It’s been a busy start of the year at The Executive Guide! Several of our CEO Focus members are starting their journey to become a more purposeful organization by doing a Team Assessment. This online questionnaire allows teams to see how they are doing around The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: Trust, Conflict, Commitment, Accountability and Results.

The Team Assessment report is a tool for leadership teams to “name” the things they struggle with as a group. Teams often know that there is tension, but they don’t always know why it’s happening and how to address challenging dynamics. Mike and I facilitate that first discussion with leadership teams as they read the results of their Assessment. It’s powerful to watch them one by one get clarity on what they do well as a team, and where they get stuck. This process allows team members to name unhealthy behaviors. It also gives them insight into how their own actions, even if well intentioned, can be damaging to the team and the organization.

To quote the author of this Team Assessment, Patrick Lencioni, “In this day and age of informational overload and constant change, teamwork remains the one sustainable competitive advantage that has been largely untapped.”

Aleah and I join a client’s monthly meeting with their 12 foremen (the guys supervising more than 50 projects out in the field). This month we were asked to facilitate a discussion to see how the foremen are doing with all the challenges due to COVID and the upcoming holidays.

We approached this exercise with a goal to have the guys feeling safe enough to share their vulnerabilities in front of their peers and the company’s president. It was a bit surprising to us that one by one, they all started to speak up and share how they were doing.

A couple guys are single parents and struggle managing the need to be in the field and having the kids get school done remotely. You could feel the burden they were carrying.

Many of the foremen mentioned that they miss being able to grab a beer with their team after work. That time for personal connection and camaraderie was a void in their lives, which takes a toll. Their bosses heard this and committed to finding ways to help them find time to hang out away from the job site, yet safely due to COVID.

There is a strong connection between resiliency and gratitude. At the end of the meeting, we asked each foreman to share one thing for which they are grateful. It was powerful to hear the majority of them refer to “working for this company.” They have seen change in the organizational culture due to the leadership team’s work over the last several months, guided by the principles of The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. The leadership team has committed to cascading a healthier way of leading. There’s no better feeling than knowing all that hard work is making a positive impact on the employees – at all levels of the company.

One of our corporate clients holds 4-hour bi-weekly Culture Club meetings with their leadership team. After meeting every other week for more than a year; let’s just say, they’re pretty close. This group is the poster child of true commitment toward building a cohesive leadership team.

One of our corporate clients holds 4-hour bi-weekly Culture Club meetings with their leadership team. After meeting every other week for more than a year; let’s just say, they’re pretty close. This group is the poster child of true commitment toward building a cohesive leadership team.

A recent meeting started a little different than usual. One member announced that he had decided to step down from the leadership team and go back to his non-managerial role in the company. He had been struggling for a while and realized he had gotten promoted to a level in the organization that was no longer his wheelhouse. He missed being the in field and doing what gave him energy. Being a manager wasn’t in alignment with his passion.

The room was silent. This is a well respected and admired leader making a difficult decision (after consulting with the CEO) to do what was best not only for him, but the company. While it was hard to completely see all the emotions behind the masks, it was evident that many were struggling to see their colleague make this change, even though they all knew it was for the best.