Orchestras and Teams: Playing in Tune
Orchestras and Teams: Playing in Tune
Many years ago, when I was newly appointed as the leader of a large team, I met with them to introduce myself and to learn more about them. And I shared an analogy that continues to ring true in my mind today; that we’re an orchestra and I was their conductor.
The conductor’s role is to have a finely tuned ear to distinguish how well the orchestra is performing, and if necessary, identify the steps needed to perform at the level expected to deliver a masterpiece. Similarly, the leader’s role is to distinguish how well the team is performing, and to provide coaching and guidance to reach their goals and objectives. (more…)
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This ancient quote, attributed to Aristotle, speaks to the importance of synergy between components of a system. As important as the heart, liver, kidneys, and other physical organs are, they only come to life when they’re properly connected in the context of a living human body. And a weak or failing organ similarly has a negative impact on the entire system. Each organ or element must function at a certain level to maximize a person’s health.
In November of 2022 when OpenAI launched ChatGPT (Chat Generative Pre-Trained Transformer), a technology that lets users ask questions and receive humanlike responses, many early adopters and influencers were quick to try it out and use it in their work.
Communication is simultaneously one of the most simple and complex activities we engage in as humans. Two or more people can talk about a topic and completely understand each other in one moment, and in the next moment recognize a disconnect has occurred. Colleagues who have trusting relationships will typically recognize this more quickly and get back on track. But often in organizations, leaders with contrasting priorities will continue to move forward without recognizing the growing divide between their work and that of their associates. They focus more on talking than listening. And failure to listen to colleagues ultimately impacts organizational productivity and profitability. 
Several weeks ago, I completed my first half marathon. Making the decision to do it, disciplining myself to train for it, standing in the middle of the street in downtown Detroit at 6:30 a.m. on a chilly morning with anxious excitement waiting for the starting signal, and later working through the physical aches were all new experiences. But my biggest learning wasn’t physical, it was mental.
Several months ago, in mid-July, I noticed an untimely phenomenon in our backyard. A tree that towered high above our two-story home began dropping brown, dead leaves. And while the annual cycle of falling leaves wasn’t uncommon, we were used to it happening in October and November instead.
Recently I sat down and opened a book to read with two young children. They selected a picture book where they needed to find hidden objects on different themes. In some of the pictures, I was the first to find the hidden object and I quietly waited for them to peer at the page and point it out. But at other times, they found it first. I was momentarily surprised because as an adult, I thought based on my expertise and perspective I would “see” it first. It made me realize we had different views on the picture based on our frame of reference and the things we were used to visualizing. Our preconceptions were also different as they also pointed out creative objects and ideas in the picture that I never would have noticed.
As a leader, do you know whether your team is connecting, whispering, or shouting? A recent Gallup survey1 identified three categories to describe employees’ engagement at work.
This is not about team members complaining.
Breaking News! On June 6th the PGA Tour and Saudi backed LIV Golf announced an agreement to merge. For anyone whose head may have been buried in a sand trap, this was a stunning announcement of an alliance between the decades-old organizer of golf in the U.S. and North America, and the year-old start up that paid hundreds of millions of dollars to woo big name pro golfers to defect from the PGA.