How to Bring Teams Together During Crisis

Sep 23, 2016 1 Min Read
Alt

LDR-PDF-download-110x110

Crisis is a journey of transformation. During crisis, you and your organisation may change or die.

Meetings during tough times:

Successful meetings create focus and increase energy.

1. Reconnect with purpose.
Your purpose is bringing value to your customers, not saving the ship. Invite a client you’ve served to the meeting. Listen to their story and reconnect with your purpose. Make it personal, more than informational.

2. Make it hurt. Pull no punches.
What happens to your clients if you fail?

3. Define the crisis.
Embrace the darkness by asking everyone to explain the worst that could happen. Describe how everyone’s life will change if you fail. It’s silly to dance around a burning house.

4. Express realistic optimism.
Let everyone know how important they are, if they grab the rope and pull.

5. Talk more about what you can control than what you can’t.
Crisis has many components you can’t control. Listen to problems, doubts, and fears. Then say, “I hear what we can’t do. What can we do?”

6. Assign responsibilities to everyone in the room, everyone
They shouldn’t be at the table, if they aren’t making it better.

7. Write assignments on the whiteboard along with the name of the responsible person.

8. Cross off assignments as soon as they’re completed, along with the date. Make progress visible.

9. Give new assignments after old ones are completed. Keep the whiteboard list going.

10. Pour energy into those who make positive contributions. Minimise dead weight.

Bonus: Celebrate wins and talk about next steps at the same time.

Leadership language:
1. We need each other, not I need you.
2. It’s not about us. It’s about the people we serve.
3. I’ve seen us rise to challenges in the past. Tell stories of people who faced challenges in the past. Focus on their work and sacrifice more than the win.

Bonus: Use “we” more than “me.”

What suggestions do you have for running meetings during a crisis?

Dan Rockwell is a coach, speaker and is freakishly interested in leadership. He is an author of a world-renowned most socially shared leadership blog, Leadership Freak.

Reposted with permission on www.leaderonomics.com.

Save

Save

Share This

Business

Alt

This article is published by the editors of Leaderonomics.com with the consent of the guest author. 

You May Also Like

Alt

The Future of Enterprise Intranets: 7 Trends & Advances

Understanding enterprise intranet trends and advances is crucial for businesses seeking to stay competitive and improve overall operational efficiency. Intranets of today are evolving beyond just a medium of inter-office communication.

Dec 06, 2023 5 Min Read

Alt

Prof. Olaf Plötner, Dean of Executive Education at ESMT

This was the central message offered by Professor Olaf Plötner, dean of Executive Education at European School of Management and Technology (ESMT).

Jan 04, 2017 29 Min Video

Be a Leader's Digest Reader