Tired of Teams
"There is no I in team." I don't buy it – the concept or the poster...

Lagniappe
Dave the motel front desk associate understands lagniappe and earns a donation for the Alzheimers Association

Randy Boek Founder & President ROUTE 2, Inc. 5400 Carillon Point Building 5000, 4th Floor Kirkland, Wa. 98033 425 359-8506 888 703-6076 randyb@route2results.com www.route2results.com

Summertime and the living is easy. A great song written by George Gershin for the opera Porgy and Bess in the 20's and over 2600 covers since then. I personally like the Janis Joplin version.

While it is summer time, the living may not be so easy for people in business. With the year half gone, you may be smiling at the success, scrambling to make up in second half or somewhere in between.

I'm tired of teams yet most of the good that happens in our businesses comes from smart capable and driven people working cooperatively to get business results. Conversely, as leaders much of our frustration, dysfunction and lack of success comes from people in our businesses at all levels not doing so. So, amid the desire for great business results in the second half of 08 and the barrage of national economic woes there is an area where some focused improvement may yield a big return.

Kumbayah and group hugs are out. Results are in. Command and control and benevolent dictator approaches are suspect. The best and brightest simply don't do their best in such business situations. Most people want to be a part of something bigger than themselves, they want to have a voice and make a contribution to something significant.

This month Boek to Business poses some questions for you to ponder in the interest of getting better business results. You may have teams that need a tune-up or others that are no longer necessary. Set teams up for success at the outset and you will be shocked at the ROI on the time spent.

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I appreciate critique, disagreement, suggestions for improvement and discussion. So please let me know how Boek to Business can be improved so that it will have the greatest value to you.

Randy Boek
Founder & President
Route 2, Inc.
www.route2results.com

I'm Tired of Teams
I'm tired of teams and the pithy quotes of team motivational posters. "There is no I in team." I don't buy it – the concept or the poster. Sure people on winning teams have to act for team above self. As a leader in business, however, you are unlikely to have a team of Mother Theresa's or Nelson Mandela's. Good people on teams are not selfless. More than ever, people on good teams are also different. They come from different cultures, different disciplines, different age groups and you may even have to lead a team made up of talented people from different companies.

I'm tired of teams. But, I am a big Formula One Grand Prix fan. I'm excited watching the way 8 people in flame retardant suits change 4 Bridgestone tires, add 3 gallons/sec of fuel to a 1200-pound carbon fiber land missile that seconds before was going over 200mph and have it back on the track in under 10 seconds. That's high performance at its best. People with a profound commitment to a clearly understood mission; highly trained, practiced and acting in the full interest of the mission with the best of resources and finely tuned processes.

No, I don't hate teams but I do take issue with the fashionable nature of the term "team". Many books have been written. Business people, we men in particular seem to like sports and war metaphors to describe business realities. My issue is that pretty much every group of people working together in any organization now is referred to as a team. The senior executive team, the operations team, the sales team, the front office team, the customer service team – enough already! It is as if we leaders have an expectation that the simple use of the term will make the team effective. Too many of these groups are not high performing and in fact many are the antithesis of an effective team.

If the people you refer to as a team are getting the desired results, good. Case closed. If not, here are some questions to ponder:

1. Why is this group referred to as a team? What is the mission of this team? Is it compelling, something that good people are inspired to be a part of and passionate to achieve?
   
   
2. Is each team member in a role where they can make the greatest contribution given their skills, capability, attributes? Does each team member understand what team success looks like and how what they do makes it happen?
   
   
3. Does each team member trust that they will be rewarded (tangibly, intangibly) for the blood, sweat and tears that they contribute to making the team win? Money is important but watch out if it is all about money.
   
   
4. Are decisions made by both individuals and collaboratively as appropriate to the mission?
   
   
5. How do the operating processes of the team ensure effectiveness, efficiency and prevent a team member from failing?
   
   
6. Have values that guide behavior of the team been agreed to and are they the critical few that are essential to team success?
   
   
7. Are the right things measured (both results and actions that lead to results)?
   
   
8. Does the team have the resources and authority necessary to success?
   
   
9. How is team progress and success acknowledged and celebrated?

Lagniappe – A little something extra and $100 from Route 2 to a worthy charity
I In Cajun cooking lagniappe is a little something special or extra that makes a big difference. I rant about the general sad state of customer service and it is time that I balance the ranting by putting my money where my mouth is.