Team Best
McNeil Consulting
Team Renewal
Renewing a Team is a choice point for both the team and the team leader. Essentially the question is, Should we keep going the way we are going, or should we take off in a new direction? What makes this choice difficult is that not everyone on the team is dissatisfied with the current direction, processes etc. Often times the leader, or another team member must make a case for a change in direction, performance, and or membership. It’s a difficult case to make. First, you need to get others to see that performance isn’t where it needs to be, that members aren’t contributing their share, or leadership isn’t doing what needs doing - all very difficult issues to raise on a team.
If raising troubling issues are very difficult in and of themselves, the loyal dissenter is then usually asked to provide a solution. The combination of both diagnosis and remedy make it all but impossible for a team member or a team leader to sort out the team issues and create the possibility of a new direction. The team most often chooses the path of least resistance to “tough it out”, through some combination of denial, and withdrawal. The team can actually collude to lower expectations and become complacent in their level of performance.
We help teams find new directions, motivation, and reach new levels of performance. The reason we can do this work is that we are not “good team players.” We are team coaches. We help by holding up the mirror and having the team see themselves as they are. We make it safe for all to talk. We contract with both the team leader and the team members to open up a discussion about current reality, and where it wants to go. We have specialized tools and techniques to do this, along with twenty years of successful teambuilding. We start the process but the team does the work. It takes courage, commitment and strength on the part of the team leader and every team member. Face to face feedback for all is an integral part of this work.
Teams that find the strength to confront themselves and set a new direction become fueled by their own learning. They discover that they never really understood how good they could be, or how well they could perform. It’s an amazing experience to be part of team that takes the time to renew itself.
If you’d like to talk to us about your team’s renewal please contact us. As Yogi Berra said, “When you reach a fork in the road, take it!”
Renewing a Team is a choice point for both the team and the team leader. Essentially the question is, Should we keep going the way we are going, or should we take off in a new direction? What makes this choice difficult is that not everyone on the team is dissatisfied with the current direction, processes etc. Often times the leader, or another team member must make a case for a change in direction, performance, and or membership. It’s a difficult case to make. First, you need to get others to see that performance isn’t where it needs to be, that members aren’t contributing their share, or leadership isn’t doing what needs doing - all very difficult issues to raise on a team.
If raising troubling issues are very difficult in and of themselves, the loyal dissenter is then usually asked to provide a solution. The combination of both diagnosis and remedy make it all but impossible for a team member or a team leader to sort out the team issues and create the possibility of a new direction. The team most often chooses the path of least resistance to “tough it out”, through some combination of denial, and withdrawal. The team can actually collude to lower expectations and become complacent in their level of performance.
We help teams find new directions, motivation, and reach new levels of performance. The reason we can do this work is that we are not “good team players.” We are team coaches. We help by holding up the mirror and having the team see themselves as they are. We make it safe for all to talk. We contract with both the team leader and the team members to open up a discussion about current reality, and where it wants to go. We have specialized tools and techniques to do this, along with twenty years of successful teambuilding. We start the process but the team does the work. It takes courage, commitment and strength on the part of the team leader and every team member. Face to face feedback for all is an integral part of this work.
Teams that find the strength to confront themselves and set a new direction become fueled by their own learning. They discover that they never really understood how good they could be, or how well they could perform. It’s an amazing experience to be part of team that takes the time to renew itself.
If you’d like to talk to us about your team’s renewal please contact us. As Yogi Berra said, “When you reach a fork in the road, take it!”
