Colin D. Ellis's Blog, page 17

The 5 Behaviours of Effective Distributed Teams

One of the positive things to come out of the current COVID-19 lockdown measures is the ‘forced’ necessary shift towards people working remotely. Those organisations that have previously resisted remote or flexible working have had to adapt... quickly.

Of course, not every job is best suited to working remotely and not everyone wants to work remotely. However, many organisations have now proved it’s possible and perhaps, post-COVID, it will become part of their overall workplace culture. 

By offering flexible working arrangements organisations will have a larger pool of candidates to pick from and will generate greater cultural vibrancy as they move from a model where trust has to be earned to one where trust is assumed.

Having team members geographically distributed doesn’t mean that targets get missed, employees are disengaged or that there is a disconnect between those at home and those in the office. In fact as technology improves and internet speeds increase, it should become almost seamless (although we’re not there yet!).

A quick definition of what I mean by ‘distributed team’. A distributed team is one where the people work in different locations but have access to the same technology and tools.

Of crucial importance to a distributed team is that they agree on the behaviours that they expect of each other and the rituals they will use to enhance collaboration at the start of a piece of work so that everyone understands how work is going to get delivered. Often they will fly to a central location to agree to this prior to work starting. Where the opportunity exists to build relationships in person, they will take it as it means that they're much easier to maintain online.

When this is not possible (such as right now!) those teams will agree on the behaviours and rituals via video conference and ensure accountability exists to hold each other to them.

Dom Price, Work Futurist at Atlassian, wrote about this two years ago and I recommend reading his blog here, which is as relevant now as it was then.  

Most distributed teams are good at agreeing on how they’ll collaborate. Which tool will be used for what and how updates will be provided. However, in my experience of working with distributed teams over the last three years, they are less effective at agreeing the behaviours that they will display towards each other. Without this agreement collaboration is much more difficult.

So here’s what I believe are the five most important behaviours for distributed teams, however, these may differ for you depending on how ‘mature’ your relationships are with each other. 

Disciplined

Define what success looks like and remove barriers to getting things done

Use time productively and say no to unproductive activities

Deliver to deadlines

Set expectations clearly

Flexible

Not fixed to a single way of working or prescribed cultural norm

Open to new ideas and solutions

Embraces change as a positive

Good at re-prioritising work

Collaborative

Makes time for relationship building 

Builds an environment that supports different ways of working

Develops a shared vision, collective ownership and responsibility for progress

Continually looks for smarter ways to do things

Courageous

Challenges each other to hit targets

Ask for forgiveness not permission

Manages poor performance and behaviour

Challenges insufficient processes

Empathetic

Able to understand and share the feelings of other team members

Creates a safe environment where everyone feels welcome and able to participate

Communication tailored to the individual needs

Offers to help others when their priorities are more pressing

These behaviours also apply to non-distributed teams, however, they are especially important when not co-located. Given that culture is the sum of everyone’s attitudes, beliefs, behaviours, traditions and skills it’s important that the whole team is involved in defining the culture and how the behaviours will be demonstrated on a daily basis. Introducing accountability will further enhance teamwork and ensure that everyone can bring their best self to their work every day.

Once you gain the buy-in, you will reap the benefits that a vibrant culture brings, the main one being happiness of staff. And who doesn’t want to be happy in their work, wherever it takes place?!

As ever I’m always interested in your thoughts, so feel free to comment below, contact me at colin@colindellis.com or over on the ‘socials’!

6 Tips for Effective Remote Working

Remote working should be something that all organisations offer regardless of whether there is the possibility of a pandemic or not. Family commitments, medical appointments and home deliveries are all part of our lives so being able to offer flexibility is something that all people-focused companies should do.

Every now and then we’ll also have large-scale issues, such as we are facing now with coronavirus, that will require extra measures to be taken.

The spread of the coronavirus has seen events like South by Southwest and the Atlassian Summit in Vegas (where I was due to speak) cancelled, football matches postponed or played behind closed doors. This past weekend the Pope delivered his Angelus prayer via video to an empty St Peter’s Square; elsewhere people were fighting in supermarket aisles over toilet paper.

Whilst travel is being kept to a minimum it’s still unavoidable for many people and those people face the prospect of having to potentially self isolate.

In cases such as these where medical advice stipulates that a person stay inside, every organisation has to remember that they have a duty of care towards their people and ensure that they’re paid and looked after during the period of isolation.

They can also ensure - where possible - that staff are set up to work remotely with a minimum of fuss, thus reducing the need for travel and possible exposure or else to provide different alternatives to coming into the office.

It’s never been easier to work remotely thanks to fast internet connections (Australia excepted!), collaboration tools and a more relaxed view of when people need to be in the office. Cisco is one such organisation that values this. 

Almost 90% of their employees telecommute once a week. This saves over 3 million hours of commuting, providing them with $270m more productive time and stopping over 47,000 tons of carbon from being pumped into the atmosphere. The numbers for remote working certainly stack up.

Having a well-defined culture provides the foundation for great remote working. Agreement on the six pillars of culture - personality and communication, vision, values, behaviour, collaboration and innovation - ensure that everyone understands what’s expected of them at all times and keeps them both physically and emotionally connected.

If your organisation has yet to do this work, then here are six tips - three for the organisation, three for the individual - for more effective remote working.

FOR THE ORGANISATION

1. Trust your people

It seems ridiculous to start with this point, but I still think that many organisations see trust as something that needs to be ‘earned’ rather than ‘assumed’. Indeed one survey found that 78% of people don’t fully trust their workmates! If you’ve taken the time and effort to hire people that have the technical and emotional skills to do the job, then do point number 3 really well and let them get on with it. If you expect the worst of people then it’s likely that you’ll get it.

2. Invest in collaboration tools

There are literally hundreds of tools that you can use to stay connected which you should be using regardless of whether people are working remotely or not, in order to cut down on the amount of email sent. It’s important that you pick one, ensure that everyone is trained on how to use it properly, that it is used consistently and evolves over time to stay relevant. 

3. Set expectations well

By far the biggest issue with remote working is the fact that expectations are neither set or managed well. Expectations around how the individual sets themselves up for success (see below), about when they should be on and offline or simply about the quality of their deliverables. When expectations are set and managed well, the work gets done.

FOR THE INDIVIDUAL

1. Set up your workspace

Just because you’re not in the office doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t set up your workspace properly. To work from home effectively you need a good internet connection, a laptop or PC with all of the right applications installed and preferably a light space in which to work in. You also need to remove all distractions to allow you to focus on the job at hand.

2. Establish your routines

No lounging around in your PJs all day, let’s deal with that one first. Whilst you don’t have to get dressed in office attire, you still have to get dressed, unless your surname is Lebowski! Your attitude has to be right and you can’t be putting the washing on or popping to the shops. The simple rule when working from home is to ask yourself ‘Would I do this if I was in the office?’ If the answer is ‘no’, then it can wait until you finish for the day. 

3. Stay in constant contact

Working remotely can be a lonely business, so it’s critically important that you stay in touch. Chat tools can definitely help, but it’s also nice to see another face or speak to someone on the phone. Video conferencing is so simple to use these days that it’s a mistake not to use it. Oh and when people dial you in for meetings, you have to remain focused, you can’t be tapping away on your laptop or nipping to get a drink. Don’t forget the simple rule from point number 2!

With a little bit of trust, preparation and discipline, working remotely can be just as effective as being in the office. It’s not the future, it’s here now. What are you doing to set yourself up for success?

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Your Job Title Is Not What You Do or Who You Are

Hi Neil, I’m Colin. What do you do? I’m a Project Manager.

Hi Sarah, I’m Colin. What do you do? I’m a Marketing Analyst.

Hi Simon, I’m Colin. What do you do? I work in HR.

Hi Brenda, I’m Colin. What do you do? I’m an IT Manager.

At every event I speak at this is what I hear time and time again when I introduce myself to people. There’s no more uninspiring way to introduce yourself than by telling people your job title or whereabouts in the organisation hierarchy you sit.

Your job title is the thing on your job description, the thing you put on LinkedIn to demonstrate the roles that you’ve had and it’s the thing you put on recruitment websites so that people can easily find people with similar job titles.

Make no mistake though, this is not what you do or who you are. 

You are more than these two, three (or however many!) words. You have more personality, experience and skills than these words can convey. You are working on complex things, have a great deal of influence (often more than you realise) on the outcomes of projects, large and small. You have passions, insecurities, fears, goals and emotions.

Of course, sometimes in social situations we get nervous and it’s hard to string a coherent sentence together. So rather than have to think on the spot, it’s easy to default to the thing on our business card or email signature. But it doesn’t have to be that way. With a little creativity and some practice we can all get better at introductions.

Introductions are important. They allow you to communicate who you are and what you do in a way that’s interesting and engaging to the other parties in the conversation. An introduction gives you the opportunity to build the foundations for a relationship. Of course, if that’s not your goal then they also give you the opportunity to rehearse something so that people move on to someone else quickly!

All good relationships, however, start with a well thought out introduction. Something that describes what you do that’s honest and understandable.  Something that opens the door to further questions and demonstrates that you’re a human being just like they are.

In order to craft an introduction, ask yourself the following questions:

What do you actually do on a daily basis?

What value do you add to the people around you and the organisation(s) you work with/for?

What are your aspirations?

What are some words you want to avoid saying?

This is an exercise I often start with in workshops or executive sessions to build connections between the people that are attending. It’s a great internal and external exercise and for those of you with kids it’ll help them too! Providing they’re interested in the first place that is…

Here are some examples from recent workshops:

I provide insights into numbers so I don’t have to worry at night (CFO)

I inspire and motivate a group of disparate people to do something they don’t quite understand yet (Project Manager)

I fix things that are crucial to people’s office lives (Facilities Manager)

I make sense of the complex so customers get what they need (Business Analyst)

I push sh*t up a hill whilst trying to protect those behind me! (CEO!)

Of course, you could say that this is just a load of smoke and mirrors, but it’s a creative exercise to provide some insights into people’s daily lives. It helps to build empathy and humanity and bring everyone just a little bit closer together. It also stops people from hiding behind their titles too!

Me? I help individuals and teams around the world to transform the way they get things done and I do that through public speaking, facilitated programs and books. For the rest of the time I’m someone’s son, brother, husband and Dad who enjoys watching his football and baseball teams... but only when they win.

A job title is not what you do or who you are. How can you be more creative with your introductions?

10 ways to be the best version of you

‘Be the best version of you!’ is advice I often give from the stage, yet like most advice it’s often not useful unless we understand what it means. So in this week’s blog I’m aiming to provide you with some practical things you can do to be the best version of you in work. I recommend trying one a day, rather than them all at once, however, you decide what works best for you.

So here goes... 10 things that anyone can do to be the best version of themselves:

Show up ready to work - don’t waste those early hours of your working day. Keep the diary clear for the first half hour and smash out a task or two

Give your mind (and eyes) a rest - plan in time for procrastination, but don’t waste it by continuing to look at a screen. Head out for a walk and listen to the sounds around you

Ask someone if they need help - collaboration works best when the people in the team help each other, yet people aren’t great at asking for it. So once a day ask someone if they need help with anything

Ask for help - you can’t be good at everything, nor can you take everything on and still expect to succeed. If you’re struggling ask for help or else...

Say no to low value work - politely decline anything that you don’t believe you can add value to or else that gets in the way of what you need to get delivered at that time

Remove the distractions - leave your phone in your pocket/bag/desk when you go to a meeting, turn off notifications when you’re working on something or else turn them off altogether!

Keep your promises - if you say something will be done by Friday, that you’ll return a call, reply to an email or shout someone a coffee, then do it!

Challenge poor behaviour - if someone behaves in an unprofessional manner towards you, then say so or else if you don’t believe it’s safe to do so, then tell someone in HR who can

Smile more - the smile is the only expression that’s recognised and interpreted in the same way by every culture in the world, so if you’re having a good day, then let it show

Get to bed at a reasonable hour - OK, so this one strictly isn’t about being at work, however, none of the above are possible without a good night’s sleep. 7-8 hours should see you right.

Five Culture Mistakes to Avoid in 2020

And so here we are. The start of a new year and the start of a new decade. A time of hope, determination and commitment to do the right thing. And yet… by June (if we’re lucky)... the impetus will have probably been lost and organisations are well on with repeating the same mistakes as before.

New staff brought on to change the status quo will have hit the stagnant culture wall and either conformed or left the organisation for exciting opportunities elsewhere.

The last decade saw some pretty high-profile culture failures, so I thought I’d pick out a few and look at what lessons can be learned so we can avoid repeating history.

This list is not in any kind of order, nor are workplace failures limited to just these five, but there are only so many you can read before it becomes a dispiriting exercise! So here goes.

1.       Volkswagen

An organisation’s values are statements of what the organisation and its people hold to be true and an agreement of how they'll work together. Values provide emotional direction to those people that are part of the culture and are used to guide decision-making and behaviour.

In 2014, the values of Volkswagen were stated as Customer Focus, Top Performance, Creating Value, Renewability, Respect, Responsibility and Sustainability. Then in 2015 it was uncovered that in order to meet environmental standards around diesel fuel emissions, Volkswagen had modified the software on over 11m cars to falsify carbon dioxide emission levels. Thus going against their own values of responsibility, respect, creating value and top performance.

This decades-long falsification of results, led to the resignation of CEO Martin Winterkorn and a worldwide investigation into its practices.

Learning: An organisation’s values can’t be statements that are turned into posters, laminated and pinned up on the wall. They have to be specific to what the organisation is trying to achieve and, importantly, be lived in plain sight by everyone within the culture, especially the leadership team. Otherwise it becomes a pointless corporate box-ticking exercise.

2.       Google

The #timesup movement was launched by a group of high profile females in 2018 to bring attention to workplace and public sexual harassment cases around the world. Far too many working cultures make excuses and use rhetoric, networks and decades-old 'locker room' talk to excuse the behaviour of their people – often senior executives and predominantly male.

Major technology companies have led the way in creating inclusive and diverse environments in which staff feel safe and kindness and fairness are held in the highest of regards. In 2018 however, news came to light of the details surrounding the departure of one of Google’s senior executives back in 2014. Despite finding the allegations of sexual harassment levelled against him credible, he was allowed to resign with a severance package of over $90m.

News of this led to a mass walkout by staff demanding that Google do more to address sexual harassment, gender equality and systemic racism across the organisation. The action continues to this day.

Learning: In order to create a vibrant culture of success then behaviours need to be agreed up front and senior managers (especially) have to role model them every single day. Unsafe working cultures cause anxiety and stress and lead to bullying and harassment. They have never been acceptable and individuals that do this to other humans should be removed without any compensation. Poor behaviours need to be dealt with and no excuses made for the removal of those that don’t meet expectations.

3.       Uber

Uber has been one of the biggest success stories over the last decade, from a user perspective that is. Profitability continues to be an issue - and so does its culture.

Founder Travis Kalanick surrounded himself with people who knew how to get things done. Empathy was low, tempers flared and people were routinely dismissed if they didn’t hit deadlines. Things got so bad that Kalanick was sacked from his position as CEO and the organisation is still struggling to get its culture right to this day.

Management has removed all staff perks as it looks to meet shareholder expectation and they’re finding that the culture has not evolved enough to entice Uber’s best staff to stay. Things may yet get worse before they get better for Uber despite new CEO Dara Khosrowshahi’s best attempts.

Learning: As the organisation grows it’s important that its culture grows and with it. As Marshall Goldsmith once said, ‘What got you here, won’t get you there’ and this is especially true of corporate culture. It requires a new vision, new set of behaviours and new collaboration principles as it evolves to meet the new challenges it faces.

4.       Kraft Heinz Co.

In 2013 Kraft Foods (Mondelez International and Kraft Foods Group) was one of the largest food manufacturers in the world. In 2014-15, its board approved a merger with another giant in food manufacturing, The HJ Heinz Company. The new company Kraft Heinz Co. became the fifth largest food manufacturing company in the world with revenues of $28bn.

But in 2016 the new company wrote off more than $15bn and announced that US regulators were investigating their procurement and accounting practices. In the intervening time, food habits had started to change and whilst cost-cutting measures had been undertaken to reduce duplication, nothing had been done to bring the two (very different) cultures together.

Learning: Any kind of merger, whether it’s 10 people or 100,000, requires a new cultural definition, not just a rebranding exercise. Organisations need to retain what’s good about both cultures, whilst defining something new that everyone feels part of.

5.       Forever 21

The financial woes of Forever21 (F21) started in 2017 after what had been a steadily increasing revenue since the 1980s peaked at $4.4bn in 2015 and the world started to change.

Regulators were examining the working practices of so-called ‘fast-fashion’ organisations and there was a demand from customers for the organisation to become more sustainable.

Additionally, F21 failed to implement new digital technology to improve the in-store or online experience, didn’t embrace social media in the way that its competitors did and didn’t do enough research before moving away from traditional revenue streams and going after business and floor space that wasn’t suited to their model.

All of which led to them filing for bankruptcy in 2019, closing up to 350 stores and laying off hundreds of staff. 

Learning: One of the key pillars of any organisation culture is how it stays relevant to its customers. Time has to be spent on innovative thinking. It’s not about becoming the new Amazon; it’s about harnessing the ideas that staff have, keeping up with trends and leveraging technology to make the customer (and staff!) experience slicker.

None of these examples of culture failure are new, unfortunately, and yet senior leadership seem to routinely forget that culture requires constant attention, specifically around the six pillars of: personality and communication; vision; values; behaviours; collaboration; innovation.

Only with continual investment into cultural definition and evolution can any organisation ensure that it doesn’t end up on this list at the start of 2030.

Five Easy Ways to Screw Up 2020

Ugh, I know. It’s the start of another year and a billion bloggers around the world are telling you how amazing you can be. That this year (not any of the previous years) is your year and the only thing standing between you and greatness is, well, you.

All you have to do is to create new routines, cut out destructive habits, find your authentic voice and do work that lights you up and you’re all set for a fantastic year.

But… what if this year instead of starting off positive and fading fast (because that’s the reality if we’re being honest), you start by trying your hardest to screw it up and then look to improve slowly? I know that it’s not the normal way of things, but it can’t harm to try something different, right?

So here are five easy ways to screw this year up and for those of you who are looking for a more conventional start of year blog, I’ve added a positive alternative line for you too:

1) Don’t stay in control of your emotions

It’s time to let that little knot of anger you feel run free. Don’t keep it in any longer. Speak your mind regardless of who’s in the room and seek to upset and offend as many people as possible. Show disgust in meetings (if you even want to go at all - they’re all a waste of time anyway), roll your eyes or sigh when you disagree with the opinions of others or else just keep your headphones in and let the world revolve around you.

Positive alternative: Recognise the emotions that you have and develop strategies for dealing with them. Then try by looking to recognise and interpret the emotions of others and change your approach to them accordingly.

2) Don’t put a shift in

You know what, when you’re working at half-speed you’re still better than everyone else anyway, so why bother at all? Work at a pace and times that suits you, not anyone else. So what if the team depends on you to get something done to a level of quality that will make their life easier? So what if you promised to have something done by Friday? Grab your phone, head to the nearest toilet cubicle and check your social media feeds to your heart’s delight. 

Positive alternative: Show up, do what needs to be done and pass on the knowledge you have to others so that they can improve.

3) Don’t be positive about change

In fact, don’t be positive about anything, least of all change. ‘The only constant is change’ they say, well, duh. The status quo is where mediocrity lies, so stay and fester there and bring as many people down with you as you can. Push back on everything because, as you know, it’ll only make things worse in the long run anyway. New process? Nope. New system? Nope. Contribute to a change program. Hell, nope.

Positive alternative: Find things that make you feel uncomfortable, take some responsibility and look to be a catalyst for working smarter.

4) Admit that you’re the smartest person in the room

It’s like you’re working with a team full of Homer Simpson’s sometimes, right? Incompetent idiots who don’t know how it works around here and routinely ignore your advice on how it should be done. Your opinion is the most important because of your [insert number of years] experience or else your [insert name of qualification]. They can bring in as many outsiders as they want, but you’re the only one that’ll ever be right, so remind everyone of that. All the time.

Positive alternative: Actively seek out differing viewpoints and cultural approaches and challenge the preconceived ideas that you have. If you need help - ask for it.

5) Don’t make time for new learning

It’s a massive waste of your time and you know it. It’s taken you this long to get to where you are, so why would you then relinquish all your hard earned free time by investing in anything new? Developing different skill sets, listening to podcasts, reading books and meeting new people are all time consuming activities that don’t come with a raise. So why bother? Once you’ve eaten, sit yourself down in front of the TV and binge watch something (anything!) until it’s time for bed.

Positive alternative: Invest an hour a night in reading or listening to something new. Make notes and think about how you can apply it in your working life.

Your life is defined by the choices that you make so by selecting the positive alternatives, you recognise that there’s always more that you can do to be the best version of yourself. You can never ever be perfect (no one can), but by selecting a way of acting and behaving that brings out the best in you, you won’t ever screw up this - or any other - year.

If you’re the positive alternative kind of person, then we have a place for you. The Culture Fix Community is an exclusive cohort of people dedicated to developing themselves, other people and the cultures within which they work. It’s free to become a member and we’d love you to join us and share what’s working (or not) for you. Simply click the button to join now.

Culture Fix Community

Would You Move Christmas?

December 25th is a cultural and religious celebration that many countries observe. It's a time of trees, tinsel, turkey, crackers and lying to young children about the genesis of a sack full of presents.

For most adults, plans are made months in advance. Families are consulted as to their movements, food is discussed, holidays are booked, gifts are requested, decorations are put up, freezers are filled, alcohol is bought, board games are planned and the excitement builds.

Emotional intelligence abounds before the guests start to arrive as expectations are communicated and managed... and yet at some stage it all goes a bit Christmas Vacation. 

But the date never moves. December the 25th is the date that children open presents, even if it means that parents are up all night wrapping them. Often presents are bought the evening before, but the date never moves.

Food is often the last thing that gets bought and prepared and it's done so that it can be served on December 25th, because the date never moves.

The reason that the date never moves is that it's important to people. It means something. Promises have been made so they have to be kept. Parents don't want to let children down. Partners don't want to let each other down. Hosts don't want to let guests down and so on.

When you look at it as a project, the 'go live' date is so important that people will move heaven and earth to achieve it. Issues arise almost daily in the run up to December 25, but they are managed well. Budgets are almost routinely overspent, but the focus is on the experience of all those involved.

At no stage is there any consideration of moving the date.

Person A: I'm not sure we're going to be ready for December 25

Person B: Shall we move the date to December 26?

Person A: It's the only option we have. In fact, let's move it to January 2nd just to be sure

And yet, this kind of thing happens all the time in projects. Often the date becomes April 29th. According to one recent survey only 30% of organisations deliver projects on time. All sorts of excuses will be wheeled out including, but not limited to, the following:

Scope creep

Poor planning

Poor risk management

Lack of process adherence

Unclear requirements.

Not on this list is the fact that what these projects lack is discipline from all parties to get the job done. This principally lies with the person accountable for the project and the person responsible.

It's the sponsor's job to make sure that the outcomes and requirements are clear from the outset, that a good plan exists, that decisions are made to ensure that action is taken in a timely manner and that the project manager is creating and maintaining an environment where staff can do their best work.

It's the project manager's job to ensure that a good plan is created to deliver to the outcomes and that the team has been included in the process to build it. They need to identify and manage (not just log) risks, they need to prioritise and deal with issues that arise, they need to set expectations well around what's required to be built and then they have to motivate and inspire people to deliver to this. Where people don't deliver they have to empathise and then ensure that this failure isn't repeated.

Most will fail simply because they don't care enough. If they held the date in as high regard as they do a birthday or cultural holiday then things would be different. They'd ensure that behaviours and principles of good collaboration are agreed in advance. They'd plan to succeed. They'd hold people to their promises and put in all the hours required to meet the plans that they'd built. This is what all the great project organisations do.

How much do you care about delivering on time?

Unfortunately, the end of a year and the start of a new one is not a time of celebration for many people. The Smith Family is a charity I've supported this year as they help disadvantaged children get a start in life. If you would like to do something to help others, give a small donation to those that don't have what you have. You might just make someone's Christmas.  

Safety = Happiness = Results

Psychological safety wasn’t a ‘thing’ when I started work and yet looking back I distinctly remember when it was there and when it wasn’t.

It wasn’t a course that was mandated by HR or something that the CEO was talking about. It was just something that myself and the other humans around me did when we were able to be the best versions of ourselves and when we cared for each other and what the team and organisation were trying to achieve

When we did this it felt ‘safe’ to speak up, challenge the status quo and the behaviours of others and to take time out when we just weren’t on our game. In these teams, trust was assumed, it didn’t have to be earned and we didn’t want to let each other down.

We didn’t take it for granted. We spent time sharing stories, generating ideas, trading skills and making the effort to get to know each other outside of work.

I recently traded LinkedIn messages with a former colleague of 20 years ago and his words got me thinking about this topic. He said, ‘I miss those days. Everything felt easy and yet it wasn’t. Deadlines were tight, pressure was high, we didn’t always see eye to eye and yet we loved every minute of it.’ And we did, because we had each other’s backs.

We’d taken the time to agree how we’d behave towards each other, define what we were aiming for and how we’d ensure that the way we worked together remained productive and rewarding.

This safety is something that all the great teams, projects, departments and organisations have. 

Yet, I also remember the times when safety was lacking.

There was fear, arguing, bullying, intimidation, anxiety, stress and tears. People’s names and titles were used as sticks to beat others with. Unreasonable demands were placed on time, energy or emotions and anyone who mentioned any of these things were reminded of the importance of the work or that everyone was in the same boat and we just had to ‘shut up and get it done.’

Any outburst of emotion would be dealt with using phrases such as:

‘You need to toughen up’

‘You can’t do/say anything these days’

‘Stop being so touchy’

‘In the old days…’

‘I didn’t mean it’

‘It’s only a bit of fun.’

Except it wasn’t. In fact it was the very antithesis of fun. It was physically and psychologically damaging and it ruined people’s lives. That particular example occurred many years ago for me and yet little has changed.

The World Health Organisation published statistics earlier this year showing that over 260m people worldwide suffer from mental health issues as a result of their work. And that days lost as a result of mental health issues cost businesses over $1 trillion in lost productivity every year.

The same survey found that ‘For every US$1 put into scaled up treatment for common mental disorders, there is a return of US$4 in improved health and productivity.’

Managers and employees of teams, projects, departments and organisations around the world need to understand that only through the deliberate creation of a workplace where every member feels safe to contribute, speak up, challenge and do their best work can they ever hope to achieve their goals. 

These workplaces need to recognise the effects that the behaviours of others can have on those around them and take steps to lead with empathy not anger, to deal with issues swiftly and positively and restore the kind of environment that people want to be connected to, not run away from.

Creating psychological safety in teams matters much more than business results. It helps human beings to fulfil their purpose, create a sense of fun and provide an environment that fosters a growth mindset, welcomes ideas and where people can continually challenge each other to be better.

The by-product of which enables a business to hit its targets.

Safety = Happiness = Results. Always in that order.

Are You A Culture Catalyst?

According a leadership survey conducted by McKinsey, US companies spend around $14bn on leadership development. Yet only 7% of respondents in the survey felt that their global leaders are developed effectively.

That’s the thing about leadership. You can send people on endless programs and get them to follow particular pathways, however, unless they make the decision to be a good human being when all around them may be doing the opposite, then they’ll never reach their potential.

Those that do go on to become role models for others make courageous decisions, act as an umbrella for the team that they’re managing, remove roadblocks to get things done and challenge the status quo. In order to do this - and to be the catalyst for vibrant workplace cultures - they relentlessly develop their emotional intelligence.

Culture Catalysts are emotionally intelligent

They are role models in every sense of the word and set the example for others to follow. They are people who take the time to listen, grow and to work closely with their staff to remove barriers and inspire incredible performance from those around them.

Emotionally intelligent people like this are a positive driving force for culture evolution. They are empathetic when it’s easier to be dismissive. They make time for new ideas and thinking. They have a tractor beam that you’re drawn to and you know that they won’t allow themselves to get dragged to the dark side.

These are the people whose conversations, meetings and training sessions are different. Whose communications are tailored to individuals, who can converse with all levels of people, who celebrate success, and who make you feel that anything is possible.

Leonardo Da Vinci put it best when he said, “It has long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things.”

These culture catalysts stand for something. They have purpose, influences, ethics and they continually look to safeguard the future of their organisation. They do this by getting to know each member of the team, set expectations well and hold people to their promises.

Where people don’t deliver, they lead with empathy; asking how they can help and ensuring that they understand what’s required. Where people still don’t deliver, they performance manage with strength and courage. As a result the cultures that they lead hit their targets. Everyone within the team feels inspired and motivated to do their bit.

Culture catalysts are a force of positive energy and see the good in everyone that they interact with. In short, they are good humans who have your respect and you would work for them time and again.

Having these kinds of leaders is critical for organizational performance as they make people feel valued for the work that they do, which leads to greater engagement, which leads to enhanced productivity, which leads to greater value for customers and improved profitability or reputation.

Yet they also recognize that culture is everyone’s responsibility. They make time, find budget for and undertake activities designed to allow everyone to make a real difference to the way things get done. At the heart of every successful business you’ll find culture catalysts.

How do you become a culture catalyst?

Changing oneself is one of the most life affirming things that can be done. It’s a demonstration that lessons have been learned, you’ve grown as a person and are dedicated to making a real difference to people’s lives. Here are three things to get you started:

1. Become more self-aware

List the things that you (or others) don’t like about your approach, regardless of whether it’s the way you communicate, how you run meetings or the time that you keep. Find one thing then work hard to change it. It won’t be easy, but it will be worthwhile. Once you’ve changed that, pick another one and so on.

2. Say thank you more

As a self-aware leader you’ll realise that the team do all the real work, so use your manners and say thank you more. Find different ways to do it; post-it notes, hand written cards, call it out in a team meeting (providing you won’t embarrass them), but let it be known to the team that you’re someone that appreciates the efforts that people are putting in.

3. Make the time to build the culture

Do something different. Take the team off-site for two-days. Agree a vision, some behaviours, get to know each other, socialise, define the principles of collaboration and challenge your status quo. This will create ownership, energy and motivation. You’ll also be embracing the team as fellow culture catalysts.

There’s no dark art when it comes to being a culture catalyst. It’s simply a case of being a good human, making the choice to do things differently and ensuring the team feel valued for the work they do. When you are that kind of person, you’re the catalyst for your own success too.

 

Do you have agile people for your agile projects?

Being agile requires a different mindset

In mid-2018, Ron Jeffries, an original signatory of the 2001 Agile Manifesto, called for software developers to abandon agile. He said, “Too commonly, the ‘Agile’ approach a team uses has been imposed. Larger-scale ‘Agile’ methods appear actually to recommend imposition of process. These ‘so-called’ methods are pitched to the enterprise, and the enterprise is expected to ‘install’ them, or ‘roll them out'.”

What’s frustrating him – as it is with other signatories of that 2001 document – is that they’re seeing organisations who want to be more flexible in their approach to delivering projects make the same mistake they have always made. That is, trying to fix a problem with ‘standard’ training.

As has been proven before with other attempts to improve the way that projects are delivered, sending everyone on an agile training course (in this case) won’t change a thing.

What has been proven to work by those global organisations that others consider to be agile is that their people have developed flexible, growth mindsets and co-created cultures that are willing to try different things and aren’t afraid to fail.

In the Agile Manifesto, four principles were identified for those organisations that wanted to embrace greater flexibility. I have listed these below and highlighted the importance of helping others to build a growth mindset:

Individuals and interactions over processes and tools

The key to being successfully agile is not slavishly following a process (although some organisations seem determined not to let go of their waterfall manuals) or using it to shortcut existing systems, but in having a team of people who understand the value of the steps required, an understanding of each other’s personalities and an agreement on how the people in the team will work together honestly, respectfully and with discipline to get the job done.

Growth mindset people accept that ‘the way we deliver projects around here’ is continually evolving and needs to be challenged and changed. As Ed Catmull said in his excellent book Creativity Inc: “Anyone should be able to talk to anyone else at any level at any time.” This is especially true if the organisation is to remove barriers to swifter product (and value) delivery.

Working products over comprehensive documentation

The team understands that perfection can’t be achieved and that while it’s important to capture the information about what needs to be built, it doesn’t have to be a 100-page requirements document with 25 signatories.

They take a ‘published not perfect’ approach to delivery and focus on continual iteration. Fixed mindset people are focused on documenting perfection and having endless conversations, often stubbornly sticking rigidly to their point of view and not being open to the opinions of others.

Customer collaboration over contract negotiation

Growth mindset teams know that the customer is part of the project team culture and doesn’t sit outside of it. That they are at the heart of what’s being developed and that they can see regular progress. They don’t spend weeks ‘dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s’. They put their trust in each other to build a culture that does things in the right way.

The contract (if one exists) is never used as a weapon and instead merely provides a foundation upon which great relationships can be built and milestones achieved.

Responding to change over following a plan

Growth mindset teams know that change is important to meet the customer expectations. That planning is critical - but endlessly planning is not. That Microsoft Project will not always be the best way to display a schedule. And that managing risk will reduce uncertainty, but applying a corporate matrix with a thousand columns to each one is not always necessary.

Fixed mindset teams avoid change and actively work against it. They insist on lines of work breakdown structure before they’ll take responsibility and won’t waver from its completion.

Organisations that successfully make the transition to more agile ways of getting things done are staffed with individuals who aren’t told what to do.

They’re allowed to be flexible in their thinking and are personally invested in the culture that they’ve built. They respect each other’s way of working and set up their space based on that. They capture the ‘right amount’ of information in order to meet the customer’s expectations and relentlessly look for ways to add extra value.

According to the 2015 Standish Group Chaos report, only 39 per cent of Agile projects are considered successful and just like their waterfall counterparts, those agile projects that fail are held back by one thing – people.

To be more agile, individuals and teams need to be given the following:

Insights into who they are and each other’s personalities (self-awareness and empathy)

An agreement on what’s acceptable and what’s not (behaviours)

An agreement on how they’ll work together (collaboration)

An agreement on how they’ll find better ways to do things (innovation)

Some principles they can hold each other to account to (culture)

Regular ideas that further develop their thinking and skillset.

As Carol Dweck said in her book Mindset: “With the right mindset and the right teaching, people are a lot more capable than we think.” With an investment into building (or redefining) the cultural conditions where employees can be more self-aware about the mindset they need to adopt, any organisation can become more agile over time.