Are You Part of a Team or a Working Group?
Patrick Lencioni's book, The Advantage, outlines the steps needed to build organizational health. In one of the chapters it makes an excellent point that I thought needed more discussion. The importance of being a true team in sports is no less as important as it is in business. Team chemistry, various skill sets, and a positive culture all help to ensure a team will be successful in both worlds.
Working Group or Team:
Let's compare two teams. We call both teams however, only one is truly a team. One is a golf team the other a basketball team. Both teams wear uniforms that signal they are at a minimum dressed alike, but that's were the similarities end.
The Golf team may start the match together, but eventually each golfer goes off to their own holes to play against an opponent. They play the 18 holes, and collect their scores. They report back to the scorekeeper who compiles them all into a total score for the group. The interaction between "teammates" is limited after the match starts. Golf teams don't have a specialist, who only putts. Nor do they have a special player designated to only drive from the tee box. Each player plays their own game contributing individually to the overall score of the group. This is what a working group looks like. It's also how a lot of "teams" look in companies across the country. Each department works on their duties and initiatives often unaware of what the other departments are doing. They conduct their business and report back to the executive team on their efforts and progress. The executives are essentially keeping score.
A Basketball team is much different. All five players take the court, and each are relied upon to play both offense and defense. If one single player doesn't transition to the other end of the court the team becomes short handed and plays at a disadvantage. On offense, each player must work together to set up the play and to free up another player for a high percentage shot. On defense, the entire scheme relies on everyone working in concert to ensure they prevent an easy basket. If one player makes a mistake, another player will often have to step up and help. Basketball teams also have a variety of skill sets on the court to support one another. One player may be the best rebounder, and another a three-point specialist. They play off of each other's strengths and weaknesses to put the team in the best possible position. This is what a true team looks like. This is an approach we don't see very often in the business world.
In business we use the word "team" all the time. Yet, most companies are more like working groups than they are teams. Consider the sales team in your organization. The sales team goes out and looks for opportunities to advance the business. They bring the opportunity back to the business, which will apply the pricing or produce the product for delivery. Typically there's a handoff process that occurs between the two departments, allowing one to go back to their starting point to do it all over again. Sound familiar? That's a working group mentality. It's often referred to as a "team", but when we look at the example above we see it really isn't a team at all.
What's Your Teams Position?
Which "team" are you more like in your company? Are you a golf team or basketball team? Here's a good test for your next meeting. I've used this exact approach in the past and it's provided immediate feedback on our position. At one of my staff meetings I simply asked the VP of Human Resources if she could tell me what was the big issue the Fleet Department was focused on? I then asked the VP of Fleet if they could tell me the current employe turn-over rate for the company? I continued the questions looking to see if any executive could give any insight into what their "teammates" were working on. Sadly, none of them could answer the questions. This made it clear to me that we had become a working group. We were all focused on our own portion of the business, and had no real vision on the overall goals of the business. We had a lot of work to do to become a team.
Where Do You Start?
A basketball team is a good example of a cross-functional team. Each player brings their specific skills to the court to support the overall mission of winning. Winning one single game isn't the strategy, it's a tactical action that supports the overarching strategy. Cross-functional teams should be well-aligned with the corporate strategy, so they can focus on the tactical actions needed to achieve the the goal.
In my experience, the building of cross-functional teams can help to launch growth in an organization that's become stalled. It isn't an easy process, and it requires the leader to fully understand the steps needed to keep the team focused. The longer the team pursues the goal the greater the opportunity to lose focus. It's leadership that keeps them on track.
Assume your organization is looking to grow however, your current approach doesn't seem to be generating the desired return. Consider building special teams that would focus on key service line expansions or geographies. By combining different employees, from different parts of the company, you build the base of a team. Sales, Operations, Accounting and possibly Safety or HR all come together to create a cross-functional team. The new strategic team would receive guidance from an executive sponsor, who would serve as their Head Coach. The team members don't divorce themselves from their original duties, they simply work together to capture new business. Each person brings a different set of skills to the team, just as each basketball player brings a different skill to the court. The sales leader pursues the target, the finance person helps with cost and revenue recongnition, and operations focuses on delivery and customer service. Each person pulling and pushing the team forward.
Pride is More Powerful than Money
Once the team is developed they work together to build out their team charter. This will serve as their roadmap and ensure they stay focused on producing the desired returns. The newly created strategic team should look to define their goals, and set key performance indicators that will show the progress they're making monthly. Revenue and profit shouldn't be one of the performance indicators. Revenue and profit are a given for a business. The two factors also take time to develop, and won't give the team the granularity they need to measure their efforts. Having just one team can be beneficial however, two teams competing against one another sparks revolutionary type growth.
Let's consider a scenario. Assume your company wants to grow their core business service line in the Southeastern part of the U.S., and again along the Gulf Coast. Two teams are created, both with the directive to sell and market the same service lines or products. Each quarter their efforts are measured to see which team came out ahead. The winning team is announced to the company, and their results published for everyone to see. Companies that take the extra step to truly promote the competition see the most benefit. Quarterly "All Hands" or "Town Hall" events bring everyone together allowing them to be spectators to the competition. It includes those employees not assigned to a team- they become fans. Often they will offer up their support during the quarter, hoping to give their team the advantage. Apple, Facebook, and other companies are well-known for their quarterly and annual company meetings. The messaging and energy that comes from those meetings propel the company forward.
One of the reasons we all like sports is for the competition. We cheer on our favorite teams, we want to be part of the competition. Creating good natured, competition within an organization can energize the competitive spirit we all have, translating it into growth for the business.
In closing, first consider your team or company today. Are you a working group or a team? Do your departmental leaders simply report their scores, or are they engaged in all aspects of the company. Could you benefit from a cross-functional sales strategy? I've often heard people say, in this company we are all responsible for selling. That statement has always seemed tired to me. If that was true, growth would never be an issue however, the companies I've heard say this the most always seem to be starving for new revenue. Growth is simply a by-product of a well-aligned organization, with a solid culture. In business, revenue & profit is how companies keep score, but it doesn't define how to play the game. People need more than top line and bottom line reporting to get excited. Build a true team and then try creating competition as a way of growing your business. I think you'll be surprised by the outcome.