Sometimes it’s What You Can’t See that is Most Important
The Opportunity
The senior leadership team of a Finance function could sense something was amiss. The work was getting done…but a bit painfully. The team couldn’t quite figure out the culprit. On paper the team made sense: extensive experience, technical expertise, deep organizational knowledge, and a commitment to outcomes. So why wasn’t that enough?
The Effort
Digging more deeply into the dynamics of the team we found that beneath the surface of what seemed to be a functional team existed a void of trust, understanding, empathy, and a common set of goals. While some of the challenges, such as goal alignment and collaboration, could be solved by enhancing the team’s mechanics, it took an intentional set of trust building, straight talking, and team norming efforts to break through the veneer and seed a more productive team dynamic.
A Kaleidoscope Perspective
Culture change seems easy: define a few core pillars, put them on posters and coffee mugs, and announce them with great fanfare. But the posters fade and the mugs chip, so without the right leadership and follow-through all that is left behind are missed opportunities and the same old dynamics. Instilling a new culture or enhancing team dynamics isn’t a singular thing you do, it is a mindset and effort you and your team assumes. Successful cultural transformations never end. Rather, they must be thoughtfully and diligently nurtured and cultivated.