Developing senior leadership teams programme Introduction and overview

1. Developing senior leadership teams programme Introduction and overview

2. Intended learning outcomes By the end of this session we will have: • Clarified the purposes of the programme and the workshop in particular including using the personal learning log • Clarified our expectations and aired and addressed any concerns where possible • Agreed a team working protocol

3. Programme aims Overall, the programme aims to: • Focus the team’s capabilities and energy on raising achievement for the young people in the school • Enhance relationships, building on openness, trust and respect • Enable the SLT to build on your previous best • Ensure the team has clarity about your goals • Work to develop individual roles and capacity • Develop effective processes to be used by the team

4. Programme model • Pre-programmeteam diagnostic (online)course informationthink piece (reading) • Workshoptwo-day residential workshop designed to motivate the team • Study visitsSLT visits other schools to research good practice • In-school consultancy four half-day or twilight sessions with the team or subsections of the team facilitated by external consultant • Reviewhalf-dayevent reviewing progress, celebrating achievement and planning future learning

5. Beckhard’s model Teams are highly effective when: • they have clear and challenging direction (goals) • they know who does what in the team (roles) • they pay attention to how the team does its work (processes) • their working relationships are based on respect, trust and openness (relationships)

6. Objectives As a result of engagement with the programme, your SLT will have: • Galvanised your energy and capabilities for raising achievement • Ensured your goals are articulated and supported by the whole team • Enhanced the quality of relationships among team members, including dealing with disagreement • Confirmed individuals’ role focus and potential for development • Tried and evaluated a range of processes to use as part of effective team working • Considered ways to cascade good practice to other teams in school • Applied learning from the study visits • Reviewed progress in team development and planned next steps to continue • Celebrated your achievements as a team

7. Personal learning log Your personal learning log is for you to: • Have time for reflection after each session to record key points of learning and insights • Note possible action points for yourself and implications for the team • Have a personal copy in the folder for your eyes only

8. Expectations and concerns • What do we hope to learn and gain from this experience? • What might get in the way of our learning? Make notes in the personal learning log to be shared with the team.

9. Protocols • What protocols would help us achieve our expectations?

10. How well do we know each other? Relationships

11. Intended learning outcomes By the end of this session we will have: • shared personal stories that offer deep insights • gained a better level of interpersonal understanding, tolerance and respect • taken part in initial thinking about how greater openness and trust might enhance our working relationships

12. Plenary • What have we learned about each other that we didn’t know before? • What do the facts imply about who we are and how we operate? • What might this imply for our working together as a team?

13. What does the pre-course diagnostic tell us? Roles, relationships

14. Intended learning outcomes By the end of this session we will have: • shared our understanding of the picture of effectiveness from self-analysis and external rater analysis • recognised the implications of this diagnostic feedback • recognised our achievements to date and the challenges ahead

15. Debriefing the diagnostic Where do we think we are as a team?

16. Where are we now as a team? • Is there a match? • What is this telling us alongside what we know from other sources? • How does the way leadership is enacted in our school contribute to the view from the raters?

17. How do we interact as a team? • Do we have a clear set of values that govern our interactions? • Are working relationships positive, open and co-operative? • Do we willingly confront and resolve conflict? • Do we share and discuss feelings, attitudes and emotions as we work together to achieve goals and tasks? • Do we trust, support and respect each other?

18. What are the challenges for us? • What are your greatest achievements / contributions to the team and / or SLT objectives? • What are the challenges you face this term / year?

19. When is a team not a team? Roles, processes, relationships

20. Intended learning outcomes By the end of this session we will have: • agreed a working definition of what an effective team is • agreed an understanding of the different types and functions of teams • recognised where strengths already exist within the school

21. Team definitions and refining ideas • What is a team? • What is an effective team? • What behaviours does an effective team need from its members? • What gets in the way of effective team-working?

22. Definition of a team (1) A small number of people with complementary skills, who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals and approach, for which they hold themselves accountable. Katzenbach & Smith, 1999

23. Definition of a team (2) A group of people who work towards a shared and meaningful outcome in ways that combine their individual skills and abilities and for which they are all responsible. Baguley

24. Definition of a team (3) A group of people who are interdependent with respect to information, resources and skills, who seek to combine their efforts to achieve a common goal. Thompson

25. Defining the team Defining the type of team enables the members to: • match types of team to functions • ensure clarity of role and purpose for team members • minimise dissatisfaction through lack of clarity • allow some types of team to conclude their work

26. Team types • Strategy team • Executive team • Task-specific team • Implementation team • Standing team

27. Strategy team A strategy team: • discusses and plans long-term direction and approach • meets on a longer term cycle • involves specialists where necessary • consults where appropriate • applies evaluation • produces strategic plans

28. Executive team An executive team: • manages the organisation day-to-day • meets regularly to monitor and plan • has members with specific areas of responsibility • has agendas and minutes • follows up planned action

29. Task-specific team A task-specific team: • works as a multidisciplinary team • is focused on a specific task that is exploratory in nature • has members who bring specialisms and experience to the task • may be of short duration – it performs the task and then disbands (task and finish) • produces reports, policy documents, discussion papers etc

30. Implementation team An implementation team: • has members who are selected and maintained for the duration of a project • has members chosen for specialism and experience • has members who are working to achieve and implement change, ie delivery focused • has a duration that depends on the life of the project, ie, is time limited • plans, reviews and adapts as required

31. Standing team A standing team: • meets on an ad hoc basis to monitor and evaluate specific aspects • has regular membership, which may be hierarchical or cross-functional • has a specific agenda with additional elements as new issues arise • uses specialists if necessary • keeps minutes • may make recommendations to other groups

32. Discussion • What do we think about these categories? • Does this change any of our previous thinking? • What might these models mean for our team and other teams in school? • What effective staff teams do we have in our school? • What do they do that makes them effective?

33. What are we trying to achieve as a team? Goals

34. Intended learning outcomes By the end of this session we will have: • revisited our SDP or RAP and reaffirmed or adapted our goals • identified support to help us achieve our goals and overcome obstacles • considered how team-working can support the achievement of our goals

35. Reference our SDP or RAP • Where are we as a team in relation to our goals? • Where do we want or need to get to?

36. Identifying enablers and blockers • Enablers: factors or sources that aid achievement of our goals • Blockers: factors or sources that are obstacles to achievement of our goals • Neutrals: factors or sources that neither particularly help nor hinder achievement of our goals

37. Tackling blockers Try to think of ways to turn any blockers into enablers or at least into neutrals.

38. Summary Priorities • What are our identified school priorities? • How do today’s conversations sharpen our understanding of what we need to work on? Current practice • How do the current ways in which the SLT works in our school contribute to the challenges we face?

39. Summary Next practice • In what ways might the SLT work differently to contribute to the changes we need to make? Actions • What are the things we need to consider as the SLT in making changes happen including finding support?

40. How do we lead change? Goals, processes

41. Intended learning outcomes By the end of this session we will have: • analysed successful change from our own experience • considered two models for securing change • used a model to plan for leading change in school

42. Change (1) The only constant is change. Heraclitus

43. Change (2) Although change is unpredictable you can set up conditions to guide the process. Michael Fullan

44. Change (3) Change is rapid and nonlinear, which creates messiness. It also offers great potential for creative breakthroughs. The paradox is that transformation would not be possible without the messiness. Michael Fullan

45. Considering whole-school change What whole-school changes have you recently made which have successfully improved outcomes for young people? • What did you do and how did you do it? • Why did it work? • What have you learned about leading change? • What factors have got in the way of successful change?

46. Kotter’s eight-step model (1) Set the stage • Step 1: Create a sense of urgencyHelp others see the need for change and the importance of acting immediately. • Step 2: Pull together the guiding teamMake sure there is a powerful group guiding the change — one with leadership skills, bias for action, credibility, communications ability, authority, analytical skills. Decide what to do • Step 3: Develop the change vision and strategyClarify how the future will be different from the past, and how you can make that future a reality.

47. Kotter’s eight-step model (2) Make it happen • Step 4: Communicate for understanding and buy-inMake sure as many others as possible understand and accept the vision and the strategy.

48. Kotter’s eight-step model (3) • Step 5: Empower others to actRemove as many barriers as possible so that those who want to make the vision a reality can do so. • Step 6: Produce short-term winsCreate some visible, unambiguous successes as soon as possible. • Step 7: Build on the change – don’t let upPress harder and faster after the first successes. Be relentless with instituting change after change until the vision becomes a reality. Make it stick • Step 8: Create a new cultureHold on to the new ways of behaving, and make sure they succeed, until they become a part of the very culture of the group.

49. Mile’s Triple 1 model • Initiation • Implementation • Institutionalisation Matthew Miles

50. Initiation factors • Linked to high-profile need • Clear model • Strong advocate • Active initiation