WEBINAR WEBINAR

Why Teams Fail

Assemble a group of people together for a project and see what happens.  You might just get lucky and get the best thing since sliced bread but the statistics do not favor that so you should probably prepare for a little friction.  In fact, those statistics show that 60% of teams fail or fall short of their potential.  That’s a pretty big percentage there working against you so to up those odds it’s a good idea to do some preparation.

In the webinar:  Why Teams Fail – “Dealing With Friction and Dissention” by Dr. Eunice Parisi-Carew and Mr. David Witt listeners gained some insight and ideas on how to prevent this from happening.

One of the most important things mentioned was the attitude of the team leader.  First off, it takes a leap of faith to believe the team will succeed.  One must also trust that the team will become a high performing team and that in order for this to occur a lot of deliberate hard work is necessary.  I believe these same factors can also be contributed to whether a person achieves success in life as well.  One cannot or should not just sit around and wait for good things to happen.  It takes work.  It also takes patience and understanding and that’s where the dynamics of a team become challenging.

Now this is no easy topic and much could be written on ways to deal with team dynamics so I will strive to only hit the high spots.  First, here are some obstacles you may face with the team.  If you fail to clarify the purpose and goal of the team you can almost always expect disaster.  Gathering a group of people together without a clear goal is not a good idea, ever.  So take the time and put together a mission statement.  

Along with this mission statement you can make a charter.  This is one of the ideas I really liked and will put into practice.  In this charter you can set forth agreements of what exactly the team is to accomplish and why, along with ideas of how this will be accomplished.  You now have established a purpose and can work on assigning separate tasks to individual team members.  You now will have some clarity so the individual members will know what is expected of them and can maintain some responsibility and accountability for their actions. 

Along with poor clarity on the mission other obstacles can include poor planning and lack of resources.  Put some of that good old hard work in here and make sure you do have a good plan and maybe you can also work on gathering some extra resources from the community.  You don’t know what people will volunteer if you don’t ask!!! 

So now you have a good healthy attitude, a strong mission statement, good plan, good clarity, and willing team members.  Time to put it all into action and start achieving the goal!  It’s also time to put some of that patience and understanding into action as well.

Whenever you have a group of individuals there will be friction.  Mark it down.  Prepare for it.  It’s a guarantee.  That makes communication a very important part so make sure you communicate.  Make sure you are communicating the foundational steps you already have in place.  Operate the team as an entity and not as individual members.  Follow the assigned tasks to keep things working smoothly and help keep personalities in check.  When differences pop up try to deal with them immediately.  All this will help to build the trust that is a key to smooth operation throughout the team.  One way to deal with problems is directly ask each person if they are feeling effective and if not what will help them.  See yourself as a guide through the process and don’t be afraid to make changes if they become necessary.  Everyone has known a difficult person at some point and if you happen to have one on a team that will not conform to group standards you may have to make a decision to replace that team member.  This should come as a last resort after exhausting all other options.  It won’t be easy but will be necessary and you will almost certainly see immediate results in the team after removing the problem. 

The team will go through different stages of development and it is up to you to be a good team member as well as guide.  Keep the communication open and keep moving toward the goal.  It probably won’t be smooth sailing all the way but if you keep in mind it’s somewhat like planting a garden.  You have to decide what you are going to grow, form your plan and gather your resources, put all your resources in place, spend some time working to smooth the dirt, watch for weeds and pull when necessary, give the proper water and sunlight and make your way through each developmental stage and wait for the bloom.  With great effort comes great reward so hang in there and don’t give up.  You can make a great team!!!

Pam's Point:  Managing a team is not easy.  There is no magic trick to help you. Patience and preparation are crucial to the team development and will determine whether you achieve success.  Remember to ASSESS, ACTIVATE, AND ACHIEVE!!!!!