Transcript The Challenge of Leadership: Building Flexible

The Challenge of Leadership:
Building Flexible,
Collaborative Teams
Thomas Darwin, Ph.D.
The University of Texas at Austin
[email protected]
Teams vis-a-vis
Collaboration
Working on a team and
collaborating are related but
different.
Teams vis-a-vis Collaboration
Think of teams as a social
technology and collaboration
as a mindset and way of being
with each other.
Teams vis-a-vis Collaboration
A shared collaborative
mindset is the ground from
which effective teams emerge.
Teams vis-a-vis Collaboration
Effective teams don’t exist for
their own sake--they emerge
for a specific purpose.
Teams vis-a-vis Collaboration
Because collaboration is as
much a mindset as an activity,
it can (and should) be
cultivated and maintained over
time.
Teams vis-a-vis Collaboration
Effective Collaboration
Collaboration means shared
creation of the ideas--not “we
agree to do it my way.”
Effective Collaboration
Collaboration works best with
a shared space and a
common focal point.
Effective Collaboration
Reward collaboration and
make it “safe” for people to try
new ideas (encourage the use
of prototypes).
Effective Collaboration
Effective Teams
Establish a shared
commitment to being a part of
the team.
Effective Teams
Be clear about the advantages
of being on a team and how
each member will benefit.
Effective Teams
Assemble a mix of
complementary skills
appropriate to the task and
clearly define the team’s
goals.
Effective Teams
Have the team members
define how they want to work
together and how they will be
accountable to each other.
Effective Teams
Diverse Perspectives
are Critical
Cultivate diverse perspectives
and encourage them to be
expressed.
Diverse Perspectives
Be wary of agreement that is
too quick--managed tension is
productive (as long as it
doesn’t go on too long).
Diverse Perspectives
Initiators and Movers come
up with ideas and maintain an
idea’s momentum.
Diverse Perspectives
Critics and Shapers can
voice uncomfortable (but
obvious) truths and test ideas.
Diverse Perspectives
Adapters and Implementers
provide the practical wisdom
to ensure an idea is executed
well.
Diverse Perspectives
Observers (often the most
reticent) can ensure that new
ideas are consistent with a
group’s history and values.
Diverse Perspectives
Using Scenarios to Build
Flexibility
Scenarios
1) Tell the story--how did you
get here and where are
you likely to go?
Scenarios
2) Who are the primary agents
and stakeholders and what
are their motives?
Scenarios
3) What principles, analogous
situations, or experiences
apply?
Scenarios
4) Determine your two best
options and then choose one.
Scenarios
5) Design how you’ll
implement the option you
choose.
Scenarios
Rules of Thumb
or
What my kids have
taught me about
managing a team.
Assume they are going to the
do the right thing.
Rules of Thumb
“Biggies” versus “Smallies” Or
Pick Your Battles
Rules of Thumb
More Positive than Negative
(5 to 1)
Rules of Thumb
Tell them what to do--not just
what not to do.
Rules of Thumb
Talk regularly--about what
needs to get done and just
about “stuff.”
Rules of Thumb
Give them everything you can
to help them succeed.
Rules of Thumb