5 Lessons from the Ryder Cup - getting a group of individual experts to team

5 Lessons from the Ryder Cup  - getting a group of individual experts to team

Coaching a sales leader this week, the conversation turned to how he could get more out his sales team, each of whom are a country manager for a different European country.

While recognising that they were focused on their own country, he wanted his team; to think about the collective regional target; to go the extra mile on their results if one of the other countries was having a bad quarter to make up the collective gap; to share best practice and to support each other; to work together without him, the leader, having to always make it happen.

It all sounded great but like many organisations each team member is compensated on their own country and not on any regional achievement. And naturally they focused on their number and their country and found a lot of the aspired behaviours above a distraction from that already challenging task. The sales leader said “they are playing the same sport but facing different conditions and opponents”

We could be talking about any group of experts – sales people, engineers, developers, or accountants.  Driven and measured on individual success, how could a leader get them to team more and why would they bother?

The Ryder Cup this weekend involves 24 muliti-millionaires (Rory McIlroy won $11.5 million last weekend alone) who spend their careers trying to beat each other in pursuit of personal glory and fortune.

And yet every two years they divide into two teams (one of which, Europe, is not even a strong identity in any sport, never mind in politics), play for free, and talk and act as if it really is one of the biggest occasions in their careers.

Scott Tannenbaum, an expert in team science   (see a great talk he did for NASA at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibBtQG5Thxc ) emphasises that all teams do not need the same level of teamwork and that interdependcy is the key influence on how much teamwork your team needs.

For example a sales team or a gymnastics team may prepare together, cheer each other on but they perform solo and adding up all the individual scores gets you the team score. This is low interdependency.

Medium interdependency involves some members needing to coordinate, some of the time. Like a relay race.

A high interdependent team is like a soccer or basketball team where all members coordinate consistently and they need a shared mental model of how to defend and attack.

The sales leader is not looking for a high interdependent team as that would serve no purpose but he is grappling with seeing if his team of sales managers can leverage better and more consistent results through some combination of low and medium interdependency.

What can my sales leader learn from the successful captains of Ryder Cup teams in how they get their teams to gel and succeed when the concept, the skills and behaviours, and the rewards of being in a team are the opposite of what these golfers do their whole careers. Can they help him increase the level of interdependency among his country managers?

I looked at the strategies and tactics of the last winning captains of both teams, Paul McGinley (2014) and Paul Azinger (2008), to see if any commonalities and lessons exist for us in organisations ( see book references below)

The key five themes that emerged are as follows;

1. Create teams based on personalities:

The Ryder Cup captains don't actually need to create a team of 12 – the competition requires 12 games involving pairs and then all player play against another player on the final day.  Getting the 12 pairings right is key to success.

Azinger used personality tools to group his team into three pods of four (one pod for example was made of the more aggressive players, one pod was of the more steady players etc) and he got these pods to focus on being a team by stating that the pairings would always be from a pod. Don't worry about the other 8 guys – focus on the 3 you might be paired with.

The sales leader could look at getting the sales leaders for tier 1 countries like France and Germany being more of a team while maybe pairing up the leaders from central European countries. Or creating pods based on similar personalities. He doesn't have to get all his team teaming if there is no value or meaning to it.

2. Stay on message:

Both McGinley and Azinger drilled into their team to stay on message. McGinley’s message was that the USA Captain Tom Watson was a hero and to talk up the USA team.  He wanted his team to play on perceived US arrogance. Azinger got his team to keep saying they were the underdogs.

Interestingly, this week the 2016 USA Captain Davis Love stated that he had maybe the greatest team ever assembled – a claim that has created more pressure on his team and attracted scorn in the US and in Europe.

The sales leader could create a common message for himself and his team that could be communicated to all employees and /or to corporate teams , about their region. “As  a region we want to achieve x. Be part of our success!”

3. Motivation is individual:

Common sense but not common practice. The sales leader I spoke with has not been having 1 to 1’s and when he does talk to his team members it is only about the numbers.

After a poor performance at the end of day 1, Anthony Kim was challenged directly by Azinger to step up and play better. Kim was one of the aggressive pod members and Azinger knew that that kind of challenge would work for Kim in a way that would not work for say one of the steady pod.

Before the 2014 Ryder Cup, Martin Kaymer was not playing well. McGinley arrived a day early to a tournament in the US in order to play a few holes with Kaymer to encourage him. Kaymer reflected later that McGinley being respectful and supportive really helped him. McGinley took a different approach with Lee Westwood when he publically stated that Westwood would need to do more to get a place on the team. Both Kaymer and Westwood made the team and contributed key wins towards winning the cup.

4. Leverage the wider system:

Azinger purposely involved the caddies, the player’s wives and the grounds men in certain decisions with the intention of them feeling involved but also in them supporting the players. He also purposely got the players to look directly at the crowd (golfers usually try to avoid interacting with the crowd) and to make sure each player carried extra hats and goodies to hand out to the crowd so that the US fans felt involved and would be more vocal.

McGinley made sure that any players not playing in day 1 or 2 had a clear role on the course to support their teammates.

Could the sales leader involve the marketing team, the presales people , the sales reps and global teams to be involved in making the region successful and in supporting his direct report?

5. Know your role and value as a leader;

The classic image of a Ryder Cup captain is of them in a golf buggy driving from hole to hole shouting encouragement. Sounds like a sales leader jumping from call to call, and deal to deal. 

Both McGinley and Azinger made it clear to their team that their role , to quote McGinley “ was not to be a cheerleader out there for the players and I told them that from the very first meeting. My job was to plot our next move as a team"

The sales director or any leader needs to share with their team where they can or cannot add value and to ensure they don't get in the way of the team. The leader needs to get out of the weeds and be plotting the next move.

But why bother with any of this teaming stuff if I can be a hero winning on my own?

For the golfers, it is the pressure and the joy of playing for others, of achieving something they cannot do on their own, of excelling with their peers…. and if they play well and win, it helps their personal brand and endorsements too. Could the sales managers get the same kick out of being more of a team?

Colm

References;

Showdown; the Inside Story of the Gleneagles Ryder Cup by Iain Carter

Cracking the Code – The Winning Ryder Cup Strategy: Make it work for You by Paul Azinger and Ron Braund

The curious incident of the leader who came out of his cockpit

The curious incident of the leader who came out of his cockpit

It happened last April. At the time it took me a few minutes to figure out what was different.

Its impact has stayed me since then. And I have told a few of my coaching clients the story to illustrate a point regarding their leadership.

It was about 7pm in a plane on the tarmac at London City Airport. All the passengers had the usual look of weariness from a combination of a day’s work and the usual battle required to get through airports in this day and age.

We were waiting for the  “final few passengers” or the plane was “going through its final checks or something” when the captain turned on the PA system and spoke to the passengers about the expected flight time, the flight path and the weather in Dublin.

Nothing strange in any of that. But it was not what he said that stayed with me but HOW he did it.

The pilot did something I have never seen before or since. He came out of the highly secured cockpit, picked up the phone that the steward/stewardesses use and he looked at us and we looked at him as he spoke.

This was the man you was going to take a 100 people and lots of fuel up into the air and down again safely and instead of a voice in the ether we got to see the leader.

And it made a difference. I paid more attention to what he was saying, I bizarrely felt safer because I got see him and he wanted to see us, and I felt respected after two hours of being treated like just another object moving through check in and security. It changed my mood.

Why do I tell the story to my clients – cause too many have got caught leading their teams through emails or from behind the “always busy” closed office door.

The pilot didn't have to stand there in front of his passengers. Am sure he could have found something else to do.

But it had a powerful impact on me.  Still does 4 months later.

So is it time you come out of your cockpit and be visible to your team and organization?

J is for Contemplation

Since the New Year has started we have been bombarded with media coverage about resolutions, goal setting and finding the new detoxed version of oneself.

Never mind the previous 11 equally suitable months we are told - it's January and you need to not only have a life changing plan but you better be acting upon it - so pay the annual subscription to the gym, swear off chocolate and alcohol forever and invite that mad spinster aunt you never visit over for Sunday lunch quick. 

 In 1994 James Prochaska published his research on how people successfully self changed which he had used to transform the success rates in New England in helping people give up smoking ( and his is the model still used in the NHS in the UK and by other bodies for addiction treatment).

His researched identified 6 key stages that we go through for successful self change to occur.

He emphasized that no one stage was more important than another and the success at any stage was dependent on completing the previous stage. Time spent on a particular stage could range from hours to years.

Prochaska also highlighted that successful change inevitably involved 3 to 4 attempts through the process and rarely happened in one attempt.

His six key stages are;

1. Pre- contemplation where the person kind of knows something needs to change but is not willing to think about change or deflects away the need to change through denial or rationalisiation.

2. Contemplation where the person accepts the possibility of changing but needs to complete the cost benefit analysis of the change and be convinced that benefit wins out before they move on to the next step.

3. Preparation where we get into planning, both for the start of something but also to surround ourselves with a more favorable environment for change to happen.

4. Action - doing it, giving it a go, the stuff of Nike slogans

5. Maintenace by turning the change into a habit and embedding it into everyday life by re shaping the plan or refining the original goal.

6. Termination which is when the risk of going back to old ways is minimal regardless of the existence of stress or stimulus.

Circling back up to the January hype, the focus on Preparation and Action is flawed because most of us have not spent any time in Contemplation reviewing the costs and benefits of our plans. Hence the gyms around the world are full in January and empty in March, and the self help experts and organic yoga holistic therapists can go on holidays in Spring with the money we have paid over and wait till another January frenzy comes about.

Spend January in Contemplation, use the chilly days and nights to reflect, to  do your cost benefit, to build your commitment;  and then go do your plan and spring into Action with the arrival of lambs, brighter evenings and 6 Nations Rugby.

Ready to health check your team?

How healthy is your team?

Most of us get our car checked once a year; we should be getting our bodies checked every few years;  and more and more leaders are being "encouraged" to do 360s regularly so they know how their leadership is perceived. 

So what about a health check of your team? You know, that group of people you and your organisation are relying on to do more with less.

What would a team health check look like?

Using 1 to 1 interviews (ideally) or an online survey, the whole team is asked for feedback on 

- the team's Purpose ( How clear is it? What is it? Is everyone going in the same direction? Is it compelling and aligned to the business? Do we have team goals that get reviewed regularly?)

- the team's Talent ( Does the talent match the purpose? Are individuals' skills being fully used? Are roles and responsibilities clear?)

- the team's Norms  (What are the conscious or unconscious rules of being in this team eg can the boss be challenged? How are decisions made? Are these norms productive or unproductive?)

- the team's Commitment ( Are individuals really committed to the team and it's success? What is the one team jersey people wear - of this team or some other team? Is the work of the team energetic and vital?)

- the team's Dynamics ( How is conflict dealt with? What are the patterns of energy in the team? What is the level of trust in the team?)

-the team's Core Learning ( How does the team learn from its successes and failures? Do team members give each other feedback?)

and of course, the life blood of any team; 

- the team's Performance/Results ( What are the team's performance measures? How are they assessed? Does the team get recognised?)

The individual team member responses are compiled through one to one interviews or via a survey, analysed, and then shared with the whole team, ideally as a one day workshop with the morning focused on the results (the range of scores within the team being as important as the average score) and the rest of the day focused on key gaps to develop and action planing. 

What are key conditions for a successful team checkup?

1. The whole team, not just the leader, needs to be up for it (nothing worse than having a blood test done when your veins don't want to be there) so it needs team commitment.

2. The leader needs to be prepared not to take anything personally - easier said then done sometimes as there may be implied criticism in the scores.  The leader needs to be able to role model the openness and courage it takes in having their team reviewed.

3. The leader is part of the team and definitely part of the diagnostic and debrief (I would have concerns if the leader didn't want to be involved or the rest of the team didn't want them involved - that's A&E material straight away for any team)

4. Teams don't exist in a vacuum - they are co-missioned by key stakeholders who have expectations of the team and who ultimately define team success or failure. Why not involve these stakeholders in the survey process so that their perceptions and expectations of the team are explicit and can guide the team.

Finally, self examination has its obvious challenges as we can be blind to certain things or not have the skill to explore issues.
An experienced team coach can bring the expertise and the external view that makes this a safe yet challenging process for any team, be they a new team, a stuck team  or even a perceived high performing team.

Health checks are about awareness - what is working, what needs to be improved. Isn't it time for your team to look in the mirror?

Televising your Team Meetings - what would the show be called?

The ideal is that Team Meetings are platforms for getting work done. A way for a group of people to deliver on their Common Endeavour, a demonstration of what they can achieve together as opposed to separately. Performing is key.

Everyone is engaged, excited to be there, stretched, challenged and challenging.

Yeah right!

I believe in everything I have written above and I work to help my team coaching clients to get there but practical experience shows that most team meetings are more likely to fall into the following categories;

Antiques Roadshow
Each meeting and every agenda is about the past - last week, last quarter, last year. What we did, why we did it, what worked, what didn't.

There is of course value in review and reflection but teams don't thrive and get energised on the past - teams perform on the now and for the future.  Death by looking in the rear view mirror


Winning Streak
I better give some context. This is an Irish tv show (but I am sure every country has one like it) where members of the public win, via a scratch card, a place on a TV show with the chance to win ten to fifty thousand euro via a spinning wheel and other random non skill related games.

But this program is so bad that despite the chance of winning big money most people I know would say that if they won the opportunity to be on the show that they would ask someone else to represent them as the personal shame and humiliation of appearing on it  would be too much. Even the presenters (large L for light, small e for entertainers) don't want to be there.

I see lots of Winning Streak meetings - no one wants to be there (watch the body language and the volume of email done during the meeting) or they keep sending someone else in their place. The kinder team members say things like "its only an hour a week", the less kind add up those 52 hours a year and day dream (while in the meeting) about how they could have been better spent.

The format is dull and unimaginative, no one knows the purpose of the meeting and no real work is done so there is no value.

The Apprentice
It is all about me showing everyone how clever I am and maybe, as a bonus, showing how clever you are not. People grab every opportunity to hold the microphone and convince themselves and others how great they are.

While one person is talking, everyone else is preparing their own speech or looking for attack points in what is being said.

Being visible to the boss is the key objective of a few while the silent majority are ....silent...either because they don't want to play the game or the risk of being stabbed in the back is too high. And the boss - they are either blind or get a kick from the fake hero worship.

Concepts such as common purpose, common accountability, common responsibility flee after the first meeting.

Shooting Stars
This is a comedy game show populated with celebrates. And from there it just descends into chaos and madness with the resulting look of confusion and nervousness on the faces of the celebs.

I love it as a show but as a team meeting nothing is ever achieved in the chaos of is the meeting on or not, who is or is not attending, will the boss turn up and what will be today's crisis or key imperative compared to the different crisis and key imperative of the week before and the week before.

No team norms, no acceptable or unacceptable behaviour and often just turns into a bitching and moaning session.


So which tv shows do the meetings you attend resemble?

In or Out of the Swimming Pool

We have been trying the find the right swimming class for our young boys  - a class where they will obviously learn, have fun and of course be safe.

And after trying out a number of options and talking to other parents, a key differentiator has emerged and it is this - does the instructor get into the pool or not.

I have been amazed at the number of classes where the teacher stays at the edge of the pool and tells the kids in the water what to do. In or Out? - it seems a no brainer which would be most effective and that is what we have found in terms of which classes helped the boys learn and have fun.

So it got me thinking about whether we in our roles as leaders and managers perform our roles in or out of the pool.

Do you stay out of the pool?- spend a lot of time in your office, lot of time in meetings that are not at the coal face, find yourself giving lots direction and instructions through email? All important and justifiable (but then I am sure the swimming instructors have their good reasons for not getting into the pool too).

What would being in the pool more look like for you?

• Attending customer meetings with your team?
• Attending meetings with the customers of your internal customers?
• Shadowing a key stakeholder for a morning?
• Walking around the factory or office floor and making time to talk to the team?
• Committing to and doing 1 to 1's?
• Having skip level meetings with the folks a few levels below you?
• Have lunch with your people as opposed to at your desk?

Does this make a difference?  It sure did for my kids and their swimming (they have made leaps and bounds since moving to a class with the teacher in the water with them). But in business?

The Sales Executive Council published research that a sales team performance went up 17% just from 2 hours a month of coaching from their manager.

So Summer is here (kind of) - why not pull on your leadership speedos (no one will see them I promise) and get into the water with your people.

Resurrecting your career by following the rules of the stock market

It's resurrection time as mother nature comes back to life after the Autumn and Winter recess.

So let's look at a common coaching challenge I often see - resurrecting one's career in your current organisation.

The fact that one's career needs help can often catch you unawares, like the lobster not noticing the rising temperature of the water around it in the pot.The awareness that there's an issue often comes from some form of comment or feedback from a boss or senior stakeholder  through a process like a 360. 

The analogy I use with clients who find themselves in this situation is that of their personal stock price. Historically they have experienced career advancement,  their stock price consistently rising. But now suddenly we discover that people are selling as opposed to buying the individual's stock.

Here are the steps I advise my clients to follow to get their career growing again

1. Get to the issue.

Be relentless in finding out what the perceived problem is - why is your stock price falling. Even if you have feedback, go back and get even more specific feedback. The more data you have on why people have a specific perception of you and your career, the more focused you can be in addressing the perception.

2. Identity the institutional investors in your career.

Stock prices are not based on individuals like you and me trading - its all about the pension funds and the big institutional shareholders - their decisions move the market. So as opposed to convincing the whole organization how great you are, identify who the big institutional investors are in your career. This may or may not include your manager depending on how senior they are. Very often it is some key folks a couple of levels above you in the company.

3. Get a sponsor to help you demonstrate value to the institutional investors. 

Companies need intermediaries to get them in front of investors and venture capitalists. So do you. Who is going to get you in front of the senior people while also selling your worth to them when you are not in the room. This is were a supportive boss or mentor can really help you.

4. Communicate, Communicate, Communicate.

Wall Street does not support a stock just because they like you or think that you may have value - they buy based on stated intentions, follow through on those intentions, demonstrated results and constant communication of all these. You need to start broadcasting to your sponsor on a regular basis so they can both sell you and challenge negative perceptions about you that come up in senior leadership meetings. And you need to broadcast, on an appropriate basis, to the big investors in your organisations to show them your impact and value. This is not PR over results - it is visibility into your results.

The four steps above have helped my clients get focus and leverage to rebuild their personal stock price.

But! But if the above steps represent plan A, I always encourage my clients to start building a plan B no matter how tentatively. Sometimes the perception is so ingrained with very senior people that at some point one needs to be able to cut ones loses and go elsewhere. In other words, you need to think about refloating your stock in a new market.

PS: the other bit of resurrection going on here is with my blog which has been dormant for over a year. I want to try and make it a more regular process for me

Two lessons I learnt last month from Mai and Dave;

1. Don't write for perfection - just put your thoughts out there i.e. let the writer me, not the editor me, own this process.

2. Write for a few mins every day - something will come out of the simple discipline.