Knifey Spoony for teams
Just like a spoon doesn't magically become a knife - teams don’t become teams simply because you call them one.
In a classic episode of The Simpsons, where the family visits Australia, Bart has a pocket knife. He is approached by a man in a parody of Crocodile Dundee, who asks "Call that a knife? This is a knife." - at the same time as pulling out a spoon. Bart responds that it's actually a spoon, to which the Australian responds "I see you've played Knifey Spoony before". It still makes me chuckle and if you've got a spare 14 seconds, you can check it out here.
Apart from being amusing, this clip has some lessons for us to translate into our teams at work. The main reason is this, just like a spoon doesn't magically become a knife:
Teams don’t become teams simply because you call them one.
While it used to be easy to identify teams by looking at an organisational chart, that is no longer the case. A report released by the ADP Research Institute in 2019 suggests that about half of the work done in organisations is through teams that are not captured in the company's formal structure. Ironically, there is also a good chance that the team drawn on the organisational chart is actually not even a team! What do I mean? Based on an established definition of teams, a team requires more than a group of people working together. A team requires a group of people working together in a specific way - complementing each other's capabilities, holding each other accountable, working towards shared objectives. Quite often, the team on the organisational chart is a reporting line that supports administrative functions within a hierarchical structure. That's fine - it's just not a team under the definition I'm applying.
It might be that the reporting and administrative function of the org chart is all that is required. In that case, there is a way of working that better suits this - with a focus on efficiency and process. It can be a liberating and empowering decision to make. If, however, that group of people does need to work collaboratively and collectively to achieve shared objectives, it requires a focus on effectiveness and outcomes. In those instances, it's worth investing the time and effort to take a deliberate approach towards achieving that.
Here are some questions for you to consider this week:
How do you define a team?
Are there any 'teams' that you are a part of that may be better operating as a working group?
Do you have a deliberate approach to team performance?