Sometimes, their undermining is overt, blatant, and public such as when executives say, “They made a dumb decision.”

Most of the time, however, the undermining is much more covert.  Whispering at the watercooler.  Backstabbing in the bathroom.  Sniping at Starbucks.

This kind of behavior, especially at executive levels, must never be tolerated.

In contrast, high-performance executive teams debate, decide, and align.  Once a decision is made, everyone aligns behind it, even it if wasn’t their preferred course of action.

The Shift Points blog is designed for Fast Lane leaders who want to leave their competitors in the dust.

Shift Your Thinking … Accelerate Your Results.


Related … But Different

In Teamwork on December 19, 2011 at 7:55 am

This week, most of you will be getting together with relatives.  For many, being with relatives can be pretty stressful.

Why?  Because you are related … but different.

You are related, which means that your DNA has some familial markers.  You have common experiences.

But, you are different.  In most cases, very different!  You grew up in the same environment, but now have totally different values.  You have the same parents, but now have opposing worldviews.  You used to be inseparable, but now barely speak.

For the next week or so, everyone will have to put aside their differences, and come together as a family.  Everyone must put “we before me.”

Now, if this is hard for families to do for one week, imagine just how absurd it is to ask unrelated … and very different people to come together to build an organization.

To do this, leaders must find common ground with such force, clarity, and intensity that it unifies unrelated people.

That is why we use the word “One” over and over again.  We advise clients to develop One Strategy, One Vision, One Defining Differentiation, One Destination, One DNA, One Dashboard, One Culture, One Playbook, (and more).  We have found that this level of clarity and precision is essential to bringing people together.

So they can work as One Team!

The Shift Points blog is designed for Fast Lane leaders who want to leave their competitors in the dust.

Shift Your Thinking … Accelerate Your Results.

 

Orange Flowers

In Leadership, Teamwork on November 28, 2011 at 7:34 am

As we mentioned last week, a simple thank you goes a long way.

But, a creative, unique, and differentiated thank you will never, ever be forgotten.

One of our clients, BTI360 (www.bti360.com) recently sent flowers to the spouse of an employee* who worked especially long hours to complete a critical project.

Sending flowers to a spouse will definitely go a long way.

But, BTI360 did not just send flowers, they sent orange flowers.

See, BTI360 chose orange as their corporate color.  This simple choice helped them differentiate the company in a highly crowded market.  So, when it came time to send flowers, the decision about what kind of flowers to send was easy.

This was a creative, unique and differentiated thank you that will never, ever be forgotten.

* BTI360 does not use the word employee … they call their people “Teammates.”  Exactly the word you would expect a company who sends orange flowers to use!

The Shift Points blog is designed for Fast Lane leaders who want to leave their competitors in the dust.

Shift Your Thinking … Accelerate Your Results.

Horsepower

In Performance Management, Teamwork on November 14, 2011 at 7:30 am

Normally, I prefer horsepower of the automotive kind.

However, last week, one of our clients had an all-hands meeting that used the story of Secretariat as their theme.  In the process, I learned a great deal about this amazing athlete and the team that helped him win the Triple Crown.  Some of the highlights:

  • The team overcame tremendous obstacles and accomplished what most people said was impossible.
  • The team was comprised of a surprising mix of “has-beens.”
  • The team endured ridicule and an endless stream of naysayers.
  • The team pushed harder than most felt was wise.

Secretariat still holds the track records at The Kentucky Derby and The Belmont.  He was #35 on ESPN’s list of the greatest athletes of the century … ahead of Mickey Mantle!

I think this inspiring story was best summed up by Randall Wallace, the director of the Secretariat movie, “There are capabilities in each of us that are beyond what we think we have… and life is about finding how far you can go, how fast you can run, and you never know until you run.”

High-performance organizations, like Secretariat, have capabilities beyond what they think they have … and they will never know where the limits really are until they align behind a strategy and run.

The Shift Points blog is designed for Fast Lane leaders who want to leave their competitors in the dust.

Shift Your Thinking … Accelerate Your Results.

Second Person

In Alignment, Leadership, Teamwork on September 6, 2011 at 8:12 am

We received a great response to our last blog post from Brad Hill, CEO of Site Organic. Here’s what he wrote:

“Equally important, I think, is to listen for first person language. “Here’s what I decided” communicates something very different from “Here’s what we can all do.” Followers are more likely to respect and rally around a leader who considers himself part of the team, not an aloof order-giver.

  • First person = ego
  • Second person = invested in the team
  • Third person = disengaged, CYA mentality”

I think Brad is exactly right.

You can’t finish in first place if everyone talks in the third person. But, you won’t build consensus if leaders operate in the first person.

So, maybe we all should have paid better attention in grammar class.

PS: If you are looking for a new web site, check out www.siteorganic.com. Brad and his team have built thousands of web sites for organizations that want to “produce fruit” online. They have done a great job for The Dashboard Group, and I am sure they will do a great job for you.

The Shift Points blog is designed for Fast Lane leaders who want to leave their competitors in the dust.

Shift Your Thinking…Accelerate Your Results.

Developing Ultimate Teammates

In Alignment, Employee Engagement, Teamwork on July 11, 2011 at 6:44 am

One of our clients, BTI360 (www.bti360.com) has adopted the idea of Developing Ultimate Teammates as their “One Thing.”

We arrived at this idea after over a year of intense effort, debate, and corporate soul searching. We had early versions that worked well for a season, and constant refinement eventually led us to the big idea.

In Good to Great, Jim Collins talks about the build-up phase (where intense effort yields seemingly minimal gains) followed by the breakthrough (where exponential gains take the organization to unprecedented heights.)

And we are starting to experience the breakthrough!

At BTI360, the Developing Ultimate Teammates idea has transformed the organization. There is piercing clarity. The executive team is fully aligned. Every teammate has a clear development roadmap. Enthusiasm is at an all-time high. We are receiving unsolicited resumes from exceptionally qualified people who have heard about our strategy and want to be a part of the movement.

In an industry that is highly competitive, and frequently treats people simply as “bodies on a project,” BTI360 is a beacon of light. They are proof that being people-driven is an exceptional and differentiating business strategy.

BTI360 is an inspiration to me, and The Dashboard Group is very proud to have them as a client.

The Shift Points blog is designed for Fast Lane leaders who want to leave their competitors in the dust.

Shift Your Thinking…Accelerate Your Results.

Mixed Signals

In Alignment, Execution, Teamwork on June 13, 2011 at 10:10 am

In the 1997 Indy 500, Tony Stewart hit the wall on lap 198 (of 200).  His accident brought out the yellow flag.   On lap 199, the starter waived the green flag, indicating that the race was back on, but the track lights still showed yellow, indicating that the race was still in a caution.

Arie Luyendyk saw the green flag and hit the gas, but Scott Goodyear saw the yellow-lights and hesitated.  Mixed signals cost Scott the Indy 500.

Unfortunately, organizations send these kinds of mixed signals all the time.

  • They say that people are their most important asset, but whack them unmercifully at the first downturn.
  • They declare that integrity is one of their core values, but tolerate people who shade the truth.
  • Their mission statement talks about teamwork, but the comp plan rewards only individual performance.

I could go on.  I’ve seen hundreds of examples of these kinds of mixed signals.  And just like they caused Scott Goodyear to lose the Indy 500, they cause organizations to dramatically underperform their potential.

The Shift Points blog is designed for Fast Lane leaders who want to leave their competitors in the dust.

Shift Your Thinking … Accelerate Your Results.

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