Even the best leaders may be faced with the changing of their team’s dynamics. Others may walk into or be hired specifically to turn around a dysfunctional team. Aligning any group of people is difficult, so when examining your situation and assessing your team, Ajit Kambil, Deloit, suggests these three key indicators as signs of problematic teams:
- Collective delegation upward to avoid accountability
- Lethargy, low collective energy, engagement, and commitment
- Organization silos and conflicts that delay or undermine collective success
What leads to these “cancers” that can impact the productivity and success of a team or the larger organization? It almost always begins with leadership or the lack of it and always occurs over time.
According to Matt Jenkins, “the most common dysfunctions that hinder an organization’s success are:
- Absence of trust: team members don’t feel safe about their future which prevents building trust within the team
- Fear of conflict: in order to preserve artificial harmony, team members avoid productive conflict
- Lack of commitment: a lack of clarity or buy-in prevents team members from making decisions they will stick to
- Avoiding accountability: the desire to avoid interpersonal discomfort prevents people from holding each other accountable
- Personal agendas: the pursuit of individual goals and personal status erodes the focus on collective success”
Integrator Leaders, when faced with a dysfunctional team, address the situation straight-on rather than avoiding it or “kicking the can down the road”. Unlike fine wine, organizational problems left to fester, only become worse.
Getting a team to reframe their thinking about their organization and leadership is no easy task. What actions should leaders take when a team is found to be dysfunctional? Begin by learning to see through the lens of the team. How are things from their perspective? What is creating the problems? What changes are required to move the team to where it needs to be?
To change a dysfunctional team, seek to identify the root cause. Dysfunction impacts the bottom-line and productivity leading to the loss of talent, loss of customers, and loss of morale. No quick magic to turn these situations around, however, there are actions that when taken over time, can create needed change.
Suggested leader actions to change team dysfunctionality include:
- Assess – listen, observe, talk to customers, get out and about and be visible
- Shared Vision – create a shared vision – a clear and compelling purpose
- Communicate – first by listening, regularly, at all levels, can’t over communicate
- Feedback – seek and provide, use tools like 360 assessments and culture surveys
- Gratitude & Affirmation – recognition, awards, authentic, when deserved
Everyone Needs Direction
Often, when a team becomes dysfunctional it is because of “clutter” – no known or poorly defined purpose. This can lead to confusion or apathy with the lack of a clear direction.
Defining PURPOSE for your team should begin by letting them see the “world” (your organization, enterprise, etc) from the canopy view. The idea is to widen everyone’s aperture so that they see their actions within the broader organizational context.
The canopy view enables workers at all levels to become more productive and efficient, and better able to align their efforts with those of the broader organization. Do not make the mistake of assuming everyone understands the common purpose, even the most seasoned members of your team will benefit from this. Providing your team with a view from the canopy gives them a clear line of sight to their goal. Show them where they are, and where, as a team, they are going.
To get your team fully engaged and to want to be committed, they must be provided a rationale to spark their passion. Helping the team to see through the lens of the customer, the organization, and the team, can inspire even those a bit skeptical. Once the leader provides the purpose, nudge the team to take ownership of the next step – creating the HOW.
Trust Leads to Commitment
Committed teams require a devoted leader who earns trust through their actions. Leaders earn trust and gain commitment from their team when they are authentic, open to feedback, empower subordinates, and incorporate input from their team into decisions. To earn trust, leaders must give trust.
From trust comes commitment. For your team to buy into this type of organizational culture and to genuinely own it, leaders must demonstrate their commitment through their actions and behaviors. Team members can easily see through “fluff” or talk without action. Demonstrating that you are willing to roll up your sleeves and work with the team when needed, further underscores a leader’s commitment.
Trust but verify. Don’t micromanage but engage appropriately. Periodic check-ins ensure and reinforce standards – this is the job of the leader.
Gratitude Changes Attitude
The power of the words “thank you” sincerely said, can last a lifetime. It is surprising how many employees feel unappreciated simply because leadership has not taken the time to thank them personally, specifically, and sincerely, for their work or actions.
By consistently putting emphasis on leading with an attitude of gratitude, according to Mark Deterding, “leaders build confidence in others; improve productivity; foster innovation; develop positive relationships; and build’s trust”.
The impact that gratitude can have on an individual and a team can’t be minimized. Josh Bowen, 3X5 Leadership, reminds us of the power of gratitude: “A person who feels appreciated will always do more than is expected.”
Follow Up and Follow Through
With direction defined and the team beginning to move in the right direction, don’t stop. Follow up and follow through can prove to be the cornerstone to success. Without this, a leader’s efforts and those of the team will fade away, much like when the cheerleaders leave the field after the game.
Hold people accountable and celebrate their accomplishments. Assess progress, report it to the team, ask for their feedback, and make mid-course adjustments as needed. Remain engaged, provide required resources, and identify what obstacles need to be removed.
From “That Team” to “Twana’s Team” – A Case Study
New to the organization and to her job, Twana took the first few weeks to assess her team. She got to spend time with each of her employees on more than one occasion, spoke to her peers, met with customers, and listened while in the work’s cafeteria. As she was warned when she took the job, she had her work cut out for her to simply survive and had a mountain with steep cliffs to ascend to get this group back on course.
Her team was clearly dysfunctional. They avoided accountability, with all roads leading to her desk. You could feel the lethargy immediately upon walking into their workspace.
Even before COVID, there were no collective gatherings, celebrations for team or individual accomplishments, or sharing of ideas.
Twana found her boss to be apathetic, low energy, and more interested in her afterwork activities than the success of the organization. With her supervisor’s lack of interest or any acceptance to Twana’s suggestions or ideas to bring life to the workplace, she decided to follow her personal philosophy: “it’s never wrong to do what is right”.
Daily, she spent time on the floor with employees – listening to them, really getting to know them, finding out about their concerns and interests for their future. She learned what policies and SOPs were being followed and why others were being ignored. In one word, she demonstrated that she “cared”. This sparked the attention of her team, brought new life to her peers, was noticed by her customers – yet was frowned upon by her boss.
She organized regular celebrations for employee’s birthdays, team accomplishments, and turned training into wanted events. She eventually got others to assist her in organizing these, had employees volunteer to instruct during training, and reduced absenteeism to where there was nearly none.
She asked her team to step up, empowered those who did, and recognized anyone who went above and beyond.
She regularly shared their productivity measures and coached the team on ways to become more efficient without having to work harder. And periodically, reminded her team how they were impacting their organization’s strategic mission.
Twana found the satisfaction of watching “that team”, the dysfunctional and unproductive one, grow into “Twana’s Team”, the one that others envied and sought to join. No magic or special tricks, just LEADERSHIP!
Integrator Leader Reflections
- What steps are you taking to assess your team?
- Have you created a shared vision for your team?
- How do you communicate with your team and what frequency? Do you listen?
- Have you created a culture of feedback within your team?
- Is your gratitude received with a sense of sincerity by your team?
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