Defining / re-defining a clear purpose that requires the team to collaborate and allows each team member to understand similarly WHY the team exists.
Defining the team's mission and vision is key as well.
Aligning on WHAT the team should focus on amongst all the things competing for its time, what it unique value proposition is, how the team differentiates itself from the rest of the organisation, the external world and competition.
Determine the principles guiding HOW the team works and members behave, whether within the team, the organisation, or vis à vis the outside world. Defining the behaviors attached to these values so values do not remain nice words on a website.
Identifying stakeholders, including beyond the usual suspects.
Defining a strategy as to how and when to inform, communicate, engage or partner with stakeholders.
Assessing team members' individual authority, presence, impact and leadership for this purpose.
Key focus dimensions such as:
- team culture
- trust and psychological safety
- team performance functioning
- team dynamics
- meetings / routines
Bringing the team into a virtuous action-learning cycle:
- thinking
- planning
- doing
- reviewing
... and avoid limiting learning styles such as:
- fire-fighting
- navel-gazing
- paralysis by analysis
Team Offsite example
Through a fun exercise in small numbers, team members were able to share their thoughts and feelings about their reality, the positive and the negative.
Next, team members were asked to draw their team and its functioning in an ideal world, where everything has changed for the best.
Team members then used a transformation mindset to devise the transformation plan that would take them from 1 to 2. This was done through identifying four key themes (e.g. team processes, stakeholder empowerment) and subtasks, each of which was assigned SMART goals (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time-based). Team members committed themselves to their transformation.
Through a series of questioning exercises, team members were able to collectively draft their purpose, the vision for their team, and their strategy (what they will focus on and how).
bolster consulting L.L.C
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bolsterconsultingcoaching@gmail.com
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