Teams and Team Development Putting the Pieces Together ...

1. Decision Making Coaching Team Charter Meeting Effectiveness TEAMS Problem Solving Decision Making Conflict Resolution Communication Diversity Teams and Team DevelopmentPutting the Pieces Together ...

2. Decision Making Coaching Team Charter Meeting Effectiveness Problem Solving Decision Making Conflict Resolution Communication Diversity TEAMS Teams

3. TEAMS Ingredients for a Successful Team IngredientModule Clearly Defined Team Objectives, Scope, Team Charter Roles & Responsibilities, Key Activities, Key Deliverables, Critical Success Factors, Metrics, Risks, and Boundaries Clearly Defined Meeting Guidelines Meeting Effectiveness Cooperative, Committed, and Trusted Climate Team Effectiveness Clear, Effective, Constructive Communication Plan Communication Understanding of Problem Solving Techniques Problem Solving Well-defined Decision-making Processes Meeting Effectiveness & Decision Making Understanding of Conflict Resolution Conflict Resolution Techniques Awareness of Diversity Issues Diversity Understanding of Proper Coaching Techniques Coaching

4. TEAMS Goals of a team need to be (1) clear and explicit, (2) motivating and challenging, (3) tied to rewards in order for a team to reach a level of maximum performance. Common Goals Common Operating Procedures This means that team members have established systems, procedures, processes and norms for addressing the various issues facing the team, e.g., procedures to reduce conflict. Team members must (1) understand team goals, (2) be committed to team goals, (3) demonstrate a willingness to solve individual and team problems. Inter- dependent Each member of a team must be held responsible for producing specific outputs and results. There must be a clear delineation of roles and responsibilities. Accountable What is a team? “A team is a group of people who must collaborate to achieve common goals, and who assume responsibility for the functioning and performance of the group.”

5. TEAMS TEAM WORK GROUP Teams achieve a balance between concern for the process of the group and the final results. Work groups only emphasize results. Work groups do not formally develop skills for working together for common goals. Teams encourage open communication between members. Work groups tend to limit communication to immediate supervisors or managers and so individuals tend not to gain the expertise and ideas of others. Teams encourage collective effort. Work groups promote individual performance. This leads to group members who focus on completing their task with little interest or coordination with other group members work. Teams operate with a high degree of autonomy and experience a high degree of ownership of project goals. In addition, teams demonstrate greater ability to solve problems and think creatively, which leads to higher productivity and quality products. Work groups work with a high degree of management control. Differences Between Teams and Work Groups

6. TEAMS Characteristics of High Performing Teams There are seven components which distinguish high performing teams from teams that experience problems ... Component Definition Potential Issues If Missing Component 1. Clarity in Team Goals 2. Clearly Defined Roles 3. Clear Communication 4. Well Defined Decision Procedures Groups often assume their goals are clear and then later experience mistakes due to confusion. Goals need to be specific, attainable, and well communicated. To clearly define roles of a team, you need to: design formal roles and responsibilities, set clear boundaries for each role, design job team responsibilities that use each member’s talents and rotate general roles. Clear communication exists when team members speak with clarity and directness, listen actively, explore ideas rather than argue over them, openly share information & provide constructive feedback not criticism. When teams develop effective decision making procedures they: explore important issues by polling members, decide important issues by consensus, use high quality data as a basis for decisions, agree who will make what decisions. When team goals are not clear, potential troubles may include frequent disagreement about next steps, frustration at the lack of progress and excessive questioning of group decisions and actions. When there are no clearly defined roles the skills of team members will not be fully utilized. There may be confusion over which team member has a specific task and some may get more than their share of tedious chores. Teams with poor communication have members who have a tendency to withhold information, discount others’ ideas and opinions and cover up true feelings. Without well-defined decision making procedures, teams find it difficult to break out of the old orientation of being told what to do as opposed to deciding for themselves.

7. TEAMS Characteristics of High Performing Teams Continued The seven components continued ... Component Definition Potential Issues If Missing 5. Established Ground Rules 6. Balanced Participation 7. Improvement Plan Establishing rules for the team involves the process of members deciding what are acceptable and unacceptable behaviors within the team for both tasks and relationships. This strategy not only contributes to getting the job done, but it develops all members’ expertise in all areas, which strengthens the team’s performance. The goal of an improvement plan is to ensure high team performance. The plan needs to cover 5 activities: - Maintain communications - Fix obvious problems - Look upstream to larger issues - Document progress and problems - Monitor changes Without openly stated rules teams often experience frustration and confusion in other members’ behaviors. Potential troubles may include members who continue behavior that frustrates other team members. Without balanced participation, performance can result in certain members having too much or too little influence based on their skill set, and cross-job coverage not supporting productivity goals. Without an improvement plan, the team may use ineffective approaches to address problems that result in little or no improvement of team output.

8. TEAMS Forming Storming Norming Performing Stages of Team Development The four stages of team development are ...

9. TEAMS Forming and Storming Storming Forming • The forming stage occurs when team • members first come together as a team. • How members Feel: • optimistic • proud • anxious/suspicious about the job • resentful • How members Act: • unfocused • impatient • During the storming stage, teams • discover teamwork is more difficult • than they expected. • How members Feel: • attitudes fluctuate • resist new approaches • How members Act: • argue • defensive/competitive • question wisdom of approach • tension/jealousy

10. TEAMS Norming and Performing Performing Norming • The norming stage begins as the team • moves beyond the storming stage and • begins to function as a team. • How members Feel: • acceptance of team • ability to express constructive criticism • relieved - it’s going to be O.K. • How members Act: • avoid conflict • share • common spirit/goals • establish ground rules and boundaries • When a team reaches the performing • stage it is functioning as a high • performance team. • How members Feel: • better understanding of team strengths • and weaknesses • insight into personnel and group • processes • satisfied with the team • How members Act: • self change • prevent and work through group • problems • close attachment to the team

11. TEAMS Lessons from the Geese There is an interdependence in the way geese function. Teams, like flocks of geese, learn from their experience.

12. Team Charter Decision Making Introduction to Teams Meeting Effectiveness TEAMS Problem Solving Decision Making Conflict Resolution Communication Diversity Team Charter

13. Team Charter What is a Team Charter? • An agreement between the team and its sponsor • A communication tool between the project and the organization • A high-level guide for the project

14. Team Charter Objectives: Goals of the team. Scope: Fundamental aspects of the project that will not change: objectives, limits, initial assumptions, timeframes. Roles/Responsibilities: Duties & assignments for each member of the team. Key Activities: Defined by the workplan to foster accomplishment of the project. Key Deliverables: Tangible outcomes of the project, usually in the form of documents. These should be tied directly to Key Activities. Timeline/Schedule: Target dates for completion of the project and its various phase, activities, etc. Milestones: Dates of key accomplishments of the team. Critical Success Factors: Any factors that must occur to ensure success of the project. Metrics: Information looked at regularly and systematically to monitor, control, and improve our work. Risks: Anything that prevents the team from completing the key activities. Boundaries: Factors that limit the scope of work (e.g. timeframes). Components of a Team Charter

15. Team Charter Example Team Charter

16. Team Charter Team Charter Validation Objective - Does it accurately described the project? Scope - Is the project well defined? Roles & Responsibilities - Have they been determined for all team members? Key Activities - Will they allow team to meet its objectives? Key Deliverables - Are they tangible, and do they demonstrate results? Timeline/Schedule- Is the schedule sufficient to finish the project on a timely basis? Milestones- Do they support accomplishment of the project? Critical Success Factors - Do they ensure team’s success? Metrics - Do they accurately measure results, and support critical success factors? Risks - Are they full documented, and do they significantly impede success? Boundaries - What elements are in, and out, of the project? Sponsor - Is the sponsor at a high enough level in the organization to clear barriers, provide resources, etc?

17. Team Charter Team Charter Validation ... Who validates the Charter? The team sponsor, and other key stakeholders of the project. What does the validation process A series of meetings with the sponsor and other consist of? stakeholders where representatives of the team talk through the various components of the Charter getting feedback and sign off on each part from the stakeholders. How does validation usually go? Each iteration usually brings fine-tuning to the respective components. Once all parties are in agreement, and support the team moving ahead with its efforts.

18. Decision Making Meeting Effectiveness Coaching Team Charter TEAMS Communication Diversity Meeting Effectiveness Problem Solving Decision Making Conflict Resolution

19. Decision Making Meeting Effectiveness Why have meetings? Meetings should provide a ... • Simple method for effective, direct, communication of information perceptions, concerns, etc. • Structured forum for reaching decisions and resolving conflicts • Dedicated time to work on goals and objectives • Gathering for face to face interactions and opportunities to develop familiarity, and trust as a team • Place where outsiders can interface with all team members at the same time to communicate important information • Facilitates involvement, input, and ownership in results • Enables/supports easy clarification & elaboration of information and intent Source: Jonier & Associates, The Team Handbook, 1988.

20. Decision Making Meeting Effectiveness General Meeting Guidelines Teams should commit to the following guidelines ... Create meeting ground rules Create guiding principles Use agendas with clear definition of expected outcomes & processes Apply effective facilitation methods Manage meeting processes to achieve desired outcomes Document meetings Evaluate meetings (to identify & address problems early & to enable continual improvement in team effectiveness) Source: Jonier & Associates, The Team Handbook, 1988.

21. Decision Making Meeting Effectiveness Create Meeting Ground Rules Ground rules should be specific enough to enable easy compliance and enforcement. Examples ... • Start all meetings on time • Establish an agenda and stick to it • Use a flip chart to record ideas • Everyone should participation • No side discussions • Test ideas for agreement • Document & distribute all meeting minutes and group decisions • Clarify follow-up responsibilities • Agenda will be developed for the next meeting

22. Decision Making Meeting Effectiveness Typical Meeting Structure A meeting will typically have the following format ... • Review of Agenda and Time Contract • Assignment of Meeting Roles • Review of Meeting Purpose • Brainstorming/Discussion • Consensus Development • Development of Path Forward Plans • Meeting Feedback (e.g. “Likes”, “Changes”, and “Overall Rating”) Source: Jonier & Associates, The Team Handbook, 1988.