When a New Boss is Assigned a Dysfunctional Team: 5 Building Blocks of a Successful Leader

Dysfunctional:  Not operating normally; Bad or poor social behaviour or judgment

Team:  A group of people linked together for a common goal or purpose

Now that we understand the meaning of these two crucial words, let's move on. Collaborating in a team can be daunting and frustrating, to say the least, yet it is something we all must do and is virtually inescapable.

Let's face it, everything we do is comprised of some sort of teamwork or the other:

from our home lives to our social settings. But the most unforgiving of them all is the "work team"; mainly due to the overall dynamics of of this group. People come and people go: especially team leaders and upper management.  For this reason, it is extremely important to recognize when a team is beginning to become dysfunctional and nip it in the bud.

When new bosses or management join a company, especially a dysfunctional one, things can get a whole lot worse before there is any sign of improvement. This can be very undermining and difficult for new overseers who see this as a threat to their personal growth. It can easily put on additional pressure and as a result, sway the prosperity and growth of the organization as a whole.  

Oftentimes, new management are eager to strut their stuff and prove that they are efficient and capable. With the lack of hindsight and insight, they delve into the nitty-gritty of a new company trying to fix it on a whim. In their eagerness to fix it all and fix it now, this ambitious undertaking gets in the way of vision and goal. And before you know it, they become "one of them" or shown to the door. 

They often quickly forget the main important aspect and number one rule of running a successful company—establishing RAPPORT with all members—Not just team leaders and go sees. In the absence of doing so, the weakest link breaks the chain. In a dynamic team, everyone is valued and appreciated—no one gets forgotten—no one is left behind. With that said, new management who takes to hearsay and listens to gossip and perceptions of others runs the risk of losing out on some of the most effective and valued members. Thus, continuing the vicious cycle of dysfunction and bringing down the house effect. 

So, here are a few tips and insights on how to not let your judgment get skewed by the negative impact of an already dysfunctional team perception, overly zealous so-called ladder climbers, and the company's social niche or culture.  To fix a dysfunctional team, new bosses must have and exude the following five building blocks:

1. Strong backbone (Strength): act with integrity and be in control at all times 
2. Visionary Goals - original, authentic and real goals - have a view of where things need to change and implement it by getting non-believers on board in a non-threatening and non-aggressive manner (get others to believe in the process)
3. Strategic Planning: able to make decisions based on the best overall interest of the company's growth and long-term success no pushback decisions flip-flop rules indecisiveness blame factors rely on facts and not perceptions.
4. Clear Team Objectives: understand the shared goals and vision that the company/team is trying to achieve by working in the spirit of togetherness ability to encourage, support and foster the belief that "the sum of the whole is bigger than the individual alone" discourage members from exhibiting the "personal gloat and glory syndrome" establish clear, defined and concise functions, responsibilities and rules set a standard of fairness and proportionate labour for all members to create an atmosphere of trust and accountability which leads to more focused members
5. Conflict Resolution: must be able to deal with conflicts in a respectful, supportive, constructive, non-critical, non-judgmental way to build growth and esteem—this may require the help of a life coach or mediator to:
• develop trust
• lose the underminedness and betrayal factor
• encourage and maintain open communication without fear of punishment for speaking up
6. Inspire healthy competition amongst members: this sets standards high and elicits collaboration and team morale
7. Discourage exclusion: leaving team members out of decision-making and festivities encourages prejudice and bullying in the workplace and is the biggest de-motivator and cause of:

• Tardiness
• Work related-stress/illness
• Absenteeism
• Apathy
• Unhappiness, unfocused
• Financial drain on a company - Employees are a company's greatest assets. 

Let's work together to turn dysfunctional into phenomenal! Dysfunctional: taking the FUN out of functional. Understanding the hierarchy of needs can help us put the fun back into our teams.

Be Blessed... Be Bold... Be Strong... Be You!