By Jaimy Ford, business writer and editor.
How do you convince your project team to pull together, focus and get the job done?
For decades, Craig Ross, Angela Paccione and Victoria Roberts from Verus Global, have been trying to answer that question. The professional development specialists and coaches have spent more than 65,000 hours studying and their hits and misses when it comes to meeting their goals.
They’ve outlined a full seven-step process for ensuring your team’s success in their new book Do Big Things: The Simple Steps Teams Can Take to Mobilize Hearts and Minds, and Make an Epic Impact.
However, here are a few key takeaways that stood out to me. The most successful teams:
- Care about one another. They identify up-front what they collectively need to be thinking, feeling and doing in order to meet their goals. Most important, they care as much about one another as they do about hitting their targets. Make sure that you aren’t focusing solely on your objectives and find ways to build trust and respect among employees.
- Prepare for failure. Most teams want to succeed and believe they can, but they also consider that they might fail. Teams that have a reliable process for thinking and acting, no matter what occurs around them have a better chance of succeeding, say the authors. Additionally, the most successful teams take the time to identify what stands between the team and meeting their goals, and they work together to remove those obstacles. Make sure that in those early planning stages, you are keeping the worst case scenario in mind. If you do, you will be better equipped to overcome challenges.
- Choose to contribute in a positive manner. Team members choose do their best in any situation, they aim to bring out the best in others, and they work with people across the entire company to do what’s best for the business. Keep an eye out for team members who create drama and conflict, and address those issues swiftly before they cause conflict.
- Focus on what matters. They don’t let distractions steal their focus, and they use what time they do have wisely.
- Feel empowered. They feel like they have control over their work and that they play a part in moving the team and business forward. They feel empowered to question plans and ideas and share their concerns. Ensure that you are listening, accepting and acting on the feedback, and encouraging them to continue to speak up when doing so helps the team or company.
VERUS GLOBAL is a nationally recognized consulting firm that designs and delivers lasting solutions that transform leaders and teams so they can have an immediate and meaningful business impact. For 25 years, they’ve been redefining the approach and the tools that serve thousands of Fortune 500 leaders around the globe, supporting them with effective leadership solutions. Do Big Things: The Simple Steps Teams Can Take to Mobilize Hearts and Minds, and Make an Epic Impact is available now.
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