Teamwork - 5 Key Questions

What’s the point of team leadership?

Very simple – as a leader you cannot force people to co-operate with or support you. Equally, it’s impossible for you to do everything by yourself! Therefore, developing the skills of team leadership helps you gain the co-operation; earn the support – and have the confidence to allow others to undertake tasks and activities themselves What if your boss doesn’t really buy into the idea of teamwork?

When conducting management and leadership courses, here’s the most frequent comment I receive: “Has my boss ever done this course?” In other words, the suggestion is that their boss doesn’t always practice what we are talking about during the training. The answer to such points can only ever be that it’s up to you to concentrate on what you feel is right – to work in the areas that are under your control. Fun example: when Sir Matt Busby was in charge of the successful Manchester United soccer team in the 1960s, he gave an “inspiring” team talk before an important European Cup match. Afterwards, a senior player chipped in with: “Okay, you’ve heard what the boss has to say. Now, let’s just go out and do what we normally do!”

What do I do with someone who’s seen it all before?

Whether you are new to team leadership, or taking over a new team – or have even been in position for a while; this is one of the “problems” you might encounter. It’s too easy to ignore or sideline such an individual. Some tips for dealing with such a person:

# If you feel such a person is not open to change – remember the other side of this – they have the advantage of history to call on! So use this wisely # Make sure you take advantage of their experience! It can be too easy to push such a person to one side (especially if they appear to be negative). From their experience, they might just be right!

# Use their comments as a starting point to involve others – perhaps to provide different experiences, or to find ways round a highlighted difficulty # Provide this person with specific roles or tasks to make use of their experience Is your team vision both clear and shared?

Without getting too evangelical about this, it is important that all team members understand and buy into the “team vision”. This is simply an understanding of the journey the team is making, the steps they will take – and the destination that needs to be reached. Such “visions” can be both short and long term – and can include goals, targets and behaviours. As the old saying goes: “the person who doesn’t know where they are going tends not to arrive”

Do you work at recognition rather than simply rewards?

If a salesperson achieves their target, they receive a bonus. And, I’m sure that’s very welcome! But, does each individual receive a fair share of the recognition “pot” for good performance? It’s not unknown for a boss to be pretty unwilling to share the “spotlight of success”! Or, to forget to congratulate and praise as well as reward. Or, to offer praise to his or her “friends” within a team, more than some others. “Equal praise for equal performance” let’s each individual understand that they are truly part of a team

Teamwork - 5 Key Questions - To learn more about this author, visit Gordon Veniard's Website.

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