Why High Performance Teams Are Needed to Improve Student Performance Introduce ourselves. Paul B. Ash, Ph.D. November 1, 2016 Leadership4schoolchange@gmail.com

AGENDA Why successful schools need high performing teams What is the difference between a group and a team? Overview of the five dysfunctions of a team? A quick analysis of your team Discussion and next steps Introduce ourselves.

1. Why Are High Performance Teams Extremely Important? 5 minutes - This team can have the biggest impact on student performance – Why? What about other teams?

2. What is the difference between a Group and a Team? 5 minutes –Three qualities: 1. Interdependence 2. Working toward a common goal. 3. mutually accountable. Tiger Woods (part of a group) He can accomplish his goal regardless of what other golfers do? Michael Jordan (I want to win championships) – in 1988, he was named the best offensive and defensive player in NBA. But he did not accomplish his goal for the first 6 years in the NBA. Why? Jordan had to rely on other people to accomplish his goal. You may be the Michael Jordan of school leadership. I doubt it. No matter how brilliant you are, does not mean you will have a good school.

Teamwork Interdependence and working toward a common goal.

3. Overview of the Five Dysfunctions of a Team 30 minutes

Five Dysfunctions of a Team Patrick Lencioni

1st Dysfunction - Absence of Trust No Duh Predictability trust vs. vulnerability trust Trust is the foundation of teamwork What are the big fears?

Psychological Safety To gain the power of collaboration and continuous learning, psychological safety is needed. Impact of stress on the brain (raises cortisol levels and disrupts learning)

Seven Big Fears (Educators) Fear Of Making Mistakes Fear That Errors Will Erase Prior Success Fear Of Having A Weakness Exposed Fear That Asking For Assistance Will Diminish Respect Fear Of Looking Like A Novice Fear of being fired Fear of Conflict

Signs of Psychological Safety* Educators can disagree with peers and authority figures, ask naïve questions, own up to mistakes, or present a minority view without fear of ridicule or marginalization. *Amy Edmondson (Harvard Business School) Does this happen in your school? (PLCs, teams, faculty meetings?)

What Are the Biggest Trust Issues in Your School? Break into groups of two and share (5 minutes) Open share –

Paul Axtell Photo by clagnut - Creative Commons Attribution License https://www.flickr.com/photos/27616775@N00 Created with Haiku Deck

2nd Dysfunction – Fear of Conflict Continuum – Culture of nice to personal attacks Why is conflict need an important part of effective teams? Why is there a fear of conflict?

Cars.com – Stupid Plan

2nd - Fear of Conflict “Great teams do not hold back with one another. They are unafraid to air their dirty laundry. They admit their mistakes, their weaknesses, and their concerns without fear of reprisal.” Lencioni, P., Five Dysfunctions of a Team, p.44 Work quietly, Share at the table level. Report out.

How is conflict managed at meetings? In Your Setting… How is conflict managed at meetings? Ask listeners to comment, then discuss.

Invite Dissent “Gentlemen, I take it we are in complete agreement on the decision…Then I propose we postpone further discussion of this matter until our next meeting to give ourselves time to DEVELOP DISAGREEMENT AND PERHAPS GAIN SOME UNDERSTANDING of what the decision is all about.” -- Alfred P. Sloan (courtesy of Edmondson)

Key Points- Mastering Conflict Good conflict among team members requires trust, which is all about engaging in unfiltered debate around issues. Even with the best teams, conflict will at times feel uncomfortable. Conflict norms must be discussed and clear. The fear of occasional personal conflict should not deter a team from having regular, productive debates.

Conflict Can Lead to Learning “Conflict among collaborators can feel like a failure, but differences in perspective are a core reason for teamwork in the first place, and resolving them effectively creates opportunities.” -Amy Edmondson

Agree and Disagree, Then Commit Big Idea Agree and Disagree, Then Commit

3rd Dysfunction – Lack of Commitment Teams commit to decisions and standards Teams commit to “buy-in” and clarity Members of great teams learn to disagree with one another and still commit to a decision

4th Dysfunction – Avoidance of Accountability • Definition – The willingness of team members to remind one another when they are not living up to the performance standards of the group. • Do you do that? • Examples in Your School

5th Dysfunction – Inattention on Results • Why is this so important? • Why is this so difficult to focus on results at these meetings? At your meetings?

Key Points – Focusing on Results A great team accomplish the results it sets out to achieve. They avoid distractions, team members must prioritize the results of the team over individual or departmental needs stay focused, teams must clarify their desired results and keep them visible. monitor their work hold themselves and each other accountable What teams are in this school. Do they follow these four principles?

A bad system will beat a good person every time Edward Deming (Famous consultant to Japan after WW2. Known for Total Quality Management)

Deming’s Principles Drive out fear; create trust Remove barriers that rob people of pride of workmanship Include everyone in the company to accomplish the transformation In 1993, the year Deming died, IBM announced 60,000 workers would be fired. Instead of fostering trust and competition, IBM and other companies pitted workers against one another, forced rankings and demoralized people.

4. A quick analysis of your team Complete the short survey that identifies your team’s strengths on the 5 disfunctions. At your table, share what you learned.

5. Discussion and Next Steps 45 minutes

Questions for Reflection/Discussion Which of these factors do you often demonstrate in your work as a leader? Which of the facets would you like to improve? What are a few actions you can take to improve? 4. What are your three highest priorities to build trust? Work quietly, Share at the table level. Report out.

The Most Crucial Skills To Reduce Conflict Empathy 2. Anticipating how one’s behavior is affecting others 3. Resolving disagreements in ways that do not involve conflict 4. Taking another’s perspective 5. Honesty Turn and talk – Which ones do you want to know more about?