Accelerator Week - Trust, Purpose, Performance and Bonding
Two separate weeks in my life stand out for fundamental change. Each week brought me into high performing teams with clear purpose and marked the start of a period of "flow", productivity and fun.
So I started wondering whether it's time to add a one-week option to the menu of accelerators supporting ambitious companies and project teams. A week that kick starts performance, bonds teams and aligns them with purpose.
What do you think? I'm asking for a friend!
What weeks have changed your life, and how? What is the best way for a founding team to spend a week? And specifically, is there a gap in the market for a week in challenging but supported conditions in one of the most beautiful parts of Europe in which teams can come together? I really appreciate your thoughts and comments as this post is market research.
Views from a tower and a mountain
I've been talking to Matt Cooper, a friend who was with me during both my most formative weeks, about what it takes for great teams to form. In Level39 we aim to create ideal conditions for teams to "norm and perform", but every team (especially those with geographically dispersed members) first need to "form and storm", so I'm very interested in what helps companies reach the stage where they are ready to hit the market.
Matt and I have noticed that successful entrepreneurs and corporate team leaders often identify a foundation period in which their team coalesced and focused on their purpose. We share this insight, but observe from very different perspectives. While I enjoy views of London from Level39, Matt is based on his farm high on a mountainside in the French Pyrenees, overlooking wild mountains and down to the Mediterranean. As a triathlete, former professional diver, Royal Marine and CTO, Matt is used to operating and leading in demanding conditions. As an environmentalist, farmer and philosopher he also brings a breadth and depth of thought which I have admired since we met 23 years ago.
Matt, well met!
Matt was the first person I met when I arrived at the Commando Training Centre at noon on 6th September 1995. We were two among 36 young men who had been recruited into the Royal Marines. Over the following months we had many amazing experiences as we journeyed from civilian to Royal Marine, but it was that first week that set the tone by which we lived. It was a week of new surroundings, comedy, strange rituals, tradition and heritage, physical challenges overcome, surreal surprises, friendships formed. There were dramatic set-pieces and periods of reflection, conversation and debate. We shared jokes and we shared hardships. By 13 September, one of our number had a broken back, two others had broken legs and the rest of us were becoming a purposeful, high performing team. We were developing esprit de Corps.
5 years on
By September 2000, Matt had left the Royal Marines, and so had I. He has become a computer consultant and I was an investment banker with JP Morgan. We both wanted to create a new business and we agreed to go skydiving in Perris Valley, California, for a week. We house-sat for a friend of Matt's and every day we drove our hired car through the desert to the skydiving centre. Each evening we drank beer and made plans. We returned to the UK with the foundations of the fintech business we then built and eventually sold 9 years later.
Purpose, Performance and Bonding in a week - the ingredients
These two life-changing weeks have several common components:
- Dislocation - we were somewhere new, unfamiliar and exciting
- Challenge - we experienced mental and physical challenges
- Reflection - we had the opportunity to review our plans and reevaluate
- Drama - we experienced events that we would never forget
- Conversation - we enjoyed profound and challenging discussions
- Rituals - we learned and formed new rituals
What others would you add to this list?
Accelerator week - this one's for the grown-ups
In recent years, Matt and his wife Ali have created a luxurious and sustainable enclave at La Taillede, their Catalan farm, where couples and families can enjoy natural and adventurous holidays. If you're making family plans for next summer, look no further.
But I wonder if it's time to add a new service - accelerator weeks for forming entrepreneurial and project teams. Over many years of working with Matt, and relying on him to keep the promises I've made to hundreds of customers, I've learned from his exceptional skills as a leader and coach. And I've never laughed with any other colleague as much as with him.
So what do you think, LinkedIn friends?
If you've read this far I'd like to thank you, and ask you to stay a moment longer and share you advice on what makes the most transformative week imaginable. With your help I hope to persuade Matt to deliver it!
Asset management CX insights | Public speaker
6 年Ben, as the founder of a challenger consultancy (www.accomplish.world/news), I know the value of quick fixes to illuminate a strategy, to kick-start an initiative, and to boost performance … as do my colleagues. To your list, we might add: ‘purpose’ - a clear goal for the week, and individual and collective reasons why; ‘expectation’ - far from just turning-up, in our experience much value comes from the prep work; and, lastly, the ‘shared experiences’ that allow people to see our real selves. As well as having fond memories of La Taillede’s stunning setting, I also have personal experience of the exemplary ingenuity and teamwork on display there – well done to Matt and the team! As fellow entrepreneurs, we at Accomplish stand ready to help like-minded teams in our industry with this venture. We encourage other firms to support in their own sectors.
Retired
6 年Totally agree taking teams to a different environment and undertaking unusual and challenging activities can bring teams together, with shared unique experiences and creating that team bond. I still have great memories of the Reuters Customer Support weekends with the team and the many challenges / team activities Graham had setup for us.?
Ben I really enjoyed reading your article. I think this is hugely important in team creation and sadly many don’t yet consider investing the time in building those shared bonds as time/money well spent. I would invite those people to think again.
Competitive advantage as a service for operators scaling businesses | grow revenue without increasing costs with an AI enabled Mission Ctrl | Former Royal Marine
6 年Spot on Ben. I think it's really important (especially as we move more towards not working in close proximity to each other) to be mindful of the forces that shape exceptional teams. One book I read recently, which really echos what you say here, is the Culture Code by Daniel Coyle. He make the point that technology still hasn't replaced the unique effect that toiling shoulder to shoulder with a small team has on culture and bonding.