{"id":48404,"date":"2023-10-01T14:46:48","date_gmt":"2023-10-01T18:46:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ccl.org\/?post_type=articles&p=48404"},"modified":"2025-05-08T06:59:14","modified_gmt":"2025-05-08T10:59:14","slug":"what-does-your-team-need","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/www.ccl.org\/articles\/leading-effectively-articles\/what-does-your-team-need\/","title":{"rendered":"Focus on These 3 Team Needs to Improve Team Performance"},"content":{"rendered":"

Understand What Teams Need to Succeed<\/h2>\n

Anybody who\u2019s contributed to a team knows that teamwork comes with a unique set of challenges \u2014 getting commitment from all team members, reconciling different and sometimes competing agendas, uniting behind a shared purpose \u2014 the list goes on.<\/p>\n

Depending on where they are in the team \u201clife cycle,\u201d teams need different resources to navigate business and interpersonal challenges \u2014 and to have a positive impact on their organizations.<\/p>\n

When team members understand what their team needs, they have a way to identify and discuss what\u2019s working well and what isn\u2019t. Teams can then be more focused and proactive in making changes that will address needs and lead to better team performance.<\/p>\n

\"Infographic:<\/a><\/p>\n

What Teams Need to Perform Across 3 Phases<\/h2>\n

#1 Team Need: Planning<\/h3>\n

This phase takes place both when the team is planning actions to take or evaluating the impact of actions that were taken. Whether new, reconfigured, or floundering, teams will find that team performance benefits from giving time and attention to\u00a06 team needs around planning<\/em><\/strong>:<\/p>\n

1. Team charter<\/h4>\n

Are overall objectives, resources, and constraints defined and clear to all team members? Learn more about how to create a team charter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

2. Goals<\/h4>\n

What are the measurable team outputs and related milestones?<\/p>\n

3. Team norms<\/h4>\n

What standards of behavior do team members agree to? How will they handle routine issues, such as how work is divided or how disagreements are to be resolved? Setting and agreeing upon\u00a0team norms<\/a> also help members address unexpected or complex situations.<\/p>\n

4. Task performance strategy<\/h4>\n

What\u2019s the overall approach the team will take?\u00a0What key actions are needed to achieve goals?<\/p>\n

5. Shared understanding<\/h4>\n

Do team members have a common perspective? What key assumptions may affect performance? Teams can easily be tripped up by different beliefs about the challenges the team faces, the tools or resources available, or the desired working relationships among team members, for example.<\/p>\n

6. Team memory<\/h4>\n

What relevant knowledge, information, and skills do team members possess or have access to? What gaps exist?<\/p>\n

# 2 Team Need: Action<\/h3>\n

When teams are in action \u2014 engaged in activities that directly lead to goal accomplishment \u2014 they have\u00a06 team needs to support action<\/i>:<\/strong><\/p>\n

1. Monitoring output<\/h4>\n

How does the team track and communicate progress?<\/p>\n

2. Monitoring systems<\/h4>\n

What methods or resources are available for tracking people, budgets, and information \u2014 and for keeping up with stakeholders, markets, or other external factors?<\/p>\n

3. Coordination<\/h4>\n

How does the team prioritize and sequence key activities and events?<\/p>\n

4. Communication<\/h4>\n

Do team members communicate openly with each other? Does the team experience a high-quality exchange of ideas and information?<\/p>\n

5. Monitoring team behavior<\/h4>\n

How is feedback given to team members? (Hint:<\/em>\u00a0Use our Situation-Behavior-Impact (SBI)\u2122 feedback model to discuss impact vs. intent<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

6. Boundaries<\/h4>\n

How and when does information flow with other groups or units? Are behaviors present for spanning boundaries<\/a> effectively?<\/p>\n

#3 Team Need: Interpersonal<\/h3>\n

In addition to team needs that arise in the planning and action phases, teams also have\u00a04 team needs in the interpersonal <\/i>arena:<\/strong><\/p>\n

1. Motivation-building<\/h4>\n

Do team members have a sense of personal\u00a0accountability for performance<\/a>? Is the team cohesive and motivated?<\/p>\n

2. Psychological safety<\/h4>\n

Is there a sense of trust on the team? Are team members able to speak their minds, knowing they\u2019ll be respected and listened to? (This is key for psychological safety at work<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

3. Emotion management<\/h4>\n

How does the team handle emotions? Setbacks, frustration, and even overconfidence can cause an emotional strain among team members. Are there teamwork blockers or activators<\/a>?<\/p>\n

4. Conflict management<\/h4>\n

Do differences of opinion prevent the team from meeting its goals? Does the team allow healthy debate while avoiding personal attacks or acrimony? How skilled are team members at addressing and\u00a0reducing conflict in the workplace<\/a>?<\/p>\n

A Final Word on Team Needs<\/h3>\n

When a team is underperforming, faltering, or flat-out failing, look carefully at what\u2019s missing. What behaviors are required to meet team needs? Whether your team is in planning or action mode, understanding these sets of team needs \u2014 interpersonal included \u2014 will help you as a leader know how to gather the resources you need to get the job done. And if you’re looking for more insights into team needs and dynamics, explore our team effectiveness framework<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ready to Take the Next Step?<\/h2>\n

We can partner with you for team development<\/a>\u00a0designed to give teams and their leaders the skills needed to succeed and improve team performance by meeting team needs.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Teamwork comes with challenges. When you understand what teams need to succeed \u2014 and address team needs in every phase of collaborating together \u2014 you can improve team performance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":130,"featured_media":48405,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_oasis_is_in_workflow":0,"_oasis_original":0,"_oasis_task_priority":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48404","articles","type-articles","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","categories-collaboration-relationship-skills","categories-leadership-tips","categories-team-development","audience-leaders-managers","region-global","article-type-leading-effectively-articles"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAddress These 3 Team Needs to Improve Team Performance | CCL<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When you understand what teams need to succeed \u2014 and address team needs in every phase of 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