According to Duncan Brodie, there are five common barriers to team success. Here they are and what you can do to avoid them.
1. Fuzzy outcomes
If a team is to prosper and deliver results, it needs to be crystal clear about the expected results or outcomes. Too often, teams set outcomes that are fuzzy and vague, which unsurprisingly leads to little in terms of results. Make the outcomes specific and measurable. For example, reduce waste from product X by 10 percent by December 31, 2010 is both specifi c and measurable.
2. Unproductive conflict
All successful teams need to have challenge and conflict, otherwise it all becomes too cozy. On the other hand, it is important to ensure that conflict is productive rather than destructive or unproductive. Lively and heated debate that actually results in a better outcome or solution is an example of productive conflict. Challenge that focuses on all of the negatives without offering any alternatives is unproductive.
3. Playing it safe
Making a step change in performance or turning things around requires teams and team members to take some risk and step outside of their comfort zone. This will only happen if the culture within the organization supports and rewards this type of innovative and balanced risk taking approach. For example, if the culture is to look for scapegoats when things go wrong, people will keep within the safety boundaries rather than take a chance.
4. Individual agendas
If a team is to prosper, all members need to sign up to and be committed to the team goals fi rst and foremost. For many, this is particularly challenging. As in business, we are used to being concerned about our own individual situation. Creating a reward system that relies on the group can be a useful stepping-stone to encouraging teams to focus on the team agenda.
5. Leadership
As with any team, someone must take on the role of the leader. A team without a leader is like a ship without a captain. The team might select a leader, or as the team develops someone may emerge who is the natural leader. However, any successful team needs a leader.
Bottom Line - Teams can achieve great results, but it is essential that the barriers to team success are identified and addressed. So what barriers are getting in the way of your team’s success?