September Chapter Meeting Report

Newsletter of the East Bay Chapter of STC November/December 2003	Meeting Report: September 2003

	by Susan Curtzwiler EBSTC Member
Building High Performance Teams	Ron Person, owner of enMind Training Performance in Santa Rosa, California, presented the methods of Building High Performance Teams at the EBSTC September 2003 meeting. Attendees listened intently to his comments about the value of having clearly stated goals and people who have a firm commitment to the team and the project. Ron wrapped up the evening with After Action Review, an interactive session wherein each member of the audience submitted their own one-line summary. The most popular comment, submitted by Jane Jones, was to have a session discussing Lessons Learned. Jane won a $25 gift certificate to Amazon.com from Ron. The following is a summary of some of the tips Ron passed along to EBSTC members.
Qualities in High Performance Team Building	Commitment to each other and commitment to the common goal are two important qualities needed for team building. You’re the manager of a new project and you need the best team working with you—one that is experienced, goal oriented, and dependable. Use the Basic Team Requirements (below) to build your staff and bring the project to fruition.
Basic Team Requirements	The basic team requirements are small size, a meaningful purpose, specific performance goals, a common approach, complementary skills, and mutual accountability. Small Size Developing a team of only six to eight people is optimum to encourage improved communication. Remember to allow for someone to drop out for any reason. If the group changes, try using available talent in other departments. Adding a new person to the mix puts valuable time at high risk. Meaningful Purpose When the purpose of the project is explained, a sense of pride and ownership develops within the team. Regardless of the purpose—to put a man on the moon or explain how to assemble a bookshelf—define a common goal. The team now has a meaningful purpose—to meet the deadline and to work with quality and commitment. Specific Performance Goals Clearly define the assignment and the timeline, including reviews, benchmarks, and the final deadline. Be sure to discuss the scope, schedule, and available resources, and allow time for questions. This type of exchange, initiated by management, will give the team an understanding and ownership of the purpose and goal. After finding the high-performance goal, the slogan and industry-specific terminology will naturally evolve. Common Approach Developing an approach is critical to the success of any project. Consider the following to keep the team on track: Stick to the budget Use highly skilled people at their best use Understand communication methods Establish disciplined work processes Ensure agreement on file and naming formats Complementary Skills In addition to the selected skill set, there will be additional needs to complement the job. Does your new team collectively have the necessary skills? You may need to borrow talent from other in-house departments. See how you can best harvest the following: Technical and functional expertise Problem-solving and decision-making skills Interpersonal skills for good communication You may need to consider which skills can be learned and also have a contingency plan for skill dropouts (if someone leaves). Mutual Accountability A good team will want to have mutual accountability. Each team member will demonstrate the following: Individual responsibility Accountability to the team A shared responsibility to work for the common good of the project Encourage the team to know when to ask for help and identify if the need is for resources or a skill. There is no shame in asking for help to avoid delays; the problem is when someone pretends that everything is okay and then causes a huge work crunch at the eleventh hour.

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