As the culture of the workplace continues to shift, the defining factors of a successful team need to change with them.
Gone are the days of members of the C-Suite hiding behind closed doors. Through open channels of communication, trust, ownership, and flexibility, teams can be successful and collaborative. But how are those things defined? And what should you be looking for when you're on the hunt for a new opportunity.
Communication
Transparency within a company is a must for a successful team. Communication shouldn't just be one-sided, but collaborative and ongoing.
A good leader will facilitate an environment where sharing ideas and working collaboratively is encouraged and celebrated.
This doesn't mean decisions are decided on in a democratic fashion, just that team members are free to express new ideas, areas of concern, or request help and their colleagues and leadership will respond in a timely fashion.
In fact, a successful team isn't afraid to engage in unfiltered conflict around ideas. This isn't arguing, but rather talking through the options. To make this possible, there needs to be open channels of communication and all team members need to understand that their input is valued.
Part of being a good communicator is listening. Good teams listen to the ideas of others and work together to complete tasks efficiently.
Trust
In order to have successful communication, there needs to be trust. Team members need to be able to trust each other enough to share their ideas.
Imposter syndrome isn't new, and that fear of not feeling like you belong can hinder the team in the workplace. Fear of criticism and having ideas dismissed are valid reasons for being cautious about speaking up, but successful teams trust each other completely, opening up a better flow of communication and collaboration.
That trust also means that successful teams are happy to challenge and disagree. Don't confuse disagreeing with arguing. It simply means that successful teams cultivate an environment where people are encouraged to question, challenge, and disagree in a constructive and open way.
Ownership
A successful team takes ownership of their responsibilities and roles. There needs to be commitment to decisions made and plans of action put in place.
This isn't to say that this ownership restricts collaboration. In fact, when roles are clearly defined and tasks properly delegated, there is more time for collaboration and innovation. Time spent performing non-essential or redundant tasks is one of the biggest time drains on a team.
A good team knows their own roles and values the roles of their colleagues as they work together to reach a common goal. This also means that successful teams set goals together and aim for the outcome collectively.
Ownership also means owning the mistakes. There can be no finger-pointing in a successful team. Finding a scapegoat may be an easy solution, but that will only degrade the trust that is essential to a successful team. The entire team should accept responsibility for both the successes and missteps.
Finally, part of what makes a team successful is being able to hold one another accountable for delivering on tasks.
Flexibility
Being flexible is a key trait of any team. Whether it's resolving a crisis, hustling to meet a deadline, or stepping in when a teammate is absent, remaining flexible means that a team can rise to meet these challenges.
Successful teams also embrace change. There should be a culture of constant improvement within a team and that often means that things will be changing. Being able to adapt to these changes is necessary.
This also circles back to trust: when teams aren't afraid of mistakes and failures, there is more likely to be creativity, innovation, and experimentation. Flexibility to try new ways of doing things is essential for a thriving team.
Life At Anteris
At Anteris, we built the team on trust. We're growing, and we're committed to that growth. We're building a culture at Anteris where amazing people (like you) can do their best work and be their best selves.
Teams can't be static; successful teams demand consistent work. We are constantly striving to strengthen our team and, therefore, our company.
In the old world, employees worked to make a living, wanted to follow explicit directions, and tried to juggle work and life. That simply isn't the case anymore.
In the new world, we place an emphasis on working to make a difference, charting your own course in the workplace, and harmonizing work and life.
If you're ready to grow with us, you're in the right place.
