Disruption Isn’t Leadership—It’s Just Disruption

 Disruption Isn’t Leadership—It’s Just Disruption

Inspired by Adam Grant’s NYT op-ed on the myth of fear-based leadership

We love a bold leader. Someone who breaks the mold, says the unsayable, and pushes boundaries. But here’s the catch: being disruptive doesn’t automatically make someone effective.

In his recent New York Times op-ed, leading organizational psychologist and management scholar Adam Grant issues a wake-up call about today’s obsession with harsh, “fearless” leadership. He points to Elon Musk—often regarded as brilliant and ambitious, and increasingly held up as a model for what it means to be a strong leader. But as Grant makes clear, Musk’s tendency to belittle, intimidate, and fire en masse doesn’t make people better—it makes teams weaker. The data - from hundreds of studies involving over 150,000 people - is clear: fear doesn’t fuel performance. It drains it.

Grant’s piece reminded me of another classic case: basketball coach Bobby Knight. A coaching legend at Indiana, Knight built a legacy at least partly on discipline and rage. His sideline tantrums were infamous, his treatment of players often demeaning. Eventually, it caught up to him—costing him jobs, players, and trust.

Compare that to his protégé, Mike Krzyzewski of Duke. “Coach K” learned under Knight, but took a very different path. He emphasized respect, relationships, and loyalty. And while he didn’t shy away from tough conversations, he earned his players’ best through connection, not coercion. The results? Five national championships, 13 appearances in the “Final Four”, and decades of sustained excellence.

Even Steve Jobs eventually got the memo. Early in his career, Jobs burned bridges with his ego and intensity. But after being ousted from Apple, he came back humbler, wiser, and more human. As Grant notes, it was the changed Jobs—still driven, but now empathetic—who helped build Apple into the company we know today.

Here’s the bottom line: Disruption isn’t a leadership style. It’s a tactic. And it only works when it's aimed at systems, not people.

Three things to remember:

1. Respect is not weakness. Demanding excellence doesn’t require demeaning people. Leaders can set high bars andbe decent.
2. Fear wears thin. People might tolerate a toxic genius—but they won’t follow one forever. The best talent leaves when the culture turns.
3. Long-term wins come from trust. Whether you’re coaching a team or running a company, loyalty and belief go further than intimidation.

Disruption might grab headlines, but trust builds legacies. Let’s lead accordingly.

Is Your Hybrid Team Still Engaged?

 

Is Your Hybrid Team Still Engaged? Warning Signs and What to Do About Them

Hybrid work has moved from novelty to normal, reshaping how teams communicate, collaborate, and connect. But with this shift comes a new leadership challenge: how do you know if your hybrid team is still truly engaged? When you're not seeing people in the hallway or reading body language in meetings, it’s easier than ever for disengagement to fly under the radar.

 

Plenty of research shows that hybrid teams are, in general, as productive (if not more so) than their in-person counterparts. But even if everything seems fine on the surface, your team might be quietly checking out. Spotting the early signs—and knowing how to respond—can help you re-engage your team before the damage becomes harder to reverse.

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Why Hybrid Teams Are Especially Vulnerable to Disengagement

Hybrid models blur the lines between visibility and presence. When team members work from different locations, day-to-day interactions tend to become more transactional. The casual check-ins and shared moments that build camaraderie can fade without deliberate effort.

It’s also easy for remote employees to feel disconnected or overlooked, especially if key decisions and interactions happen in the office. One manager shared how a normally high-performing team began missing deadlines—not due to capability, but because remote members felt out of the loop and stopped contributing proactively. The issue wasn’t productivity—it was a slow erosion of engagement.

It's easy to suggest that the answer to this is to demand that everyone return to the office full-time, but that eliminates the autonomy and flexibility many workers say improve both their home and work lives. So how do you diagnose and improve your hybrid team?

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Five Warning Signs Your Hybrid Team Is Losing Engagement

1. Drop in Participation or Energy During Meetings
If your once-lively team meetings now feel like a one-way broadcast, it’s a red flag. People keeping cameras off, rarely speaking up, or multitasking during calls often signal disengagement. One manager noticed their weekly check-ins had turned into 80% monologue with very little discussion—a shift from earlier, more interactive sessions.

2. Delayed Responses and Minimal Communication
When Slack goes quiet and emails go unanswered, it may not be just busyness—it could be a sign that team members are tuning out. While communication rhythms naturally ebb and flow, a consistent drop in responsiveness warrants attention.

3. Decline in Proactive Behavior
Engaged team members volunteer ideas, anticipate issues, and offer solutions. When that stops, and team members simply “check the box,” it might mean they’re disengaging mentally—even if they’re still technically doing the job.

4. Increased Mistakes or Missed Deadlines
Disengagement can manifest as careless errors or delayed work. While these issues may appear performance-related, they’re often rooted in a loss of motivation or clarity.

5. Withdrawal from Optional or Social Activities
When people stop showing up for non-mandatory team events—virtual coffee chats, knowledge-sharing sessions, or casual Slack channels—it might indicate they’re no longer invested in the team’s social fabric.

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How to Re-Engage a Hybrid Team

1. Rebuild Personal Connection
Relationships are the foundation of engagement. Prioritize regular 1:1 check-ins that go beyond status updates. Ask open-ended questions like, “What’s been energizing you lately?” or “How are you really doing?” These moments create space for trust and candid conversations. Remember that 1:1 check-ins are not just for information sharing, they function to (re)build the personal connection between you and your team members. So try to schedule them for when you are both in the office. If that can’t be done, use a “rich” medium like a phone or video call (as opposed to a text or a Teams chat).

2. Reclarify Purpose and Impact
Remind your team why their work matters. Connecting individual tasks to broader company goals or customer outcomes can reignite motivation. A quick “Here’s how your work made a difference this week” can go a long way. Former team expert Richard Hackman, of Harvard University, used to say that one of the critical underlying pieces of successful team design was a “Compelling Purpose” – a clear, shared statement of what the task was and why it was important. This needs to be shared upfront with every team, but remember to take time to remind your team of this throughout their work.

3. Level the Playing Field Between Remote and In-Office Staff
Ensure remote team members have equal access to information, opportunities, and visibility. Use shared digital tools for collaboration, rotate meeting facilitators, and avoid making key decisions in hallway conversations. Research shows that a critical source of conflict in hybrid teams is when “fault lines” develop between those who are full-time in the main office and those who are part-time or full-time at a remote location. Make sure that those who aren’t in the building are being systematically, but unintentionally, excluded.

4. Create Safe Spaces for Feedback
If people are disengaged, they may not feel safe saying so. Use anonymous pulse surveys or team retrospectives to invite honest feedback. The key: don’t just listen—act on what you hear. When you collect this feedback, start by sharing it with the team. Ask for clarification, suggestions on what actions you could take, and what actions should be prioritized. 

5. Celebrate Wins and Small Progress
Recognition fuels momentum. Celebrate contributions both big and small, and make sure remote and in-person team members feel equally seen. A quick shout-out during a meeting or a thank-you message on a shared channel reinforces that their work is valued. This is something that everyone on the team can (and should) do, no matter their position – but once a team leader starts doing this it is easier for it to become the norm.

In every team, hybrid or not, engagement isn’t static—it needs regular tending. Team leaders who stay tuned into subtle shifts and act early are better positioned to keep their teams motivated, connected, and productive.

If you’re noticing signs of disengagement, don’t wait. A few small, intentional moves can spark meaningful change—and remind your team that they’re seen, supported, and essential to the mission.

 The Art of Leadership Style: Adapting to Fit Your Team's Needs

As working managers and professionals, you are often tasked with the challenging job of leading teams, meeting goals, and driving success. One key aspect that can significantly influence your effectiveness is your leadership style. Often misunderstood as an intrinsic trait, leadership style is, in reality, a collection of behaviors that can be learned, adapted, and perfected. Understanding this flexibility can empower you to lead more effectively by aligning your approach with the needs of your team and the demands of your specific situation.

Leadership Style: A Behavioral Collection

Leadership is not a one-size-fits-all model, nor is it a fixed attribute you either possess or lack. Instead, think of leadership style as a toolkit of behaviors that you can develop and deploy as needed. This perspective demystifies leadership and makes it accessible to everyone willing to invest in their personal development.

Consider the different scenarios you encounter in your professional life. Each situation may call for a different set of behaviors. Recognizing this variability is the first step in mastering the art of leadership.

Exploring Different Leadership Styles

There are several recognized leadership styles, each with its unique characteristics and applications. Here’s a brief overview of six common styles, adapted from this article in the Harvard Business Review by Rebecca Knight:

1. Coercive Leadership: This style is characterized by a command-and-control approach. It can be effective in crisis situations where quick decisions are necessary. However, overuse can lead to a demotivated team.
2. Authoritative Leadership: Authoritative leaders inspire with a clear vision and direction. They mobilize people toward a common goal, often resulting in high levels of engagement and motivation.
3. Pace-Setting Leadership: This style sets high standards for performance. While it can drive fast results from a highly competent team, it may overwhelm others and lead to burnout if not managed carefully.
4. Affiliative Leadership: Affiliative leaders prioritize harmony and team cohesion. They focus on building emotional bonds and creating a positive work environment, but sometimes neglect difficult decisions or hard performance feedback.
5. Democratic Leadership: This approach values input from team members and encourages participation in decision-making. It fosters a sense of ownership and can lead to more innovative solutions, although it may slow down the decision-making process.
6. Coaching Leadership: Coaching leaders focus on developing their team’s strengths and capabilities. This style is particularly effective for long-term growth and creating a supportive, empowering work culture.

No One-Size-Fits-All Solution

It’s crucial to understand that no single leadership style is superior to the others. Each has its place and effectiveness depending on the context. The best leaders are those who can assess a situation, understand the needs of their employees, and adapt their style accordingly.

For instance, during a crisis, a coercive style might be necessary to make swift decisions. However, in a stable environment where team morale is low, an affiliative or coaching style might be more effective to rebuild trust and engagement.

Adapting to Your Team's Needs

Effective leadership requires a keen sense of situational awareness and emotional intelligence. Here are some steps to help you adapt your leadership style:

1. Assess the Situation: Consider the urgency, complexity, and stakes of the situation. What does the team need most right now? Clear direction, quick decisions, or perhaps a morale boost?
2. Understand Your Team: Know the strengths, weaknesses, and motivations of your team members. Tailor your approach to leverage their strengths and address their needs.
3. Be Flexible: Don’t get stuck in one style. Be willing to shift your approach as circumstances change. Flexibility is a hallmark of effective leadership.
4. Seek Feedback: Encourage feedback from your team about your leadership approach. This can provide valuable insights into what’s working and what needs adjustment.
5. Continuous Learning: Leadership is a journey, not a destination. Invest in your development through training, reading, and mentorship. Stay open to new ideas and approaches.

Conclusion

Leadership style is a dynamic and adaptable aspect of your professional toolkit. By understanding the different styles and learning to apply them appropriately, you can enhance your effectiveness as a leader. Remember, the goal is not to find the “best” style, but to develop the ability to choose the right style for the right situation. This adaptability will not only improve your leadership but also foster a more resilient and responsive team.

Mastering the Art of Delegation: A Guide for New Leaders

Are you a new leader struggling to successfully delegate tasks and responsibilities? This is a critical skill for making the transition from individual-contributor to leader or manager, and it’s tough because the whole reason you got promoted to leader/manager is because of your ability to get tasks done! But now you need to let go of that “task mindset” to be effective in your new role. Here are a few things to keep in mind as you go about that transition. 

1) Change Your Mindset

As a new manager, transitioning from being an individual contributor requires a mindset shift. You were promoted because of your ability to deliver results, but now, your success is measured by your team's performance and growth. Embrace the idea that you can't and shouldn't do everything on your own. Your role now is to guide, support, and empower your team to achieve their goals, which in turn, advances the company’s vision.

Delegating is crucial. It allows your team members to develop their skills and take on more responsibility, and gives you the opportunity to spend time focusing outside the team (perhaps advocating for critical resources, or making sure that your team’s success and impact are recognized). Resisting this change can lead to being overworked and missing critical opportunities for your team.

2) Determine What to Delegate and to Whom

Once you accept delegation as part of your job, identify which tasks to hand off and to whom. Start by listing all your tasks and projects for the month. Ask yourself:

•       What tasks prevent me from focusing on high-level projects? High-level work typically aligns with strategic priorities, like setting quarterly benchmarks or representing your department in cross-functional initiatives. These require your expertise/authority and shouldn't be delegated.

•       Which tasks can help my team grow? Look for tasks that align with your team members' strengths, goals, and career development plans. For instance, ask a future leader to head a meeting or present a pitch, giving them visibility and growth opportunities.

•       What pieces of a project leverage others' strengths? If you’re uncomfortable delegating an entire project, delegate parts that match your team members' skills. This helps you gauge their strengths and areas for development.

3) Communicate Clearly

Effective delegation requires clear communication. Schedule a one-on-one meeting with the team member, explaining:

•       What the project is: Detail how it contributes to team or organizational goals.

•       Why they’re chosen: Recognize their strengths and potential.

Give them time to process the information and ask questions. Be clear about your expectations, but avoid minimizing the task's complexity.

4) Establish Roles and Timeline

Define roles and set a timeline. Regular check-ins help track progress and provide support without micromanaging. Agree on a communication style, like weekly email updates or monthly in-depth reviews. Clarify decision-making boundaries and key priorities to empower your team while maintaining oversight.

 

5) Celebrate Progress and Provide Feedback

During check-ins, offer constructive feedback and celebrate achievements. Asking reflective questions like, "What went well?" and "What can we improve?" helps team members learn and grow. Recognize their efforts publicly, reinforcing their contribution to the team and organization.

6) Review and Reflect

After completing a project, hold a retrospective review. Ask questions like, "What did you learn?" and "Where did things get stuck?" This feedback loop helps you support your team better and improve your delegation skills.

By taking the time and effort to get better at  delegation, you can focus on strategic leadership while empowering your team to thrive, leading to overall organizational success.

 Making Meetings More Efficient: The Power of Straw Polls

Efficient decision-making is the cornerstone of productive meetings. One tactic often used to improve this process is the use of straw polls to gauge opinions before delving into detailed discussions. Straw polls can streamline the decision-making process, for instance by quickly revealing that all group members are in agreement, and can improve the quality of the outcomes. Let's explore how managers can harness the power of straw polls, particularly multivoting, to make their meetings more efficient and effective.

 

The Benefits of Straw Polls

Straw polls are preliminary votes taken to see where people stand on an issue before engaging in detailed discussions. This technique is widely used in various settings, from juries to corporate boardrooms. Research from Michael Johnson of the University of Washington and his colleagues suggests that straw polls can significantly impact the quality of group decisions, depending on the voting method employed.

 

Different Types of Straw Polls

Researchers identified three primary types of preliminary voting methods:

 

Plurality Voting: Each participant selects one option. This method is common but often the least effective in reaching optimal decisions.

 

Ranked-Choice Voting: Participants rank options in order of preference. This method can provide more nuanced insights than plurality voting.

 

Multivoting: Participants have a set number of votes they can allocate across different options. Each participant allocates those votes among the different options to reflect their degree of certainty/preference. This method was found to be the most effective in leading to better group decisions.

 

Why Multivoting Works Best

Multivoting stands out because it encourages deeper consideration of each option before discussions begin. In a study simulating counterterrorism teams, groups using multivoting were more likely to identify the most threatening suspect correctly. This method requires participants to process information more critically, leading to more thoughtful and informed discussions.

 

Multivoting also helps mitigate "groupthink," a phenomenon where the desire for harmony or conformity results in an irrational or dysfunctional decision-making outcome. By allowing participants to express varying degrees of preference, multivoting keeps the decision-making process open and encourages diverse viewpoints.

 

Steps for Effective Use of Straw Polls in Meetings

Here are key steps managers can take to implement straw polls, especially multivoting, in their meetings:

 

Introduce the Concept: Explain to your team the purpose and process of straw polling. Emphasize that it’s a preliminary step to gauge initial opinions and foster deeper discussions.

 

Choose the Right Method: Depending on the decision at hand, select the appropriate voting method. For most scenarios with a manageable number of options, multivoting is recommended.

 

Set Clear Guidelines: Provide clear instructions on how participants should allocate their votes. For example, if there are three options, give each participant ten votes to distribute as they see fit.

 

Conduct the Poll: Have participants submit their votes anonymously to avoid social pressure and bias.

 

Analyze and Discuss Results: Review the distribution of votes with the team. Use this as a starting point for a detailed discussion, focusing on why certain options received more or fewer votes.

 

Encourage Open Dialogue: Foster an environment where team members feel comfortable discussing their reasoning. This helps uncover underlying insights and promotes a thorough evaluation of all options.

 

Make the Final Decision: After the discussion, conduct a final vote if necessary. The initial straw poll should have helped clarify preferences and facilitated a more informed decision.

 

Practical Applications

Multivoting can be particularly useful in scenarios such as:

 

Hiring Decisions: When choosing among a few candidates, allow team members to distribute their votes based on their assessment of each candidate’s strengths.

Project Prioritization: For teams deciding which projects to pursue, multivoting can highlight the most promising initiatives.

Strategic Planning: When evaluating strategic options, multivoting can help surface the most viable paths forward.

 

Conclusion

Straw polls, especially multivoting, are powerful tools for enhancing decision-making efficiency in meetings. By encouraging deeper initial consideration and reducing groupthink, they lead to better, more informed outcomes. Managers should integrate these methods into their meeting protocols to foster a more effective decision-making environment.

 

Implementing multivoting may require a shift in how meetings are typically conducted, but the benefits far outweigh the effort. By leveraging this approach, managers can ensure their teams are making the best possible decisions, ultimately driving better results for their organizations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maximizing Team Effectiveness: The 60/30/10 Rule Explored

 

Leaders and managers in are constantly seeking effective strategies for team development and management. One pivotal concept that emerges from the academic work of Wageman, Hackman, & Lehman (2005) is the 60/30/10 rule. This framework offers a pragmatic approach to enhancing team performance by allocating focus on team design, launch, and ongoing coaching.

 

Understanding the 60/30/10 Rule:

The 60/30/10 rule posits that 60% of a team's effectiveness is determined by its design, 30% by how it is launched, and the remaining 10% by ongoing coaching and leadership. This rule stems from extensive research and provides a clear roadmap for managers striving to build successful teams. 

Team Design (60%):

The foundation of a high-performing team lies in its initial design. This involves first creating a real team (characterized by clear membership and boundaries, and requiring interdependent work to achieve their goals), selecting team members with complementary skills, and ensuring a clear and compelling direction. After the these initial “team essentials” are decided, team design then focuses on providing the structure and support necessary for effective collaboration. This initial work demands significant attention from leaders, as a well-designed team is more likely to navigate challenges successfully and achieve its objectives. 

Team Launch (30%):

Launching a team effectively is the second critical phase. This includes activities such as articulating clear goals & priorities, defining roles and responsibilities, establishing norms, and building initial momentum. This is also a good time to outline key performance measures and deadlines and establish critical workflows and dependencies. A successful launch sets the tone for team interactions and can significantly impact the team's trajectory.

Ongoing Coaching (10%):

Finally, ongoing coaching & leadership, though contributing to a smaller portion of the team's effectiveness, is vital for sustaining and enhancing performance. This involves providing feedback, facilitating conflict resolution, and helping the team adapt to changing circumstances. Effective leaders do this to reinforce the team's direction, support skill development, and ensure the team remains aligned with its goals.

Prioritize Team Design:

Given that so much of a team’s effectiveness hinges on its initial design, leaders should invest time and resources in getting this right. Be clear about the team’s goals and how they align with the skills and experiences of key team personnel. This includes considering individual competencies, the team's size, and the diversity of perspectives. Think about what systems your organization has in place to support actual teamwork, such as team conference rooms (or virtual meeting spaces), training and incentives to support good team membership, and individuals who can act as team coaches.

Effective Team Launch:

Launching a team is more than a kick-off meeting. It's about setting clear expectations, fostering a shared vision, and building a strong team culture from day one. Team leaders need to be proactive in facilitating these elements to ensure a smooth transition into the working phase.

Ongoing Coaching Still Matters:

While it’s a smaller part of the overall model, ongoing coaching should not be underestimated. Regular check-ins, feedback sessions, and adaptability to change are crucial for maintaining team morale and performance.

 

The 60/30/10 rule provides a structured approach to team management, emphasizing the importance of the initial phases of team development. By understanding and applying this rule, leaders and managers can significantly enhance their teams' effectiveness, leading to improved performance and success in achieving organizational goals. This framework underscores the need for strategic planning in team formation and the pivotal role of leadership in guiding teams through their evolution.

 

Navigating Work-From-Home Resistance: Strategies for Success

As the debate between remote work and returning to the office heats up, many professionals find themselves advocating for the flexibility to work from home. Despite its proven benefits, there's a significant pushback from managers who are inclined towards traditional office settings.  This friction requires a strategic approach to convince higher-ups of the merits of remote work while ensuring productivity and effective communication. Let's outline three critical strategies to overcome resistance, excel in a work-from-home setting, and reassure your manager about your productivity: establishing clear contracts about work outputs and goals, managing communication with multiple stakeholders, and ensuring your productivity is visible to your manager.

1. Craft Clear Contracts about Work Outputs and Goals

The cornerstone of a successful work-from-home arrangement, especially in the face of skepticism, is clear expectations. A well-defined contract or agreement outlining your work outputs and goals can be a game-changer. Many news articles over the past 2 years have outlined managers’ concerns about work-from-home, and many of those concerns boil down to “I’m not convinced that employees who work-from-home are as productive as those here at the office. This requires you to work with your manager to set clear goals, update your manager regularly on your progress, and demonstrate your adaptability to changing needs.

Set Specific Goals: Collaborate with your manager to define SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound). These goals should include project deliverables as well as stakeholder satisfaction metrics (e.g. what do your team members, customers, or other stakeholders think of your work and how you treat them?). Make sure that you have opportunities to collect data on these metrics periodically, to give yourself time to adapt and improve. 

Regular Updates: Agree on a framework for frequent updates. Whether it’s through weekly virtual meetings or reports, these check-ins are vital for staying aligned with your manager's expectations. These updates should include time for you to briefly discuss your progress, as well as raise any difficulties you are experiencing. Don’t flinch away from these problem areas or attempt to hide them, but instead raise them with your manager along with your thoughts about the best way to go about solving the problem, while asking your manager for their thoughts and feedback. 

Finally, be prepared to be adaptable. Your colleagues who work in the office are exposed to and participate in a number of real-time conversations, both formal and informal, about changes to products, projects, and internal procedures. Remote workers often miss out on these conversations, especially when they are not yet formalized. This means that you may get caught off-guard by certain changes. Your ability to successfully roll with these changes and adapt to them in a positive manner will be critical for your manager to develop trust in you as a remote worker. 

2. Manage Communication with Multiple Stakeholders

When advocating for remote work, emphasize your communication strategy. With stakeholders ranging from team members to clients, clear and consistent communication is essential.

Diverse Communication Tools: Use a mix of communication tools appropriate for different types of interactions, such as emails for formal communications and instant messaging for quick queries. When possible, choose real-time communication tools that allow you access to non-verbal information (e.g. facial expressions, tone of voice, etc.). But this doesn’t mean that everything needs to be a videoconference – sometimes a short phone call can work just as well and, for most of us, this feels less formal. 

Establish Communication Norms: Set clear rules about your availability and expected response times, balancing transparency with the need for work-life balance. This is especially important for those who work with colleagues in different time zones, or those who rely on work-from-home to care for other family members. 

Proactive Engagement: Actively reach out for feedback, participate in discussions, and offer assistance. Similarly, reach out to your manager and colleagues to learn about different aspects of the project, not just what you are working on. This proactive approach keeps you connected and demonstrates your interest in and dedication to teamwork and the project itself.

3. Keep Your Productivity Visible to Your Manager

In a remote setting, ensuring that your contributions are recognized is crucial. Visibility can be a key factor in reducing managerial concern about work-from-home arrangements.

Track and Showcase Your Progress: Utilize tools to track your tasks and share your progress. Regular updates can provide tangible proof of your productivity. This can through project management tools, sharing customer feedback, or just a simple spreadsheet. Share this information periodically with your manager to keep them informed and to ask them for feedback.  Similarly, make sure to be vocal about specific successes you had. Whether you beat a challenging deadline, used or developed a new solution to a technical challenge, spent time assisting a colleague or received a rave review from a customer, make sure your manager knows about this!

Conclusion

Overcoming resistance to work-from-home arrangements requires a strategic approach focused on clear communication, goal alignment, and visibility of productivity. By adopting these strategies, you can effectively negotiate for remote work and excel in your role, demonstrating that productivity and success are not confined to the traditional office space.

Designing Success: Key Strategies for Launching a Virtual Team

The inception of a virtual team is a critical phase that sets the tone for future performance and success. As the world increasingly embraces remote work, leaders are tasked with the challenge of not just managing, but successfully designing and launching virtual teams. This post focuses on the essential strategies that leaders must employ to ensure their virtual teams are structured for success from the outset.

Designing a Virtual Team:

1. **Define Clear Objectives and Roles**: Before a virtual team kicks off, it’s crucial to establish clear objectives. What is the team's purpose? What are the expected outcomes? Alongside this, defining specific roles and responsibilities for each team member helps avoid confusion and overlap, ensuring a smooth workflow.

2. **Selecting the Right Team Members**: The composition of your team is pivotal. Choose individuals not only for their technical skills and expertise but also for their ability to work independently, communicate effectively, and collaborate in a remote environment. As part of the team launch, make sure everyone knows why each person was chosen and what they will bring to the team.

3. **Establish Communication Norms**: Effective communication is the lifeblood of virtual teams. Set guidelines for how and when the team will communicate. What should team members expect for regular meetings? What communication tools should be used for other interactions? What is the expectation for timeliness in responding to different types of communication (especially important for teams that span multiple time zones and cultures)?

Establishing these norms early on prevents misunderstandings and ensures everyone is on the same page.

4. **Build a Strong Team Culture**: Cultivating a strong, shared culture in a virtual team is challenging but essential. Create opportunities for team members to interact informally and get to know each other beyond this specific project. This can include virtual coffee breaks or informal online gatherings. Remember that not everyone feels comfortable sharing their personal lives – consider setting up time for team members to talk about other work projects they are/have been involved with. 

5. **Set up Systems for Collaboration and Accountability**: Implement systems that promote collaboration and hold team members accountable. This includes regular check-ins, shared digital workspaces where progress can be monitored, and clear metrics for evaluating performance. Remember that as a leader you should be focused more on outcomes than activity. 

6. **Encourage and Model Effective Leadership**: As a leader, your behavior sets the tone. Be proactive in communication, transparent in decision-making, and supportive in addressing challenges. Your approach to leadership will directly influence the team’s dynamics and effectiveness.

Launching a virtual team involves more than just bringing together a group of remote workers. It requires thoughtful planning, the right mix of people and technology, and a focus on creating a cohesive, effective work environment. By following these strategies, leaders can design virtual teams that are not only equipped to tackle their tasks but are also engaged, collaborative, and aligned with their objectives.

Are you in the process of launching a virtual team, or have you recently done so? Share your experiences and insights in the comments below. 

 Want more creativity from your team? Do brainstorming right!

 

Creativity, and the innovation that stems from it, are increasingly valuable for all organizations these days. Some folks even go so far as to say that creativity & innovation are “the engine of growth”. But how do we help our teams actually become more creative?  There is lots of advice out there, such as “encouraging a growth mindset”, building greater trust within the team, and reducing meetings to block out time for creativity. These are all helpful ideas, and I’m not disparaging any of them. But another, simpler, strategy is to go back to a technique most of us are familiar with and have used in the past (or so we think): brainstorming.

 

Brainstorming as a tool and technique goes back to the 1940’s and the work of Alex Osborne, an advertising executive. Osborne formalized the technique in his 1953 book Applied Imagination. In this work, he described the brainstorming technique and laid out the 4 rules for effective brainstorming. Now normally, when I tell people that there are “rules” for brainstorming, they are quite surprised. After all, brainstorming is supposed to be about creativity, new ideas, and even breaking down the rules, right? But following the rules helps to ensure an effective brainstorming process. 

The four rules of brainstorming were set out in Osborne’s 1953 book and are relatively simple.

1)    The more ideas, the better. This is an easy principle of brainstorming to accept. The basic idea here is that the more ideas we have to work with, the greater chance we have of finding an idea that meets all of our criteria in the end. So we sit down and get as many ideas out as possible.

2)    The crazier the idea, the better. This is also an easy principle of brainstorming for folks to accept. Indeed, this is what we often are looking for when we set down to “brainstorm”, is for someone to toss out that really crazy, off-the-wall, creative idea that will lead to the next iPhone, Tesla, 3-D printer, or similar. As more ideas come out on the table, we increase our chance of getting these truly innovative ideas. But we also need to explicitly give people permission to come up truly outlandish ideas, as opposed to censoring their ideas to fit into the constraints that we have (or believe we have). 

3)    “Piggy-backing”, or building on someone else’s idea is welcome. As we listen to someone else’s idea, we often have thoughts about how we could add a little twist to it. This may not count as a “new idea” from an intellectual property perspective, or as we think about “who to give credit to”. But from a brainstorming perspective this is encouraged because these slight variants give rise to other ideas as people continue to build on and react to what others have said.  In my experience, some teams are perfectly okay with this rule. Other teams have a harder time with it, often when team members  feel competitive pressure to come up with the “most” creative idea as individuals, or that they are being evaluated or judged based upon the creativity of the ideas that they come up with individually. If this is happening in your team, you need to do some work moving people from a sense of individual performance to team-based performance.  

4)    Deferring judgement on any idea until all the ideas are on the table. This is the rule that most groups tend to have the most difficulty with. Whether the judgement is a simple “oh, that would be too expensive”, or even a positive “hey, that’s a great idea!”. Once anyone within the team evaluates an idea, all the team members start to evaluate their ideas before they share them. This then leads to fewer ideas overall, and fewer truly innovative ideas. Numerous research studies have found that evaluation apprehension (the fear of having our ideas criticized by others) leads to a significant decrease in both the quantity and quality of ideas that come forward in a brainstorming session. 

So what does this mean for you as a leader? First, understand that as a team leader you have some responsibilities in terms of how the brainstorming session is designed. For example, how large and how diverse a group do you want in the brainstorming session? What background information do you want people to be familiar with beforehand? Are you able to bring in an outsider to help facilitate the session or will you do it yourself?

 

Second, make sure that your team members are familiar with, and truly understand, the 4 rules. An effective brainstorming session is more than simply bringing people together and hoping for spontaneous creativity. Make sure to tell them that they won’t be judged by what they say, and that any idea (even those that might seem impractical or even infeasible) are welcome. Talk to them about the role of the facilitator, and that person will be doing during the process. 

 

Finally, follow up on that by your behavior in the brainstorming session. Demonstrate the rules of brainstorming by piggy-backing off others ideas and putting truly crazy ideas out there. If you or your team is relatively new to true brainstorming, consider having a “warm-up round” first where you work on an unrelated problem, to practice the behaviors of putting ideas out there as quickly and with as little filtering as possible. 

 

Finally, remember that while brainstorming can be an excellent tool, there are plenty of variants out there as well that may be more appropriate for you to use in your situation. For example, if you have a large group and you think people will be talking over each other, or putting ideas out faster than they can be captured, you might consider the “nominal group technique”. If you want to use the brainstorming process to have team members realize the connections between their ideas and viewpoints (for example, if members believe there is conflict or tension within the team), consider using team mind mapping. If you want the brainstorming process to help your team get more comfortable with both coming up with and critiquing ideas and plans, consider the “sub-team” approach – break your team into 2 or more smaller sub-teams. Give the sub-teams time to come up with a certain number of ideas, then have each sub-team present what they think is their best idea for discussion, feedback, and improvement in the larger team session. 

 

Ultimately, the idea generation technique you use will depend on your specific goals and the problems or constraints you have to work with. But a common key across all of these techniques is forcing people to suspend judgement for a period of time to let ideas come out. The more you can do as a team leader to cultivate that sort of intellectual openness and psychological safety in your team, the more creative and innovative thinking you will start to see from your team members. 

Questions to ask when your team is having trouble

 

 A recent article in Harvard Business Review titled "6 Questions to Ask Yourself When You're Frustrated with Your Team" provides some excellent advice about how you might change your own behavior as a team leader. But like so many articles on managing people (either as teams or as individuals), it focuses almost entirely on managing interpersonal interactions and not nearly enough on the importance of creating a context that sets people up for success.

A former mentor of mine, Harvard University psychologist Richard Hackman, once opened a keynote speech by saying that managers shouldn't try to motivate people to change. Instead, he said, managers should focus on putting in place conditions that made positive outcomes more likely, and negative outcomes less likely. He described what he meant by this in his book Leading Teams: Setting the Stage for Great Performances, in which he described what he found through his research on teams in a variety of different industries and settings, from airline crews to intelligence teams to symphony orchestras. Through his research, Hackman identified several critical conditions that supported successful teams across all these very different contexts. In this blog post, I will focus on the first three, which Hackman termed "The Essentials". 

1. Having a Real Team. Real teams have well-defined, stable membership. The team and its members have the authority to conduct their work and make critical decisions without always needing "permission" from someone at a higher level. Finally, real teams conduct their work in an interdependent manner - meaning they do much of their work together, as opposed to coming together in periodic meetings to share updates. So as you look at an underperforming team, ask yourself questions like - do they have a core, stable membership that gives them the consistency needed to learn over time? Do they have the authority they need to complete the task without constantly waiting for external approval? If this appears to be the problem, consider helping the team stabilize its membership. This is often done by reducing the size of the team. 
   
   
2. Having a Compelling Direction. Team members are motivated by having a shared task that is clear, challenging, and consequential. They have been charged with completing specific goals, but have not been told to use specific means to reach those goals. As you look at the team, ask yourself if there is a clear, shared endpoint at all the team members are working towards? Will the challenge of reaching that goal require the team members to work with and learn from each other? Does the team have the authority to manage their own work in terms of how they meet the goal? If this is an issue, help the team by providing clarity around the end goal, and explaining the importance of the project to the organization.
   
   
3. Having the Right People. A major reason that teams work well is that they bring together a diverse group of people in terms of backgrounds, perspectives, and skill sets. But to do that, team members need to have (and trust that all other team members have) certain base levels of skill and competence in their own specialties. When teams don't have the right people, it sometimes is because one or more individuals don't have the knowledge, skill, and ability you thought they had. However, just as often it is because there are too many team members who are just too similar in terms of the skills they bring to the table, their training and the way they solve problems, or the perspectives that they bring. Take a close look at how people were selected for this team, who was chosen, and why? Was it truly based on their knowledge, skill, and ability? Or have some individuals become the "go-to" people for your team?

Thinking about improving your teams by focusing on issues of overall team design has multiple benefits. For starters, focusing on team design allows you to improve the team for the long term. By changing one or more underlying conditions, you remove a problem as opposed to trying to "manage" that problem. So it requires less of your time and effort down the road. Importantly, focusing on underlying issues of team design also helps you (and others) think of poor team performance as being caused by poor conditions (which you can fix), as opposed to poor team members (which you can't). This then leads to lower levels of conflict between you and the people on the team, as you aren't thinking of them (or your own leadership) as the "problem". 

I'll be writing more about various aspects of team design in a later post, so keep looking!

3 Steps to Improve Your Team Debriefs

 

After Action Reviews (AARs) were institutionalized as a practice in the 1970’s by the US military to formalize learning from experience and improve team and unit performance. Their use contributed to significant performance increases, causing this innovation to be rapidly adapted outside the armed forces. But is your organization using them correctly?

 

The AAR was developed as a more participatory alternative to a supervisor driven performance critique. The idea being that by having the critique be driven by team members, rather than a supervisor, a more complete picture of events and interactions can be developed and shared. This shared understanding, in turn, leads to the opportunity to make changes in plans, routines, resources, and interactions, leading to improved performance. The good news is that AAR’s have been shown to improve performance by up to 25%. 

 

But what if your team reviews could be helping you even more? Recent research by Angus Fletcher of the Ohio State University, Preston Cline from the University of Pennsylvania, and Matthew Hoffman of the FBI, conducted in partnership with the US Army Special Forces and described in this article from Harvard Business Review, shows a path forward. 

 

The core strategy they identify is to create greater accountability within the team by developing a clear, shared understanding of what happened. To do this, they advocate 3 steps.

 

1)    Focus on people, not process. Addressing an abstract, impersonal process may feel “safe”, especially early in a team’s life. But that impersonal safety also leads to a lack of passion. Instead, they suggest you personalize the impacts of what happened, and what change could achieve. Do this by focusing on team members, customers, and other stakeholders. Bring their experience and perspectives into the review to highlight the importance of improvement.

2)    Focus more on what happened rather than what could be done. Traditionally, AAR participants spend roughly 25% of the review discussing initial expectations and the instance/performance itself, and 75% of the review focused on the performance gap and what to change. Fletcher, Cline, & Hoffman suggest flipping that ratio to spend much more time ensuring that everyone has a clear, shared sense of what actually happened and that everyone shares their perspective – especially those with divergent points of view. Doing this increases available information, decreases defensiveness, and reduces what psychologists refer as Shared Information Bias. This allow problem areas to be defined with greater clarity and develops a shared focus for creative problem solving later on.

3)    Get clarity and triangulation. Whether someone is claiming credit for a positive outcome, or assigning blame for a negative one, make sure they are clear about how/why “behavior A” led to “outcome B”. What other factors might have influenced the outcome? What other outcomes did this behavior cause? Do others who saw or were present for this behavior agree with this logic?

 

Adding these features to your team debriefs may feel uncomfortable at first, but over time will lead to a greater focus on change and accountability for you and your team.