Building Stable Teams: The Power of Relationships

In any organization, the success of teams drives the success of the entire company. But this success depends on the strength of relationships within those teams—including those between team leaders and their members, as well as between the team members themselves. In today’s hybrid and remote work environments, where casual face-to-face interactions are limited, it’s more challenging than ever for managers to foster strong connections among their teams. However, when relationships are struggling, it results in low productivity and difficulty in retaining top talent. That’s why it’s crucial for managers to step up and learn how to build trust, generate commitment, and drive results through these relationships. This will help create teams that are resilient, able to overcome conflict, and achieve ambitious goals.

Building Trust Through Relationships

Trust is the foundation for creating psychological safety, managing conflict, supporting inclusion, and fostering innovative problem-solving. To build trust, managers should focus on three key actions: recasting the past, mastering the moment, and co-creating the future.

1. Recast the Past Recasting the past involves challenging old assumptions, incorporating new information, and being open to shifting perspectives. Managers can facilitate a team discussion around questions such as
   
   

• What past experiences might be hindering trust?

• How do team members perceive each other now?

• What steps can be taken to change the current trust dynamics?

2. Master the Moment Mastering the moment is about managing behavior, emotions, and perceptions in real-time to ensure interactions are effective. This means creating new, positive experiences built on authenticity. Even when trust has been broken, managers can reset relationships by cultivating moments that are transparent and genuine, helping rebuild trust from the start.
   
   

3. Co-Create the Future Co-creating the future is about intentionally shaping how relationships will evolve over time. Every conversation contributes to building trust, and these interactions create a lasting foundation. To promote trust, managers should provide opportunities for team members to get to know each other on a deeper level. Building trust is an ongoing process, not a one-time event.
   
   

Generating Commitment Through Relationships

Commitment arises when individual motives align with team goals. When team objectives resonate personally with each member, they are more likely to feel invested and engaged. This is especially vital during times of change. To foster commitment, managers need strong one-on-one relationships with each direct report to understand their values, strengths, and motivations.

By taking assessments like Core Strengths, managers can learn more about each team member's personality and motivations, accelerating the process of understanding how to connect team goals to individual values. For example, consider a NASA test pilot in 1961 with a competitive, performance-driven personality. To motivate him to adhere to safety protocols, the pilot’s boss would link the common goal (to land on the moon) to the pilot's personal motivation (winning the space race). The same principle applies in teams: aligning goals with personal motives fosters commitment.

Driving Results Through Relationships

Once trust and commitment are established, managers can leverage the diverse strengths of their teams to achieve results. Every individual possesses a range of strengths, and the Core Strengths assessment helps team members understand their own strengths and those of their peers. The goal is for everyone to be agile in using their strengths, applying the right ones for the task at hand.

Managers should ask:

• What strengths does the team have?

• Who can leverage their top strengths?

• Who can develop their middle strengths?

• Are there any overdone strengths that could be limiting progress?

By understanding how to match individual strengths with the needs of a project, managers can create an environment that promotes engagement, fosters personal growth, and drives innovation. Everyone should have the opportunity to use their strengths and grow, which will increase job satisfaction and contribute to team success.

The Stable Team

A stable team is built on three pillars: trust, commitment, and leveraging strengths. Trust forms the foundation, ensuring that the team is psychologically safe and able to handle conflict. Commitment follows, ensuring that everyone is aligned with the team's goals and motivated to achieve them. Finally, a manager must skillfully leverage each team member's strengths to achieve results and drive innovation.

When these elements come together, teams become resilient, adaptable, and capable of accomplishing any challenge. Stable teams fuel organizational success, and they are built on strong, authentic relationships that foster trust, commitment, and collaboration.