Building more effective team performance
Surprisingly given how much literature there is on this topic, it is incredibly hard to build a truly high performing team. Success requires a sustained commitment from all team members. Both humility and a willingness to discuss uncomfortable topics is paramount to success. See below case studies that detail a selection of ways we have worked for our clients:
CONSUMER ELECTRONICS GIANT
CONTEXT
The senior leadership team of this business unit has been fully affected by the unexpected departure of a much-liked leader. The team were left with inconsistent levels of trust and rapport, along with huge expectations of growth from their parent company. As a result of their direct results were becoming more siloed in their way of working and increasingly demotivated. There was a high turnover in that function.
The internal L&D function did not feel comfortable undertaking restoring team excellence. They did not have an existing provider who could effectively undertake this type of work.
APPROACH
We designed a journey for the senior leadership team that would enable them to open up about the experiences of the previous 12 months and begin to lay a new foundation for a renewed team culture. This solution included direct observation on internal meetings followed by feedback on how they interacted with each other and other external attendees. This provided a unique insight which was a catalyst to behavioural change.
Over the next 18 months, the project expanded to include all 150 people in the function, this led to a reduction in turnover. They then became the number performing region in Europe.
AUTOMOTIVE MANUFACTURING
CONTEXT
The board of the most famous, ultra luxury brand in the world were facing a challenge; the internal employee experience was falling significantly short of the incredible standards the organisation holds itself to. The board realised that more attention needed to be given to the internal culture and that journey had to start with them personally. The board consisted of a collection of strong, passionate and vocal leaders, each of whom care deeply about their function. As a result, for many employees, presenting to the board was a nerve-wracking, high-pressure experience. They wanted to create a much more open, inclusive, people orientated culture in the business.
APPROACH
We undertook to facilitate quarterly board workshops which had no operational or commercial agenda. The sessions were focussed purely on increasing team functionality and delving into dynamics at board level to improve company culture. The facilitation style we used during these sessions was direct and uncompromising. As a result, the team evolved a new level of honesty and directness with each other. This ultimately led to a top-down culture change throughout the organisation.