Creating Inclusive, Collaborative and Innovative Teams
According to one newspaper headline from the time, the secret to a good working environment is “just to be nice”. But “nice” places to work don’t necessarily pay the bills.
Behind this superficial headline, though, was an important message. Google’s Project Aristotle had uncovered that in the highest performing teams, it was less about who was on the team and more about how team members worked together.
What drives team effectiveness?
The Google re:Work team spent four years rigorously looking for the key factors behind why some teams were more successful than others. They weren’t looking for a good working environment; they wanted to know about team effectiveness.
They discovered that the two most important factors were Psychological Safety and Dependability. The team members felt they could raise concerns, ask questions and have counterviews without interpersonal risk. And members could rely on each other to deliver quality work.
So what is Psychological Safety?
Amy Edmondson, a Harvard Business School Professor and author of “the fearless organisation”, defines it as “a shared belief held by members of a team that the team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking”; or, in plainer English:”a sense of confidence that the team will not embarrass, reject or punish someone for speaking up”.
It doesn’t mean “just be nice”: one way of being nice is to agree with everyone else, but that’s missing the point entirely. To get the best out of a team, you need everyone to express their thoughts and concerns and disagree when needed. You need people to feel included, so they feel able to do this.
Why is it so important for team effectiveness?
In any complex and uncertain environment – where knowledge workers generally are – teams are most effective when everyone’s input is heard so that the best ideas can rise to the fore. Highly inclusive and collaborative team environments naturally lead to high degrees of innovative thinking and achievement of goals. The team’s effective IQ is at a maximum when there is a high degree of inclusiveness.
High psychological safety ensures team members feel confident they won’t be embarrassed or ridiculed for admitting mistakes and asking naïve or challenging questions. Thus leading to better inclusion and collaboration.
What can you do to promote Psychological Safety?
All team members need to play their part; however, the team leader has a special responsibility. They need to set the tone, reward the best behaviour and gently redirect and teach those that hinder. In the worst case, someone impeding a team’s psychological safety needs to be removed, however good their individual performance. It’s team effectiveness that matters in any complex situation.
Google’s recipe is helpful:
- Demonstrate engagement with the team – be present and show you’re listening
- Show understanding and focus on solutions, not placing blame
- Be inclusive when communicating and build rapport
- Be inclusive in decision making
- Show Confidence and conviction without being inflexible to new ideas.
In summary
Psychological Safety is vital to create effective teams but it isn’t just about “being nice”, although this always helps. It’s about creating the conditions for inclusiveness and collaboration where people can share divergent views. Highly inclusive and collaborative environments lead to better results and innovation.
Remember this next time someone isn’t playing “nicely” in the team.