True success cannot be achieved alone. Great leaders recognize the importance of building highly effective teams that better position the organization to achieve the results they desire. Powerful teams develop a synergy where the output of the group far surpasses the capability of each individual. An effective leadership team is critical because it sets the tone for the entire organization. Creating and maintaining a functional team requires constant attention and effort. It is one of the most important investments a leader can make.
While team building is both a science and an art, ultimately, a team is only as good as its leader. If you want your team to operate at a higher level, the first place to look is how you can improve yourself. Know who you are as a leader and understand how your communication style impacts healthy team functioning. Evaluating your leadership strengths and opportunities, seeking feedback from those you lead and learning how your biases may impact your behavior are key ways to know yourself better. This knowledge will help you make the changes needed to lead your team to its full potential.
In addition to knowing yourself, there are three key elements to creating powerful, functional teams: 1.) Build your team with the right individuals. Healthy team functioning requires individuals who are willing and able to manage their own egos for the good of the outcome of the group. It only takes one key member of the team to be overly self-focused to drive the team towards dysfunction if this behavior is left unchecked. 2.) Establish an environment that encourages healthy conflict. Healthy conflict requires a culture of trust. Individuals need to be motivated and feel safe to offer their different perspective in order to truly leverage the diversity of thought that brings out the value having a team provides. 3.) Foster accountability for team relationships. What happens outside of the team interaction is equally as important as what happens within the group. When the leader continually reinforces the importance of team functioning to each of the team members and holds them accountable for creating positive team relationships, this drives effective team behavior.
At CEO Effectiveness, we help leaders build and sustain successful teams. We do this by focusing on team effectiveness and helping leaders understand how their leadership style and practices can be leveraged to best contribute to team success. We are all only as strong as those we surround ourselves with. Our goal is to give you the tools to help you surround yourself with a high functioning team that achieves the results you desire.
Alison Midili Smith, Ph.D
Executive Vice President, CEO Effectiveness
ceoeffectiveness.com (888) 838-6683
