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Thursday 30 January 2014

Teaming Up To Succeed - Tips For Developing Cohesive Teams

The other day I was watching ( and listening to ) one of the popular sports channels ,I heard the commentators explaining the success of these unlikeliest of heroes as, “Team players playing as a team.” Exceeding expectations as a team. United by tenacity. United by desire.

A sense of being a team and working as a team are powerful things, and time and again, in sports and in life, we see individuals united in collaborative efforts achieving goals far beyond what each could do on his or her own.
The following story will better explain my view on what best can be derived by teamwork.Here it goes.... 
A consultant was asked to give a talk at a sales conference. The CEO asked him to focus on the importance of cooperation and teamwork between the sales and marketing teams, since neither group had a particularly high regard for the other, and the lack of cohesion and goodwill was hampering effectiveness and morale. 
The marketing staff used to constantly moan about the sales people 'doing their own thing' and 'failing to follow central strategy'; and the sales people said that the marketing people were all ' idle theorists who waste their time at exhibitions and agency lunches' and have 'never done a decent day's work in their lives'.
Being a lover of rugby, the consultant decided to use the analogy of a rugby team's forwards and backs working together to achieve the best team performance:
"......So, just as in the game of rugby, the forwards, like the marketing department, do the initial work to create the platform and to make the opportunities, and then pass the ball out to the backs, the sales department, who then use their skills and energy to score the tries. The forwards and the backs, just like marketing and sales, are each good at what they do: and they work together so that the team wins..." said the consultant, finishing his talk.
The audience seemed to respond positively, and the conference broke for lunch. At the bar, the consultant asked one of the top sales-people what he'd thought of the analogy - had it given him food for thought ?
"Yes, I see what you mean," said the salesman, "It does make sense. The sales people - the backs, yes? - the backs need the marketing department - the forwards, yes? - to make the opportunities for us, so that we, the backs, can go and score the tries - to win the business. We work together as a team - each playing our own part - working as a team."
In any organization the craft of teamwork is an important characteristic that forges the road of success. When a group fails to successfully collaborate, they fail as a whole and nothing good comes out of it.Teamwork is the basic and crucial element for productivity at work.

Bringing together the knowledge ,interests and experiences of employees is a great way to strengthen internal communication.Initiatives to bring about effective team work are necessary at all times to ensure a smooth and happy work environment .Needless to say,such an environment is conducive to increased productivity.

Perhaps even more important to realize is that when a team is not effective, it runs the risk of causing more damage than good. In an organization this can mean the failure of projects, added expenses, lost time, and added stress to the team members.

Through effective teamwork, a team becomes a high performance team that is capable of accomplishing unimaginable things.

What are your opinion for teamwork and benefits of developing cohesive teams.

Sunday 5 January 2014

Welcome to KM's Blog: Connect, Engage and Focus: 5 Enablers of Effective...

Welcome to KM's Blog: Connect, Engage and Focus: 5 Enablers of Effective...: As the entire corporate world is witnessing a paradigm shift in systems, processes, strategies, it would warrant creation of new compe...

Connect, Engage and Focus: 5 Enablers of Effective Communication



As the entire corporate world is witnessing a paradigm shift in systems, processes, strategies, it would warrant creation of new competencies and capabilities on an on-going basis for which an environment of continuous learning would have to be created so as to enhance knowledge and skills.

In the information age, we have to send, receive, and process huge numbers of messages every day. The communication in all forms and on daily basis is utmost importance. Both giving and receiving.

It is often that communication determines success. It is simply impossible to become a great leader without being a great communicator .Communication is most talked and least understood area of human behaviour.

Effective communication is rarely taught and even rarely learnt in our society. Effective communication helps us better understand a person or situation and enables us to resolve differences, build trust and respect, and create environments where creative ideas, problem solving, affection, and caring can flourish. Superior communication skills are unquestionably vital to living a life by your own design.

How can you galvanize, inspire or guide others if you don’t communicate in a clear, credible, authentic way?

Here are the five enablers of effective communication.

Making It Simple
Effective leaders distil complex thoughts and strategies into simple, memorable terms that colleagues and customers can grasp and act upon. If you’re having trouble distilling something to its essence, it may be that you don’t understand it.

Aristotle was asked to tell his philosophy in two simple words: He said : simplify… simplify

The purpose of language is to convey the meaning. If you can do so with minimum and simple words-you have won.I am poor at remembering words. My vocabulary comprises of  300 words in all.But I have never felt short of words while expressing myself as I came to know that many of us have the same kind of vocabulary.

If we come across a word we do not know, we would refer a good dictionary, but if  we see so many words we do not know, we stop reading !!!!! In other words the reader would lose the pleasure of reading when he passes through the words, not known to him or difficult to understand.

Connect, Engage and Focus
Often, executives will opt for the sanitized “corporate voice” instead of their own because they think the former is more eloquent; more appropriate. Understand the environment,the audience ( at receiving end ) ,the culture and try and communicate in their language.This way you will be able to connect directly and engage effectively with your audience be it verbal or written communication.

Be Genuine and Real
People respect real. People follow real. Don’t disguise who you are. Be genuine, and people will respect you for it.

Be Visible 
Visibility is about letting your key stakeholders get a feel for who you are and what you care about. 

Stop-Look and Listen
Remember that effective communication is two-way. Good leaders know how to ask good questions, and then listen with both their eyes and ears. 

Thursday 2 January 2014

Spotlight ' Self-Evaluation ' - A Highway to Revolution


The most difficult thing in life is to know yourself since knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.

Frank Tyger , Editorial Cartoonist, Columnist and Humorist for the Times of Trenton has rightly said ‘Self-appraisal will do more for you than self-praise will ‘

The only journey is the journey within. Self-evaluation challenges you. It makes you self-aware - you willingly accept ownership of what you are and what you have done - and this reflects maturity. Maturity and integrity ultimately pay. Everyone should have a personal mission and vision (goal in life) to be truly motivated.

Self-evaluation has implications much beyond your current job or profile. Focus on yourself, stay objectively tuned and bring out your limitations and the plan to tackle them ,it is a clear sign of integrity and actually pays.

One should never neglect an opportunity for improvement. Change yourself and fortune will change with you.Self-evaluation brings change and change leads to transformation.It ultimately brings revolution.

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi,who started out as an advocate ,changed his role midway and donned the role of a politician and freedom fighter. If he had not spotted the opportunity and continued as a lawyer, it is unlikely that he would have reached the pinnacle of greatness that he eventually did.

Self-evaluation made him what he truly was.