Empowering a Team, or a Group of People

I did some communications training last week for several groups of pipeliners.  These people are grouped into teams, but not all are on the field at the same time.  In some ways, they are individuals with specific skills, specialized knowledge, and mostly self-directed in their work.

Each person does need to speak up, be assertive, and give and receive feedback to one another.  Some had not been doing that well or at all.  It made me think about a book I read years ago:  Empowerment for High-Performing Organizations, by Bill Guillory and Linda Galindo.

The book contained some tips for empowering a team.  They work with teams, groups of individuals, and individuals.  But it requires intentional effort, and the process is painful to implement.  It is worth the effort and the pain.

1. The team is principally self-directed(even if they don’t want to be).
2. Individuals are expected to perform excellently in an interdependent network.(it’s hard for people to see the interdependence).
   
3. Personal responsibility, accountability, and authority are clearly defined.(easy to define, difficult to accept)
   
4. There are codes of conduct that govern expected team and individual behavior.(easy to develop a code and post on the wall, difficult to behave according to the code)
   
5. Trust, cooperation, and participation are valued.(difficult to earn, easy to lose)
   
6. Mastery of interpersonal skills is valued.(interpersonal skills are not valued as much as technical skills)
   
7. Diversity is valued.(believe diversity is valued, but people who are different than the majority experience difficulty fitting in).
   
8. There is alignment and commitment to common purposes, strategies, objectives, and goals.(this is difficult to define and to develop, but works when communicated well).

Posted October 19th, 2010 in Human Factors, Leadership, Operational Excellence

Are You Endulled? Is Your Organization?

Endullment is a term coined by Ira Shor to describe what happens to people when they are not allowed to participate in decisions that affect them. Shor applied the term to educational organizations, but it fits other organizations. Are you endulled? (more…)

Posted July 14th, 2010 in Human Factors, Leadership

“Perpetual Intermediate” – Always Be Learning

I was reading a book About Face by Allen Cooper. Mr. Cooper is an expert on user interface design. He said that people are either beginners, experts, or perpetual intermediates as interface users. I wondered how that might apply in realms other than usability. (more…)

Posted July 14th, 2010 in Human Factors, Leadership