Team Collaboration Techniques

In my 35+ years of experience, one key takeaway is clear: success in the business world hinges on effective communication. Clarity, simplicity and precision reduce misunderstandings, paving the way for streamlined collaboration. 👉 Active listening is paramount. Engage attentively in conversations, absorbing insights before responding. This cultivates a culture of respect within the team. 👉 Openness is key. Encourage an open-door policy, creating an environment where team members feel comfortable sharing ideas and concerns. This fuels innovation faster than you’d think. 👉 Leverage technology wisely. Embrace tools that facilitate seamless communication, from project management platforms to video conferencing. Consider the global context. Tailor your message to resonate with diverse audiences, understanding cultural nuances. At the end of the day, effective business communication is a strategic asset, fostering strong and collaborative connections. #effectivecommunication #tech #businesscommunication #smartData #collaboration

Are you part of a real team? Or do you sometimes feel isolated, unclear, and disconnected, even though you're surrounded by colleagues? Early in my career, I naively believed that assembling a group of high performers automatically equated to a high-performing team. But reality proved otherwise. Instead of synergy, I witnessed friction. The team wasn’t meshing; it was like gears grinding without proper lubrication. Each high performer, while brilliant on their own, seemed to have their own agenda, often pulling in different directions. The energy and time spent on internal friction was enormous, and the anticipated results? Well, they remained just that – anticipated. It was a stark realization that a team's effectiveness isn't just about individual brilliance—it's about harmony, alignment, and collaboration. With our workplace becoming increasingly diverse, dispersed, digital, and dynamic this is no easy feat. So, in my quest to understand the nuances of high performing teams, I reached out to my friend Daria Rudnik. Daria is a Team Architect - specializing in engineering remote teams for sustainable growth. She shared 5 key insights that can make all the difference: 1. Define a Shared Goal ↳Why? A team truly forms when united by a shared goal that can only be achieved together, not just by adding up individual efforts, ↳How? Involve the team in setting a clear, measurable goal at the project's start. Regularly revisit and communicate this goal to keep everyone aligned and motivated. 2. Cultivate Personal Connections ↳Why? Personal connections hold a team together, boosting trust, support, and understanding for a more productive environment. ↳How? Begin meetings with a social check-in. Let team members share updates or feelings, enhancing connection and understanding. 3. Clear Communication ↳Why? It’s the backbone of a successful team, preventing misunderstandings and building trust. ↳How? Hold regular team meetings and check-ins. Ensure a safe environment for expressing thoughts and concerns. 4. Defined Roles and Responsibilities ↳Why? Clear roles prevent overlap and ensure task coverage, giving a sense of ownership and accountability. ↳How? Outline everyone’s roles at the project's start, ensuring understanding of individual contributions to overall goals. 5. Provide Regular Feedback and Recognition ↳Why? Feedback clarifies strengths and areas for improvement. Recognition boosts morale and motivation. ↳How? Hold regular, constructive feedback sessions. Publicly recognize and reward achievements. Remember, 'team' isn't just a noun—it's a verb. It requires ongoing effort and commitment to work at it, refine it, and nurture it. 👉 Want to supercharge your team's performance? Comment “TEAM” below to grab your FREE e-book and learn how to 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦'𝐬 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 in just 90 days, courtesy of Daria.

Years ago, I had a new team member ask how I became so comfortable speaking in meetings, able to pivot when the conversation went in unexpected directions. The answer: Preparation. My meeting prep routine looks something like this: ✏ What do I need from this meeting/conversation? Goals, objectives (stated/unstated) ✏ What do I know/believe others need from this meeting/conversation? Goals, objectives (stated/unstated) ✏ What questions need to be asked/answered to achieve those objectives? That is, what do we already know & what information is missing. ✏ What concerns might be presented – and how will I respond? Use that EI to identify potential concerns, consider what is at the root of the concerns, and review what I know, what I can share. ✏ What is the most important information or decision to share during the interaction? Be ready to connect each person with the objective and confirm the ‘why’ is clear. ✏ What topics need to be avoided (and how will I respond when that topic comes up)? Prepare next steps to offer and clear, honest rationale. This routine works for me whether I’m leading or attending a meeting, too. Some meetings require more preparation, some less, but these questions are constantly humming in the back of my brain, so the routine has become both quick and efficient. (Also, every meeting should have an agenda with goals & objectives and a clear purpose for attendees. If it doesn’t, ask for one before you agree to attend!) If you have additional tips, I’d love to hear them! #culture #womeninleadership

#Sales can be tough, with long stretches of rejections and no wins. As a manager, you can boost your team’s performance during these difficult periods with positive recognition. → Recognize every win, big or small. Positive recognition fosters a healthy attitude on the team, which motivates them during tough times and helps them celebrate the good times. It’s also important to set up reward systems that emphasize not only quota attainment but also your company’s core values. → Reward high performers across different channels. Positive recognition is more impactful when you deliver it in a timely, comprehensive manner on various channels. At SalesRoads, we broadcast shoutouts every day on Slack. Teammates and managers applaud each other when they book an appointment, close a deal, or perform an action that embodies our core values. We also give accolades during meetings and coaching sessions, as well as present awards at our quarterly town halls to star employees and others who exemplify the company’s values. → Collect feedback to improve your reward systems. Every quarter, we conduct a pulse survey to help us understand if our employees feel appreciated or recognized enough. This practice uncovers insights into how the team feels, so we can course-correct and improve our reward systems. Sales is already a tough job. Don’t make it unnecessarily harder by underappreciating your team. Sometimes, all you need to achieve outstanding results is to create a supportive and encouraging environment — and that’s your responsibility as the manager. #Management #leadership

A few years ago, I worked with a hospital that was struggling with high turnover rates and low morale. People simply didn't feel valued or heard. Our strategy was aimed at reshaping organizational culture, and we believed the key to this transformation was leadership development. We coached leaders on conducting regular one-on-one check-ins with team members, which provide opportunities to discuss progress, address concerns, and invite feedback. We stressed the need for leaders to recognize people for their efforts and the pivotal role they play in the organization. We guided leaders on fostering psychological safety, ensuring an inclusive environment where everyone feels comfortable sharing ideas and asking questions. Over time, things started to change. People not only felt recognized, but they also began to communicate more openly, bring forward ideas, express concerns, and collaborate. Morale rose, turnover decreased, and quality improved. This transformation aligns with what neuroscience teaches us. Our brains naturally thrive in environments that foster trust, respect, and positivity. Leaders who tap into this understanding not only create better work environments but also elevate overall team performance. I encourage healthcare leaders to focus on the culture they are building. See the difference it makes in your teams and the care your patients receive. Strong teams and strong cultures lead to outstanding results, which means a healthier healthcare system for all. Have you experienced a similar transformation in your organization? What have you found effective in boosting culture? Share below! #Healthcare #Leadership #teamwork #Leadershipdevelopment

I've been thinking a lot lately the impact of leadership in shaping a positive team culture. Here's what I've found makes a real difference 👇🏾 - 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻: When leaders share a clear vision and purpose, it’s like giving everyone a map and compass. It helps us all see where we're headed and why our work matters. - 𝗘𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺: Trusting and empowering team members is crucial. When leaders delegate responsibilities and encourage us to take initiative, it sparks innovation and builds confidence. - 𝗙𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Leaders who listen actively and provide honest feedback create an environment of trust. It’s about making sure everyone feels heard and valued, fostering a sense of community. - 𝗖𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗯𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗘𝗻𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵: Recognizing achievements and offering growth opportunities boosts morale. Leaders who do this show that they care about our personal and professional development. - 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲: Challenges are inevitable. Leaders who stay positive and adaptable inspire us to do the same. Their resilience helps the whole team navigate through tough times together. Ultimately, leadership is about more than just directing tasks—it’s about nurturing a culture where everyone can succeed. By leading with empathy, vision, and purpose, we can build teams that not only reach their goals but also exceed them. Proactively foster environments where everyone feels valued, energized, and ready to tackle whatever comes their way. ✊🏾 #Leadership #TeamCulture #OpenCommunication ---------- Hey, I'm Kevin, I am the host of Working Wisdom and The Toxic Leadership Podcast and provide daily posts and insights to help transform organizational culture and leadership. ➡️ Follow for more, Dr. Kevin Sansberry II ♻️ Repost to share with others (or save for later)

Most managers are bad at a critical part of their job... b/c most probably don't think it's their job. 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭! It's something I frequently think about. And I hope anyone who has ever worked for me feels this. Here are some of the things I do to help develop my team. 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐲 When someone joins the team, I send a Welcome Survey that covers work styles, professional development & personal interests. Questions include:  – What impact do you want to have at Crosschq? – What are you most excited to learn in your new role? – What are your career goals in the next 5 to 10 years? – List 3-5 professional skills that you'd like to develop in the next year. – What would make this job especially meaningful and enjoyable? DM me for my full survey. 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤-𝐈𝐧𝐬 Different than a weekly 1:1, in this meeting, we take a step back to assess how things are going. I'll often pull up the welcome survey to guide the conversation, but it's a chance to ensure:  – They are getting what they need out of the job – The company is getting what it needs from them I'm asking questions like:  – Do you know what is expected of you? – Do you have what you need to be successful?  – Do you feel like your work is having an impact?  – Are you enjoying your work and the people you work with?  – Do you feel like you have the opportunity to do your best work? Then, we spend a chunk of time on career pathing so they know what’s needed to move to the next level. 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 Any good manager knows they must give frequent feedback, but there's still value in more formal performance reviews. Feedback is something I try to weave into the culture by training my team on how to give & receive feedback. Personally, it's something I'm still working on. 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐚 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬𝐞𝐭 One of the most important things a leader must do is intentionally create their team culture. I believe this is separate (but strongly aligned with) the company culture. The best way to do that: values & operating principles. One of the core principles I always set is continuous learning and a growth mindset. Other things I think about for good career development: 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 Open comm ensures everyone feels comfortable discussing their aspirations, concerns & feedback. 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 Involve other stakeholders/depts to ensure that development plans are holistic and integrated into the broader org strategy. 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 Eveyrone is unique. Personalize the plan to suit their specific needs & aspirations. 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲 Be open about the business's needs and how they align with individual growth paths, so expectations are clear on both sides. 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 Allow everyone the autonomy to make decisions regarding their career path, providing guidance and support as needed. What would you add? 

Most engineering managers receive no training and are not sure what to do. That was me in my first engineering management role. Here's a great template you could use to run your team meetings. Most engineering team meetings are bad. They spent meandering through an endless task list without a real sense of direction, priority, or urgency. People are stressed out and start to tune out. 1. Start the meeting with a celebration! Do a quick recap of any accomplishments or wins the team had recently. Big or small, a win is a win. Engineering teams get way too focused on what's broken, behind schedule, or wrong and forget to congratulate and celebrate the hard work of the humans behind the team. 2. Check in with all the humans Teams are humans and the success of teams depends on the success of the collection of humans. Spent 3 minutes and have everyone share out how they are personally. Are they good? Are they stressed? Do they need to skip this meeting? Do they need help on something unrelated to this team so they can do their best work here? 3. What's the high-level set of goals for the team In five minutes and less than one presentation slide, what are the high-level goals the team is working on now? The point of this meeting is not to go over everyone's specific tasks, but to bring the group together for energy, support, and creative discussion about challenges. Sharing the high-level goals helps everyone see how their task list fits into that and how to prioritize their work and focus. 4. Review the top risks (why the team won't hit the goals) There are probably risks as to why the team won't achieve its goals. They can be technical (We don't know how to do this) or schedule (We don't know if we can do this on time). A big job of the engineering team is to keep a shared list of these risks and constantly prioritize them. Are there new risks that arose since the last meeting? 5. Assign the Next Actions to Solve the Risks The team can't come up with a solution to most risks in a meeting, but they can decide on the next action to take to develop a solution and assign someone to do it. 6. Creative Discussion Are there any big creative discussions the team needs to brainstorm on together? Group meetings are great for this. Keep the brainstorms brief and productive. 7. Questions? Check-in and make sure everyone is clear on what's next for the team. Make intentional space for this or almost always someone will leave a meeting with unclarity on what to do, but they didn't get a chance to ask. 8. Recap and GO! End the meeting and get to work. I hope that helps you if you are a new engineering manager or just someone that needs to revamp the team's meetings. The Agenda: 1. Celebrate wins 2. Check in with all the humans 3. Review the big-picture goals 4. Review the top risks 5. Assign the Next Actions to Solve the Risks 6. Creative Discussion 7. Questions? 8. Recap and GO! #engineering #teams #leadership

Is there too much talking and not enough decision-making in your meetings? Try this at your next meeting: 1. Ask people to create recommendations. I always ask people to give me a headline and 3-4 bullet points to explain what it is or how it works. (I recommend 4x6 post it notes) 2. Give folks 90 seconds to explain their recommendation. 3. Put all recommendations on a flip chart and ask people to dot vote for the recommendation that best solves the problem. (Look up how to conduct a dot vote) 4. Present the recommendations in rank order. Narrow your conversation to reviewing the trade-offs of the top two recommendations. 5. Make a choice - When the discussion is winding down, try to summarize by saying, "So the choice we are making is ...?" 6. Write the choice in an email and send it out after the meeting. This is the approach I took with Nebraska Cancer Specialists, and one person commented, "This would have taken us forever to reach a consensus. You managed to do it in three hours." I'd like to thank Danielle Geiger and the team for inviting me to facilitate their annual planning workshop. Outstanding work, team!

Ever feel like your team meetings are just a bunch of talking heads? You're not alone… But what if I told you the key to unlocking better collaboration, higher engagement, and stronger results lies in something often overlooked? Active listening is more than just keeping quiet while someone speaks… It's about truly paying attention, understanding the speaker's intent, showing the speaker you understand them, and responding thoughtfully I recently coached an David (an engineering manager) on this His team was brimming with talent, but constantly missing deadlines, struggling to collaborate, and fixing mistakes that were caused by misunderstandings David noticed frustration and a lack of engagement, and after digging a little deeper, we identified a core problem… Team members weren't actively listening to each other! Ideas were interrupted, and some felt their voices weren't valued, which created a culture of hesitation and hindered creative problem-solving But changing a team culture starts at the top… Through coaching, David honed his active listening skills and implemented these practices with his team: **Give Full Attention:** David learned to silence distractions, make eye contact, and truly focus on the speaker. This simple act communicated respect and encouraged open communication **Practice Reflection and Paraphrasing:** David began summarizing key points to ensure everyone was on the same page, which clarified understanding and fostered trust **Ask Clarifying Questions:** David encouraged questions to delve deeper into ideas and build upon each other's thoughts, which fostered a more collaborative environment **Embrace Silence:** David created space for thoughtful responses instead of jumping in to fill pauses, which allowed for deeper reflection and richer discussions **Active Listening for All:** David encouraged team members to practice active listening with each other, which fostered a culture of mutual respect and understanding These simple practices produced remarkable results! Communication improved dramatically, deadlines were met, innovation soared, and the team thrived on collaboration because everyone felt empowered to share ideas freely, knowing they would be heard Implement these active listening techniques in your next team meeting and see the difference! #Leadership #CivilEngineering #SoftwareEngineering