While businesses have historically celebrated the individual, there has been a notable shift in recent years towards acknowledgement of how important teams are to organisational success – and with this recognition has come significant investment in their development.
Focusing efforts on supporting teams makes sense when you consider the fact that 86% of executives attribute company failure towards a lack of collaboration between and within teams, and 75% of employees agree that when team building is done well, it positively affects performance and engagement.
But this doesn’t mean building high-performing teams is an easy feat. In fact, the idea of any team being the finished article is pretty much a myth. People will leave, new members will join, transformation projects will necessitate changes to team structures; regardless of what the catalyst for change is, when you think a team has achieved optimal performance, something will always happen to disrupt it.
“Teams are complex, multi-faceted and need to work effectively - both as intact teams, but also within the broader eco-systems that exist within organisations and wider society.”
- Claire Scholes, Principal Consultant - Right Management
So how do you ensure your teams are as impactful as possible, for as long as possible?
The first step is to understand what makes an impactful team. It’s no longer just about what a team achieves, but how they achieve it.
A team can for example, be clear on its purpose and rich in cognitive diversity, but if members fail to demonstrate the correct behaviours when working together, or are in disagreement as to what their immediate focus should be, the whole thing can be derailed.
However, a struggling or dysfunctional team does not constitute an unviable one. There are many ingredients that make an impactful team, and it’s highly unlikely that any group of individuals is lacking in all of them. Instead, it’s about understanding which areas a team needs investment in the most and targeting this gap accordingly.
Data driven insights: Teams tend to fantasise and exaggerate how good they are; but data will always see through this and should form the foundation of any development initiative. Having a team undertake a diagnostic assessment can uncover where their immediate development needs are – ensuring any support is then targeted to have optimal impact. The same assessment can be taken at the end of a development programme to provide clear data on how the team has improved and demonstrate ROI for the organisation.
Team coaching: Once a team is clear on what their weaknesses are, coaching support can act as the driving force behind their ongoing development. A coach will work with a team to shift their mindset and encourage greater reflection and awareness, thus facilitating better performance and ensuring each member maximises their potential. With the help of targeted coaching support, teams can begin to truly thrive and sustain their success, even in the wake of change.
“Team coaching is a long-term partnership geared towards lasting change. It is increasingly being recognised as bridging the gap between individual coaching and leadership development, as organisations thrive to adapt and succeed in the new world.”
- Claire Scholes, Principal Consultant - Right Management
To hear first-hand from our experts on how they’ve utilised our team development model to help teams go from good to great, watch our latest webinar.
