It's not just Ogres that have layers!

If you have ever seen the first Shrek animated film, you probably remember the scene between Shrek and Donkey - Ogres are link onions (not because they stink or make you cry). 'Layers! Onions have layers. Ogres have layers.' But when we really think about it, it's not just ogres. Teams and the members that make them up have layers as well!

Based on our experiences and knowledge we gain along our careers, we know how important it is to dive into team dynamics. Whether you are thinking about a leadership team, sports team, product team, cross-functional or other - one cannot ignore that these are not one-dimensional. But where to start? As there are stages from awareness, to understanding to action.

Let's just scratch the surface and highlight just some of the layers to a team:

• Collective knowledge

• Demographics

• Experiences (industry, organization, etc.)

• Roles & Responsibilities

• Expectations & motivation (to be apart of that team)

• and more...

Now, if that wasn't already adding complexity, a team is made up of individual that bring some of the following layers into the mix:

• Culture background

• Personal experiences (private and professional)

• Personalities

• Skills (and skill gaps)

• Personal motivation

• and more

Now this was not to get you overwhelmed, its about building awareness to the layers so that one can have a better understanding of the dynamics which hopefully leads to reflection and action. At Bold2Move, team dynamics is not a buzzword, it's a passion. We, of course, reflect often on Bruce W. Tuckman's 4 stages of a team: forming, storming, norming and performing. Which is a powerful tool when looking at teams and having an idea of where they may be in the journey. When we support our clients with challenges or development opportunities, uncovering and discovering these layers is essential.

Some of those layers that it is important to consider, as a leader or individual contributor in a team include:

• 🦁Brave spaces --> Its more than about comfort or psychological safety. Do team members feel they can be curious, take risks, raise challenges, and give feedback, for example?

• ⤵️Deeper understanding --> Leaders and teams need more than a pizza party and some fun facts about colleagues. Instead, is time and effort spent to get to know each others layers? That the team also priorities the people side and not just the profit, targets and results side.

• ⚙️Core habits --> Meaning, as a new or growing team, are you establishing new habits together, trying to change old ones or even unlearn some habits?

• 🏗️Foundation setting --> the team must work together to understand why they are there and where are they going.

• 🔄️Ways of working --> check out an old post for more details. When it comes to team dynamics, it is important to establish what this means to the team and how should it evolve.

• ⚓Sustainably anchoring --> This can be new to some, but at Bold2Move, we work with clients so they can be future fit. Therefore, its important to not just look at today but future needs as well.

Over the next few weeks, we will continue to share some our knowledge on the above and how it relates to team dynamics. And of course, also share our thought leaders worth checking out.

What do you want to hear more about on the topic of team dynamics? What are challenges or pain points your team is encounter? Tell us in the comments below.

Are you a new leader? Is your team growing faster than you can imagine? Or is your team still in that storming or norming phase? Spar with us to see how we can move your team into performing, book a complimentary advisory hour today!