How to Lead Work Teams

1. How to Lead Work Teams Facilitation Skills By Fran Rees Part 1

2. Change is the only constant Technology in today’s world has made cross-global communication faster Computer and internet provide more information very quickly People work from project to project in matrix fashion – and move on The roles of leaders continue to change

3. Process is as critical as product Leaders must be skilled at facilitating: listening, collaborating, obtaining support for decisions, using consensus processes, leading participative meetings. Frequent meetings required for clarifying outputs and goals, open discussion, creative sessions, coming to consensus, sharing responsibility, and listening to others.

4. Facilitation skills are essential for all leaders • Teamwork is a process; it is the way people approach work. • A facilitative style of leadership focuses on motivating and involving others to set and accomplish goals synergistically. • The role of a team leader is one of a coach, motivator, team member, and facilitator.

5. Team work has two dimensions Task Social Both are always operative: to the extent the team does its work well, it will be productive; to the extent that it manages relationships well team members will have a sense of belonging and commitment.

6. Facilitating Team Leaders L.E.A.D. (a 4 point model) Lead with a clear purpose Empower all to participate Aim for consensus Direct the process

8. Lead with a clear purpose • Help the team to identify goals that are challenging, positive, and realistic. • Publish the goals and refer to them often. • Use goals to guide a decision. • Track progress in achieving goals • Celebrate when a milestone is reached.

9. Seeking other opinions and ideas • Listen actively • Ask questions or paraphrase to clarify what was said • Thank the person and resist having the last word.

10. In directing the process: • Is everyone participating? • Are the right people present? • Are members communicating well? • Are members free to disagree? • Are there interpersonal conflicts? • Do members follow the norms? • Is the mission/goal written down and does everyone have a copy?

11. Are you, the leader, comfortable with facilitating the team? • Is the team making progress on its tasks and goals? • Is the team making progress on how well they are working together? • Do members have a sense that they belong to a team? • Is it clear who is on and who is not on the team?

12. Team leaders wear two hats: • As team member • As facilitator (when facilitating, the leader remains neutral and lets the team work up a solution) • The strong leader knows when to tell and when to listen

13. Controlling vs. Facilitating leader • Controlling leader is responsible for decision making: tell, sell, direct, delegate, solves problems, sets goals, uses authority to get things done. • Facilitating leader and team members share responsibility for decisions: listens, asks questions, directs group process, coaches, teaches, builds consensus, shares in goal setting and decision making, empowers others to get things done.

14. Who is a Facilitative Leader? • One who acts on the premise that the leader does not do for others what they can do for themselves • When the team leader facilitates, success belongs to the team. • The leader takes control of the process, letting the team come up with the content.

15. Consensus • The decision is one that is reached when all members of the group work together to build a solution and to support the group’s decision 100%.

16. Change • Takes time • Is a process, not a decision • Requires plenty of experience and practice in the new way of doing things • People may resist change even when it is for the better • Change may cause confusion and disorientation.

17. Facilitation • The process of making a group’s work easier by structuring and guiding participation so that everyone is involved and participates. • Facilitators provide opportunities for members to collaborate, solve problems, make decisions, define processes they will use, and learn better how to work together.

18. Values drive Behaviors Values are at the core of facilitation because: • What we value and care about influences what we believe; • What we believe forms our attitudes • Our attitudes lead to our behavior.

19. Ability to lead today requires more than skill. It requires: • Emotional maturity • High tolerance for diversity • Adaptability to change • Affinity for two-way communication • Heart (vital for good listening)

20. Needed for successful facilitation: • A focused goal or objective • Open communication • Key points recorded • Key points summarized • Mutual agreement reached or decision postponed • Decisions made as to who will do what by when.

21. Traditional Role of Team Leader • Manage and coordinate the team so it can do its best work • Provide resources for the team • Link the team and its work to the rest of the organization • Be a contributing team member

22. Collaborative Leaders • Listen more at meetings • Draw out the ideas of the team • Keep the meeting focused and participative • Maximize their human resources

23. Characteristics of Good Leaders • Knows how to act as a facilitator • Is skilled in helping groups solve problems • Knows how to develop, maintain, and motivate teamwork • Is a model of what is expected • Listens well • Encourages others to participate

24. Characteristics of Good Leaders • Values knowledge and expertise of each team member and knows how to draw on it. • Pitches in and does some of what the team does, when necessary • Knows how to coach and inspire • Knows how to help people focus • Empathizes with the struggles • Is willing not to be the expert

25. Characteristics of Good Leaders • Is comfortable with relying on the expertise of others • Understands and anticipates change • Fosters team communication both electronically and face-to-face

26. Challenges Team Leaders Face • Fast pace • Pressure to make decision quickly • Rewarding individuals rather than the team • Members have too much work • Lack of people with facilitation skills • People who do not value facilitation • Elitist style of upper management

27. Supportive and Effective Forces • Increase variety of input needed in decision making • Increase tasks and work that require cooperation • Less formal hierarchy • Leaders who model teamwork not simply support it • Information readily available to people to do their work

28. Supportive and Effective Forces • Buy in required for implementation • Technical and social avenues for frequent communication • Supportive atmosphere when people make mistakes • Willing to give and receive constructive feedback • People motivated by collaboration rather than by self-advancement

29. Part 2 Communication Good Meetings Facilitation Skills Consensus, problem solving, brainstorming, reaching closure

30. Communication Effective communication builds rapport and trust with others and accomplishes necessary results. What are the best methods to connect with one another? How to communicate effectively and in a timely manner?

31. Phone • A strong substitute for face-to-face communication. • Allows for immediate dialogue • Tone of voices, speed of speaking and inflection convey much of the speaker’s message

32. Effective Conference Calls • Plan for the call ahead of time • State on agreed objectives for the conversation up front • Have a written follow up of what was agreed upon • At the end of the conversation, review and check for common understanding and interpretation

33. E-Mail • is a much preferred method for some forms of communication because it is current and easy to send work for input, revision, minor changes, etc. • It does not replace high-quality, face-to-face communication for brainstorming, planning, consensus • It lacks synergy and other key components of building trust

34. Face-to-Face • A team cannot work together unless the members are together. • The presence of a facilitative leader usually increases understanding, fosters an atmosphere of friendship, brings critical concerns out in the open where they can be addressed by all.

35. Questions for an open forum “check in” based on trust and confidentiality • What is going well for you? • What do you wish was going better? • What have you achieved already? What are you looking forward to achieving? • What do you need from the other members?

36. Questions for “check in:” • What do you need from the leader? • How is the team doing in its work? • In its communication? • Is there a sense of unity? • How could the team function better?

37. Objectives: the driving force of a good meeting • Writing out the objectives for a meeting helps everyone understand its purpose. When they are posted where they can be seen during the meeting, they keep the group focused • Three ingredients of the objective: an action, an outcome, and qualifiers, if necessary.

38. Objectives lead to considerations: • Is the meeting necessary? • Who should attend the meeting? • When should the meeting be held? How long do we need? • Where should the meeting be held? • Is any pre-meeting work necessary?

39. What processes will accomplish the objective? • Brainstorming • A problem solving model • Small group work • An information presentation • A short training session • Prioritizing

40. Good Reasons for Meetings • Pastoral planning / projects • Team building • Faith sharing • Conflict resolution • Encouragement and celebration

41. People leave the meeting with: • A sense accomplishment • A clear plan of action for what happens next • An assurance that someone is taking minutes and they will receive them within 48 hours

42. Problems at meetings • Getting off the subject • No clear objectives • Poor attendance • Too many distractions • Lack of facilitation • No effective decision making process • Little pre-meeting orientation • Canceled or postponed meetings

43. Problems caused by ineffective meeting leadership • No clear cut meeting objective • Ineffective meeting processes • No closure or follow-up • Disorganization in planning or running the meeting

44. The process (methods used to acomplish the work)is as important as the content(what the meeting is about). Many leaders are so concerned about the content that they ignore the process. Processes include pre-committee work, discussions, presentations, sub-group work, use of flip charts, etc.

45. Role of the Facilitator • Serves as a guide or a catalyst • Does not give an opinion about the content but directs the process. • Provides the method and structure for group to focus its energy and creativity on the task. • Remains non-evaluative

46. Facilitator’s techniques • Maintain a climate conducive to listening, participating, learning, understanding, creating. • Help the group establish and accomplish its own objectives • Provide guidance with the structure • Keep the group focused on its objectives • Encourage dialogue between members • Direct processes that mobilize the group to do its work

47. Facilitator’s techniques • Encourage group to evaluate its own progress • Capitalize on differences in the group for the common good • Remain neutral on content and be active in directing the process** This is not possible when the facilitator is passing on information or conducting training. Here the facilitator may play a dual role: content expert (presenter) and process expert (facilitator). Must step back – and be one or the other.

48. Facilitator’s techniques • Protect the group and their ideas from being attacked or ignored • Tap the groups reservoir of knowledge, experience, and creativity • Sort, organize, and summarize the group input or get the group to do it • Help the group to move to healthy consensus, define and commit to the next steps and reach timely closure.

49. Leaders’ facilitating skills: • Designing and planning the meeting • Focusing the meeting • Encouraging participation • Recording people’s ideas • Managing the group process • Organizing, connecting, and summarizing data • Bringing the group to consensus and closure

50. Plan for Meeting Participation • Start with activity that includes everyone • Keep presentations short and follow them with comments or questions • Group members talk 80-90% of time • Vary with small groups or sub groups • Organize data ahead of time • Record stray issues for “next time.”