Balance Points from the Team

Take Your Team On A Cruise

10.30.18

What do organizations and cruise ships have in common?

Stay with me here because the answer is, “More than you might think.”

If you are responsible for managing a team at your organization, there’s a good chance your people are taking a siloed view –heads down, doing the job they were hired to do. This is a natural inclination, but effective leaders know that one of the best ways to accelerate team growth, learning and connection is to make sure people understand how their contributions fit into the overall workings of the business. And the best way to do that is to take them on a cruise. Allow me to use a former client as an example.

I recently worked with an organization that sells consumer goods. This organization was going through a challenging but exciting time of change and hired Sonia and Carlos to help them move to the next level. Sonia and Carlos got aboard and quickly learned everything about their “room” and found the main dining room.

They went about discovering all the good in their room and the dining room. They also quickly identified some ways to improve their lives as well as the lives of their teammates, other passengers and the crew. However, this organization is a huge ship with many rooms and inner workings that Sonia and Carlos had never seen or even hear about.

Their intentions were good, but they were operating without the benefit of the big picture. Enter Aaron.

Aaron is a senior executive and has been with the organization for years so he was the perfect person to take Sonia and Carlos on a personal tour of some of the most important parts of the ship. He took them to the bridge so they could see where the ship had been and where it was going.

He took them to the engine room so they could see what makes the ship move. He took them to the bilge room and shared some of the mess that is part of the journey. He encouraged them to explore more and to make their part of the ship the best it could be. He even went to their rooms and admired what they had done with them and with their teams.

The upshot is that Carlos and Sonia are much more effective as individuals and as team leaders because Aaron accelerated their learning about the organization by taking them on a tour of the entire ship. As a result, they not only know their rooms, they know the bridge, the bilge, and the engine room.

They know the captain and the officers, and they have deeper insight into the organization’s history and how they will play a part in its future. They are also empowered to continue their learning about all the other ship’s rooms, passengers and crew with greater visibility and confidence.

Think about the high potentials on your team. How much do they know about the ship? Maybe it’s time to take them on a cruise.

Click here to learn more about Gary Halverson.

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