Teamwork on the Field and in the Office

By Ev Chasen

Football season is about to begin again, and pigskin prognosticators are hard at work trying to interpret who will survive the long, grueling season, who will face each other in the playoffs, and finally who will emerge as this year’s Super Bowl Champion.  Good pundits know that it’s not necessarily the number of stars on a team that determines how well it will perform, but how well the team plays together.  In other words, teamwork.

Vince Lombardi, perhaps the greatest football coach of all time, once said: “Individual commitment to a group effort- that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work.”  It’s important for every manager to take this to heart in evaluating how his or her staff works together.

Does your staff trust each other?  Are their goals the same?  Do they collaborate and use their talents, and their experience, to contribute to overall organizational success?  Do they try to be honest, respectful, and listen to every person’s point of view?  Are they all “blocking in the same direction?”  If the answer to these questions is “yes,” your organization is in a position to benefit from the synergy that results from a group of diverse individuals functioning as a team.  If the answer is “no,” here are a few ideas to help the process along.

First, every manager should emphasize teamwork, in their formal meetings, in their “one on one” discussions with staff, and whenever a new task needs to be accomplished.  It is important to remind employees of the benefits of teamwork, and the improvements in individual performances that result when people work well together.  At the highest levels of football, the best coaches set a culture of selfless commitment to the team, and they part ways with players who won’t buy-in.

Second, focus on organizational goals not just individual goals. Emphasize what your company or agency is trying to accomplish in your discussions with staff, not what any individual is doing. This will create a common focus and encourage groups to work together towards accomplishing the goals your organization had set.  In football, this means aiming for the Super Bowl instead of focusing on individual statistics.

Third, design well-balanced teams by having members complement each other; one’s strength should counter-balance another’s weakness.  Creating diversified teams will encourage people to work closely with one another to off-set their own weaknesses and capitalize on strengths.  Champions are never the team with five awesome quarterbacks and not a single decent lineman.

Fourth, if you’re going to talk the talk; then make sure you walk the walk. Staff will not work as a team if their manager is not part of that team.  Don’t give up on the team concept even when things are going badly; stay with it. Be honest, open and loyal to your staff, and they will respond in kind.

And finally, make sure the whole team is involved and agrees with important decisions. Every team member should hold themselves accountable for each decision, solution, or idea the team makes together. The more team members feel involved in the team’s decision making, the more likely they will commit to being an effective team member.

Henry Ford once said: “Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success.”  In football, business, and society teamwork is the key to success.  And, if you’re interested in my own choice for this year’s Super Bowl Champion, here it is: I’m picking the Jets!