Interdependence - The Heart of Teamwork

Read on my website: www.alexatherton.com/blog/Interdependence-teamwork-1

Read time: 6 minutes

Interdependence is at the heart of great teamwork for leadership teams.

Ultimately it comes down to this - what can a team do together that they cannot do apart?

Working in a team is not the same as working as a team, yet they are often treated as if they are the same.

Everyone living in their own silo, managing their own responsibilities and clearing their own inbox does not represent teamwork no matter how well they do it.

Interdependence is the opposite of independence. It is where team members truly depend upon each other for what they do. It is a continual process and not just here and there. The work of individual team members must be tightly woven together in order to achieve success.

This blog is the first one of two on interdependence. It is part of the leadership team series, along with the two articles I wrote on collective responsibility which can be found here and here.

How does interdependence work in practice?

Here’s three aspects to consider.

1. Appreciate the complexity

The complexity of leadership teams is generally underrated, yet they have complex problems to solve.

A team that does not spend time solving complex problems, including working out the next phase of the organisation’s development and how they are going to take it there, is at risk of hitting a plateau or worse.

If you are thinking ‘that’s the leader’s job’ then I refer you back to the collective responsibility blogs mentioned above. This is everyone’s job. If you cannot see the bigger picture then how do you know the value (or not) of your own contribution?

There may be a need to fight fires, get your hands dirty, go back to the shop floor (or any other metaphor) but if that is the standard day to day work then there is a problem. It means that the highest paid are spending their time engaging in work which is for the tiers below.

Model it, talk it through, work side by side with those at the lower levels of the organisation chart by all means. It is a valuable use of a leader’s time. But if that is where your eye is perpetually drawn as it is the only place where you think you can add value, then it is a problem.

If any team is going to make the most of what they have, and therefore significant inroads to their most difficult problems, then they need to collaborate, engage in dialogue, critique each other’s work and provide second opinions.

The best way for a leadership team to be less than the sum of its parts is for all team members to stay in their lane. Build your bunker, put your head down and see if anyone dares you to come out. ‘I’m just doing my bit’ is not the example to set.

Take a minute where you are right now - what are the three to five biggest problems that the leader is facing right now? Are they about finances, reputation, market share, performance of staff or something else?

More to the point, what was your response when the question was asked? If you had no idea, then have a moment to reflect. If you had some idea, then reflect upon what contribution you are making (and could make) to their resolution? If these problems never come up then ask why not? The team leader might be more grateful than you imagine. To stay in your lane is also to stay out of the way.

What could happen if you worked together to get to the heart of the most complex problems to find a way forward? What difference would it make to your own responsibilities. The richest conversations come when a leadership team explores all possibilities for their most significant issues.

A set of people who all work independently in their own areas is a group, not a team. Making those breakthroughs requires teamwork.

2. How do you meet?

Here’s an image which any member of a leadership team I coach is familiar with.

Leadership teams often meet in only two ways if they meet at all. They are altogether or in pairs.

A team of four has six potential pairs, five ways of meeting in threes plus the obvious one way of meeting as a four. Even with a small team it is very possible not to make the most of what you have. Working in pairs often means with the same person over time, perhaps in an office sharing arrangement.

The bigger the team the more combinations there are to exploit, very roughly doubling with each new team member. (For clarity I am referring to combinations, not permutations. If person A and B meet, that is the same combination as person B and A meeting.)

By the time teams get into double figures the number of combinations goes into four figures.

I am not suggesting that a team of 13 should seek all of those 8000+ combinations, but it also reveals the possibilities which exist. The long sought for answers to the most significant problems are often right there in the room. They just need different people to tackle them collaboratively for a sustained period.

The most fruitful possibilities tend to exist in the 3s and 4s, particularly when they include people who never work together. The synergies which flow from perspectives which are never shared can be considerable.

The issues which burn a hole in your desk can be resolved right there. Do not assume that all who get together require specialist knowledge, or that they must ‘get on’. If they cannot collaborate then there is an issue in them being a member of a senior leadership team in the first place.

Specialist knowledge is helpful, but small group work provides the opportunity for past experience to be shared in a way which would not have been possible otherwise.

3. Share the airtime

This is so basic and yet so fundamental.

I have written elsewhere about the one-to-one meetings which become a ‘one’. In other words, one person talks and the other only attends.

Interdependent work requires ground rules, and the most fundamental one of those is that the airtime must be shared. The same applies to the responsibility for thinking.

This is also true for workload, and collective responsibility for the outcomes. Genuine collaborative work demands that everyone has a stake. An approach of ‘turning up to see what happens’ is not enough. Everyone is there to share the responsibility of ensuring something does happen.

In practice what does ‘share the airtime’ mean?

●       Everyone must contribute, ideally as equally as possible. Impose taking turns if need be. It may seem childish but it is amazing how many adults have an issue both with taking their turn, waiting for it or contributing at all. Small group work is partly about ensuring the loudest do not dominate.

●       For those who have a tendency to interject with phrases like ‘can I just say?’ ensure that these contributions are part of sharing the airtime, not an additional extra. That enthusiasm to participate can be a wonderful thing, and it is where lightbulb moments often happen. It can also symbolise an individual’s desire to dominate the conversation and not listen to others. Everyone has two ears and one mouth for a reason.

●       Silence is a perfectly valid element of ‘airtime’. Some are unable to think properly if someone else is talking. Dialogue requires genuine listening and thinking, and not pausing to reload. Allowing silence is a sign of strength.

●       Ensure collective ownership of the conclusions, how they will be shared with others and what will happen next.

This may sound heavy, but individual reputations are shaped in those small group discussions. This Includes answers to the question ‘what is person X like to work with?’

Remember that

●       Every team member should be working with every other over time, even if in some small way. It is not the leader’s job to make that happen every time.

●       Interdependence is both an investment and a game changer. You can spend many hours not finding the perspectives that the colleagues across the table had all along.

How can I help you?

1. One to one coaching programmes for senior leaders who are swamped by their jobs so they can thrive in life. Click here to discover where you are on your journey from Frantic to Fulfilled? Just 5 minutes of your time and you will receive a full personalised report with guidance on your next steps.

2. Team coaching programmes - working IN a team is not the same as working AS a team and yet they are often treated as if they are the same. I help teams move from the former to the latter, and generate huge shifts in productivity and outcomes.

3. Talks, workshops and seminars - including topics relevant to the two areas above plus explaining Gen Z to Gen X and dealing with the intergenerational workplace. Speaker showreel here.