Technique 3.17 Is Your Team a Team?
Introduction
Many teams play 'lipservice' to the concept of being a team.
By entering the below questions can help determine the authenticity of your team and areas that need improvement
Questions
1. Recognition and reward
1.1 Do you generally care about the success of the team? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
1.2 Do you reward success and achievement jointly or individually? (answer; individually/jointly/both)
Explain the reasons for your answer
1.3 Do you play favourites and pick stars in the team? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
2. Resource allocation
2.1 Do your team members understand what they individually and collectively are accountable for? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
2.2 Do they have joint goals? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
2.3 Are you (or your team members) willing to give up a resource to help the team achieve, even to the detriment of your own individual achievement? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
3. Information overload
3.1 Does your team have effective channels to share relevant information? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
3.2 Are the clear and agreed guidelines on how and when to share information? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
3.3 Are they effective open forums for candid conversation and for challenging the status quo? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
4. Changing, Team Dynamics
4.1 Do you assume that the team's way of working is fixed and not changable? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
4.2 Do you 'induct' new team members into ways of working rather than inviting them to contribute to the process of how you work together? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
5. Context Matters
5.1 When you lead a team, do you genuinely seek to understand the uniqueness of each of its members? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
5.2 Are you acutely interested in what each of them brings and how you can help elevate to their best each day? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
5.3 Do you understand the system and context in which you are working and the impact it has on you and your team? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
6. Time management
6.1 Is there a transparent process for meetings and expectations around how they get run, ie agendas, attendance, timeliness, preparation and outcomes? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
6.2 Are team members held accountable for how they turn up to meetings? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
6.3 Is there an optimal balance in informational, discussion-based or decision-based meetings? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
7. Over complicate things
7.1 Are people getting out of each other's way so they can make regular and steady progress? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
7.2 Are the right people in the team informed, consulted, responsible and accountable at the right time? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
7.3 Do team members trust each other enough so that they know they don't need to attend every meeting as other team members will accurately and effectively represent their views at that meeting? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
8. Accept mediocre performance
8.1 Does each team member hold themselves and each other to account? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
8.2 Is it seem willing to have the difficult conversations they need to have? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
8.3 Is everyone, especially the leadership, willing to role model the right way? (answer: Yes/No)
Explain the reasons for your answer
Notes
Depending on your answers, especially your explanations, should give some ideas on how to improve your team performance
(source: Michelle Gibbings, 2024)