During the consulting and even leadership training processes, I see that managers who are building new teams – whether hiring a new employee or relocating internally, they often have an individualized thought about that particular professional.
– What’s the curriculum?
– Where did you go to school? Has worked?
– Courses? Certifications?
It all makes a lot of sense, it’s super important and necessary. However, one point that may be off the radar of many contractors is:
How will this candidate interact with other team members?
How will they work together?
It may seem simple, but it’s really impactful on the day-to-day of a team and the organization as a whole, consequently.
“To manage effectively, you must focus on people’s INTERACTIONS, rather than their behavior separately.” (Russell Ackoff, modified)
To further illustrate the theme, I will use the Barcelona football team, one of the most winning teams in history and a famous example coming from team sports.
The principles behind Barcelona’s winning philosophy were, not having the best players (as good as they were), but the best “arrangement”, rapport, connection, team synergy…
In football, there is no secret: to dominate the game, first of all, possession of the ball is necessary. For this to happen, each player must have the ability to quickly catch and touch the ball to whoever is ahead.
However, for this to happen successfully, we do not rely exclusively on the individual skills of those who have the ball. The positioning of who is without the ball is more than essential.
In other words, for the player with the ball to have the possibility of passing, the other players must participate and position themselves in relation to their teammate. It is not an isolated action of one, but the entire movement of the group.
By establishing a fast, continuous and involving touch of the ball, the Barcelona team managed to maintain its attack possibilities, disarming the opposing defense’s positions.
And as an opposite tool, the same Barcelona smothered the game in the enemy’s field, leaving no room for the opponent’s ball touch. This style of play was given the name of tic-tac, symbolizing fast and continuous tapping, as well as a clock hand.
The football example makes it clear that the way people interact with each other is most responsible for the results of a team, not the individual actions of a single player.
If so, a single player would have to catch the ball and pass through all opponents towards the goal. Not the most brilliant of all would be able to do it consistently.
Individuals and INTERACTIONS more than processes and tools.
(Agile Manifesto)
At the end of the day, this is yet another agile principle being put into practice. So when managers are hiring or scheduling relocations, they should think about how the resulting team will play together.
In the same way, when we are thinking about a winning company, the “touch of the ball” between departments/teams must be fluid to increase the chances of winning the match.
Good week! #BeAgile
