Great leadership teams tap into their potential as a collective unit so they can serve as force multipliers for their organizations. They capitalize on the strengths of individual members, learn from each others’ successes and failures, and fill inevitable gaps — all with a focus on creating value and realizing the organization’s strategic intent.
Great leadership teams are laser focused on their most important priorities; they debate productively and hold each other accountable for results. They manage conflict productively and are able to challenge and debate important issues without defensiveness or fear of retribution. Simply put great leadership teams do not let trivial issues get in the way of what is most important.
Great leadership teams have a disciplined but agile structural foundation and a strong relational foundation that ensures that the trivial doesn’t get in the way of the important. Organizational psychologist Ralph Stacey’s definition of leadership emphasizes the skills great leaders need to embody in today’s complex, fast paced environment. He suggests that “Great leaders have a greater capacity to live with the anxiety of not knowing and not being in control while interacting creatively and productively.”
“If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.”
- Henry Ford
“I’ve failed over and over again - and that is why i succeed.
- Michael Jordon
No team is perfect and no team is 100 percent aligned all of the time but great leadership teams have confidence in their ability to get back in sync after inevitable periods of dysfunction. Great leadership teams do the hard work necessary to structure the leadership team effectively and build effective relationships with their teammates so that they don’t let unimportant issues get in the way of their commitment to becoming great.
Great leadership teams have impact way beyond the contributions of individual team members. They have a cascading effect throughout an organization by reinforcing the behaviors and approaches that are required to realize the organization’s objectives.
