A few days ago, I came across this quote by H. E. Luccock, “No one can whistle a symphony. It takes a whole orchestra to play it.” The parallels between an out-of-sync orchestra and an ineffective team could not be more apt.
But how would you know if your team is whistling in sync? How clearly do you spot the red flags?
Perhaps your team is falling behind on its objectives. Or maybe you have a better one-to-one relationship with your directs than they have with one another. But, even if there are no outward signs, most leaders instinctively know if their teams need a tune-up.
One insightful method consists of 5 questions that cut through all the fluff of team-building. I adapted it based on what I learned from Marshall Goldsmith a few years ago. I loved how he calls it “team-building without time-wasting”.
This is how I used it with a team of mine. The group was diverse in terms of culture, upbringing, mother tongue, experience and personality. The team was functioning, but I could sense from what people said one-to-one that a lot more was left unsaid.
That was the only red flag I needed.
Bring Everyone’s View To Light
I did not want sub-optimal team dynamics to kill performance. And so, I reserved one team meeting for a team effectiveness exercise. After setting the stage, I asked the first question, “On a scale of 1 to 10, how well ARE we working as a team?” The average was 7.
I proceeded to the second question, “On a scale of 1 to 10, how well SHOULD we be working as a team?” The average was 8.7.
As we were on video conference, I shared the record of individual responses. Clearly, we all agreed there was room for improvement in how we were working together.
"So, what does this gap mean for each of you?”
We listened to each person’s perspective during the roundtable. It was the first time we had had this conversation, so there was understandable politeness to the sharing. We learned how the team experience varied depending on culture, working style, decision-making style, time zone and proximity to the head office. More importantly, we learned about what mattered to each team member.
Converge Ideas Into Commitment
Then came the so-what moment. “What shall we do to close this gap?”
By then, the team was on a roll. We discussed various improvement ideas, such as the decision-making process and socialising ideas outside of formal meetings. All suggestions were valuable, but some surfaced through the discussion naturally as top contenders.
The final question, “What do we commit to doing?” led to an agreement of 2 actions. We also agreed to revisit progress in our monthly meeting.
For a team of 12, we did this in under 2 hours in a video conference. We had put every minute to good use. After the meeting, a couple of team members messaged me to say that it had been the most “real” conversation the team had had.
Asking Questions Is A Powerful Way To Lead
Most teams do not lack intellectual horsepower, but there is often room for greater alignment. Asking questions and listening to one another is a powerful way to start the conversation. It's how people bond. Leaders that create the space for real conversations build trust.
So how well does your team “play” together in your orchestra? Even better, try this exercise. Remember that we don’t build an effective team with a single activity. But with good intentions and some practice, you and your team could soon be whistling a powerful symphony.
Valerie Tan Ronchail specialises in Organisational Strategies. Start a conversation with Valerie at valerie@mingz.co or LinkedIn
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