What Gallup's newest team research tells us about what really makes (or breaks) a team
I'm a big fan of assessments that help you understand yourself and the people you work with. One of the first ones I ever took (and still have the results for) was CliftonStrengths StrengthsFinder. These days, though, when I'm thinking about teams, I'm less focused on individual results and what they mean. Even without knowing where people land, I know one thing is always going to be true: a work team is going to be made up of a myriad of different people, and those people are going to think, work, and do just about everything differently.
So when I saw Gallup's new report, CliftonStrengths® and Team Experiences: Insights on Trust, Collaboration and Manager Impact, I immediately knew there was something here to draw on. The key findings don't suggest that certain types are better than others. Instead, they point to something bigger: embracing our differences and still forming relationships is what's key.
The Best Teams Are Built on Relationships
Up front and center was the finding that psychological safety (whether Gallup uses that word or not) is key to the best team experiences. Across every strengths type, people said their best teams were the ones where they trusted each other, collaborated well, and contributed to meaningful work.
People want to be collaborating and working together as a team. The work is better and more rewarding when they're part of the group, rather than just working simultaneously. People want relationships that go beyond "we're working on the same thing, in the same place, but not together." Relationships are key to both team and individual success.
The Worst Teams Break Down at the Relationship Level
The next finding was the flip side: the top reason teams were remembered as the worst was relationship breakdowns. When there isn't trust in the group, trust that you can communicate, speak up, and collaborate, the individual's takeaway (and likely the organization's) is that the team isn't performing or being successful.
It turns out that when people look back at the teams they've been on, they think about the people and the relationships more than the tasks and productivity. The relationships we have at work (or don't have) can have an incredible effect on engagement and retention. Despite all the productivity mandates and emphasis, fostering work relationships is far more impactful than just a nice-to-have.
Great Managers Are on the Ride With You
The last key finding I was drawn to was about managers. Again, putting my own words to it: a leader's ability to create psychological safety is key. This points right back to the importance of relationships, and it shows us how much both horizontal and vertical relationships matter.
When I think about the way people described great managers (supportive, trusting, empathetic, clear communicators, fair, and giving recognition), it tells me that people want present and involved leaders. People want their leader on the ride with them, not dictating and directing. In a way, it makes it clear that the team isn't just the direct reports. It's the entire unit: team members and leader together.
Knowing Each Other Matters More Than Knowing the Makeup
Gallup also found that how well team members know each other (in their study, each other's strengths) had twice the influence on performance as the actual mix of strengths on the team. To me, that's the real headline: knowing the people you work with matters more than the makeup of the team. So while the assessment results are useful to know, the team's makeup on its own isn't going to move the needle. Forming relationships and getting to know the people you work with will.
Slightly more discouraging: only 37% of U.S. employees strongly agree that they feel like part of their team. That tells me we have work to do. Regardless of team function, feeling like part of the team matters. It's a basic human need (think: Maslow's hierarchy of needs).
Diversity Only Works With Relationships
Another takeaway I grabbed from this report was a doubling down on diversity within a team. Here, Gallup is talking about CliftonStrengths, where diversity in type brings new perspectives. Just as diversity in age, gender, demographics (and a million other things) is a value-add, so is diversity in how we think and work. And that diversity, which can bring so much goodness to teams and organizations, depends on team members, leaders, and organizations investing in the relationships.
