One Team, One Goal
One of the most common things I am asked by new client partners – In your experience, what is the ideal strategy for managing teams?
My response has and still is – What kind of environment do you want to drive? What do you want the team to achieve? Because there is no – one size fits all approach.
In my experience there are those that want complete authority. A command and control model. In this setup the team effectively just becomes an extension of your team, your process, procedures and your policies. You say jump, we say how high?
There are a select few who focus on empowerment. A collaboration and evolution model. This is where the team is a living, breathing, equal part of the system and helps shape the team’s vision, values and beliefs along with the overall identity itself.
Neither model is right or wrong. This will all depend on a team’s operational maturity and again, what the ultimate objective is.
As long as everyone is clear on the intent, purpose and goal, both models will work and deliver the outcomes you need.
Both models can fail if authenticity is not present. How? Here are some examples:
Worked with 2 different partners a few years back that promoted a collaborative culture.
The 1st team was 600 FTE total, they brought in 7 vendor managers. Responsibilities were not defined and often overlapped, individual agendas were strong and coordination/communication was poor. Silos and territories were formed and the internal team were often caught in the middle. Feedback from within the team was generally ignored. A focus on policies and targets was prevalent.
2nd team was 1,500 FTE strong, had 2 vendor managers. They were both Subject Matter Experts in their fields and they were final Decision Makers for each of their lines of business. Feedback sessions and collaboration with the internal team was consistent. Everyone in the team felt a true partnership.
As Simon Sinek says, Authenticity means the things you say and do, you actually believe. Problems and gaps arise when there is a disconnect with these things.
People love working with others that have the same set of values and beliefs. Be authentic about your values so you can be sure that you are attracting the right people to your cause.
Genuinely aligned values and beliefs = trust = a successful team.
#TeamLegendary #BestInClass #Authenticity #SameSetOfValues #SameSetOfBeliefs
pragmatic leadership 