WISDOM IN A NUTSHELL

BUILD A GREAT TEAM!

Choose the right people for the right roles

By
Ros Jay
Pearson Education Ltd. 2000
ISBN 0 273 64482 3
150 pages

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The Big Idea

The job of managing a team - from hiring, selecting, training, building, and
keeping enthusiasm up constantly – finally becomes a bit easier with these
helpful guidelines. This book covers everything from basic motivating, to how to
handle people during a crisis. Straightforwardness, a firm resolve, and a huge
dose of diplomacy are just some of the things a manager needs to lead and keep
the team working like a well-oiled machine. Even the most difficult situation –like
sacking a team member is played out here, so you know exactly what you’re
supposed to do. This is a real team how-to manual that is a quick and easy read!

Chapter One: The Team Functions

The 9 Team Roles

The Plant

Every team has a highly creative, intelligent Plant. This is your ideas person.
They prefer to work independently, and are sometimes difficult to work with
because they are inherently introverted. Putting too many Plants together may be
unproductive because they will all try to compete against each other as to who
has the best idea. A Plant may not willingly take on the proposal of another Plant.

The Resource Investigator

Your resource investigator is the person who has all the right contacts needed for
a project. They can build effectively on another person’s idea, and needs
stimulus from other people. They love pressure and operate well in a crisis. They
are relaxed and gregarious in nature.

The Coordinator

Born with a natural inclination to focus properly on the objectives of the team, the
coordinator knows how to communicate effectively. She may have a natural air of
authority, and the team members have a genuine respect for her. Coordinators
are usually more emotionally mature than the other team members, and are able
to extract the skills needed from different team members. Coordinators can easily
articulate the collective viewpoint of the team, and while they may not be as
creative or intelligent as the others, they do have a strong sense of discipline and
control.

The Shaper

A highly-strung high-energy individual, the Shaper is always jumping into action

and easily sees the need for urgency. Coordinators may have to put a brake on

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them and see that Shapers don’t hurt others’ feelings in their impatience to get
things done.

The Monitor Evaluator

These are objective thinkers. They do not conclude without first studying the
whole document in detail, and tend to be unemotional and less enthusiastic.
They can analyze large quantities of data and draw up a careful assessment of
the material. They will go over it in a very thorough manner.

The Team Worker

This is your supportive, interpersonal diplomat who is usually good-natured and

quite popular. They are great at promoting team spirit and know how to iron out
conflict. They may be more of adapters than changers.

The Implementer

The person who does the core work of the team. They break down general plans
into smaller, manageable tasks. They are uncomfortable with sudden change,
prefer order, and are best at drawing up timetables, budgets, and charts. They
are cooperative about fine-tuning their system proposals.

The Completer

They are very meticulous and double-check everything. They make great
proofreaders. They cannot tolerate carelessness in others. They never miss a
deadline, and tend to have a hard time delegating tasks because they want to
make sure things are done right.

The Specialist

They are highly professional and show little interest in other people’s work. They
are experts in a small field and have dedication to their area of knowledge. They
have in-depth understanding of the subject.

For the right mix, you need a senior person to perform as Coordinator, one
strong Plant, a few other intelligent people but not as clever as the Plant of
course, and some glue from the Team Workers, Completers, and Implementers.
One person may fit into two or three of these roles, so you can have all nine roles
in a team of only three or four people.

If you have too many Plants, separate them into different teams.

External matters: Coordinator, Plant, Resource Investigator, Shaper

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Internal matters: Implementer, Monitor Evaluator, Team Worker, Completer,

Specialist

Important things to remember:

• Separate team members who clash

• Swap members as you see fit
• Recruit new members when the workload is heavy

Chapter Two: Motivation

Once you have satisfied a team member’s basic needs, (a salary that is enough
to pay for basic food, shelter, and health care) then you need to go up Maslow’s
hierarchy and satisfy their need for security, belonging, self-esteem and self-
fulfillment. If you create the right environment, the team will effectively motivate
themselves.

Some people find filing a relaxing task, while others just seem to want to get it
over with as quickly as possible. Each member has different needs when it
comes to self-motivation. Looking at the short-term, they may be motivated by a
number of different factors such as

• Being able to go home earlier

• Getting a task done and out of the way
• The satisfaction of completing a task
• The prospect of praise for a job done well
• Wanting a reputation for always delivering on time

Long-term motivation means you want your team to deliver consistently over
time. Short-term motivation requires they have enough enthusiasm and energy to
tackle the next project.

Long-term motivating factors tend to be more general and more abstract such as

• Security
• Money
• Status
• Recognition
• Responsibility
• Job satisfaction
• Challenge

Key motivating factors:

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• The more your team members understand about their jobs, the reason for
them and their value to the whole organization, the more they will be
motivated to perform well.
• Always set clear and achievable targets
• Reward and celebrate achievements
• Involve people in everything that’s going on

Good leadership guide:

• When someone makes a mistake, don’t criticize him outright. Sit the
person down and talk about the circumstances and how it happened, and
maybe how it can be avoided in the future. Nobody does bad work on
purpose unless they are trying to sabotage your company.
• Say what you mean and mean what you say.
• Focus on the positive, and don’t dwell so much on the negative things the
team member did. Make mistakes a learning experience.
• Be likeable. If your team members genuinely like you, they will stay
around longer, and will want to please you.
• Be polite. Ask people to do things in a nice and polite way. Treat them like
human beings.
• Be generous. Don’t expect people to do things for you if you aren’t
prepared to stick out your own hand to help them.

Techniques to consider for building team spirit:

• Encourage team members to support each other. If anyone passes an

empty desk they should answer the phone, even to just take that person’s
message. All hands should be on deck when one member needs help
before a presentation or meeting.
• Train the team together.
• Put different people in charge of different projects. This gives everyone a
sense of mutual respect.
• Give your team confidential information. It makes them feel included in
company policy.
• Treat everyone as part of the team, from the messenger, to the temp
worker, to the secretary up to the managers.

Individual rewards:
• Praise – Circulate a memo or email congratulating Alison on a job well
done
• Thanks - A thank-you card with a small present, like theatre tickets, a free
lunch, or a three-day weekend for Bob
• Money – Offer a commission on top of the basic salary for the successful
account, or a bonus for Jack
• Status – Give Tanya a new job title or promotion

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• Responsibility _ Give Aaron a new area of responsibility based on his

success on the previous project
• Freedom – Allow Mike to leave the office earlier on a particular day
• Challenge – Focus on how well Jeff performed on one task, maybe he can
tackle this next big one and earn an even bigger commission!

Team rewards:

• Cream cakes all around

• A team drink after work
• A team lunch
• A team outing, picnic, or a trip to see a trade fair/exhibition
• A team breakfast in the office
• Redesign the workplace so it’s brighter and more pleasant to work in
• Buy more easy chairs for the meeting room and play some nice CD’s
• Buy a better coffee machine or a cold drinks dispenser

Motivating temps and part-timers

• Pay part-timers the same rate pro rata as you do full-timers

• Make an effort to see to it everyone knows the temp’s name and use it
often in front of the others
• Follow the same guidelines about keeping them informed
• Include them in team activities and rewards
• Give them bonuses and rewards individually when their performance
deserves it
• If you set a good example, the rest of the team will follow it and treat
temps and part-timers with the same respect as the other colleagues.

Motivating a team that’s never around

How do you build and maintain a team that’s always out on calls, and spread
around the country?

• Meet once a week or once a month

• Stay in touch by mobile phone and email
• Encourage contact in twos or threes; tell Angela that maybe Brian is the
best person to work with on this problem…
• Have a bulletin board in a common area or on the Internet
• Train as a team
• Encourage the one or two members who are always on a fixed site to help
foster team spirit and keep everybody gelled together

Motivating people to accept difficult or unpopular decisions

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• Once you’ve outlined the case for the new decision, ask the team
members for their views on the decision. Listen.
• Tell them their arguments are valid
• Offer a compromise
• Give good reasons why your decision is more cost-effective, or practical,
or logical. Never say simply because “it’s better”.

Chapter Three: People problems

How do you know someone might be having a personal problem and it is
affecting the way he or she works?

• Drop in productivity
• Missed deadlines
• Absenteeism
• Bad temper, irritability
• Lack of enthusiasm
• Poor quality work
• Negative attitude
• Time wasting
• Poor communication with colleagues
• More quiet or distant than usual

How to deal with it:

• Set up a private meeting, one-on-one. Don’t allow any interruptions.

• Use a friendly set up with regards to furniture arrangement. Have a low
coffee table (with refreshments) between you, and not an intimidating
desk. Sit on comfortable chairs and allow him to relax.

Discuss the problem by reassuring them their response is valid. Encourage them
to open up by asking open questions, indicate you are really listening and
interested, and summarize what their viewpoint is to make sure you understand
and they know you do. Admit your own weaknesses.

Next…
• Place all possible options or solutions on the table.
• Offer only facts, not opinions.
• Provide information on other possible options the person may not be
aware of.

Finding a solution:
• Support their decision.
• Agree on a course of action.
• Set a review date

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• Let them know your door is always open

Things to avoid during the talk:

• Don’t try to fill every silence. Let them talk

• Don’t say, “I understand” because it annoys people in a difficult situation
• Don’t judge
• Don’t give any advice.

Recognize the signs of stress in your team members:

• Taking work home regularly

• Failing to take vacation leave
• Irritability
• Fatigue
• Over-critical of others
• Poor concentration
• Carrying out tasks in a frantic manner
• Poor memory
• Headaches and back pains
• Apathy
• Lack of commitment
• Lack of enjoyment in their work
• A tendency to catch sickness easily
• Sudden emotional outbursts

Causes of stress:
• Too many deadlines, or the deadlines are too tight
• Frequent interruptions make it impossible to finish a task
• Long hours
• Poor performance
• Heavy workload
• Isolated working conditions
• Poor prioritizing
• Bad working relationships
• Fear of redundancy
• Internal conflict

Other important points to remember:

• Follow up counseling session informally
• Never break a confidence
• Stick to your word

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Chapter Four: Problem people

You can’t change someone’s personality, but you can make sure they behave
properly while on the job.

Most common types of problem people:

• The non-communicative person. Ask open questions that force her to

explain what she thinks.

• The person who doesn’t listen. Ask him to repeat what you just said to see
if he got it right.

• The daydreamer. Give him a task to share with someone else so he’s
constantly on his toes. Don’t give him monotonous work.

• The loner. This person may be more comfortable talking on the phone
than face-to-face. Exploit her talent for detailed, independent work on
long-term projects.

• The secretive person. Make requests for information very specific and put
it in writing.

• The sulker. Hear out her complaints, but don’t give in just because she
seems unhappy. If given the silent treatment, ask a question and wait for
the response so she is forced to answer you.

• The over-sensitive. Never make a critical remark about their work in front
of other people. Build up their self-confidence by offering positive
comments more than negative ones.

• The martyr. Don’t allow her to take on so much work. Have a private talk
and point out your concern for her health, and that she shouldn’t stress
herself out.

• The moaner. Before he complains, ask if he needs any help.

• The pessimist. Ask for specifics on why he thinks the proposal will not
work. Remove his fear of failure or risk by relieving him of responsibility.
Make it a team responsibility.

• The prejudiced person. Team up the chauvinist pig with a group of women
who know how to handle difficult jobs. Don’t reinforce his prejudice with
remarks about women drivers, etc.

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• The jobsworth type. When asking them to do something that’s not in their
job description, let them know you are asking them for a favor. Respect
them by making it easy for them to say no.

• The control freak. Sit them down and ask what is the worst possible
scenario if this new action goes wrong. Often it’s really not that bad.

• The know-it-all. Don’t humiliate them in front of others; you’ll just

antagonize them. Give them credit where it’s due, but make them share it
with other team members.

• The domineering type. They tend to pick on the youngest, weakest, or

least experienced one on the team. Stand up for this person if he or she
cannot stand up against the domineering one. When the domineering
personality tries to shout someone down, stay cool. Don’t react. If
everyone else ignores him he’ll soon realize how foolish he looks.

• The primadonna. Do not respond to this type. If she becomes childish, opt
out of the conversation until she is calm and rational.

• The rowdy type. Give him his own space where he won’t bother others.

• The over-competitive type. Encourage them to beat their own targets.

• The aggressive type. Stand up to them whenever you need to.

• The manipulator. Talk openly to bring out what their hidden agenda really
is. Don’t be too critical, but be friendly and nice.

• The rule bender. Take disciplinary action or warn them that they will be
reported.

• The buck-passer. Make it clear that taking responsibility means you are
responsible no matter who actually does the work, and whether you’re
there physically or not. Put instructions in writing and be specific.

Chapter Five: Working together

• It’s important nobody feels they have more than their fair share of work.
• There should be a team rule that no idea is sacred. Anyone may suggest
an alternative.
• No one should keep information to themselves.
• Team members should be supportive of each other.
• Consciously recognize each other’s feelings.
• Everyone should be able to clearly state what the team objectives are.

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• Resolve conflict by playing mediator. Do not allow anyone out of the room
until an agreement has been reached.
• Arrange a date to review how things are going.
• Call a meeting to discuss any policy issues
• Unite the team by focusing on outside threats (the competition)
• No commitment to the objectives means the member does not deserve to
be on the team.
• Do not tolerate gossip. Confront those who are spreading stories.
• Be straightforward and people will not feel the need to gossip.

Identifying team stress

Symptoms:
• Lax timekeeping
• Low quality work standards
• Long coffee and lunch breaks
• People use “I” instead of “we” when talking
• Factions, gossip, backbiting, cliques
• Sulking, snapping, or lack of communication
• Targets and deadlines are not met
• Illness and absenteeism
• Poor or even hostile atmosphere
• Low trust and cooperation
• Newspapers always left open on the job ads page

To address team stress…

• Call a meeting to clarify objectives

• Draw up a mission statement to outline team purpose
• Identify who is bored, overworked or unmotivated
• Which processes or systems are frustrating to work with?
• Does the team lack particular necessary skills?
• Do we lack experience in certain areas?
• Do we need more training?
• Do we have any ideas for changing work systems?
• Find a challenge that will necessitate the whole team pulling together. Try
a new product launch or a fun PR event, or redecorating the work place.

Chapter Six: Interviews and team meetings

• When choosing a place for the interview, use a private room with a sofa,
easy chairs and a coffee table.
• Make sure there are no interruptions
• Ask open questions that require more than just a “yes” or “no” answer
• Chat before starting any type of interview

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• If this is a performance appraisal, admit your own weaknesses first

• For team briefings make sure everyone is face-to-face, the team size is
between four to fifteen people, run by a leader, is regular (monthly or bi-
weekly) and relevant to the team
• There are four categories of information on which you brief your team: the
team progress reports, announcing policy changes, if any, introducing new
people, changes, or departments, and action plans and housekeeping.
• Encourage questions and comments and note them down
• If anyone asks you something you don’t know, get back to them within two
days
• Summarize key points at the end of the briefing
• Find something positive to finish up the briefing with, like a birthday
announcement or a sales target that was met
• Give the date of the next meeting so everyone notes it down in their
diaries
• If anyone is absent, brief them yourself when they return

Chapter Seven: Difficult Situations

Key rules that apply in general/during a crisis situation, whether it’s a public
relations disaster or an accident or a change of address…

• Keep everyone informed all the time

• Assemble the whole team to give information and direction
• Encourage questions to make everything clear
• Involve the whole team in key decisions
• Be available in case someone wants to talk
• Let them see you are on their side
• Never lose your sense of humor

Practical matters:
• All teams must have one qualified first-aider
• Practice fire drills regularly and other emergency procedures
• Plan in advance which people are in charge of what during an emergency
• When bringing in consultants, define clearly why they were asked to help,
so people know why they couldn’t do it themselves

Coping with a serious illness and death:

• Call everyone together and tell them at once. Be prepared for people to
become upset. Let people take time off, never mind the presentation
scheduled for today.
• Allow time for people to make hospital visits, or go to the funeral. Attend
the funeral and make sure the organization sends flowers.
• Give people time to recover and let them feel they can talk openly about it.

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• If anyone of your team members is diagnosed as seriously ill, let them

decide if they want to keep it quiet or will tell the others in due time.

HIV
• For members who are uncomfortable about working closely with someone
who is HIV+, give them literature to read so they understand better about
the disease
• Treat the HIV+ team member just like any other. There will just be some
allowance for sick days and doctor’s appointments.
• Do not attempt to turn prejudiced people into unprejudiced people, simply
ask them to behave like unprejudiced people while they’re at work.

Affairs

• Generally with office affairs, it’s really none of your business. But when
extra-marital affairs get in the way of business, it’s time to have a private
talk with the pair involved, but one person at a time.
• Send one off on a business trip, to separate the pair temporarily.
• If the relationship is strained and people are taking sides, maybe one will
ask for a transfer eventually…

Chapter Eight: Where do we go from here?

Expanding the team

• Keep the original team together and create a new one to operate

alongside it.

• Separate people who have not been working well together

• Let two or more teams share one coffee machine or photocopier, this way
they bond socially
• Organize plenty of team events, exhibition stand staffing, lunchtime drinks,
etc
• Treat the team as one unit when it comes to rewards and recognition
• Make sure some people have a primary and secondary team, say Robin is
part of the presentation team but since it’s a one-off thing, his full-time role
is on the customer relations team with Pat and Jane
• Give as many people as you can an opportunity to lead a team group

Remember, a good team leader can never relax; and when it comes to
recognition, he is happiest sharing the credit for good work with the rest of the
team. There is no greater reward than the privilege of being part of a great team
and the satisfaction of having played a vital role in building it.

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