What the symphony orchestra taught me about team work - Viewpoint Viewpoint careers advice blog

What the symphony orchestra taught me about team work - Viewpoint In my 30 years of playing music and performing with symphony orchestras in Europe and America, I have come to learn that whilst an orchestra conductor plays a critical role in the success of any group, the orchestra itself and their dynamic, is also key. If the conductor were to step away from the podium, the performance would continue. The team would adapt and work together. But which five traits help this high-performing team excel? 1. Focus Orchestra members are provided with all the information they need to perform their part. Each instrument has a personal road map in the music to focus on and individual parts show us when to play (speak up), when to be quiet (listen), when to move quickly (allegro) and when to slow down (largo). Carefully assess how well the team interact with one another, and how they communicate. Key questions to ask yourself: Is everyone clear and aligned regarding the purpose and goals of the team? What might the team need to stop doing to ensure success? 2. Roles and responsibilities The orchestra has clearly defined roles and responsibilities and ensures that each one is filled appropriately. You can’t have an effective performance if a role is not filled; the performance would be rather flat if there were no cello section or the flutes were missing. We can only play one part, our part, at a time. Ensure your team members understand their individual roles and responsibilities, as well as the collective skills of the team. Identify any potential gaps and decide how these might be addressed. Sharing career histories, past roles and experiences will allow everyone to identify the talents in the team and better understand how and when to tap into these. Key questions to ask yourself: Do you have the right combination of roles, knowledge, skills, ability and experience on the team? Is everyone playing in their best role to the best of their ability? 3. Learning and practice The weekly rehearsals are only part of the equation. There is also the individual rehearsal time we all do to ensure we can perform our piece to the best of our ability. Yes, occasionally we will try to “wing it” and sight-read our part. However, nothing is better than practice, and nothing beats the guided practice in a group rehearsal. Becoming a high-performing team doesn’t happen by accident. It is a result of deliberate action and learning. Invest the time to discuss the following questions with your team members and take action to improve the individual and collective performance of your team. Key questions to ask yourself: What’s working well or getting in the way of our success (individually and collectively)? What can we do (individually and collectively) to move this team to the next level? 4. Relationships I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the  importance of relationships to an orchestra’s success. Even when accompanying a solo performer, it is the relationships within the orchestra that ensure collective achievement: listening to each other, adjusting our individual volume and dynamics, and the give and take that ensures a performance that the audience enjoys. Building effective relationships at work is the key to individual and team success. It means going beyond the transactional, basic duties of our job, and paying attention to the transformational aspects, the interpersonal dynamics that bring people together. Key questions to ask yourself: What are the rules of engagement for how we will work together? How do we ensure the right level of candour and debate? 5. Celebrate success The conductor shares the success of the performance. Once they have taken an initial bow, they turn and invite the orchestra to stand and share the spotlight. The team celebrates the accolades together. Ensure that your team celebrates successes. Acknowledging  your colleagues and say “thank you” for their contributions. This practice of spreading gratitude should hopefully catch on within your team. Key questions to ask yourself: What are the key milestones and measures of success we should celebrate? How will we recognise and applaud individual and team success? How well are your employees playing together? Are they playing in harmony or are they slightly out of tune? I believe there are lessons to be learnt from the symphony orchestra, and I hope that these five tips and ten questions help you build your high-performing team. Seven ways to keep your team motivated when times get tough Four things you should be doing to restore proactivity in your team 11 ways to foster innovative thinking in your team