Leading a team is about much more than logistics. It’s about shaping the culture for people to work together in.
Culture at work can be summed up in two things: how people get along and get ahead. (Go read Selfie).
Getting ahead is easy to understand. Being given promotions, pay rises, responsibilities and opportunities are all forms of getting ahead.
How people get along is quite a broad topic. It includes (but isn’t limited to) how people: talk to each other; decide what’s ok to talk about; work together; decide it’s time to work separately; spend time together when not on the clock; etc, etc, etc.
Taking big gambles. Ok.
You might have noticed a kink here. Getting ahead tends to be individual, getting along is about the group. They can often pull in opposite directions.
Then there’s the other problem that often as a team lead you often have limited control over both. However, you do have the following three levers at your disposal.
Modelling: as we’ve said before, you are the role model. That’s your main culture shaping power. Your team will be watching how you work, how you talk to others and taking their cues from you.
Art: What do people on your team have on their desks? Do you have a team mascot? Or theme song? Any of these tangible or intangible artifacts affect how people think of themselves as part of the team.
Rituals: from status meetings, to project approvals, to feedback sessions. These things tend to take a shape that communicates ‘the way we do things around here’.
It’s very easy to obsess about the above in special moments, such as when someone is promoted or some other big announcement. And they absolutely matter. But we recommend you have a close look at the ways your team collaborates, communicates and decides on a daily basis. These likely have a much bigger impact on what it feels like to work at your company.
For example, if you want to foster a culture of focus and attention to detail, it doesn’t make sense to also require people to be multitasking constantly. If you want people who learn and adapt quickly, you shouldn’t be saving up all feedback for annual reviews. And obviously if you want people to have a happy life outside work, don’t celebrate the people who sacrifice their personal lives by working incredibly long hours (in fact, get them some help).
Ask yourself: what kind of person should get ahead in this company? How would they bond with their colleagues? What is the minimum we expect and what is going too far? How’s the way we work helping or hindering them? Are our rituals modelling the behaviour you’d like to see from the team?
Next we’ll go into more detail on rituals and a few practical tips on how to shape.