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So, what’s our team supposed to do and why do we exist?
August 15, 2020
The Leader Must Help the Team Define its Mission and Long-Term Direction and Translate This into Actionable Goals and Priorities
First ask your team to decide: “Why does this team exist and what is its purpose and mission”
Just as the organization as a whole needs a clearly defined mission and direction, the senior team – and subsequently every other team that evolves as the organization grows – also needs clear direction and a compelling sense of team purpose. This will provide focus, motivation and discipline to all team members. Everyone on the team needs to understand why the team exists, how it is supposed to add value and how its work fits into the broader mission and strategy of the organization.
Too often, a team’s time and attention are eaten up by crisis management and today’s pressing problems. Teams can become overly reactive rather than proactive. This leaves little or no time for strategic thinking. So, it is very important, when a team is being formed, to define a meaningful mission and clarify the purpose of the team, basically to ask: Why are we here? What does the team do? Why is it important? The executive team should revisit that theme regularly and not spend all its time fighting fires.
Having a well-defined and shared purpose or a compelling sense of mission unites people around a cause, such as curing a major illness or creating a new technology that will revolutionize the world. High performing teams need this kind of focus and motivation and a set of performance challenges that give meaning to their efforts. Having clear, focused, and challenging goals helps you and your team members decide what’s in and what’s out, what’s important or not important, what helps you achieve the mission and what isn’t helpful.
A clearly defined purpose creates a foundation for important decisions about the team itself. What is necessary and critical in order for us to achieve our purpose? What are the criteria for team membership that will help us achieve this? What skills, knowledge, and experience are needed by team members? What sort of things should we be working on in pursuit of our goals? How often do we need to meet to assess our progress?
Here are some questions for the team to consider:
- What is our role as a team?
- What work have we been brought together to focus on?
- What do we want to achieve as a team?
- Where do we add value to the organization?
- How will working together help us deliver more value than working as individuals?
- What does success look like and how will we measure it?
- What long-term team goals should we be focused on?
- What should be our team priorities?
- What should we be accountable for?
- Where should we spend our time doing together?
- What kind of decisions should we make as a team?
- What is the scope of our authority?
- Should we emphasize operational problem solving, generating ideas and solutions, information exchange, making strategic decisions, or overseeing tactical execution?
- How do we decide who should be members of the team?
- What format should we follow for our meetings, setting the agenda, and following-up?
- How often should we meet and for how long?
- What challenges will we face as a team?
- How can we support one another more effectively to achieve team purpose?
- What other teams or organization do we need to engage, coordinate and collaborate in order to be successful?
Suggestion:
When teams are forming and team members hardly know each other, spend some time together outside the company, having dinners together, getting to know each other personally and learning each other’s background and strengths. “In spite of efforts to improve performance, most organizations struggle to provide what people really need most to be successful – an emotional connection to the team and work,” says Curt Coffman, author of Culture Eats Strategy for Lunch.
Defining the Team’s Broader Objectives and Goals: What Should We Actually Be Doing?
Once the central focus of the team is clear – and as much as possible this should be determined by the members of the team, not floated down from on high – the next step is to set specific, challenging, consequential goals that support the primary purpose and define what is to be accomplished.
The leader plays a critical role in translating broad vision, mission, and strategic direction into specific and measurable performance goals for the team. These goals need to be specific enough to get the team to focus on the critical actions needed to hit its targets and get results. They will be different from the broader organizational goals, and from individual goals, but all should be aligned. The overall organizational mission translates into strategic objectives, and cascades down to functional goals, team goals, and individual goals. It is important that the team’s objectives are created together to gain commitment from its members.
- What should be our team and individual performance objectives for the next year?
- How do our team’s objectives align with the company strategy and priorities?
- What specific deliverables should we be held accountable for?
- What should be our critical priorities for the next month, quarter, year?
- How should we measure our performance and track progress on our team goals?
- How should we report on our progress toward individual and team goals?
- What interdependencies are important and require collaboration, coordination and regular communication?
- What actions need to be taken to achieve each of our individual and team goals?
- How should we celebrate progress and wins?
Decide together
. Work closely with the team to determine what results, deliverables and work products the team should focus on. What does the team need to make happen? Be sure each team member understands what part he or she has to play toward achieving the team’s goals. As the leader, it’s your job to help build commitment, mutual support, and alignment of all team members around the team’s objectives and goals. Here are some guidelines:
- Discuss goals and priorities regularly and push for clarity and specificity. When the conversation wanders off target, bring the team back to focus on the essentials – the goals and priorities and how to accomplish them.
- Write the goals down, being sure to get input and involvement from team members, and re-think and rewrite together with the team until they are in a form that is clear, simple, specific, and measurable.
- It is important to get all team members to agree upon the goals and their importance, as well as on what metrics or milestones will be indicators of their achievement.
- Formulating the goals together gives a feeling of shared accountability. This process will make it easier for the team to maintain focus on what is critical, as well as to track progress and hold itself accountable.
If, instead of a team process, generating strategic objectives and goals is always decreed from above and doesn’t allow a collaborative process to develop, the level of member buy-in will be reduced, because they had no ownership role in creating the goals they’re expected to live by. Shared objectives and goals are more powerful than those dictated by the leader. A micro-managing, high-control, autocratic leader will tell people what the goals ought to be; an effective team leader facilitates a discussion among team members to formulate the objectives together. This is especially true for members of the Millennial generation, and knowledge workers who expect to be consulted and to work together in formulating priorities.
Goals should be challenging but attainable. The great artist and architect Michelangelo said, “The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low and achieving our mark.” Team as well as individual goals should stretch people and challenge them, but still be realistic enough to be achievable. Google employs two types of goals, “committed” and “aspirational”. People are expected to achieve committed, absolute goals 100%. For aspirational goals (otherwise referred to as “moonshots” and “BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goals)” achieving 70% is considered quite okay.
Measure progress with milestones. It is important to create milestones that will allow for small wins along the way, so people have a tangible way to feel they are progressing.
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Demonstrating Ability and Adaptability: Founders build trust by consistently delivering on promises and demonstrating competence. This means being agile and willing to pivot when necessary, learning from mistakes, and adapting to market shifts. Positive Example: Daniel Dines of UiPath. UiPath, now a $10 billion company, wasn't an overnight success. Founder Daniel Dines navigated multiple major pivots, from an outsourcing company to a consumer products foray that "didn't work," before finally productizing their services into what became UiPath. His willingness to learn from "early missteps and failed attempts" and adapt the business model demonstrated his ability and built trust through resilience and consistent effort. This adaptability reinforces the "Ability" pillar, showing stakeholders that the founder can steer the ship through turbulent waters. 2. Upholding Unwavering Integrity: Integrity is non-negotiable. 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Travis Kalanick, Uber's co-founder, was ultimately forced to resign by an investor revolt due to his "brash and at times inappropriate behavior" that "repeatedly raised eyebrows" and was blamed for creating a "toxic culture". This lack of benevolence, characterized by disrespect and a disregard for employee well-being, directly eroded trust and led to significant talent drain. Publicly humiliating team members, disengaging emotionally, or adopting a "one-size-fits-all" leadership approach with diverse teams all signal a profound lack of care. 4. Micromanagement and Control-Freak Tendencies: This signals a fundamental lack of trust in employees and creates a vicious cycle of distrust. Negative Example: The Bottleneck Founder. Founders who feel the need to oversee every decision create significant bottlenecks, disempowering employees and stifling creativity. Talented team members often leave because they don't feel trusted or valued. Micromanagement explicitly communicates, "I no longer think you are the right person to do this job". This toxic behavior destroys morale, causes employees to delay decisions, and withholds valuable insights. It's a direct attack on the "Ability" pillar of trust, implying incompetence and leading to lower performance, decreased morale, and higher turnover. 5. Impulsivity and Resistance to Adaptation: Constantly shifting priorities or clinging rigidly to outdated methods undermines trust in your ability to lead effectively. Negative Example: The "Analysis Paralysis" Founder. Some founders, despite the need for agility, are "incredibly rigid," preferring "familiar methods" and struggling to let go of past successes. They may suffer from "analysis paralysis" when faced with incomplete information, a common occurrence in startups. This rigidity can manifest as dictatorial behavior and a struggle to accept alternative viewpoints. This stifles innovation, as employees hesitate to propose new ideas if they believe the founder won't be receptive. The Path Forward: Rebuilding and Sustaining Your Trust Capital The good news is that trust, even when broken, can be rebuilt. It requires deliberate, sustained effort and a profound commitment to self-awareness. Lead by Exemplification: Your actions must consistently align with your words. Admit missteps openly and share the steps you're taking to rectify them. This consistent "say-do" message builds profound credibility. Prioritize Open and Consistent Communication: Establish platforms for transparent dialogue, like town hall meetings and regular updates. Actively seek input, schedule regular check-ins, and create safe spaces for genuine dialogue. Cultivate Self-Awareness and Mental Well-being: Address your own fears and psychological traps. Prioritize your mental health, as it directly impacts your judgment, empathy, and ability to lead effectively. 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Your journey as a founder is fraught with challenges, but the most formidable ones often come from within. By consistently embodying competence, upholding ethics, and demonstrating genuine care, while actively mitigating the psychological traps and pressures inherent in the entrepreneurial journey, you can build and sustain the high-trust environments essential for navigating today's complex business landscape and achieving long-term, sustainable growth. Trust, in essence, is your ultimate competitive advantage. Are you ready to wield it?
The Trust Advantage: Build It or Break It
