Building Effective Teams

When I first took on a management role, I was responsible for hiring a group of customer service staff to expand my team. Unfortunately, I made a classic mistake, one that countless new managers make. I thought it best to recruit people who were just like me: young, outgoing, ambitious, hardworking, and willing and able to work full-time hours. After all, I had performed the role and performed it well. So this approach made sense… right? 

My first team was made up of people who met this description. And while it might sound great on paper, having so many young team members with aspirations to move on did not work in practice for numerous reasons. 

Diversifying My Team 

I quickly realised my mistake. Another valuable lesson was this: as long as candidates possessed the skills and experience required for the role, a diversity of ages, backgrounds, and personalities could only be a positive thing for my team. Everyone has the potential to make a contribution, and diverse teams make strong teams. 

Eventually, my team was made up of a great mix of people. My team members had worked in various different sectors and came from many different professional backgrounds. Some were looking for career progression, while others prioritised a stable, secure role or one that fitted around their home and family commitments. Some worked full-time, others part-time, and all contributed in their own way.

A former boss of mine, an Executive Leader in Customer Service, was kind enough to share his insight into a successful and effective team. “Having a team with the same characteristics can be a bit of a nightmare. Ideally, you need to have a blended team,” he told me. 

When I asked him to describe our management team, he identified me as personable, a motivator engaged with people, encouraging, and an influencer. Another team member he described as a “doer” with a sales-oriented personality: he was good at selling an unpopular idea   and was skilled at building trust and working capital. One team member he named as the organizer, and another as being very analytical and great with anything to do with figures – his first love was an Excel spreadsheet! 

“A good team will need to be a blend of personalities,” my former boss added. “If you inherit a team, your role as a leader is to ensure that they function better together. Team members with very similar characteristics can be challenging, and introducing a different culture into an established workplace is one of the hardest tasks a leader can face. If everyone within your team is exactly the same, you are unlikely to get anywhere. Good leadership involves care and attention to detail when selecting team members, building a team with complementary traits.”

He concluded, “A team is only as good as its leader – consider, for a moment, the example of a football team. The manager gives directions and focus, placing players in the right positions to enable the team to excel. A good leader can assign the right roles to the right people, addressing both individual and collective strengths and weaknesses.”

Development, Progression, or Both? 

Through my one-to-one sessions and performance appraisals with my team members, I discovered not all employees wanted immediate career progression. Naively, I had assumed that because this was my goal, it was shared by everyone on my team. In reality, some wanted fast career progression, others were considering it an option for a later date, and some simply wanted to develop within their existing role, expanding their knowledge and skills.  

I enjoyed supporting those who prioritised career development; although their time with me was short, it was very productive. The others all shone in their own ways, utilizing their strengths and taking on additional roles to contribute to the smooth running of the team, such as organising and coordinating the monthly team meetings, collating and communicating KPIs, or arranging team  social events. I had team members who became the “go to person” in certain crisis situations, from computer outages to security breaches. 

Not only did my team members look after one another, but they also took into account their differences and recognised each other’s strengths. This meant that when they were presented with a challenge such as the implementation of a new process or procedure, or the introduction of a new service they were able to quickly identify who should do what in order for a smooth execution.  

The Joy of an Effective Team 

I love being part of a team,  I enjoy the camaraderie and I love being able to bounce ideas around with my colleagues, seeking advice and using my strengths to act as an advisor to them in return. I’ve been lucky enough, throughout my career, to be a member of some great teams in which I received lots of support. 

There is little that is more satisfying than celebrating with your team when you have successfully accomplished a task or exceeded a goal together. On the opposite side of the coin, when things do not go as planned, a supportive team does not apportion blame but instead works together to identify what went wrong and what can be done to get it right the next time. You can’t beat the support your colleagues can give you when things are tough.  

We’ve all heard the saying, “Many hands make light work.” In a strong team, these many hands work together, and when they’re at their best, they make work lighter, brighter and better.

So where does my love of being part of a team come from? At school, I was very sporty in the summer, I was part of the athletics team. I competed in the long jump, the 100 metre and 200 metre sprints, and my favourite discipline: running the first or last leg on the relay team. In the winter, I enjoyed being a member of the netball and hockey teams. I have lots of fond memories and developed great relationships with my teammates, some of which became lifelong friends.

I’d like to think that being part of a sports team at school helped me learn how to be a good team member in the workplace. I continued playing netball after I left school, and I have recently joined a walking netball club (it’s kinder on the knees and ankles!) Not only does it help me keep fit, but I also enjoy lots of social events organised by the club.     

Team Communication

When I worked in the corporate world as a manager, I was part of a wider management team based in Europe. Our day-to-day communications took place on the phone and via email. However, we also used to meet occasionally as a team in person, and I found these face to face interactions incredibly beneficial. I felt that our interactions were more meaningful and that there was more creativity and improved generation of ideas when we met in person. 

Since the Covid-19 pandemic began, remote working has become more normalised than ever and certainly offers many benefits. Teams can now meet virtually via video conferencing, allowing them to see one another’s faces while talking. Though this is a far cheaper alternative, I do not believe it offers all the benefits that in-person interactions can offer.  Therefore, I encourage team leaders to facilitate in-person meetings, at least occasionally, if at all possible. 

Remote teams and hybrid working makes it more challenging to build effective, cohesive teams, but it is still entirely possible. 

Handling Disagreements in Your Team 

When I was part of a management team in the corporate world, as individuals, we all had our own opinions, points of view and ideas - which led to disagreements. When this occurred - which was often, as a team, we would get together, put our cards on the table, and talk it out. Everyone was provided with the opportunity to have their say; we all listened to each other, we were open to questions, asked questions and valued and respected each other’s points of view. 

This safe, non-judgemental environment encouraged the team members to speak up and be open and honest. As a result, we generated ideas and solutions that may not have been considered otherwise. Thanks to our leader, we were always clear and focused on our goals. This enabled us to successfully resolve issues. There were, of course, occasions when team members had to agree to disagree, which is normal when you are working with a diverse group of people. 

All of these strategies can be considered “productive conflict,” which I strongly feel is healthy for any team. The goal is not to eliminate conflict but to handle it with kindness, professionalism, and productively.  

Everything DiSC Catalyst: The Perfect Tool for Building Better Teams

Everything DiSC Catalyst is an ideal system to help you build, grow, and develop more effective teams. 

I worked with a client recently who was frustrated that groups within their team were focusing solely on their own areas of work and expertise, resulting in some tensions and a lack of collaborative working.  As a result of introducing Everything DiSC Catalyst to the team, the CEO saw an immediate improvement in the team dynamics and an improved workplace culture.  Everything DiSC is now an integral part of the organisation enabling the individual to build productive and constructive relationships with their colleagues.  

The Everything DiSC Catalyst experience is designed to engage all your team members to build more effective relationships at work by gaining a deeper understanding of themselves and their colleagues. It delivers insights and strategies to meet the unique needs of your people and your organisational culture. 

Learners have access to real-time tips around creating more successful interactions with their colleagues.  

How Does it Work?

The Everything DiSC Catalyst system operates through three simple steps: 

1. The Everything DiSC Assessment uses computer adaptive testing and sophisticated algorithms for precise results.
2. Catalyst–a personalized, on-demand learning platform – offers the learner real-time tips for more effective interactions with their colleagues.
3. Workplace on Catalyst Facilitation brings learners’ DiSC results to life in an instructor-led experience that engages and educates. 

Rather than the traditional once-and-done training event, employees are provided with a personalized and ongoing learning experience framework. Everything DiSC Workplace® on Catalyst™ delivers transformational learning that has an immediate and lasting impact on an organization’s performance and culture.

Learn More 

Do you want your team to work better together?  If you would like to learn more about any of the ideas I’ve discussed in this article or about the Everything DiSC Catalyst experience,  pleas

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