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It has been a season of Paris and Britney, Lindsay and Nicole and all the other “frenemies”. What can you learn from them?
When you read about and watch the antics of these seemingly useless, vapid non-contributors to society, you can really question what redeemable value there is in their stories. However, I think there is a lesson for business is their escapades, frolics and foolishness.
You may be shocked but they sometimes remind me of how executive and professional teams often work – or don’t work - together. Sadly, many teams can be sidelined by people who pay lip-service to their colleagues in the regular weekly meeting but then really work from their own agendas outside. They advertise their pet projects and pull stunts that gain leadership attention and put the spotlight on them. They meet privately to steal resources from their fellow executives (like boyfriends to the summer girls). Politics play out with people working together some weeks and then not in other weeks. Team members can become silos – energy is wasted putting out individual fires and no one really worries about how it all plays together for the common good.
I may be harsh here but does it sound familiar – maybe some parts of it?
What needs to happen for a team to work effectively together is accountability for shared goals. Your team needs to have goals that require them to be accountable for working together. Progress is measured on actions they take as a team – and not for results realized individually in their own departments.
When team members see how the contribution of other executives or professionals impact on their overall success, they start to work better together.
Paris and the girls may get a lot of print right now but they are flashes in the pan. Working together effectively as a team will realize a sustainable, long-term spotlight in the winner’s circle. Find common goals to work together as a winning team and be accountable for them.
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