Do you want to create radical outcomes?
Juliana Stancampiano, author of RADICAL OUTCOMES: How to Create Extraordinary Teams, is an entrepreneur and the CEO of Oxygen. For more than fifteen years, she has worked with Fortune 500 companies, both in them and for them. Her firm’s clients include Microsoft, DXC, Delta Dental (of WA), Starbucks, F5 Networks, Avaya, and Western Digital, among others. Her in-depth experience, along with the research that Oxygen conducts and the articles she has published, has helped to shape the perspective that Oxygen embraces.
After reading her new book, I reached out to Juliana to learn more about her work.
“You cannot defend your design without knowing what you’re designing for.” -I.M. Pei
Set the Vision
What’s the role of the leader in the team to produce radical outcomes?
The leader sets the vision and acts as the guard rails. The leader remains outcome-focused yet allows flexibility to achieve the outcome. It’s not commanding and controlling your team. It’s knowing their strengths and ensuring roles and abilities are aligned.
“Teams must understand and focus on outcomes, not on tasks.” -Juliana Stancampiano
Face Team Obstacles
What are the obstacles many teams face in becoming an effective ensemble?
Lack of role clarity. Clearly defined roles and responsibilities avoid internal disagreements. Teams must understand and focus on outcomes, not on tasks.
Structure and process that prevent ensembles working effectively. We’ve seen performance management that rates people in comparison to their peers, not based on outcomes. When people are rated on a curve, they constantly compete with each other to improve their own rating. This prevents meaningful ensemble work.
Lack of visibility of work product. Teams must share, even before the “thing” is completed. Early sharing allows teams to iterate together and stay focused. Lack of sharing produces work that often doesn’t meet the stated outcome. It also causes unnecessary re-work.
Various modes of communication. Effective teams must communicate differently – fast communication, phone communication, chat communication – depending on topic and need. They embrace different modalities, at different times and with different people.
“Lack of sharing produces work that often doesn’t meet the stated outcome.” -Juliana Stancampiano
How do team members become collaborative and not competitive?