Is your team effective? Key categories for success

In previous posts, when to do team building was reviewed, as well as the different phases of team building.  But how do you really know if your team is effective? What does team building really look like?  There are tools that can support you.  I'll be referring to the Team Effectiveness Profile developed by HRDQ, 4th edition. Ask you HR team about it.

Here is a summary:
There are 5 key areas or categories that need to be functioning in order for a team to work:

1. Mission, vision and goals 
2. Team roles
3. Operating processes
4. Interpersonal relationships 
5. Interteam relationships

Description of the five categories

1. Mission, vision and goals
Healthy organizations and their subsystems have compelling visions of the future and clearly defined and well-communicated statements of purpose. Plan are developed collaboratively and work is managed against goals or objectives by the group. In your situation, in a public library, these are well articulated. Your have a strategic plan, an operation plan and a number of goals and objectives for your area of responsibility.  As a new leader, don't take for granted that staff know them or think they apply to them.

The mission may have been clear in the organization's history, but it may have become muddled. Staff my know the mission, vision and goals, but carry on their own activities or refrain from engaging in other activities.

Library service is changing but there are still staff who may think they are in the book business.  They may be have different responsibilities regarding the books -- selecting them, shelving them, recommending them, processing them - the list is quite lengthy, but I would ensure that staff members realize they are in the people business and  the community-building business.  Books are just one element of the service they provide.

Additionally, priorities may shift rapidly and if you're not talking to your team, they may appear to change without apparent reason.  So make sure the mission, vision and goals are revisited frequently, they are understood, clarified and measurable goals and objectives are readily available, and reviewed.

2. Team Roles
In highly effect teams/groups, work is organized to support the team's function(s). Roles, relationships, and accountabilities are clear to everyone. Members are technically qualified to perform their jobs or have immediate plan for acquiring needed knowledge and skills.

An inappropriately structured group or now which the members have unclear or confused perceptions about their roles and relationships, can lose considerable energy in performing its tasks.  The group may not have identified clearly all of tis tasks or agreed on the exact nature of the work to be performed. Standard job descriptions are usually inadequate because they do not specify the exact nature of the accountability each person has to each task or to each person in the group.  Lack of role clarity results in poor quality work, missed responsibilities and overlapping accountabilities that ternate needless conflict.

3. Operating Processes
Policies and procedures used to manage the work of the group support both task and maintenance needs.  Task needs refer to activities required to accomplish work objectives. Maintenance needs refer to the human needs for recognition, participation, appreciation, and vernal quality of group life.  Operating processes include such activities as problem solving, decision making, conflict management and meeting quality.

In order to have effective operating processes, your team needs to have examined each policy and procedure by which the group functions for efficient and effectiveness. This needs to be analyzed periodically to ensure important processes have not become dysfunctional.

Meeting example: You meet with your different teams regularly and the format needs to be discussed periodically to confirm that this important element of your leadership is serving the needs of all group members to communicate with each other and solve problems.  Are agendas posted in advance? How many walk-on items are generally created? How are the minutes taken? What do you want to include in the minutes?

Teams with ineffective operating procedures have unproductive or too few meetings. And the meetings are typically regarded as irrelevant or providing info they already know. Serious problems are not addressed or when addressed are neither systematically analyzed nor creatively solved. Group decisions are made by the appointed leader or a strong coalition of a few people. Disagreements are ignored or swept away so that hostile feelings remain in the group and colour future interactions.  <sigh> Unfortunately, many of us have experienced a dysfunctional group so give this three areas.  I'll post Interpersonal relationships and Interteam relationships shortly.

Leadership isn't always easy, but it is rewarding and you will bring your team up and they will appreciate it.  Hang tough!