|
Nobody sets out to lead an ineffective team. The only problem? Many of the strategies leaders have adopted to improve teamwork, while well-intentioned, are not all that effective. Leigh Thompson, a professor of management and organizations at Kellogg and an expert on teamwork, clears up five popular misconceptions. In the process, she offers a roadmap for building and maintaining teams that are creative, efficient, and high-impact.
1. Teams are not cocktail parties: don’t invite everyone.
When building a team, business leaders often fall into two traps: they make the team too big and too homogenous.
Trying to be overly inclusive leads inevitably to a team that is too large. One strategy for managing team size is to consult specialists only when their expertise is required rather than keeping them on full time. Adding some fluidity to team membership can also help with the problem of homogeneity.
“We found that changing the membership of a team—taking out one member and putting in a new member while holding everything else constant—actually leads to an increase in creative idea generation,” says Thompson. This process also prevents so-called “cognitive arthritis,” which happens when static teams start to think along well-worn mental ruts.
2. It is possible to set ground rules without stifling creativity. Some structure may even spark creativity.
For team leaders, nailing the balance between offering freedom and providing structure is never easy. Though it may seem like a drag on creativity to spend time establishing ground rules, teams function better over the long term with an explicit written charter. This document identifies—ideally in one sentence—the goal of the team, establishes the rules of operation, and defines where responsibilities lie.
“Teams do a pretty good job of evaluating or expanding on ideas, but they don’t do a good job of generating ideas.Teams that develop a charter end up being more nimble, having more proactive behavior, and achieving their goals more than teams that don’t bother,” says Thompson.
Even the process of developing a charter can improve team cohesion and effectiveness.
3. Drop the pride talk. Vulnerability can be a good thing.
Corporate retreats tend toward the celebratory. Managers highlight progress and recognize employees of the year. Such praise aims to act as a kind of cultural glue, binding teams together through shared accomplishment and optimism.
“This is pride talk,” says Thompson. But does pride talk actually improve teamwork?
Thompson ran a series of studies in which some teams were told to share accomplishments with each other while other teams shared embarrassments. To her surprise, Thompson found that team members who talked about an embarrassing moment generated more ideas in subsequent brainstorming sessions. Embarrassment, not pride, spurred creative and effective teamwork.
“It’s somewhat unintuitive that putting out our worst moment in the last six months can actually help our team,” says Thompson. “Almost all of our intuitions are wrong.”
4. You may be able to cut your meeting time in half—if you are smart about it.
In theory, meetings are designed to increase team efficiency—a purpose they rarely live up to in practice. Most teams meet too infrequently and for too long, says Thompson. Research has demonstrated that, given a two-hour meeting, people will work to fill it; but meetings that are half as long are usually just as productive. It is better to have four hour-long meetings than two two-hour meetings.
What can leaders do to make the most of a shorter meeting? “Teams do a pretty good job of evaluating or expanding on ideas, but they don’t do a good job of generating ideas,” Thompson says. So to optimize meeting time, she recommends a facilitator solicit contributions related to the agenda beforehand to serve as the starting point for discussion.
Facilitators are also responsible for encouraging full participation. After all, the diversity of a team is only valuable if that diversity is given voice. Studies have shown that on a team of eight people, one or two members often do up to 70 percent of the talking.
Thompson recommends “speed storming”—“think of it as brainstorming meets speed dating”—as one way to get the entire team involved. This exercise briefly pairs team members for one-on-one discussion and ideation sessions. After pairs have talked for a short period, people shift seats and begin again with a different partner.
5. It is possible for teams to get along too well. Agree to keep disagreeing.
“Some teams are too polite,” warns Thompson. “They don’t challenge one another because they’re afraid that they will drive a wedge in team cohesion.” But properly managed disagreement helps teams avoid groupthink while probing the strengths and weaknesses of any idea.
The challenge for leaders lies primarily in sowing productive disagreement, which means creating an environment where everyone feels comfortable voicing their own opinions and challenging others’. And the disagreement must remain free of personal attacks.
“You’re hard on the problem and respectful of the people,” says Thompson.
In practice, eliciting this kind of “responsible feedback” can be difficult. So Thompson offers a tip: have team members write down rather than vocalize their opinions and recommendations. Studies of brainstorming indicate that teams often never make it past the second idea before they suppress their concerns. However, when ideas are challenged—without being assaulted—this can often spur truly great ideas.
“When team members are thinking through different possible courses of action, then everybody can be writing cards that talk about a pro and a con. This helps build a balance of feedback,” says Thompson. “Let’s talk about the positives; then let’s talk about the negatives.”
|
Machine learning is changing the way organizations curate content and manage learners. But are CLOs using its full capabilities?
Machine learning is the underpinning for many common learning technologies, including learning management systems, MOOCs, data analytics and other tools. The allure of machine learning is clear, said James Cross, director of learning product strategy for Workday. “Research shows that it increases engagement and makes the learning experience more relevant and ‘sticky.’ ”
The technology works through a series of algorithms, or computer-based queries that allow a piece of software to learn from data over time so it can identify trends and patterns that inform future searches and suggestions. In other words, the software watches what learners do, and how they engage with content, then proactively provides them with content they need the moment they need it.
“The ultimate goal of this technology is to create a more custom learner experience,” Cross explained. “Think of it as Netflix for learning.”
Machine learning offers exciting opportunities for learning leaders to deliver better, faster, custom content. It also should prompt them to take stock of their current skill set. Machine learning enabled tools can automate common tasks, like updating LMS databases, transcribing documents or assigning content. “That can free CLOs to focus on more important tasks, like culture building and strategic planning,” he said.
Before a company can make use of machine learning or artificial intelligence to improve their learning strategy and programming, they need to figure out how the technology applies to their business case, what benefits they want to derive from the tools, and how to make that happen, said Dani Johnson, vice president of learning and development research for Bersin by Deloitte. To do that, learning leaders need to educate themselves on how these technologies work, what questions they want answered, and how to use the information they glean.
They also should think about how these tools will change the way they do their jobs and the knowledge their people need to acquire. Johnson said in the past two years there has been a huge shift in the skills organizations need. The most innovative CLOs are crafting new learning strategies in response to technology trends to meet long-term talent development goals and to effectively engage learners. “There is a huge opportunity here for forward-thinking CLOs to have a dramatic impact on organizational strategy — if they are willing to adapt.”
|
Everyone wants a team that gets results, but the process is often easier said than done. High-performing individuals and teams operate above the market average and consistently meet their goals. It can be trial and error to put together the right combination of employees with the right project responsibilities, but building a framework for a high-performing team means the environment is in place that nearly every combination of employees can work together to reach their goals.
Mary O'Hara, Chief Human Resources Officer and SVP at Blue Shield of California, provides her four conditions to success to create a high-performing team environment in any office:
- Critical few. Every person or team should have the critical few things they are working on. With these tasks as the focus, employees know exactly what their responsibilities are and how to use their time and direct their effort to meet their goals.
- Multiple modes. High-performing teams distribute the work and create multiple modes of how people work. This will look different for each organization and can include things like breaking it into smaller teams, having employees focus on different areas of a project, or using various technologies to solve problems.
- Established operating norms. High-performing teams aren't immune to challenges and obstacles, but they know how to handle difficulties when they arrive. With operating norms in place, the team isn't completely de-railed when obstacles arise and can continue working after putting the operating norms into place. Having a clear and agreed-upon process also removes office drama and interpersonal conflict because team members already know how to interact with each other.
- Feedback training. A big part of working in a team is being able to give and receive feedback. Employees at all levels learn how to apply feedback without it taking away from their work experience. Giving employees the tools allows them to quickly apply feedback and speak openly with their team members without worrying how people will respond.
These four conditions to success take some effort but can provide teams the tools they need to be productive and efficient. A main theme is providing employees and teams with the tools and training they need before the work gets difficult and people can get distracted and sidelined.
Creating a high-performing team isn't something that only applies to a single team at a company--it becomes part of the culture and is soon applied to every team within the organization.
High-performing teams can make a huge difference within an organization in morale, revenue, and efficiency. The good news is that putting these teams together isn't as difficult as it first may seem. In the team-oriented future of work, creating strong teams will be of utmost importance.
No comments:
Post a Comment