Your team is an integral part of your company’s success. In fact, you can’t run a successful company without them, but you need to be sure your team is ready, able, and willing to move forward and grow with you.

Let’s see if they are!

To begin, I have a few questions about your team.

First, are your team members truly on your team?

Meaning, do they understand where you’re going with the business? Also, do they understand your mission and vision, and are they consistently managed? If your managers aren’t in alignment and moving everyone in the same direction, team members can become confused.

Next, do they want the same things you do from the business? Are they on board with what you want, and are they able to row with the rest of the team (other departments)?

Last, are they capable of performing in the role? Do they have the talents, skills, abilities, and knowledge needed to be successful in that role?  Are they in their best jobs, the right seats?

Yes, these may sound like strange questions, but…

Hold tight; I have a reason for asking. Many Visionaries assume their current teams are amazing, more than competent, and on the same page they are.

Often, they are. However, sometimes a little realignment or development will unlock even more magic on your team.

Please don’t misunderstand me.

I’m not for a minute saying your team isn’t full of wonderful people. It is. Of course, they’re doing their best to do a great job for you, and we want to give them the tools to grow and be happy in their work.

Making sure your team members get it.

Sometimes, we think our team members understand where we’re going, but they may not. They may not know where you’ve come from or be able to see where you’re taking the company.

Each department indeed has different functions, but everyone should be moving toward the same objective. In the end, the goal for everyone needs to be the same: following your core values, mission, and vision to grow the company.

Your team needs to be full of people who can see your vision. Also, they need to be able to make decisions in the best interest of the company, according to your mission and values.

For example, every team member makes decisions every day, even if they’re as seemingly minor as when to call a client back. They need to know what you prefer and why. Perhaps you’d prefer they touch base immediately and let the client know they’re researching their issue. On the other hand, maybe you’d rather they do the research right away and call in half a day or less. Knowing this preference and executing it shows understanding and alignment with your core values and processes.

Understanding whether your team wants what you want.

When a team has been together for a while, they might become used to doing things a certain way. When you, the CEO, have been wearing all the hats for a while, team members may take ownership of some tasks or step forward to do certain things, so you don’t have to worry about them.

Of course, your Integrator will be taking over some of the things your team was doing, thinking they were helping you. Understandably, this disruption could upset some of them. As a result, they may not agree with the direction the company goes after you step back into the CEO role.

Also, it’s possible they may not want to move in the same direction you do. Unfortunately, some team members may not be able to move in alignment with your goals. Sometimes, people don’t like change, and sometimes they don’t like accountability. Again, the main task of your Integrator will be to hold everyone accountable. Will your team fight it? (Will you?)

Does everyone have the capacity to do their jobs?

You’ll want her to help your team to get it, want it, and have the capacity to do it. EOS® calls this GWC®.  This will help the company gain traction and refine processes to prepare for the next level.

More about EOS® Entrepreneurial Operating System

EOS® is a complete set of simple concepts and practical tools that have helped thousands of entrepreneurs get what they want from their business.  By mastering this simple way of operating, leadership teams of growth-oriented companies systematically and permanently improve.   Click here to learn how to get traction in your business. 

Operating in the role of Fractional Integrator, sometimes called a COO, I work with women business owners who are sitting in the Visionary CEO seat of their company and running on EOS® and want to move their online serviced-based company past 7 figures.  

We will be digging more into the EOS® concepts and tools in future posts.