Give Teams a Boost. Get Them Problem Solving.

Being part of a team can feel like being on a carousel ride. As with business, teams cycle through periods of productivity and performance and then down into a listless lull. This tends to be linked to business outcomes but which comes first is often a debate. Are people engaged and motivated because the business is performing or, because people are actively participating in and driving the business does the productivity is up? Chicken or egg. The evidence is clear. Business performance is heavily linked to employee behaviour provided the business is not fully mechanised.

When teams are in the valley peering up at the peaks in need of a boost back up to the top, get them involved in problem-solving. Problem solving and creative thinking are becoming some of the most sought after skills presently and feature on the future skills list. Problem solving is a great way to get the team brainstorming and communicating together, collaborating and understanding each other. There is excitement in taking risks together and exploring potential outcomes.

Teams that problem solve together, stay together.

Leadership and management role in the problem-solving process

Problem solving and creative thinking as a team activity, particularly one to strengthen relationships and motivate individual engagement and group participation requires a leader at the helm who has a clear goal in mind. One goal may be to reach a solution but the process of reaching the solution is more important. Reignite team passion and motivation.

The leader must guide the process to ensure that no idea or suggestion is criticised or scoffed at. Avoid the pull to personally support ideas that they believe are superior. For true creative thinking to occur people must feel the freedom to express themselves and explore ideas and problems. It is the responsibility of the leader to create permission for vulnerability and respect between members of the team. This cultivates fertile ground for the team to express creative parts of themselves that can be kept hidden during the usual 9-5 day.

Leaders also need to be part of the process, it's ok for them not to have a solution and get in on the process. Be curious and comfortable in failing with ideas that don't pass the ideation phase.

Tips for team problem solving:

• Define the correct problem as clearly as possible
• Opinions, suggestions and ideas are equally respected and feedback is given with the same elegance as it is received
• Value each person's contribution
• Age, tenure and title does not carry weight during problem-solving
• Keep the purpose and goal top of mind
• Communication skills are essential
• Respect is key
• Have an organised structure to follow to allow for all voices to be heard
• The solution is the winner, not a person

Why problem-solving boosts teams

• Problem solving is exciting.
• It promotes team-based learning
• Build relationships across the whole team
• Individuals build confidence
• Learn to give and receive feedback
• Solution finding is a sense of team victory and gratification
• People feel heard and appreciated through the process

There are gratification and excitement in watching ideas mature from inception and prototype testing through to successful implementation. Even when this process is repeated a couple of times until the right solution is found. Achievement and satisfaction sit at the end of the problem-solving process. Design thinking and creativity open numerous doorways for communication and exploration within a team. Relationships can be built, communication will develop and fun will be had.

However, for this process to be successful, having the right culture within the team is necessary for members to feel a pull towards participation and not chose to be a bystander. Giving the team ownership of problem solving will boost morale and aid in motivating and engaging the team.