Thank you for a vibrant discussion over ways we can build healthy teams. I wanted to follow up with some resources for your future use. Of note, I was convicted by our discussion to look into The author's background, and was excited to see he is a Christian. My belief is that is just a bonus. We ought to be able to mine God's principles, or dispute the world's thinking through our knowledge of God's word, and discernment of God's spirit in us. Please do so as you read below. I challenge each of us to blog on a scripture that validates or disputes any of the principles listed below.
The Model
Note: The book models the dysfunctions. Described below is the positive of these, the functions, as shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1. The five functions of a team.
Description of each component of the model
Trust
Trust is the foundation.
One type of trust is credibility, the trust that one will meet her commitments.
Another type of trust, the type at the foundation of this model, is for one to trust the team enough that he feels he can say what he really thinks in difficult conversations. He feels he can be vulnerable to the team without undue concern for ramifications or perceptions to others or to himself. This type of trust is important because it enables constructive conflict to thrive.
Constructive conflict
Constructive conflict is the passionate and unfiltered debate of ideas. Constructive conflict is important because it enables the team to come to a good solution more quickly. This is especially true for difficult problems. If trust isn’t there and people hold back, then certain critical information and perspectives may not be included.
Constructive conflict is also needed to build commitment within the team. Until each team member has had a chance to be heard, and issues considered, she will not make a deep commitment. She may give passive commitment, but that commitment will dwindle when the going gets tough.
Commitment
Commitment is important because it drives accountability. If there is a deep commitment, team members will tend to hold each other accountable. Also, team members will tend not to dodge individual or team accountability.
Accountability
Accountability is important because it drives attention to results. Failure to hold one another accountable creates an environment where inattention to results can thrive.
Attention to results
Attention to results drives attainment of the team’s goals. The morale of the team members will tend to rise or fall with the results, which is healthy for the team. The morale of the team members will tend to be less affected by needs that aren’t connected to success of the team (such as individual ego.)
The leader’s role
The leader’s role in each of these functions is two fold; to model the behavior, and to set up a structure to facilitate the behavior. An example of modeling a behavior would be to show one’s willingness to be vulnerable, to model Trust. An example of setting up a structure to facilitate a behavior would be to go around the table in a meeting to give each person a chance to state concerns, to facilitate Commitment.
Priorities in the hierarchy of teams
If you are a manager, you have a role in at least two teams. You lead a team of your staff (level 1 team), and you are a member of a team of your peers in your boss’s staff (level 2 team). There can be a tendency to have a higher allegiance to your level 1 team than to your level 2 team. In cases where you must prioritize between the needs of the level 2 team and the needs of the level 1 team, you should chose the priorities of the level 2 team, and conform the priorities of the level 1 team to meet those higher needs.
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