Module 3 Briefing Sheet / Class of 2021

Building and Leading High-Performing Teams


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MATERIALS


TASKS

  • Read the articles and view the videos.
  • Complete the Personal Reflection Questions below.


PERSONAL REFLECTIONS

  • In The Discipline of Teams, Katzenbach and Smith state that a team’s essential discipline comprises five characteristics: a meaningful common purpose that the team has helped shape; specific performance goals that flow from the common purpose; a mix of complementary skills; a strong commitment to how the work gets done; and mutual accountability.
    • Which of these five characteristics do you see as needing most improvement in the groups and/or teams you lead and/or are a part of in your legal department?
    • What could you do to make tangible improvements in this/these characteristics?
  • In Teamwork at the Top, Herb, Leslie and Price discuss the three dimensions of performance that “top-performing” teams have to master: they must have a common direction; the members must be skilled in their interactions with one another; and they must always be able to renew themselves.
    • Which of the three dimensions of performance do you see as needing the most improvement in the groups and/or teams you lead and/or are a part of in your legal department?
    • Which practices presented in the article are most compelling to you?
  • Reflect on Caillet’s Is Your Team Doing “Real Work”? - 
    • How much “real work” is done by the groups and/or teams you lead and/or are a part of in your legal department?
    • If minimal, what type of work do they do?
  • Reflect on Caillet and Yeager’s The Team Adaptability Advantage -
    • Which operating mode do the groups and/or teams you lead and/or are a part of operate most frequently from in your legal department?
    • Why is this?
    • If relevant, what other mode or modes do you believe are possible?
  • Reflect on Caillet’s Team Life Cycle (in the Team Frameworks document) -
    • In which phase(s) would you place the groups and/or teams you lead and/or are a part of in your legal department?
    • How long have they been in this phase and what, if relevant, would it take for them to move to the next phase?
  • Consider Caillet’s The Power of State of Mind and How Your State of Mind Affects Your Performance -
    • What is the impact of your state of mind on your environment – both personal and professional?
    • What practices do you use to manage your state of mind on a daily basis?


IN YOUR COHORT MEETING (Meet to discuss the following BEFORE classroom session)

  • Check in and share any additional learning from the previous session.
  • Based on personal preference or as agreed upon by your cohort, discuss your responses to the Personal Reflection Questions

 

MODULE 3 LEARNING OBJECTIVES

  • Learn the dynamics of a team’s Life Cycle and why each stage is important
  • Learn the various Operating Modes groups and teams can work from and the competitive advantage that is born out of being able to move back-and-forth across these modes
  • Learn the four primary Team Leadership Styles, define your primary and secondary styles, and discover the power born out of being able to step into all of them
  • Learn and practice one of the essential dimensions of high performing teams: Common Purpose and Shared Goals
  • Learn about the impact of State of Mind on team Buoyancy, Safety and Performance and explore a suite of tools and techniques to achieve the optimal states of mind for your groups and/or teams

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