This week’s Team Building Tip gets your team to consider the question – “What is taboo?”.
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Once teams feel safe to put issues on the table, and that they will not face any retribution for speaking their mind, getting the team to identify what is TABOO or off-limits can be key to moving a team forward. It is important to look into the dusty corners, and shine the light on the things that don’t want to be seen or discussed. This is particularly important when the pace of business speeds up, and things become more urgent. It’s the things that are taboo that can grow in size or come out of nowhere, taking a team down.

What are the things that are TABOO for you and your team to:

• Discuss
• Do
• Put into Practice

 
Is it time for a change?

Best wishes,
​Jennifer

​Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized 
Leadership | Teamwork | Business Success
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), PlanDoTrack (2019) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder 
Join the conversation at the Conversation Sparker Zone - our online community where you can explore virtual and team issues, coaching, productivity and business development.
Pick up a copy of Volume 1 of the Weekly Journaling Prompts in a digital format. Print it out and take it with you for some inspiration and writing on the go! Available at the Potentials Realized Store.

​This month’s theme is about teamwork in complexity. One of the more complex areas can be the virtual and remote space. Let’s look at mistakes made by new and experienced virtual and remote team leaders.
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I also thought it would be interesting to reach back to a skill-based post as well. Here’s what I wrote about virtual and remote leadership skills:

Today we reach the W in the A-Z of Virtual and Remote Team Leadership. As virtual and remote team leaders, having a wealth of skills and experiences to draw on can be invaluable.  Given the need to lead across distance and ever-changing contexts it can be useful to have a broad base of skills to draw up on. Many of us are Jacks or Jills of all trades. The ability to lead confidently in uncertainty and across issues we are often unfamiliar with is key. Our ability to empower our team members to take the lead and advise on issues is also critical.

​Questions to Consider:

• ​When you think of your skill base as a team leader, what broad skills do you bring really help you lead effectively?
• What new skills would you like to add to the table?
• ​What experiences add to your mix?
• ​What new leadership experiences would help you round out your style?

https://www.potentialsrealized.com/teams-365-blog/teams365-850-virtual-and-remote-team-leadership-w-is-for

I also wanted to remind you of some of the more common mistakes new and experienced virtual and remote team leaders make:

Today’s post explores common mistakes virtual and remote team leaders can make. In this post we are going to look at five different ones.

1. Not enough 1-1's – As I have said many times, being out of sight is not the same as being out of mind. Not spending enough time in one-on-ones can be detrimental to the levels of trust team members feel, the connection they feel with others, which will have an impact on levels of engagement. What is an appropriate frequency of meeting time with team members? What does it look like – phone calls, video streaming, onsite visits, or bringing staff into the office regularly?
2. Not learning on your feet – Part of being an effective virtual and remote team leader is your ability to be shifting, learning and adapting. Given that there is much less levels of control and greater span, the ability to learn on your feet and expecting this rather than feeling you will have all the answers, can make a big difference with team members.
3. Not being clear with goals – Goals can be a little different with virtual and remote teams. Whether people are matrixed and reporting into different areas, or whether goals can become competitive, providing opportunities to be clear with goals is important.
4. Not helping people connect with the bigger picture – Because virtual and remote team members are working with different levels of autonomy and independently, helping team members connect with the bigger picture is essential. This could include helping them understand more about corporate and departmental goals, giving them more access to strategic or corporate plans, and making goals and achievements more visible. Making goals more visible might include making the reporting structures more shared and visually appealing, or mapping out team goals on a weekly basis or other.
5. Not providing team members with the necessary responsibility and authority – A final mistake virtual and remote team leaders can make is not providing the necessary responsibility and authority to their team members so they can make the decisions they need to autonomously.

https://www.potentialsrealized.com/teams-365-blog/teams365-1177-common-mistakes-made-by-virtual-and-remote-team-leaders

What can you do to avoid these common mistakes?

Pick up a copy of the entire A-Z series at the Potentials Realized Store here. It’s a downloadable ebook format for $19 US.

All the best,
Jennifer

We turn our attention to teamwork in uncertainty in today’s post, as well as tomorrow’s. One of the most important foundations for teams moving through change, uncertainty and volatility is TRUST.

Trust is an essential precursor to effective team work. It doesn’t just form. We need to be intentional in creating it.

As I write in my book Effective Virtual Conversations, there are many things we can do to build trust and connection in the virtual space including:

1. One on One Time: Having regular calls with your team members to check in around how things are going, as well as what their needs are from you, and from the team.
2. Group or Team Agreements (Ways of Working): Creating shared agreements around HOW you will operate as a team. This helps to create safety, an essential precursor to trust and connection.
3. Create shared expectations: What does everyone expect from each other? What are your expectations of how you will operate as a team?
4. Breakouts: Using breakouts regularly in team meetings can help people get to know each other better. Breakouts enable people to connect with one or two others for short periods of time around key discussion areas.
5. Paired partners: Assigning partners across the team. In my former work we called these peer partners and we rotated it on a regular basis – i.e. every 6 months. The role of the peer partner was to connect on a bi-weekly or monthly basis with another team members to chat and connect, sharing a little more about key projects and tasks they were working on, and focusing in on learning more about their partner. Brainstorming around key opportunities and challenges also ensued, as did some formal and informal mentoring.
6. Being clear about process and what to expect: Trust is also built on virtual calls by letting people know what to expect about process and key items.
7. Connect people early on with their WIIFM (What’s In It For Me?): Connecting people around their What’s In It For Me at the start of the call, helps to connect people with the relevance and importance of the topic in their world. Without this, it is unlikely that we will listen.

What will help to build trust and connection for your team members?

Another key element to helping teams thrive in uncertain environments is connection. Knowing other members of your team – who they are, what they do, who they are connected with, and what strengths they bring – is crucial in contexts which are changing regularly.

No person is an island, and our relationships are even more important.

To boost connection on a virtual team we will want to:

• Build in moments for teams to learn more about each other – who they are, what they do, what they can be counted on to accomplish.
• Help people articulate their role, and how they operate. This might include a one pager with a focus on “Here’s what you should know about me”.

Best wishes,
​Jennifer

Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized 
Leadership | Teamwork | Business Success
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), PlanDoTrack (2019) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder 
Join the conversation at the Conversation Sparker Zone - our online community where you can explore virtual and team issues, coaching, productivity and business development).
Pick up a copy of Volume 1 of the Weekly Journaling Prompts in an digital format. Print it out and take it with you for some inspiration and writing on the go! Available at the Potentials Realized Store.

This week at the blog we’ve been exploring the topics of trust and connection. As part of this week’s Flashback Friday, let’s reach back to Teams365 #610 where I explored Four Ways to Boost Trust. Here’s what I wrote:

As we explored earlier this week, trust is a key issue for teams today. Today’s blog post looks at four ways to build trust in your team:

1. Connection - We feel supported when we feel valued, known and heard. Connection is a critical factor for high performing teams. Teams who feel connected with each other have often invested time in getting to know one another, and schedule time for regular connections. Perhaps a 2 pm daily meeting is the norm, or a Monday morning huddle kicks off your week. Consider what will boost connection amongst your team members.

2. Clarity - Clarity is key in creating trust. When we know what is expected of us, it is easier to follow-through and know how we are doing. Creating shared, and clear expectations of each other is important, as is having clarity around roles.

3. Communication - Communication is the foundation of connection and clarity. Consider how the team wants to communicate with each other, and what in fact is most effective.

4. Knowledge/Competence - Many trust models talk about the importance of skills and knowledge, or what they call competence, in building trust. If we know that others have the skills and knowledge to have our backs, we can rest easier that things will get done.

What else do you see as other factors building trust?

As you think about your work and team practices right now, what are you doing to boost:

1. Connection
2. Clarity
3. Communication
4. Knowledge and Competence

Let us know and share your comments below!

​Enjoy your weekend,
Jennifer

A few weeks ago, I was speaking to a large group of professionals active in the area of team development. We found ourselves getting into the heart of a key topic for leaders, team members and team developers alike – Building Trust and Connection as a Team. What are the different ways you are building trust, and also eroding it?

Trust and connection are essential for team success. This is especially true in virtual and remote contexts. When trust levels are low, we may see behaviors such as:

• Territorialism – Mine vs. Yours. Us vs. them. Headquarters vs. Remote Workers
• Stereotyping
• Lack of accountability
• Lack of ownership
• Blaming

​None of these are productive or positive. Over time these behaviors lead to toxicity and conflict, threatening the fabric of your talent.

What are the things we can do to build trust and connection across the team?

A few years ago, I created a short video which I’ve shown to multiple groups. It focuses on 9 behaviors we can practice as a team to boost trust and connection. I originally wrote about them in Teams365.

These behaviors are:

1. Walk the Talk
2. Fairness
3. Build on Strengths
4. Take Ownership (For What Works and What Doesn't)
5. Fairness
6. Transparency
7. Creating Connections
8. Clear Expectations and Communication
9. Regular one-on-ones/communication

As you read through these ask yourself, where are you on a scale of 1-10 (with 1 being low and 10 being high):

If this is a topic of importance to you and your team, consider exploring this additional Teams365 post about Trust and Connection:
Teams365 1184: Team Building Tip #129

Best,
Jennifer
​

​I thought I would take a look back to the March 2014 posts to see what I was talking about five years ago here at the blog. What was interesting to me was that that month we were talking about team development and team formation, one of the key areas I continue to get questions around.
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I dedicated five posts in March 2014 to discussing Tuckman’s model of forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning. This model to group and team formation has stood the tests of time, and is something that I continue to see in my work in person and virtually.

Here’s what I shared about the first stage of team formation in Teams365 #70:
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The first stage of team formation is the FORMING stage. Whether it's a new project team coming together, or a new leader joining the team, there are several characteristics common at the FORMING Stage:

1. Team is getting to know each other
2. Safety needs are high, trust levels are low or non-existent
3. Goals, vision and values are needing to be created

As a leader it is important to:
1. Clarify expectations you have.
2. Have the group or team create shared expectations of each other
3. Create opportunities for people to get to know each other
4. Ensure that safety needs are met.

What else is important at the forming stage? What have you noticed in past instances where teams are forming?
​
Check out what happens in the storming, norming, performing and adjourning stages.
 
What are you noticing about where your group or team is right now? What are they yearning for?
 
Enjoy the conversations,
Jennifer

This month I am highlighting different virtual team builders. These are all things I use regularly with different teams I work with. From health care, to social services, public service to IT. Yesterday I spotlighted a quick energizer/warm up called COINS, and today I wanted to talk a little about using ICONS to explore different topics.

Here’s what I wrote about incorporating icons into a virtual team session:
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“Another exercise I use regularly in helping teams get to know each other, and stat to build trust is sharing a slide which has a variety of icons on it. You will see an example below. While I show this on the screen I have select an icon which represents what they are bringing to the group/team that day or what they are thinking about around the topic we are exploring.

This exercise has the advantage of providing a springboard for some interesting themes to emerge in the conversation.

Here's an example of a recent icons slide I shared. I purchased the original graphic over at Adobe Stock.
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I’ve used iterations of ICON activities for different teams I’ve worked with. Sometimes we are exploring the topic of feedback, other times, difficult conversations, goals for the year, or sometimes goals for the year. The benefit of using ICONS is that it can provide new layers to a conversation. When people are working in different languages, or even the same language, it can provide some new nuances to a conversation, energizing it in different ways.
 
How might you incorporate more around icons in your work?

For more on creating engaging virtual conversations, and virtual team development, check out my 2017 book, Effective Virtual Conversations.

Best,
Jennifer

​Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized 
Leadership | Teamwork | Business Success
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), PlanDoTrack (2018) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder 
Now available – PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner - Order a copy today on Amazon
Join the conversation at the Conversation Sparker Zone - our online community where you can explore virtual and team issues, coaching, productivity and business development).
Check out the new 19 Tips for Productivity On-Demand Course. If this is your year to get things moving, check it out now. Join Jenn for bi-weekly live group calls until July. $129 US. Learn more and enroll here.
​

Over the next few weeks I will be sharing a variety of Virtual Team Builders to support you with quick activities that are going to support virtual and remote teams in focusing in on results and/or relationships.

Virtual Teams benefit from time spent in getting to know each other – who is who, who does what, and what priorities they are working on. Virtual team building activities don’t need to take a lot of time.
​
Something most teams will want to build in across time are quick warm-up exercises to create connection.

The first exercise I wanted to share (which will be followed next week by 2 more), is by creating connection through Icons.
 
As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, creating trust and connection across a group is critical. If it’s a virtual and remote team you are working with, you might be working across geographic locations. You may have a team member calling in from Asia, one from Australia, one from Africa, one from New York, one from Europe.

Part of creating connection and team success is ensuring that people get comfortable and feel confident on the call, especially if they might be using a working language that is not their first language.

In my work over the last several decades I’ve liked to incorporate photos and icons as “door openers” and metaphors for conversation.

Before I started Potentials Realized, one of my last roles was as a sub- regional manager. I had staff in 10 countries and out of our team of about 30 at one point there were 20+ different nationalities.
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In creating connection across a virtual team, we want to give the team an opportunity to:

• Get to know each other
• Understand who we are as a team
• Explore what's important to us
• and understand how we are similar and how we are different.

These questions and the exploration of these questions is a really critical component of the virtual team leader's role.

Back to the icon exercise, using your access to stock photography find a photo that offers a selection of icons. Have each person select an icon that they connect with, which represents what they bring to the team.

As you go around the table, this is a fun way to share a little bit about yourself in a way that hopefully is not too threatening. Select a graphic that has enough icons which provide enough variety to invite people into the conversation. 

Best wishes,
​Jennifer

Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized 
Leadership | Teamwork | Business Success
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), PlanDoTrack (2018) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder 
Now available – PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner - Order a copy today on Amazon
Join the conversation at the Conversation Sparker Zone - our online community where you can explore virtual and team issues, coaching, productivity and business development).
Check out the new 19 Tips for Productivity On-Demand Course. If this is your year to get things moving, check it out now. Join Jenn for bi-weekly live group calls until July.  Learn more and enroll here.

​Last month I hosted a call on five virtual team builders as part of my monthly Effective Virtual Conversations community call. As part of this month’s focus on virtual team development, I am going to share segments of that call so you too can benefit. Before jumping into actual tools and activities (which are coming your way!), let’s start with a quick highlight of three practical things to make your virtual calls of all types more effective.

First, I think we all want to avoid what I term “death by conference call”.
If you spend any time working virtually, you know this. Rushing back to back with conference calls or streaming meetings where people are speaking “at you”.  This leads to the speaker sounding like a voice on TV (Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah). No surprise, you've got a thousand to do's and you turn to checking your email or reading through “that other document”.

We want to avoid that at all costs. If we have to meet, let’s make it effective and engaging! This can be dependent on the platform and groups that you're working with. There is still a lot of variety happening in the virtual learning environment. We may be doing Zoom calls, we may be doing WebEx calls. We may still be on the phone.

Second, in the virtual space, we need to consider the pace which typically is quicker than face-to-face contexts. We want to use more interaction and be intentional in bringing people's voices on to the line.
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For example, I had a new group launch this morning. It's a group of 10. We use chat, we use breakouts. We used annotation several times through the 75 minutes of the call. We used chat to create our ground rules and ways of working, and breakouts to deepen connection across the group.
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In a virtual space we want to be intentional in creating multiple ways to engage. We want to create multiple opportunities to boost connection and trust. If people don't feel safe or connected with others in the group, they're not going to engage.
​
One quick factor we can use is to leverage streaming so people see each other – so using video on Zoom, or Skype, or WebEx.

Third - another factor in making it work is really helping people have visual anchors. This might include a photograph shown at the start of the call, which creates focus OR having people write something on a screen as they start into a call. Making it interactive AND keep it simple is key in virtual work.

In the next couple of Tuesday and Wednesday posts here at the Teams365 blog I will share with you five main activities you can consider using when you work with virtual teams.

If you have a copy of my book, Effective Virtual Conversations, many of these posts touch on chapters related to part three of effective virtual conversations (pages 300 to about 444).

Enjoy!
 Jennifer

Jennifer Britton – Potentials Realized 
Leadership | Teamwork | Business Success
Author of multiple books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), PlanDoTrack (2018) and From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013)
Follow along with the #90DaysPlanDoTrack series over at Instagram @CoachingBizBuilder 
Now available – PlanDoTrack Workbook and Planner - Order a copy today on Amazon
Join the conversation at the Conversation Sparker Zone - our online community where you can explore virtual and team issues, coaching, productivity and business development).
Check out the new 19 Tips for Productivity On-Demand Course. If this is your year to get things moving, check it out now. Join Jenn for bi-weekly live group calls until July. $129 US. Learn more and enroll here.
​

Welcome back to another Monday Effective Virtual Conversations tip. This week’s post gets you to consider “Out of sight does not equal out of mind”. One of the common fallacies of virtual teamwork and leadership is that we think that it’s not important to connect with others who are far away. In fact, “out of sight should mean more in mind”.
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Consider the impact of not:

• Holding meetings where people can see each other
• Holding meetings consistently because some people are not there
• Recording meetings and/decisions made
• A lot of misunderstanding occurs when we don’t become proactive in connecting with all team members, as visually as possible.

You will want to consider all the ways you can make things visible and visual for the team. This could include:

• Ensuring meetings are streamed and people can see each other
• Capturing agreements and decisions in chat so you can then circulate the chat log as meeting notes  for everyone (who is there and not there)
• Rotating meeting times and organizers, so even if the leader is on the road, or engaged the team has a strong enough process to be able to follow through and meet around.

Virtual teams can leverage the best of technology so that they can see each other, record, and share information.

What are the ways you can keep the team and it’s focus top of mind this month?
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What will make things visible and visual?

Have a great day,
Jennifer