Welcome back to our series on Cultivating Team Effectiveness in a New Paradigm. In this complex, ever-changing world, stakeholder expectations are often conflicting. Teams must simultaneously deliver now, innovate for tomorrow, and transform for an unpredictable future. In our previous blogs, we explored the importance of clarity and trust in fostering effective teams, today we conclude our series by examining the crucial aspect of co-creating team impact.
Co-Creating Team Impact
At the heart of every effective team lies a deep understanding of its impact. Impact is about results; incremental progress toward a goal, and small wins that lead to big outcomes. Teams that appreciate the significance of their work not only align their efforts with organisational goals but also draw motivation and direction from their collective contributions. This awareness enables teams to prioritise effectively, adapt to changing circumstances, and continually refine their strategies to maximise their impact.
Impact isn't just about achieving predefined outcomes; it's also about continuously evaluating and recalibrating to ensure relevance and effectiveness in an ever-changing context. Teams that measure their impact through agreed-upon metrics, stakeholder feedback and internal reflection practices, gain insights into what works and what needs adjustment. This ongoing review process not only informs strategic decisions but also fuels a sense of purpose and accomplishment among team members.
Strategies for Co-Creating Team Impact
Agreeing What Success Looks Like - Establishing clear metrics that define success enables teams to gauge their progress objectively and adjust as needed. These measures should align with both team and organisational goals, and track both activity and outcome, providing a common framework for evaluating impact.
Engaging with Key Stakeholders - Engaging with stakeholders and seeking their feedback is essential for understanding how the team's work is perceived and valued externally. This dialogue fosters transparency, builds relationships, and ensures that the team remains responsive to everchanging stakeholder needs and expectations.
However, as teams becoming increasingly fluid in form and dynamic in nature, their effectiveness is not only determined by the behaviours of the team members themselves rather is influenced by customers, suppliers, partners, regulators and communities in which they operate. Teams need to go beyond feedback and co-design ways of working and engaging with stakeholders who contribute to the work they do as a team.
Experimenting and Adapting - In today's dynamic environment, teams must be adaptable. This includes co-creating an initial plan or approach and being open to adjusting strategies based on feedback, changing circumstances, or new insights. Establishing a process of experimentation, encouraging flexibility and a learning mindset, allow teams to pivot when necessary and optimise their impact amidst evolving challenges.
Pausing to Review, Reflect and Reset - Regularly pausing to reflect on achievements, challenges, and lessons learned is critical for continuous improvement. In a busy world where teams face new dilemmas and emerging opportunities, these moments of review and reflection enable teams to celebrate successes, identify areas for growth, reset and realign their efforts to stay on course. By fostering a culture of reflection and resetting, teams cultivate resilience, adaptability, and a shared commitment to ongoing improvement.
Effective Leadership in Creating Impact
Leaders play a pivotal role in guiding teams towards impactful outcomes. They actively role model and champion a culture that prioritises and values reflection, encourages innovation, celebrates success and supports constructive feedback. Effective leaders empower teams to take ownership of their impact, trusting them to make informed decisions, pivot as needed and drive meaningful change.
As leaders, creating teams that thrive in complexity, innovate with purpose, and contribute meaningfully requires us to intentionally invest in our team effectiveness by fostering clarity through shared responsibility and adaptability; Building trust by nurturing relationships, fostering psychological safety, and empowering personal leadership; and maximising impact by defining success, engaging stakeholders, and embracing experimentation and reflection.
