How To Lead A Transformation of Your Team

June 10, 2010

Carol Ann Tomlinson said, “Excellence in education is when we do everything we can to make sure they become everything that they can.”

The same is true about leading a team to transformation. Excellence comes when you do everything you can as a leader to make sure they become everything that they can.

The other day I had a leader that chatted about having us do a team program. Finally he said, “It is not a team problem, I think it is a problem that I don’t have the right people.” So I asked him how long he had led this area and how many people in the team have been with him that whole time. Turns out that in 3 years he has fired and hired new people every 6 months. So I tell you, who is the problem? The people or the leader?

A good leader can take a well formed team and grow them to great heights. A transformational leader can take a motley crew and grow them to extraordinary measures by drawing out the best in each individual.

So here is your take action:

1. Make a list of the things that you would like to see changed in your team. Be brutally honest about all the little things that derail your team or stop all of you from achieving excellence.

2. Then look at what you may be doing that is causing that result. This is the painful part. Most likely you are doing things you are not even aware of that are causing the actions you are seeing in your team. In other words, it is reciprocity- what you are giving out is coming back. For example, if you are not getting back to your team immediately when they ask questions, why would they get back to the customer immediately? Remember your employees are your customers.

3. Take the one thing that if you change it will have the biggest impact on your team’s productivity and results. Commit to make that change happen over the next 30 days.

Then sit back and enjoy the results!