Avoiding the Challenges of Team Misalignment. Lessons from David Clutterbuck's PERILL Model.
Beatrice Redi
Empowering Driven Executives with the Mindset and Tools to Transform and Flourish. Positive Leadership & Mental Fitness Coach | Embracing Neurodiversity & DE&I | #IAmRemarkable facilitator | PCC/ICF, CHO?, PQ? |
In the business world, where everything moves quickly, and everyone is connected, the key to a company's success lies in how well its teams work together as one cohesive unit. When a team shares a goal and values good communication and continuous learning opportunities among its members, this harmony can drive the organization towards more incredible achievements. Whilst attending some upskilling with Animas Centre for Coaching on "Coaching Leaders During Times of Crisis" I had the privilege of meeting and listening to the incredible Prof. David Clutterbuck . According to leadership expert Prof. David Clutterbuck and his PERILL model, any misalignment in these crucial areas may pose significant obstacles that hinder team performance and overall organizational progress.
When the core values of a team are not in harmony with one another's beliefs and goals, various problems tend to surface, affecting not only the team but also the larger organization and those involved with it.
Here are some of the main reasons teams suffer:
Stakeholders Are Unclear About What You Stand For
When a team needs to convey its goals and drive to external parties and ensure they are in sync with them, it leaves others unaware of the team's values and, consequently, the organization's principles. This vagueness can weaken trust and belief in the team, making it challenging to secure backing and collaboration from those in the team. Instead of a united vision, stakeholders could doubt the team's strategies and choices, resulting in strained connections and overlooked chances.
People Pursue Their Own Agendas
Team members must align their goals and priorities to improve the team dynamic. Individuals focus more on their objectives than the joint mission, leading to fragmentation within the team, causing efforts and a sense of disconnection. With a unified direction from all team members, progress may be improved, resulting in the organization's ability to utilize the skills and abilities of its workforce. This lack of alignment often leads to disagreements and rivalry, further disrupting the team's progress.
Disrespect for Stakeholders
Alignment goes beyond team unity and involves how the team collaborates with external partners. If there's a lack of alignment within teams, it can lead to neglecting and undervaluing stakeholders' views and concerns. This may result in disputes, misunderstandings, and a lack of regard for stakeholders' interests. Eventually, this could strain relationships and tarnish the organization's image, resulting in lasting repercussions that are hard to undo.
People Avoid "Interfering" in Each Other's Territory: Large "Elephants in the Room"
People avoid intruding on each other's space, especially when discussing sensitive topics or addressing significant issues that everyone knows but avoids mentioning directly, like the proverbial "elephants in the room."
When a team does not work well together, it can create an environment where people avoid stepping into each other's areas; even when the team is challenging, others will help lead to success. This reluctance to get involved can result in significant issues being ignored. Once they become roadblocks to progress, these unspoken problems can grow bigger and harder to solve over time.
Quality Issues Not Acknowledged or Addressed
When teams are not in sync and working together towards goals, it can result in a lack of responsibility and individuals not taking ownership. This often leads to problems with quality being ignored or left unresolved. Mistakes can slip through the cracks when there is no shared dedication to maintaining standards, and subpar performance can become accepted as usual. This impacts the teams' overall output and damages trust among team members and those outside the team. In an environment where quality is compromised, innovation is hindered. This makes it challenging to improve continuously, putting the organization at a disadvantage in competition.
People "Hoard" Knowledge and Expertise
In a team with misalignment issues, people might start holding onto their knowledge and skills as a form of power rather than something to be shared openly. This possessive behaviour hampers the exchange of information and creativity, which is crucial for teamwork and developing new ideas. By keeping their insights to themselves, team members harm the team's overall performance and hinder the organisation's capacity to evolve and thrive in a fast-evolving landscape.
When teams are not in sync or aligned properly, as noted in Clutterbucks' PERILL model, various difficulties arise, emphasizing the need to promote team alignment to enable them to function optimally.
How about you?
What challenges have you faced in your team or workplace before? What methods have proven successful in realigning your team effectively? Maybe there's an issue not mentioned here that you'd want to talk about. I'm interested in hearing your insights and stories. Let's chat more in the comments section.
As leaders and members of a team or organization, we must be aware of these indicators of misalignment and act swiftly to resolve them proactively.
When we collaborate to exchange ideas and strategies, we can each contribute to developing cohesive teams that foster achievement and creativity within our companies.