Building Collaborative Teams for Successful Programme Delivery

Co-authored by Nell O and David F

Strong, high-quality working relationships provide organisations with one of their biggest strategic advantages. Good inter-personal relationships and team collaboration are the foundation of successful collaboration and enable diverse groups of people to come together and unlock the full potential and collective capability of everyone. This blog post will focus on some of the key things that we have experienced with different customers that should be considered when building on team collaboration; either face-to-face or working remotely.  

Psychological Safety

The effectiveness of team collaboration hinges upon the establishment of psychological safety and the cultivation of healthy relationships among team members. Psychological safety creates an atmosphere where individuals feel secure in taking interpersonal risks, such as expressing novel ideas, challenging the status quo or admitting mistakes, without fear of reprisal. This foundation of trust enables open communication and the free flow of ideas, essential elements for the exchange and expansion of knowledge. Healthy relationships within teams foster a sense of cohesion and mutual respect, ensuring that team collaboration efforts are not only productive but are also sustainable over the long term. In essence, the success of any organisation is inextricably tied to leaders’ ability to prioritise team collaboration, underpinned by psychological safety and healthy interpersonal relationships.

Different communication skills within teams

Understanding each individual's unique communication style is an essential step when building functioning, effective teams. Human beings are complex, and our interaction styles and communication preferences are different. At times, and in the example of a complex, fast moving programme, this can prove challenging and can lead to inter-personal conflicts that will undermine team cohesion, individual commitment (team members withdrawing mentally) and the ability of team members to achieve successful team collaboration and cohesive results.  

By understanding how personalities within a team align or contrast, we can build better relationships and work more productively together over time. This allows people to make authentic connections and develop trusting relationships with others, supporting us to develop the skills needed to collaborate, connect, and get things done at pace. 

Building strength profiles for your team

Strength Deployment Inventory (SDI)

One of the tools we use to help develop relationships is the Strength Deployment Inventory (SDI). This focuses on the whole person and assesses their individual motivations, how they respond to conflict and what strengths they typically bring to situations in the workplace. The tools are not competency based; they are designed to describe what drives us and motivates us as individuals and our preferences for operating and communicating with others. The tools help people to build greater team and self-awareness. When teams are built effectively around this knowledge, the combination of diverse perspectives and approaches leads to innovation and effective problem solving. These powerful insights are often transformational for the organisation; with today’s rapid technological advancements and the increasing pace of change, the ability to harness and integrate diverse knowledge is a key competitive advantage.

Working Genius

We often also use tools such as Working Genius, which helps Individuals to understand the type of work that gives them maximum energy and joy. It also identifies the type of work that can easily frustrate us or drain us of energy, which is particularly important when considering factors that contribute to stress and burnout. While we can't all work exclusively on projects we love and derive only happiness from, the key is to maximise joy, minimise frustration and achieve an effective and sustainable balance. This includes doing our best to make sure the team is diverse, and each member offers a different skill and work preference. This approach not only reduces the chances of burnout and frustration but also contributes to highly effective projects, increased retention, happier individuals, and a positive organisational culture.

We recently worked with two teams on their team collaboration using Working Genius, both of which swiftly grasped the concept and are actively applying it. The impact is undeniable. The teams have expressed how they are incorporating these insights into their daily practices and are discussing how the approach can be extended to wider stakeholders within their organisation. It's gratifying to witness the positive business outcomes of emphasising individual strengths and finding practical ways to integrate them into the team dynamic.

Final thoughts

In conclusion, the success of programme delivery hinges significantly on the quality of interpersonal relationships within collaborative teams. Understanding and appreciating diverse communication styles is essential when building effective teams, particularly in remote working environments. To delve deeper into building better team collaboration for successful programme delivery, visit our Services Page and read more about how Clarion Insight can help empower your teams and drive success.