Aligning the team

Good fences make good neighbours’ so role clarity can really help your team. The key is that these roles don’t need to be hierarchical, it’s much more about accountability and making it clear who people should go to get things done.  You can use the ‘pies’ approach to maximise your role clarity. Here’s a spreadsheet that you can adapt for your team. 

Strategy can be a little complicated but we've simplified it for you so that you and your team will be set up to execute together. Strategy is 'how' you will achieve your vision and it's another opportunity to pull your team together to get things done.  Think of your goal as the top of the mountain and the purpose as the star above that guides you. The strategy is your chosen path. There are many ways to get to the top – the key is to choose a path and make sure the whole team knows what it is and sticks to the path. It’s easy for people to get separated so everyone should have a role. You would not send marketing up one way and sales up the other so avoid ‘functional strategies’ – make the cross-functional.  If you want to take a deep dive in strategy, take a look at this classic HBR article from the best of them all on strategy, Michael Porter: https://hbr.org/1996/11/what-is-strategy#:~:text=It%20refers%20to%20any%20number,similar%20activities%20in%20different%20ways. 

This Connect is on a topic that appears dry but, done right, can provide the sharp and focused alignment that you need. Most teams lack the measures around their goal to be genuinely disciplined in execution, so this is a great opportunity for any team leader.  If you didn't listen before, check out this podcast about an organisation that used customer-centric measures to align everyone behind the same vision: https://www.squadify.net/wenotme/episode-58?hsLang=en 

This Connect is all about inspiring and aligning a team through a clear vision or finish line. Most teams do not have clarity on this - although they think they do - so this is a great opportunity to do things a little differently.  Have a read of what Jim Collins says about the importance of Vision (or Big Hairy Audacious Goal as he calls it): https://www.jimcollins.com/concepts/bhag.html 

In this week's Connect we explore one of the most important principles of leadership: Purpose. Knowing the 'why' gives motivation and alignment to a team so creating a shared purpose is time well-spent.  Here are two great We Not Me podcasts where leaders have harnessed purpose to achieve great things: Lucy Hovanec: https://www.squadify.net/wenotme/episode-6?hsLang=en Richard Giles: https://www.squadify.net/wenotme/episode-60?hsLang=en 

This connect is all about starting at the beginning with what really matters - the groups and people that the team serves.  For some inspiration, listen to this podcast that explores how one organisation used this approach to transform itself from market laggard to untouchable leader: https://www.squadify.net/wenotme/episode-58?hsLang=en 

Imagine you had everything your team needed to know about its direction - why, what, how and who - one page. We are starting a deep dive into Clarity on a Page that we covered in Connect 9.  Take a look at the Clarity on a Page template and notes to remind yourself of the key elements. 

This week, we introduce one of the most powerful tools for any leader: the 3Ws or Leadership Mindset. These three simple questions can transform any leader, team meeting … even email! … to enables positive change.  We strongly recommend this video from global leadership consulting firm LIW to give you some additional perspective: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IzP4pzpfDE 

This week, we start the mini-series on aligning your team with one of our favourite mental models: the Sigmoid Curve.  For an in-depth look at this topic, have a read of this article from Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/rebeccabagley/2013/01/02/the-key-to-growth-transformational-change/?sh=1efe74d86b8c  And for some inspiration on what is possible if you have next curve thinking, listen to Robin Hutchinson: https://www.squadify.net/wenotme/episode-56?hsLang=en