Do you have a cohesive leadership team? Even the phrase “leadership team” is overused today when we see little evidence of trust, collaboration or working toward a common goal. Taking the time to build a cohesive leadership team will not only separate you from the competition; it will make your organization nearly unstoppable.
A cohesive leadership team is evident by 5 must haves:

• Team members trust one another – not because they have known one another for years, but because they can comfortably admit to the team that they made a mistake, they failed to deliver on an assignment or they need help.  They are not worried that their colleagues will swarm around their weakness like sharks in a tank.

• Team members can have healthy conflict – an atmosphere where all opinions are expected and welcome, they will be openly debated on their merits, and not based on one person’s preferences or selfish desires.

• Commitment to the decisions made – this can only happen when everyone feels that their opinion has been adequately heard by the group and the team leader and that the decision made, whether by consensus or by the team leader, has been made with the best interests of the organization in mind.

• Holding one another accountable – this happens easily when there is trust and commitment to take action. Peer to peer accountability is more effective than accountability handed out by the team leader.

• Focus on results – that the leadership team has agreed to rather than their individual results.  Team members focus on how the organization does rather than how good one individual performs over another. To establish and sustain a cohesive leadership team, the team leader must be open to the fact that each individual on the team has different strengths and weaknesses and will most likely differ in opinions from time to time. Rather than dwell on shortfalls, the team leader must capitalize on the diversity of these thoughts and perspectives.

Are you ready to reap the benefits of a cohesive leadership team? Integrating the DiSC® into your leadership development plan is a productive way to start. To be an effective, the leader must believe and demonstrate that everyone has something to bring to the table; in turn, the people at the table must feel that the team is a place where their opinions are welcome. All of your leaders will be more effective if they have an awareness of their own communication style and the style used by their colleagues and team members. At EDS, we integrate the DiSC® into many of our core programs.

EDSI has worked with several organizations whose leadership group (the word team is intentionally not used) is not at all unified in purpose.  In some politically charged organizations, these meetings are dead before they start because members of the leadership group simply do not trust one another.  The reasons for the distrust are not important.  What is important is that there is no progress made and the dysfunctional organization continues to decline, eventually leading to financial loss, turnover of the best people because they can’t deal with team politics, resulting in significant decline of the organization’s value. Who really wants to work in that kind of environment?

Take a look at the leaders on your team. Are they functioning as a cohesive unit? If the answer is no, what can you be actively doing to rebuild trust, gain real commitment, establish accountability and have a unified focus on results?

Leaders with the most impact are those who can build and successfully manage great teams. Every day, we help our clients and colleagues achieve their highest levels of professional presence and personal effectiveness. That includes everyone on the ladder, from company presidents to project managers, to staff members. Contact us at 800-282-3374 to find out how we can help you impact your own productivity and the productivity of your entire organization.