When things aren’t going well with a group or team, the first instinct is often to reach for the strategy toolbox:

  • If meetings are a mess, we tinker with the agenda
  • If we feel like we’re going in a million directions at once and not getting much of anywhere, we work on our plan

Structural tools like agendas and plans are indeed very powerful  and can often make the difference between effectiveness and a gong show. But no matter how much structure you’ve got, there’s one thing that can make or break everything you’re trying to do: culture.

Culture is a buzzword these days but for me, what it boils down to is: how does the group actually work together?

A group of people with an amazing plan who can’t work together won’t get much done. A team that doesn’t know how to bring up difficult subjects or fight effectively is almost guaranteed to go down a dangerous road sooner or later, as the example of the Challenger space shuttle tragedy clearly demonstrates.

Asking a group to execute a strategy when their culture is the pits is like handing a cookbook to someone who can’t cook and expecting a gourmet meal.

In reality, you need both structure and soft skills to really achieve a group’s potential. I recently got the opportunity to partner with a strategic planning expert to deliver a culture and strategy session for a local organization. We’ve been amazed by the transformative power of the two elements in combination:Culture

  • He facilitates a conversation about their work; I help them improve their dialogue skills to raise the quality of that conversation
  • He leads them in discussing how their organization is structured; I help them get through the disagreements that arise productively
  • He helps them identify decisions that need to be made; I provide training on effective decision making

I often meet groups who are quick to report that they all get along. Yet in spite of this apparent goodwill, they struggle to make decisions, or to follow through on them. They have trouble discussing tough subjects effectively. They often suffer from a high rate of turnover.

That’s because good culture isn’t just about getting along. It’s a system of relationships that are respectful, supportive, effective, honest, and accountable.

We often expect culture to take care of itself, or to develop positively at social events like Christmas parties. Certainly, social events contribute to culture. But we can also take more concrete and intentional steps to shape it through training and group activities.

A combination of soft skills training (communication, conflict resolution, eg.) and professionally structured group activities can work wonders for a group’s effectiveness.

The combination of a good plan and the tools to execute it is just about the best formula for success out there.

If you’d like to get started on developing your group’s culture, I’d love to chat with you: just click here to book a free initial phone consultation.