Do you have a Team of Revivals?

On the top of President Elect Obama's reading list is a Team of Revivals. This book explores the Presidency of Abraham Lincoln from the unique lens of his deliberations with his various opponents. One interesting insight, in my opinion, that this manuscript unearths is that Lincoln went against conventional mindsets and did not embrace a “to the victor goes all the spoils” approach to governing. On the contrary, this leader was secure enough in his own skin to ask his revivals to serve on his cabinet. Scholars believe that in order to create a high-powered team, which is an art, the ensuing predictors must be present (Wheelan, 1999). Some of them include:
1. Agreement on a common set of goals.
2. Clarity on member role assignments and expectations.
3. Interdependence of members.
4. Adaptive, or situational leadership style of team leader.
5. Open communication and feedback.
6. Importance of discussion, decision making, and planning.
7. Implementation of team decisions.
8. Norms relative to performance, quality, and success.
9. Minimum membership
10. Cohesiveness and cooperative attitude.

As mentioned in a prior blog, this process of becoming a high-performance team comes in stages. Stewart, Manz and Sims (1999) contends that the first stage (though research suggests they may not always flow accordingly) is forming. At this place, a group of individuals come together and begins to think of themselves as members of a team. The second stage is storming. This stage is the place in which individuals begin to disagree and sparks begin to fly (this is not the time to give up). The third phase is norming. Team members come together and begin to feel a sense of belonging (this is key for effectivenss). The fourth stage is known as performing. Here the members work synergistically to accomplish their collective objectives. The final juncture is adjourning. At this place, the team breaks up and moves on because the task is complete.

As the nation watches President-Elect Obama build his team of revivals, it’s clear to me that he is using Yulk’s (2002) model to navigate them around and through drama. Such qualities of include (1) Technical expertise, (2) Administrative skills, (3) Interpersonal skills, (4) Cognitive skills, (5) and Political skills. The byproduct of this methodology is empowerment, productivity, and followers believing you are becoming less of a hero and more of a hero maker (Hickman, 1999).

In light of the above, the question becomes, “Do you have a team of rivals dedicated to speaking the truth to you in love or a group of yes folk that you reward to stroke your ego?” The answer to this question can possibly explain the health of the organization that you lead. Step out of your comfort zone and select a team revivals today for the good of the team.


It's NOT about us,


Reference

Goodwin, D. K. (2005). Team of Rivals. New York: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks.
Hickman, R. G. (1998). Leading Organizations. Thousands Oaks: Sage Publications.
Wheelan, S. (1999). Creating effective teams: a guide for members and leaders. Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Yukl, G. (2002). Leadership in Organizations. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Richard Allen on How to Build a Winning Team

Richard Allen knew how to cast a vision, build a winning team, and successfully navigate through conflict to achieve a goal. In his autobiography, he reflects upon a decisive moment in the genesis of the church. We then held an election, to know what religious denomination we should unite with. At the election, it was determined--there were two in favor of the Methodist, the Rev. Absalom Jones, and myself, and a large majority in favor of the Church of England. The majority carried (Allen, 1833, p. 16).

The above sentiments may reveal that Allen innately understood the potency of the cliché, “teamwork makes the dream work.” Without a question, Allen’s vision to resurrect a house of worship for the outcast was clear, compelling, and challenging. The task, I would contend, centered not on his God-vision rather the team.

Stewart (1999, p.3) would define a team as “…a collection of individuals who exist within a lager social system such as an organization, who can be identified by themselves and others as a team, who are interdependent, and who perform tasks that affect other individuals and groups.”
Moreover, teams can fulfill one’s need for affiliation with others, improve their overall quality of life, and enhance job production (Steward, 1999).

Stewart et al (1999, p. 83-88) cautions, however, that team building is not automatic rather it occurs in five stages. The phases are: (1) Forming or when individuals come together and begin to think of themselves as members of a team. (2) Storming or when team members begin to disagree with one another. The storming stage breeds conflict. (3) Norming or the phase of development in which the members come together and begin to feel a sense of belonging. (4) Performing or when member work synergistically to accomplish their collective objectives. (5) Adjourning takes place as the team begins to break up and individual members move on to other activities.

The team of oppressed believers was formed when they walked out of a church that pulled Rev. Jones from his knees during prayer – Forming. Storming occurred during the election as conflict emerged regarding denominational affiliation. Norming was the order of the day as Allen navigated the team to a win/win outcome. Performing transpired as the team stood up to build Mother Bethel and adjourning become apparent as African Methodism flourished during that era.

Are you endeavoring to build a winning team and currently facing conflict? Take a page out of Bishop Allen’s “play book” and ask yourself these questions:

(A) Do I have a true vision from the Lord or is the dream laced with vainglory?
(B) Are you coming to the table asking what’s in it for me or are you asking what’s best for the rest?
(C) Can you lose your right to be right for the sake of the team?

Beloved, if your motives are pure and you are prepared for the “storming” stage, God will grant you the grace to coach your team into greatness for the Glory of the Lord!

It’s NOT about us,

Allen, R. (1833). The Life, Experience, and Gospel Labours of the Rt. Rev. Richard Allen. To Which is Annexed The Rise and Progess of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in the United States of America. Containing a Narrative of the Yellow Fever in the year of our Lord . Philadelphia: Marin and Boden, Printers.

Stewart, G. L., Manz, C. C. & Sims, H. P. Jr. (1999). Team work and group dynamics. New York: John Whiley & Sons, Inc.

Moving beyond A “Desk Clerk” Ideology : A call for a Richard Allen Model of Leadership

I recently called the hotel in which I stayed during the General Conference to acquire a copy of my receipt. I politely requested if the person could mail me a duplicate for my records but his response was revealing. He candidly indicated, “I am just a desk clerk, I have to transfer you to the voice mail of the General Manager so they can make that happen for you…” Before I had time to respond, the next voice I heard was the recording of the hotel’s senior leadership.

From my point of view, this person suffers from a “desk clerk” ideology, respectfully. I would a define such a posture as a mindset that believes that one must have a position of power or a formal title to make things happen. Seemingly, Maxwell (1998, p. 14) would agree that one does not need a title to be a difference maker. He elaborates:

“People have so many misconceptions about leadership. When they hear that someone has an impressive title or an assigned leadership position, they assume that he is a leader. Sometimes that’s true. But titles don’t have much value when it comes to leading. True leadership cannot be awarded, appointed, or assigned. It comes only from influence, and that can’t’ be mandated, It must be earned. The only thing a title can buy is a little time – either to increase your level of influence with others or to erase it.”

Yulk (2002) continues by outlining several strategies to move beyond mere positional power to acquire value-based influence. Some of them include:

(1) Rational Persuasion – the usage of logical arguments and factual evidence to show a proposal or request is feasible and relevant for attaining important task objectives.
(2) Inspirational Appeals – the agent makes an appeal to values and ideals or seeks to arouse the target person’s emotion to gain commitment for a request or proposal.
(3) Coalition tactics – the agent seeks the aid of others to persuade the target to do something or uses the support of others as a reason for the target to agree.

After the being labeled as a nuisance in the house of worship and being pulled from off their knees in prayer back in 1787, the leadership of old moved beyond a “desk clerk” ideology and excised their influence to confront a problematic system. The results? People like Richard and Sara Allen stepped out on faith, tapped into their personal influence, and advanced the Kingdom of God in a powerful way. I am glad that founding parents of our beloved church did not wait for titles or an election to make things happen. Perhaps it is time to learn from our leaders of old, embrace our faith afresh, and move beyond a “desk clerk” ideology? Who knows, we just may turn the world upset down in the process!

It’s NOT about us,

Maxwell, J. C. (1998). The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

Yukl, G. (2002). Leadership in Organizations. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Richard Allen on Learning Organizations - A message for today?

When an entity refuses to become a learning organization, such a unit runs the risk of becoming obsolete. Easterby-Smith et al. (1999, p. 8) assert that learning organizations “…concentrate on the development of normative models and methodologies for creating change in the direction of improved learning processes.” In an excellent analysis of organizations as learning systems, Nevis et al. (1995) identifies ten facilitating factors that expedite learning in an organization. All ten are vital, but the fifth one, a climate of openness, functions as the cornerstone.

Nevis et al (1995) suggest that a climate of openness allows (a) information to freely flow so people can make their own observations. (b) Offers various opportunities to meet and see higher levels of management in operation in order to promote learning. (c) Encourages an atmosphere to express their views through legitimate disagreement and (d) models a system to which errors are shared and not hidden (p. 77-85).
Moreover, Collins (2001) offers four additional ways to cultivate a climate where the truth is heard and organizations constantly learn. They include (1) lead with question, not answers, (2) engage in dialogue and debate, not coercion, (3) conduct an autopsies without blame and (4) build “red flag” mechanisms. Such an approach can enable an organization to confront the brutal facts and move from being good to great.

Seemingly, Richard Allen and others employed such a methodology in the face of oppression. Under his leadership, the colored people belonging to the Methodist Society in Philadelphia in November, 1787courageous yet wisely posed hard questions to each other that ultimately resulted in building the African Methodist Episcopal Church. In the spirit of Richard Allen, how can we embody the principles of a learning organization at a grassroots level in an endeavor to take our Zion to the next level?


It’s NOT about us,


Collins, J. (2001). Good to Great. New York: Harper Business.

Easterby-Smith,M., Araujo, L.,& Burgoyne J. (1999). Organizational Learning and the Learning Organization. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Nevis, E. C., DiBella, A. J., & Gould, J. M. (1995). Understanding Organizations as Learning Systems. Sloan Management Review, 36(2), 73-85.