There are moments when everyexecutive team needs time away to gather their forces.  These events are often powerful for the team members and extremelyvaluable to the team's effectiveness. They also cost time andmoney, and the risks of failure (or less obviously, little valueadded) can be very high. So, here are some pointers on the things youshould consider for success when you define a management team event.



When to Hold an Event?


The Obvious Times

• When a new team is being formed it is essential to kick theteam off to a good start
  
  

• When a team needs to be aligned, or re-aligned, to the visionand strategy
  
  

• When a new team leader comes on board
  
  

• When a significant number of new people join the team
  
  

Times of Change, Times of Trouble


Teams often go through difficult or troubled times: for example,when there are changes or challenging factors they must deal with, orbecause their own performance as a team has become compromised.Factors may include the following:

• When the scope and brief for the team change
  
  

• When the demands and objectives of the wider organizationchange
  
  

• When external business conditions change enough to require are-think
  
  

• When the team or the business unit is not meeting itsbenchmarks
  
  

Time for Maintaining the Edge

The best teams will hold an event or gathering of the team'sforces at least once a year. This is so that all the importantaspects of team productivity can be refreshed and made more current.The event (and the preparation that goes with it) gives the team thespace to align and commit to each other in these important areas andso maintain high effectiveness and high value creation.

WhenNot to Hold an Event 


There are some factors that will make a team gatheringcounter-productive. Here are some of the conditions that wouldindicate not doing an event even if most other factors suggest doingit:

• Not all team members are in place
  
  

The cost and time of a team event can be wasted if the rightpeople are not there, and it can be double if you have to repeat it!.One team lead client of ours waited 18 months from starting his rolebefore bringing his team together for a formal visioning andstrategic alignment process. He did this to make sure he had all thecritical (and correct) players in place. This included recruiting forempty positions as well as replacing some existing team members.

• One team member is a serious problem for the whole team
  
  

There are always tensions around and between individual teammembers; however you should consider delaying an event if:

• The tension or problem is very severe, and / or:
  
  

• The problem is focused around one or two people only
  
  

A severe problem is one where an individual is activelyholding the team back or subverting the team's effectiveness. Onehorror story for a client of ours was caused by a project team memberwho reported to a competing sponsor. Let's be clear, a team eventis not the way to solve a team member problem. If you have thissituation, fix the team member first, and then bring the teamtogether.

When the impact of the event on the team?sstakeholders would be counterproductive. 

• Bringing a team together costs time, money and travel. Thereare times when any or all of these need to be reduced over and abovethe good reasons for coming together. This is possibly the mostdifficult situation, since the value is obvious. Nevertheless, thereare times when it's important to be flexible and creative ratherthan ?right.? So, make your choice wisely and whenever you bringthe team together, make sure you manage the stakeholder impactbefore, during and after the event.
  
  

When to

For the event itself, it is important for a team lead torecognize that you can either run the meeting well or take part fullyin the conversation and discussion. Not both. So, the most obviousreason for delegating the conduct of the event to a business partneris so that you can engage in the discussions without your attentionbeing diverted. The business partner is accountable for the successof the meeting outcomes and responsible for guiding the meetingprocess towards that.

Some Points on the Help

The value of a business partner increases exponentially withthe size and scope of the meeting and with the scale and complexityof preparation required beforehand. Make sure the people you chooseto help you out have the skills and the authority to guide and drivethe process. For example, if your team's problem is getting throughthe conversation quickly and thoroughly, you need someone who willkeep the team on track. If your problem includes difficult teamrelations and friction, you must have someone who has the expertiseto facilitate difficult conversations and create breakthroughs inthese areas.

For team events where there are tensions andissues between team members, it is essential to have someone whosesole responsibility is the process. They must also have thesensitivity and emotional competence to manage the discussion as wellas the emotions.  

If your choice of facilitator isnot up to the task, as a team lead you will have three jobs to doinstead of two. The upside is that, if your facilitator is the rightchoice, the relief and release of inspiration and the boost in moralefor everyone will be phenomenal!

Simon Lovegrove is theauthor of ??, a downloadable guide to planning,preparing and running successful executive team events.  Simonis an Associate of The Center for Professional Development EuropeLtd, a global organization consulting firm.