Signature Engagement: Team Coaching

team coaching

What are the telltale signs of a dysfunctional team?

Do you recognise ANY of these signs?

  • Team members who are no longer sharing information openly
  • Members talk "about each other" and not with each other
  • There is no such thing such as healthy debates happening anymore. Team members are avoiding any form of conflict
  • Blaming others is the default reaction upon failure
  • Everyone is "protecting their own turf"
  • People are not open to other ideas among each other
  • It is hard to get a commitment from each other

Or maybe these?

  • Team members do not hold each other accountable for their commitments
  • Managers are on cc (or even worse on bcc) on every piece of communication
  • If a team project fails or shows poor results, the individual team members don't care, as long as THEY themselves are not to blame

If any of the above signs are observable in a team, then the team is no longer functional.

The negative effects of such a team climate are easily observable in the results of the project that teams like these are working on. Often these projects won't even be seen through to the end, and will be abandoned instead.

If the team in question is in fact a company leadership team, the effects are exponentially more impactful, as the ripple effects create confusion and insecurities all the way down the hierarchy. Hence:

Leadership teams MUST NOT be dysfunctional - ever!

Blue Horizon Training's approach to solving dysfunctional teams is systemic. We work with your team to expose the degree of dysfunction across 5 levels:

  1. Absence of Trust
  2. Fear of Conflict
  3. Lack of Commitment
  4. Avoidance of Accountability
  5. Inattention to Results

We educate the team on how these 5 layered dimensions can either support and enhance the success of company, team and individual - or if lacking, will inevitable lead to failure to compete, loss of business, loss of employed talent, as well as individual misery.  

This is how we help:

Step 1

We execute a self-assessment designed to visualize and rate the level of dysfunction in the team, regarding the 5 dimensions above. This creates a transparent view on where the core issues lie. Often, it is very eye-opening to the team, putting the finger where the wound is, in a manner of speaking.

Step 2

Working through these 5 layers, starting with "Trust", we create or re-create the fundament upon which every single wildly successful team on this planet has ever been built upon. This is the toughest part of the journey for the participants of the team, and requires advanced facilitation skills.

In continuation, we work through the other 4 layers for conflict, commitment, accountability and focus on results. Each of those build upon each other and on Trust.

Step 3

If needed, Blue Horizon Training can follow up with individual coaching to help accelerate the removal of dysfunction. We can also engage in individual conflict resolution mediation. This type of engagement is often a catalyst for becoming a fully functional team faster.

Sizing of the Team Coaching Engagement

Ideally, this type of team coaching is sized in the way that it allows ample time for the team members to truly internalize the conversations that are happening. A coach would work with our team multiple times over the course of a few months in order to help drive tangible team development and improvements. We will work with you to customize the depth of the team coaching based on your preferences.

Benefits and Outcomes

📍 Your business goals matter, and you can't have your talented associates and leaders self-sabotage the outcomes

📍 If any leadership team is dysfunctional, it stifles the whole organization. Fixing this can get the organization back on track with productivity, competitiveness and innovation

📍 You need different departments to work together in cross-functional teams. Dysfunctional teams develop a "we versus them" mindset that is toxic. 

📍 Your best talent among your associates always has options: stop losing your best talent to your competitors because of a toxic work climate

Please call or email us to get in touch with us. We're here to answer your questions and advise you based on your particular situation