Credit to:
Patrick Lencioni & The Table Group for the “First Team” concept,
Jason Wong of https://www.attack-gecko.net/ and Dalmau Consulting for the image
I loved my job.
I was part of a powerful and effective executive team to which I was loyal. I had no problem identifying that they were the team I was personally responsible for and accountable to.
They were my ‘First Team.’
I had built my team into a great team. People took on some of the most complex projects you could imagine, and not just succeeded but excelled. I felt great loyalty to everyone who directly and indirectly reported to me.
But there is no doubt that my division was my ‘Second Team.’
Read about what Punk taught me about this situation.
“First Team?”
A First Team – best articulated by Patrick Lencioni – is the idea that true leaders prioritize supporting their fellow leaders over their direct reports—that they are responsible to their peers more than they are to their individual or “Second” teams.
If you’re not entirely on board with that concept, I get it.
In my experience, a “First Team” mindset has been transformational in creating a high-performing organization by improving the quality of leadership and management practiced.
When leaders have built trust with each other, it becomes significantly easier to manage change, exhibit vulnerability, and solve problems together.
I was part of a team that looked and functioned like example A in the drawing:
When I fell out of my “First Team.”
Things changed when I got a new boss close to me and considered myself a trusted confidant. Over time, she became quiet, stopped sharing reasons for her decisions, and stopped responding. People were hired onto the leadership team I belonged to, who I believed did not demonstrate the standards I expected of them. My performance began to slip, and my reactions to events were not always as professional as I either hoped or was expected of me.
In retrospect, all the signs pointed to the simple fact that I was nearing or had gone past my best-before date as far as she was concerned. To be clear, I have never purported myself to be perfect in any regard. Still, in this case, I was dealing with a boss who was not providing me with precise and proper performance management or effective leadership.
As pictured in example B, I lost faith in my boss and much of the leadership team.
To the point that I focused on my team, and slowly but surely, I became increasingly isolated from the organization’s objectives.
Other Examples of a Broken “First Team”
Imagine a world where the top leaders in your organization are gathered to solve the company’s most pressing challenges. Instead of coming together as a team focused on solving the problem, they approach the exercise more concerned with their own self-interest than with addressing the company’s needs, as illustrated in example D above.
Or are you part of a leadership team so disconnected from the rest of the company that they have
no idea what is happening on the shop floor? Picture example C above as the worst of ‘Undercover Boss.’ Where leadership has no idea.
But probably just another day at work for many people, and it’s why I spend a lot of time building a First Team mindset with my clients.
Read more about unaligned leadership teams.
Tragic?
Here are some of the ways I’ve had success in creating a First Team mindset:
Be Explicit
Be explicit about the behaviours you expect from your leaders. Be clear with my managers about their responsibility to one another, including details of the First Team expectation in the job description and interview for how they’ve practiced it.
Treat Them Like a Cohort
Suppose you don’t treat your leadership team like a cohort. In that case, they won’t become one. Ensure you regularly bring together your leadership team, including everything from mailing lists, Slack channels, to team-building exercises and social events.
Information and trust are the currencies of leadership, and demonstrating an equal distribution through shared experiences is a powerful tool.
Help Them Help Each Other
Encourage interdependence and normalization of help-seeking amongst team members.
Please encourage them to talk to one another about their problems and refer them for help.
Role-play difficult conversations with a fellow manager.
Help Them Help You
Invite your First Team to help you solve your problems.
This vulnerability may feel scary, but it has proven beneficial to leverage your leaders’ capabilities to lead to better outcomes for your organization. And it is a significant development opportunity because it exposes them to the types of problems they will face at the next level of their career.
Make it Stick
To ensure that you and your leadership team are adhering to the First Team concept, I recommend reviewing the following with your team:
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- At every opportunity, point out the priority of Team #1 before making any critical decisions.
This will put leaders in the correct frame of mind.
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- Demand that team members prioritize the executive team over all others.
When the executive team is truly cohesive and prioritizes tasks effectively, their ability to tackle complex challenges with increased confidence strengthens the team and exemplifies unity throughout the organization. This requires an absolute, unwavering commitment to the First Team.
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- Explain how the team’s direct reports will be impacted.
We all know that if there is any daylight between executive team members, it ultimately results in unwinnable battles that those lower in the organization are left to fight.
Like many of the concepts I consult on, First Team is as powerful as it is simple.
Learn more about how I work with executive teams.
I have seen highly educated leaders with vast experience have an “aha” moment about the First Team concept, resulting in an immediate impact on their team’s cohesion and ability to succeed.