Team-Building Example

The Need: A not-for-profit organization’s senior management team was stuck. Thy had led their organization through unprecedented growth and diversification of its services. However, the intensity of their work had led them away from their common agendas and habits. Their work lacked coordination across departments and functions, and the staff was complaining that no one knew what was happening. A period of funding challenges lied before them and staff was nervous.

How we helped: We sat down with leadership and planned a two-day retreat. We helped them articulate their objectives for the retreat, build an agenda and  develop materials to prepare the group to get the most out of their time off-site. We then facilitated the retreat, surfaced underlying conflicts and tensions, and ensured that the retreat’s objectives were met.

The Results: The team stopped, breathed and remembered the shared values and objectives that had brought them together to lead the organization. They reviewed all that had been accomplished over the past two years. They identified what remained to be done and what problems had arisen from the intensity of their work. They identified a set of clear priorities for the next year. After a night’s rest, they returned and identified a series of concrete ways in which they could improve their  communication, coordination and effectiveness. They then committed to a a set of steps for improvement which they continue to follow today. They entered the period of funding challenges in far greater unity, weathered it well and continue to thrive and grow the organization.