Building effective teams is one of the primary goals of most leaders. Whether the team is an on-going entity like a department or an executive board, or a temporary arrangement for a special task or event, all teams go through phases of development, have explicit or implicit goals, have interdependence among its members, and must perform.
The Authentic Leadership Center provides teams with explicit training, facilitation, and process development in the vital areas of:
- Defining and establishing the team’s mission, goals, and roles
- Decision making
- Communicating and listening effectively
- Conflict management and resolution
These are usually carried out in conjunction with an executive coaching engagement with the team’s leader.
Similar to ALC’s executive coaching engagements, all of ALC’s team building engagements generally involve four distinct phases utilizing coaching processes and techniques designed to improve goal definition, decision making, communications, and conflict management. The four phases are:
Assessment
Depending on the engagement, assessment could be a simple interview with the team members and leader or could expand into a complete, detailed, analysis of the team and how it fits into the organization though formal assessment instruments and interviews with the team members, its leader, its “customers” and its service providers.
Goals and deliverables agreement
Crucial to the success of building a better team is the collaboration on goals, methods, and measurement between the team leader, it’s members, the ALC Team, and the organization leadership. A detailed plan is created that includes measurable goals, deliverables, and timelines.
Coaching to achieve stated results
A customized combination of one-on-one coaching, team facilitation, Leading from the Center, and on-going reading and homework for each team member, is utilized to help the team develop new skills and make specific, agreed-upon changes.
Follow up and maintenance support
The ALC Team will measure the team’s capacity improvements and create a support system for the retention and expansion of these capacities.