Team Dynamics and Effectiveness Lisa Hicks Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute 1 Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17, 2012

Team Dynamics – Project Team Development There are 4 stages to the development of a team: – Forming – Storming – Norming – Performing Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Team Dynamics – Project Team Development Forming At this stage, personal relations are characterized by a dependency on group leaders to provide structure. The leader’s main goal is to orientate members of the group to the mission, vision and goals of the organization. Questions in the forming stage: – Why are we here? – What we are supposed to do? – How are we going to get it done? – How much latitude do I have? – Who are the other team members? – How can I let them know what my talents are? – How will I know if I am doing well? Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Team Dynamics – Project Team Development What the Forming stage looks and feels like: – Excitement – Anxiety – Testing each other – Dependence on the leader – Group tries to define the task – Complaints about barriers to task accomplishment Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Team Dynamics – Project Team Development Storming: This stage in the group development is characterized by a focus on personal relationships within the group. Different people strive for positions, and there is a fair amount of conflict and confrontation among group members. Confrontations can be about who is responsible for what, who are going to be the leader(s) of the group, what are going to be the work rules, etc. Questions in the storming stage: – What are we suppose to accomplish as a team? – What are each of our roles and responsibilities in accomplishing the goals? – Who is running the show? Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Team Dynamics – Project Team Development Symptoms of storming: – Resistance to different approaches – Sharp attitudes – Defensiveness and competitiveness – Disunity, jealousy and tension – Concern about ambitious goals Valuable tools for the storming stage: – Fostering communication and dialog – Brainstorming – Actions for challenging situations – Conflict resolution Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Team Dynamics – Project Team Development Norming: During this stage, the group begins to settle down. Personal relations are marked by greater cohesion. Members of the group start to feel that they belong to it, rather than merely being in it. At this stage of development, members begin to share ideas, feelings, give and receive feedback, and generally chat about what is going on and what they are doing. Behaviors in the norming stage : – Decreasing dissatisfaction – Developing harmony, trust, respect and support – Giving feedback – Sharing responsibilities – “We” rather than “I” – Significant progress on task Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Team Dynamics – Project Team Development Performing: At this stage, group members achieve interdependence. This means that they work well together, achieving more together than they would as individuals. In this stage, group members are both task and maintenance (people) oriented (they get things done but also make sure that individuals in the group are okay). By this point, a group has set itself clear goals and a lot is achieved. Behaviors in the performing stage: – Reached a high level of performance – Comfortable with each other and the project – Confident and optimistic – Work is almost effortless with lots of creativity – Very high energy Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Definition of Team Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17, In the global best-selling 1993 book, The Wisdom of Teams, Jon Katzenbach and Douglas Smith, give this definition of a team, as “The 5 Team Basics”: A team is a small group of people who hold each other mutually accountable to achieve a common purpose and set of performance goals through a collaborative approach and the use of their collective talents.

The 5 Key Questions Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17, CommonPurpose Why should we come Why should we come together as a team? CommonPurpose Why should we come Why should we come together as a team? PerformanceGoals What are the outcomes we will deliver as a team? PerformanceGoals What are the outcomes we will deliver as a team? CollectiveTalents Do we have the requisite talents to achieve our purpose and goals? CollectiveTalents Do we have the requisite talents to achieve our purpose and goals? CollaborativeApproach How do we work together to achieve our purpose and goals? CollaborativeApproach How do we work together to achieve our purpose and goals? Mutual Accountability Are we all committed to work together to achieve our purpose and goals?

Common Purpose  The characteristics of an effective common purpose are:  Imaginable: Conveys a clear picture of what the collaboration is about  Specific: Is clear enough to provide guidance in decision making  Desirable: Appeals to the interests of all members  Attainable: Realistic and attainable with a stretch  Flexible: Is general enough to allow alternative responses in light of changing conditions  Communicable: Is easy to communicate and can be explained quickly Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Performance Goals The characteristics of effective goals are captured in the acronym SMARTO: – Specific: Goals answer what the team wishes to accomplish and for whose benefit – Measurable: Goals contain a metric using one or more of the following categories of measurement and following the basic drive to improve productivity (more output for less input): 1. Time/Speed 2. Cost 3. Quality (defects or errors) 4. Positive yields (financial, product/service, customer, employee) – Aggressive and Achievable: Goals drive a stretch in performance yet are credible and achievable – Relevant: Goals are aligned with and support the attainment of the common purpose – Time-bound: Goals have a time frame including deadlines and/or milestones – Owned: Goals have clear owners who are accountable for ensuring they are accomplished Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Collective Talents  Collective talents are comprised of three pieces: 1. Knowledge: Functional/technical expertise, cognizance of data and information, understanding of methods and tools 2. Skills: Application of knowledge, method and tools, proficiency and ability, expertness in an area of knowledge that converts knowledge to realizable value 3. Experience: Actually living through an event, personally undergoing or observing something and being able to communicate the impact, track record and reputation Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Collaborative Approach There are numerous aspects to a collaborative approach - the key ones are: – Leadership : What is the leadership model for the team? Who is the leader and how do they lead? How do team members exert influence, power and authority? – Roles and Responsibilities: What are the roles and responsibilities of the various team members? What are the agreed upon behaviors for team members? – Work Management: How will work be managed, i.e., meetings, work sessions, etc.? How will the workload be balanced among team members? – Problem Solving: How will problems be identified, formulated, solved and implemented? – Decision-making: What decisions need to be made? Who will make them? How will they be made? – Communication: What are the communication processes and behaviors within the team? – Conflict Management: What is the approach to managing and resolving conflicts between team members – Feedback and Coaching: What is the appropriate approach to feedback between team members? – Performance Management: How will performance be established and managed? – Team Growth and Development: How will the team bring in new entrants? How will the team build and maintain itself? How will the team learn, develop and grow? Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,

Mutual Accountability For a team to succeed, the members must operate from a sense of mutual accountability Mutual accountability can be described as: Only we fail - and - Only we succeed The most striking manifestation of mutual accountability is that team members do not blame each other for mistakes that are made – instead, they explore what went wrong within the team including with themselves Mutual accountability is the most critical of the five team basics and yet is the most elusive and difficult to achieve The main reason is that mutual accountability is difficult to enforce through polices, procedures or systems It lives within the intentions and declaration of the team members Mutual accountability comes to life when the team members have truly agreed and committed to the common purpose and performance goals Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute January 17,