Insights: Support and
Dedication Keys to Team
Success
Cynthia Minor is a manager in the Corporate
Quality Department at Bayer Corporation. She also
serves on the Corporate Quality Council and the Bayer
Change Leadership Team.
Minor has discovered over the years that each new and
challenging assignment has had similar requirements:
evaluating processes and making changes, determining
needs and redesigning training, creating and
effectively disseminating communications and, most
importantly, influencing others to achieve positive
results for the organization.
In evaluating a team’s performance,
what do you feel are the overriding characteristics
that lead to the most successful teams?
As I think of the characteristics I see in our very
best teams, the first one that comes to mind is clear
goals linked to business objectives. The best teams
understand how their work ties into the “bigger
picture,” whether it’s the customer,
community, environment or corporation. This keeps
them highly focused and gives them ownership.
The next thing is the use of problem-solving
processes. One of our best teams was described as
believing in the “purity of the process.”
That team was formed to optimize a process that most
people felt was already optimized, because there had
been previous teams working on the process. However,
the early teams declared failure too soon, whereas
the victorious team relied on the “purity of
the process” and pushed past the failures to
achieve success.
The best teams operate as tight, cohesive
units with agreements they adhere to. Communication
is open, commitments are kept, opinions are respected
and members are held accountable for action items,
which leads to the next characteristic: team ethic. I
would compare this to the individual work ethic, but
apply it to a team. It’s a willingness to do
whatever it takes to get the job done and sacrificing
for the good of the whole.
What have you noticed has the most power to hold
teams back?
I would say lack of management support, management
that rewards individual achievement over teamwork and
people who won’t make teamwork a priority. For
example, a supervisor who gives an employee grief for
taking too much time to attend a team meeting or asks
a team member to postpone a team commitment to fight
a fire on the job—that message says,
“Teamwork is not a priority”.
Are there some people who just aren’t meant
to work on teams, or can anyone learn?
I believe anyone can learn. It’s like the
question: “Are leaders born or made?”
Some people seem to be inherently good team players,
just as some seem to be born leaders. I believe that
in both cases behaviors and skills can be taught, and
then reinforced. Eventually the real change in
behavior requires a transformation of the
heart—that’s where the essence of the
person abides. Reinforcement can come in a variety of
ways. Don’t underestimate the power of a
sincere “thank you.”
Do you feel the current unstable state of the
economy will diminish teams’ effort or act as a
rallying point?
If the purpose of working in teams is to make
significant contributions to enhance business
results, then in times of an unstable economy,
certainly teams should be more important than ever.
And I think management will stay with teams. From the
employees’ standpoint, when times are tough,
fear frequently causes people to worry about
who’s going to get credit or blame. Especially
if it’s a fear of downsizing. But I think
management will continue to support teams and may
even emphasize that area more strongly.
How can teams overcome this unsure
time?
I think the best way is to realize what is necessary
now, more than ever, is to make things work. The
organization desperately needs employee support
during tough times and as tough decisions are made.
Teams need to become part of the solution by making
their ambition for the corporation’s success.
Instead of being overcome by fear teams need to work
harder to make a difference. If management is as open
and straightforward as the situation permits, that
will contribute to the team’s ownership and
help alleviate fear.
What do you feel is an effective way to deal
with individuals who are more interested in their own
fate than in that of their team?
I think the best way to deal with team members who
hinder the team process is directly. If the team has
a strong leader, then the individual should be
privately confronted, while providing direct, honest
and objective feedback and coaching. If not dealt
with firmly, this individual can damage the entire
team.
Another good technique is to point to the team
agreements. Good team agreements include open and
honest communication and feedback. If the team
operates according to its agreements, then members
feel free to provide respectful feedback.
What is the key to a team-based
culture?
I keep coming back to management support, and a
system to reward and reinforce teamwork. That
doesn’t mean that the individual is
lost—but the system should reward the
individual who acts with the good of the whole as a
top priority—they’re not just looking to
further themselves. Companies very often teach and
preach teams while rewarding and promoting individual
competitiveness.
Insights: Take One for the
Team
Mike Levenhagen has been a Continuous
Improvement trainer with the Oshkosh Truck
Corporation, Oshkosh, Wisc., for eight years. In this
time, he has also acted as a “Koality
Kid” liaison between his company and a local
elementary school.
In this interview, Levenhagen shares his
thoughts on teams and his opinion that through
healthy skepticism and embracing diversity, any team
can be a success.
In evaluating a team’s performance,
what do you feel are the overriding characteristics
that lead to the most successful teams?
Resilience is one of them. Successful teams
are able to take the bumps and bruises of corporate
America and not be set back. Through moving
personnel, losing personnel, moving jobs and not
getting the support they need—they still hang
in there and are committed to the process.
Another big one is utilizing and celebrating
diversity within the team—not just personal
styles, but also tapping into members’
diversity of work experience, their background and
different things like that. Instead of letting
diversity become a barrier, explore the differences
and appreciate them.
What obstacle has the most power to hold
teams back?
Letting healthy skepticism turn into cynicism.
I encourage healthy skepticism on my teams, like,
“Is this really going to work?”
It’s good because they’re willing to try
it. Some teams let their skepticism roll over into
the cynicism and any time there’s a bump in the
road they say, “There, that isn’t going
to work—it’s another piece of evidence
that says it’s not worth it.”
Are there some people who just aren’t
meant to work on teams, or can anyone
learn?
From my experiences, everybody can learn team
skills and work in a team environment. One danger
with teams is that we have a tendency to label people
as “non-team players.” I think
there’s a healthy, valuable place for that
person on the team. They can contribute a lot and
help the team avoid groupthink. It is possible if
people are properly managed, given the vision and
told, “Here are the parameters and what is
acceptable. You don’t have to participate, but
you can’t be disruptive.” It’s like
being a resident of the United States; you have to
have your green card or be a natural citizen to be
here, but at the same time nobody can make you
vote.
Is there a necessary place for individuals
who are more interested in their own fate than that
of their team?
Absolutely, bottom line is we all have personal
agendas and to some degree, some are hidden even to
us. When we enter a team meeting and start
participating in a team setting, we all have agendas.
I don’t think it’s a problem or that a
team needs to be chastised for having them. The
problem will come in if the individual is duplicitous
and undermines what the team is trying to achieve.
That needs to be addressed through conflict
resolution and open dialogue within the team. One
growth opportunity for the team is identifying that
everyone basically came in with the same needs for
security and respect.
What do you believe is the key to a
team-based culture?
The first thing is top management seeing and buying
into the bottom line of team-based activity, with an
understanding that while there are definite
investments upfront, the long-term returns are worth
it. The second key is joint implementation in which
the entire plan is initiated by the front-line
employees and upper-management coming together from
the start.
Why should companies support teams?
I think being part of a teamwork atmosphere
creates a sense of belonging. It gives employees the
personal connection and commitment that creates
loyalty—both within and outside of their
department. It is better for employee morale and
gives employees input about the needs and issues of
the corporation. Employees can also develop more
personal accountability and a greater responsibility
for the company’s success.
Are there any negatives or challenges for
teams to be aware of?
It is important to realize that as you grow, you may
have team individuality, a sense of identity that can
break down or build walls between other groups and
support groups. As your team grows and the
camaraderie expands, be sure it is in a healthy way
with others included.
Overall, I think in order to have a good team
environment, there needs to be a group that uses the
tools themselves to oversee the process.
May
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for a Team
