The monolithic team
How often do you use “them”, “they” or “my team” when referring to your team regarding a problem or concern, or even in praise? Is your team, for good or bad, a single entity or monolith?
In the very beginning of my leadership journey I used to refer to my direct hires this way—as a single unit. Even praise was considered “to the team”. This idea of collectivism I found very quickly was not only damaging to the overall morale of the team but often robbed the company of great and creative ideas.
Most people like the idea of being part of a team—belonging to something that allows them personal interactions at some level and the ability to accomplish more than what they could on their own. But people also want to feel they contribute a part of themselves to the team dynamic. Promoting “group think” or the idea that everyone needs to come together to the same conclusion to move ideas forward can leave your team members feeling unappreciated and unimportant, but can also squash the flow of creative ideas and innovation.
Some of this may sound like common sense, but it manifests itself in several subtle ways that you might not be aware of. For example, do you consider not only an employee’s skillset when handing out an assignment, but also their work preferences? From my own engineering perspective, I have developers who hate doing user interface and graphics work and others who enjoy it. By knowing the type of work your employees like to do you are able to provide them with more rewarding projects and assignments. And while we are on this topic of knowing your employees, have you ever even asked them what they enjoy most and what they enjoy the least? Have you taken the time to understand their motivations and how you can best relate to them?
The same is true when recognizing accomplishments and praising your direct reports. As a new leader I never took credit for any of my team’s successes but I also never gave it to them as individuals. In a way this was like I was taking the credit myself as “my team’s” success. Once I realized that this was actually a selfish and spotlight stealing attitude, I started shifting recognition to individuals who made the difference. If someone really made the extra effort and drove a project over the finish line ahead of schedule or under budget then they were always specifically named in the executive meetings to ensure not only the proper credit was given but also so the leadership team started to hear the names of the superstars over and over. Not only did the individual team members appreciate the recognition but it also set them up for professional growth and advancement.
In conclusion, it can sometimes be easy to think of those who report to you as a monolithic group to which a one size fits all solution can be applied to any aspect of the team dynamic. There is a fine line between recognizing each team member individually and losing the overall corporate vision and collective strategy, but it is a line that is worth scrutinizing. Often some of the best creativity, innovation and team development exists on
this line
What are your thoughts? Do you sometimes catch yourself doing this? Post a reply in the comments and let us know your team story.
Jason Kistler