ROLES

Mar

2024

Determining the Best Seat for Your Team Members

You have just been put in charge of a team. You have a clear vision of what the team needs to accomplish and the timeline it needs to be completed, but you don’t know the team very well. You need to determine the best spot for each team member. Jim Collins refers to this idea in his book Good to Great as finding the right seat on the bus.

Let’s imagine you are leading a sports team. The first thing you will do is assess skills in order to determine the best position for each team member. As a leader in an organization a few tips may help you in determining the best role for your team members.

Personality

Many personality tools exist. My personal favorite is the Maxwell DISC Personality Indicator which I use in workshops. This tool is easy to use, understand, and apply in a team setting. How does this help you determine the best position?

We are all different, but we are predictably different. When you understand each team members individual behavior style you can more effectively communicate with them. At times we may be frustrated by a team member but can’t identify why. It may not be their behavior or performance, but their personality may aggravate us.

When we understand the difference between each personality, we can understand what role may be the best fit. For example, a reserved person may not seem like a strong salesperson when in reality the clients they attract are very faithful. An extremely outgoing person may seem lazy because they don’t complete paperwork, but they may require more systems or support.

Work Strengths

Just as we are predictably different, we are all unique in the strengths we bring to the team. Some of us are more visionary while others are more naturally bent toward execution. How do we determine team member’s strengths?

Observe

Take time to watch and see what comes naturally for the team members. Also, listen to what others say a team member does easily. This is a sign of a strength they may have. As the leader you can also provide opportunities to help them grow and develop. If it comes easily for them then it may be a strength.

Assess

I often use Working Genius, a tool I have found helpful for objectively understanding an individual’s work strengths. This tool helps individuals understand what type of work provides them the most energy and fulfillment. Understanding this will help you clarify roles and responsibilities to match fulfillment and, therefore, improve results.

Skills

What is the difference between strengths and skills you may be wondering? Unlike a strength, a skill may be something a person has learned over time and may not always be natural for them. For example, some people are natural and comfortable communicators. On the other hand, some people appear that way because they have worked on their skills.

Take time to ask a person what they have done in the past to learn their skills. Keep in mind that just because they can do it does not mean they want to do it all the time. When we put someone in a seat who has the skills but not the passion it will lead to burnout. Observe where people have the skills and are energized and you will find a good seat.

If they have the energy, but not the skills and are willing to learn. Take the time to train them and you will have a person that learns how to fit into that seat and thrive.

Take some time and look at your team members’ personalities, skills, and strengths to determine where you can put them to get the best results. Need tools or help assessing your team members? Contact me to discover how I could serve your team and provide resources to help them grow to their full potential. Lead Well.

Aug

2022

Co-Leadership – Can It Be Done?

I am leading a group of small business owners through a leadership roundtable where we think into challenges they are facing. Recently I asked for feedback on ways to best serve them. One of the topics was how to co-lead effectively.

Maybe you are in this situation if you lead a small business or you and another individual are in charge of a team with equal authority. This can be both very effective and a little challenging. I’ve included a few ideas below and referenced a couple sources if you want to dive deeper into any of this.

Integrator or Visionary

Gino Wickman in his book Traction¹ discusses the people part of a business and describes two roles of the top leadership regardless of the organizational size. He calls them integrator and visionary. I would parallel this with COO and CEO. On a team this could be defined as the idea person and the implementer.

When co-leading one of you may naturally be better with ideas while the other is better with details. Take time to figure out not only this, but clearly define roles and responsibilities. The clearer you are on everyone’s responsibilities, the more effective and efficient you will function.

Communication Style

Four primary communication styles exist which has been shown throughout history by people like Jung, Hippocrates, Empedocles, and Marston. I won’t go into depth on this here because I provide workshops on the topic.² What co-leaders need to know is they each have a different style of communication. As co-leaders you communicate often about very important decisions and misunderstanding can lead to inefficiency and even poor decisions.

Take time to understand each other’s communication style. How each other receives communication best and how not to communicate to one another. Creating clarity on this will help you connect and improve the quality of discussions and decisions.

Flexibility

While preparing for this, I came across an article in Harvard Business Review about co-leading. In the article Rebecca Newton suggests the importance of being open to renegotiating your role.³ I will define this as flexibility. Flexibility in thought and perspective is essential because change is part of the experience.

As leaders we can easily get attached to our ideas. We can think our way is the best way . . . but is it? Is the market shifting? Are we changing and learning as our workforce evolves with every generation? If one leader is flexible and the other is rigid, conflict and possibly unhealthy power plays may be inevitable. A key question to ponder that I have heard leadership expert John Maxwell mention: what is right for the organization versus me being right?

These are just a few ideas on how to co-lead more effectively. I would suggest the greatest resource we have to lead effectively is both individuals taking a posture of humility recognizing the goal is more important than individual egos. So how are you doing in these areas? Take time to clarify roles this week, examine how flexible you are, and if you want to understand your communication style better go here to invest in a Maxwell DISC Personality Indicator. Keep growing and lead well!

Wickman, Gino. Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business. BenBella: TX.
Want to invest in a Maxwell DISC Personality Indicator used in those workshops? Go here
https://hbr.org/2015/07/how-to-co-lead-a-team retreived 8/13/22

Dec

2018

Orchestrating Leadership

I was in a Junior High Gymnasium with hundreds of other parents packed into the stands watching our children perform the holiday concert. Fortunately I was not sweating profusely as this would have surely bothered the people around me.

As we watched this concert the band played one song that really intrigued me. The song did not necessarily pique my interest as much as watching the percussion section. This particular song was entitled “Nightmare Before Christmas.”

During the song a few percussionists ran back and forth to various styles of drums, bells, cymbals and even multiple random sound effects. I watched in amazement at how they could manage all those various roles and execute with perfect timing so the song sounded as it should. This is when it struck me that I was seeing a picture of leadership and teamwork at play.

A COMMON VISION

Just like with any group, organization, or team there has to be a common purpose everyone is working toward. In this case each individual had to contribute their part at the right time, in the right way in order to blend into the overall sound. We all know when someone makes a miscue in a concert and ends up embarrassing themselves. On the other hand, when everyone performs their role at the right time in the right way you have a beautiful symphony. As leaders we must provide the vision and the best roles for each individual.

PRACTICE

Whether we are selling a product or service, instructing a team or individual, speaking in front of a group of people, or participating in a band we have to practice. A leader’s practice comes with thinking ahead and creating a plan. Let me illustrate.

During a coaching session recently, I was discussing the vision of a specific department in an organization with a leader. Our conversation provided an opportunity for clarifying the communication of his vision to his team. This conversation was a business leader’s version of practice. Leaders must create space to think into their communication and leadership the same as band members must practice their skills.

FULFILL YOUR ROLE

What would happen if the trumpets decided they did not want to follow the music and just played whatever and whenever they wanted? The conductor would be quite mad and embarrassed. Creativity is essential, but once the vision is clear and the plan is agreed on everyone must do their part to fulfill the vision. When we fulfill our specific role and purpose to the best of our ability, we add tremendous value to the group.

What is the band you are a part of? What is the common vision you are pursuing? Is that vision clear in your mind if you are the leader or do you need to spend time thinking and clarifying it . . . kind of like practice? What is your part in the orchestra of that plan? How can you use your strengths in that role to help make the fulfillment of the vision even greater? Do you need help thinking into these questions? If so, contact me for a complimentary coaching session. In the meantime, lead well.