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There are few things in life that better demonstrate the principles of a high-performance team than watching a Formula One tyre change in the pit stop.
In 2016 the Williams Team, consisting of 23 members, completed a pit stop for Brazilian former Formula One racing driver Felipe Massa in 1.89 seconds.
The secret behind this eye-blinking pit-stop speed (compared to the almost one minute it took in the 1950s) is more members, more training and better tools, explains Driver 61, a resource for track day and racing drivers, in an in-depth analysis.
Tony Dovale, founder of team-building firm, Life Masters in Johannesburg, says that each member of the team has an absolutely clear idea of their function and what the impact of it is.
Their training has been embedded in their muscle memory and they have the strength, agility and capability to execute their tasks.
In large organisations, teamwork, similar to that demonstrated by the Williams team, is the foundation of everything that happens in the operation.
However, not all teams can sustain such focus for 12 hours a day. The building of a team that will be able to perform optimally is therefore crucial, says Dovale.
Joseph Folkman, founder of leadership development firms Novations and Zenger Folkman, writes in Forbes that the elements of a great team are energy, enthusiasm and a sense of belonging.
“This team make work fun, exiting and an adventure every day,” he notes.
However, many people may find themselves in the team from hell where there is constant conflict and disagreement, where some members simply keep their heads down, and others are fine with throwing team members under the bus if it helps them get ahead.
In this case, “[work] is painful, hard and exhausting, but vacations are wonderful merely because you escape the team”.
In an analysis of the data set from his firms, Folkman’s researchers discovered five key dimensions that were essential to high-performance teams:
Team leaders inspire more than they drive
Leaders in high-performance teams know how to create energy and enthusiasm. Team members feel they have a mission and that their work is of “great importance”, Folkman says.
Team leaders resolve conflicts and increase cooperation
Conflicts can tear teams apart, he writes in the Forbes article. “Often team leaders assume that mature people will resolve conflict on their own. If that were true, however, there would be no divorce, separations or war.”
Conflicts need to be dealt with swiftly. Team leaders who focus on competition rather than cooperation never achieve outstanding results.
Team leaders set ‘stretch goals’
People want to do something “extraordinary”. When they accomplish something that is extraordinary, they recognise that they personally are capable and competent.
Team leaders communicate the direction
Leaders “stay on the message” and constantly remind the team what they need to accomplish.
Team leaders are trusted
A lack of trust slows everything down. There are three pillars that build trust, according to Folkman. The first is relationships – building positive ones enhances trust. The second is knowledge and expertise, and the third is consistency.
Life Masters’ Dovale says when putting the team together, it is critical to look at each member individually – what is the person’s mindset, level of resilience, sense of identity and “self-talk”?
Individuals who are more aware of their internal thinking, dialogue and core value system are better able to create cohesion, connection and trust within a team.
Dovale has developed a system called CLEARx which offers a framework within which the building blocks of a high-performance team can be stacked.
It requires a Constructive organisational culture, Leadership, Energy and engagement, Appreciative action, Right-mindedness, and eXecution.
The culture of the organisation is demonstrated in the way new people are “on-boarded” and integrated to feel part of the organisation and their team.
The leaders must align and energise team members to ensure they are focused on moving together and in the same direction. It is their task to “synchronise the efforts” of team members.
Increasingly, employees are becoming more disengaged at the workplace. Being part of a high-performance team requires that “people show up and bring their best to the game”.
Dovale says one cannot build a high-performance team with people who think they know it all. “You need people who are resourceful, resilient and who work on their relationships with others.”
Excellence is the only objective when it comes to execution, he maintains.
The team
A team whose members have absolute clarity about what they need to achieve today, this week, this month or this year will incorporate celebration, recognition and validation for the strategically important things it achieves, says Dovale.
“Clear deadlines, incremental steps to achieve goals and accountability for achieving the goals will help the team to accelerate like a Formula One racing car.”
The size of the team depends on the work that needs to be done. Dovale considers a core team of five to seven members ideal.
He refers to the “consciously constructive workplace” where employees are developed daily. Everybody gets the training, not only the “best ones”, and it is done regularly rather than intermittently.
The introduction of training session of at least one hour per week or preferably 30 minutes per day is “gym for the brain”.
That is how the organisation builds capacity and competence, which enables people to be part of high-performance teams, says Dovale.
“Life is good on a high-performance team,” says Folkman. “We all deserve to be a part of one.”
This article originally appeared in the 1 March edition of finweek. Buy and download the magazine here.
