Action plan to build a winning team

Building a team in an organization is complex. One way is to have a plan to build and strengthen your team and takes into account many factors.

Steps

Define the mission
Quantify the existing shared characteristics of the team
Define unique team experiences
Identify team improvements
Identify team weaknesses
Define the leaders monthly activities

Example

What follows is the actual team building results from a division of a business to illustrate what these steps mean. This is the team building plan at one point in time, not a static plan.

Mission

Mission: To commit to a process which will develop a focused, committed team of quality people who will work together with intensity and creativity.

Shared Characteristics

Winning Teams – Shared Characteristics:

Skilled in many areas – Variety in Groups
High level of energy
High expectations of team members
Able to think outside the box
Ability to find new solutions, i.e. “flexible thinking”
Shared common mission/goal to solve difficult problems
Great communication above and beyond the call
Pride in group product
Group feels vested
Trust among members

Team Experiences

Unique Team Experiences:

Cross lines of Responsibility
Experienced members configured in a new team
Learning experience
No roadmap of experience
Vast knowledge of senior mentors – shared with younger inexperienced members

Team improvements

Team Improvements Identified:

Retention of employees to keep experienced team
Educating the “Team” concept
Communication between team members
Leadership skills improvement of team leader
Challenging the team
Cross training across strengths
Focus on details & follow up on the plan
Confirmation of understanding of the plan
Getting Team involved more in the planning
Continuity in team meetings before crisis stage

Team Weaknesses

Team Weaknesses to Repair

Operate in isolation / together alternative
Lose focus
Varied work ethic & focus level in team
Familiarity – take things for granted
Finger pointing
Lack of professional training
Too competitive among selves
Not understanding team goals
Lack of trust
Team too small – need diversity
Lack of communication

Monthly leader activities

Most Important Monthly Activities for the Leader:
Pride in workmanship “Team Building”
Communicating to the team the “Plan”
Making sure it all gets done – All divisions
Define Mission, Goal, Success criteria to the Team
Take care of the employees
Look ahead 3 months to succeed
Budgeting – Tracking major projects & Key Costs