What Makes Teams Work?
Director of vehicle personalization for automotive consumer-services group Ford Motor Co. Dearborn, Michigan A team should be made up of people who have different opinions about things, people who approach their work in different ways. Diversity is one of the keys to a successful team. But I’m sure that on every good team, a member has gone home at the end of a day thinking, “This isn’t going to work.” So my advice is this: Bring in a facilitator. Someone from the outside — an unbiased third party — may have insights about what’s working, what’s not, and why you are just too close to the project to see clearly. A facilitator may be just what team members need to make the most of their diversity, and to help them overcome any personal agendas or conflicts. At Ford, we always have team-effectiveness coaches on hand. It’s an unusual skill set for Ford, but the coaches are available and invaluable. I’d recommend that you get some. Janine Bay (jbay@ford.com) is the director of vehicle per
