If you‘ve read my articles on Action Meetings, you may recall me saying that we had to establish rigid rules of the road in order to make brainstorming productive. Now I’d like to move forward on that theme, by looking at how the basic rules we came up with could be used as the foundation for building a full-blown Team Code of Conduct. (Those rules included no criticism or shooting down of ideas during the brainstorming free-flow; no cheap shots, no sarcasm or other forms of personal insults, no side discussions – and no taking over and talking over, particularly when quieter people are speaking). The idea was to create a place where it’s safe to throw out ideas without fear of interruption or ridicule. A broader team code builds on that base and expands your safety zone.
Our concept of a ‘real’ team code emerged in my work with companies in crisis.
Like so many of the practices I share, building a ‘real’ code of conduct – meaning one that is produced and individually committed to by each and every member of the team – not just the leader or the employer – came out of my business turn-around work with companies facing bankruptcy.
In the trial by fire of these turn-around projects, people had to learn to work together as never before. They simply had no choice. And we had to codify behavior that would ensure that all their time and energy was rivetted on attacking their problems, not each other. This sounds fine in theory, but in a turn-around situation people invariably blamed each other for the trouble they were in – and the air was full of recrimination, insult and ridicule.
Our solution was to facilitate a process of building – and implementing – codes of conduct that people would actually live by.
The companies and non-profits I worked with generally developed two codes – a Code of Conduct that dealt with everyday interaction between all players – and a second code specifically for leaders. Many of the companies I worked with developed a third code as well – a Code of Ethics to deal with HR and legal issues including company policy, and serious transgressions such as harassment, conflicts of interest, theft, and confidentiality, etc. In my work I dealt only with the first two versions.
Here is a composite example of a team code that contains the most common items that people came up with, based on three questions:
- What behaviors lift us up?
- What behaviors bring us down?
- What behaviors would ensure a safe workplace?
- Example: Company X – Full Team Code of Conduct
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- We avoid behaviors, including sarcasm, cheap shots, mocking, ridicule, put-downs, etc., that make life at work dangerous for their victims and take attention away from the turnaround effort.
- We talk ‘to’ not ‘about’ the other person when conflict is foreseen.
- We deal with potential conflict at the earliest stage possible. (We catch snowflakes before things snowball out of control).
- We treat each other with respect at all times. We respect each other’s time by being punctual. We respect each other’s feelings by maintaining a safe environment.
- We recognize the value of diversity. We welcome people who are differently-abled in various ways, and we treat all of our colleagues as equals.
- If we observe destructive behavior (e.g. cheap shots, name-calling) we speak up – we don’t ‘go along to get along.’
- We do not make casual commitments. We manage our commitments rigorously, so we can be trusted to do what we say we’re going to do – or alert those affected, in advance if possible, if we have to postpone fulfillment.
- Example: Company X – Leaders Code of Conduct
The following behaviors and best practices for leaders were developed with input from both leaders and team members. (We found this approach essential for success.)
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- Safety. We intentionally work to maintain a safe environment – free of the ‘usual’ negative workplace behaviors, including insults, sarcasm, cheap shots, mocking, ridicule, put-downs., etc. – that make life dangerous for their victims and take attention away from the turnaround effort.
- Respect. We respect team members’ knowledge, skill and experience by engaging and consulting with them, rather than simply dictating how work is to be done. We also consult when planning changes in procedure – and when correcting errors.
- Correcting mistakes. We correct mistakes without demoralizing by searching first for any role we may have played (e.g. “Was I guilty of drive-by delegation? Or hit and tun coaching?”); by assuming good intention on the part of the team member; by avoiding demoralizing criticism – and by using no-fault problem solving to attack the problem not the person.
- Trust. We are committed to managing our commitments rigorously, so we can be trusted to do what we say we are going to do.
- False promises. Specifically, we avoid saying we will do things and not following-through. For example, telling a team member, repeatedly, that we will look into something, and not doing so, or not feeding back.
- Input from team members. When we ask for input from team members we acknowledge their contributions and provide feedback – without fail, and in a timely manner.
- Recognition. We identify and recognize each person’s contributions to the team’s success.
- Fairness. We consciously strive to practice fairness in all our dealings with team members.
- Connectivity. We share feedback from clients in order to reinforce connectivity between the work that is done and its effect on users.
- Calm in crisis. We strive to remain calm under stress, by practicing deep nasal breathing.
- We look for opportunities to lift people up and avoid bringing people down.
- Leading by example. We commit to living the language of our Team Code – by acting as role models. We do so by consciously and continuously looking for and acting on opportunities to practice these behaviors.
Your call to action
This week I encourage you to gather your team together and develop the first draft of your own code, if you don’t already have one – or review and refine your existing code. What if you’re a solo operator, or an employee with no formal leadership role? Perfect. Declare yourself a team of one, and away you go.
(Ps – If you are a team of one, be sure to include an item on managing your negative self-talk – we all need to talk ourselves up, not down, whether we’re a team of one or a hundred.)
See you next week.
Neil
I read the above post in the wee hours this morning and it’s true Neil—cogent, comprehensive, and constructive. It’s rich and I enjoyed knowing it was you. Well done old friend.
Thanks for reaching out yesterday. It was good to connect and hear about this new phase in your life. I certainly plan to keep in touch.