• Agile Coach

Harmony in a team? Overrated!

“It is good enough as it is now and the mutual cooperation is fine.”

Recently I coached a team with exactly that look. And then it is exactly that aura that triggers. Because when you speak to the individual team members, different messages emerge. One is looking for movement, another wants change and number three is full of new ideas. Yet it is not discussed. Anything to keep the sweet peace. The harmonious harmony.  

Scrum Masters and Agile Coaches to be, please recognize the:

– teams that perform on the surface and where you get to your water sense that they can achieve more?

– team members who neither recognize the potential nor want to put energy into it?

– managers who say the team is strong and it’s best to leave team members alone?

You probably just nodded ‘yes’ three times. Maybe not even that crazy. And maybe those teams and managers are right. What’s wrong with getting some work done in harmony? More than you think. Harmony creates two gi-gan-tic thresholds.

1. Conformity as a sleep inducer

You want all the space for ideas! Eccentric, colorful, otherworldly, groundbreaking … they only arise when it is permitted to adopt different and new perspectives. Professor Hackman, a specialist in team research, advises that a deviant to have on the team. An eccentric, non-conformist, someone who goes against the norm and almost pulls the door out of its rebates to welcome original ideas.  

Therefore, you want team members who disagree with each other more often and have the courage to express it. When a team is able to discuss disagreements in a respectful manner, team members feel more connected, effective and intellectually stimulated. Productive and constructive conflicts lead to more ideas and perspectives. Without friction no shine and without sparks no fire.

As a Scrum Master, after Scrum Master training, or Team Leader you’ll cause a bit of a stir from time to time.. Also in a well-working and sociable team. Make it a little uncomfortable sometimes, introduce a stretch. Find a deviant and encourage him or her to suggest contrarian ideas. Most people find a challenge secretly very fun and, on the contrary, fall asleep slowly when doing the same thing forever. Sounds recognizable right?

2. Always working together is counterproductive

Research shows that structurally collaborative teams perform worse than individuals who occasionally put their heads together but mainly work alone. So within your team, make sure you have space and autonomy. Trust everyone to do their best work and meet when it is really necessary. Of course, sometimes a task is too complex and there are many uncertainties. Then you creep closer together. It’s really a matter of tuning in and finding the (right) balance.  

Collaboration can hinder progress: creativity diminishes, new solutions are quickly shot down, and individual voices are stifled. I have experienced a number of teams that have each wanted to solve problem jointly. Discussions, little action and point blank no solution. They would have been better off with a less collaborative attitude and less striving for consensus and conformity.  

Get rid of conformity. Nurture individuals.

Do we all have to play first fiddle now? Certainly not. Teams are valuable. But I believe we sometimes go overboard in emphasizing that team spirit and the “togetherness. Teams perform better when the individuals on the team are allowed to be themselves, and therefore different. When they learn to have conflict in a productive way. When the occasional false note is blown. In short, provide some disagreement in harmony once in a while, too.

How do you create an environment where teams can have conflict in a healthy way? 

How do you provide a foundation of psychological safety? Help teams break through conformity so that contrarian ideas surface?  

Come to our Agile Coach Training and learn, along with other Agile Coaches in training, how to effectively take your team to the next level.