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Premature Solutions
By: Natalie R. Manor, CEO
What do you do when a group of highly successful, articulate and results producing people come together and FINALLY form a team that is really beginning to work well with each other?
You put the bit into their respective mouths and say, “Whoa!” Why? Because this group of people is rushing around putting together “to do” lists of all the issues that should have been solved eons ago. And by gum, they are going to solve them now!
The thrill and satisfaction of getting your team in place is an awesome feat to accomplish. You establish regular meetings; have clear communication; you’ve listed and described duties; you’ve discussed the priorities and your outcomes are aligned with your strategic plan. There is a rhythm and a steady pace with which the team operates and the confidence of each participant grows. So does the tendency of wanting to get stuff done so everyone can “feel good” about crossing items off the collective list.
But wait! The work with the team has only just begun. The real “work” in team work are the decisions, understanding and practice around setting context and establishing clear communication.
The mission of the team needs to be to develop clarity and have each team member speaking the same language inside and outside of the team. Let me give you an example:
I am working with a small team of executives (5 in all) that are growing their organization of 35 people. They have a 5 year goal of increasing their revenues by 150%. This will be possible even in this economy as they are in a growth sector. They have spent weeks together getting to know each other; building trust; learning to communicate with clarity and building a collaborative strategy they can all fully support. Now they are ready to get stuff done.
Nope.
This executive team has 30 other people who have not had the same opportunity of creating clarity and trust. The rest of the organization only knows that the executive team has had lots of time with the door closed.
Premature solution would be to just implement the terrific plan that the executive team has constructed.
Think about it. What if you were not one of the executive team who feels really solid and confident about the next steps for growing the organization? What if you were not sure why the door needed to be closed so much? You may be asking yourself,”What were they doing in there anyway?”
A team should not get to work independently in the organization. It is now their privilege and obligation to “teach” and “mentor” the skills they have developed to the balance of the organization.
Can you get started on your outcomes and business strategies as you share the new skills with the balance of the organization? Yes, of course. But don’t leave your doers and supporters without the information of how they are contributors to the success of the organization. Train them. Talk with them. Share your successes that you have created by “team building” through communicating well; building rapport; demanding clarity and providing a trusted environment.
Ok, now you can go do all those great things you discussed and produce sustainable results and successes TOGETHER.
© 1986-2008 Natalie Manor & Associates.
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