Leadership Team Workshop Guide

SECTION 1: WELCOME (2 MINS)

Goal

  • To explain the purpose of the meeting
  • To provide a roadmap for how the meeting will flow

Facilitator Instructions

  • Introduce self
  • Explain the purpose of the meeting (to launch a leadership team to mobilize participation in class celebration)
  • Review agenda –mention that a different person will facilitate each piece, ask people to say their names as you mention the section they are doing (e.g.: We will come up with our shared purpose and X will facilitate that)
  • Appoint the timekeeper and note-taker.

Agenda:

1)Welcome:

2)Why We Are Here

3)Our Shared Purpose

4)How We Will Work Together: norms

5)Roles: match responsibilities and people

6)Making Strategic Decisions: decide the celebration

7)Action Plan: commit to the actions to be taken

8)Conclusion: plus/delta, closing reflection

SECTION 2: WHY WE ARE HERE (3 MINS)

Goal

  • To introduce the team to each other
  • To surface people’s motivation for participating in the team by drawing from their “self”

Facilitator Instructions

  • Begin with a 30 second version of your own public narrative and why you are here.
  • Lead a go-around where everybody quickly sharestheir personal story of why they are also here. Don’t let them get away with “Mary asked me to come.”10 seconds each

SECTION 3: SHARED PURPOSE (8 MIN)

Goal

  • To come up with a shared purpose for the team
  • To explore differences in the context of commonality

Facilitator Instructions

  • Facilitatoruses the shared purpose worksheet toguide the team through the 4-part exercise.
  • Each person writes a sentence describing the goal of the team, its constituency, and its activities. On the flipchart the facilitator will have written three columns: constituency, goal, activity. As they report out the facilitator posts keywords in one of three columns, synthesizingpoints in common, and identifying points of difference.
  • After the discussion on the points of difference, the exercise is repeated.Then agree upon a shared purpose.

WORKSHEET:

DEVELOPING SHARED PURPOSE

SHARED PURPOSE

There are four parts to this exercise.

(1)As individuals, you will clarify your own thinking about what the purpose of your team could be. (1 MIN)

(2)As a team, you will share your ideas, look for the common focus, and discern a purpose you can all support. (3 MIN)

(3)As individuals you write a new sentence that you think captures the sense of your team. (1 MIN)

(4)And finally, as a team, you will consider the second round of sentences and decide on one that best articulates your team’s perspective. (3 MIN)

Part I: Individual Work (1 MIN)

What is the unique goal of your team?

Who does your team serve? Who is your constituency? With whom would it focus your effort? What are the people like and what are their interests? What will engage them?

What kinds of activities could your team engage in to fulfill its purpose by serving this community? What is theunique work that your team could do?

After brainstorming answers to all three questions, take a few moments to write a sentence that you think best describes your team’s goal, its constituency, and its activities. Draw on all three columns.

Example of a shared purpose sentence:

“Our leadership team's shared purpose is to promote community organizing at Harvard by organizing Harvard students through one on ones, workshops, campaigns, organizing projects, public events, and other activities.”

Our team’s shared purpose is to

Part 2: Team Work (3 MINS - take notes on flipchart for this section)

As each person reads his or her sentence the facilitator notes the key words on the wall poster under purpose, constituency, or activity. Note specific words to which you respond, that spark your curiosity, or that give you energy. When you are done, your facilitator circles the words that seem to resonate most strongly with your team.

Part 3: Individual Work (1 MIN)

In light of what you learned from the last session, write a new sentence that you think can articulate a shared purpose, using some of the key words and themes.

Our team’s shared purpose is to

Part 4: Team Work (3 MINS) We will read our sentences again and choose – or combine – one that can best articulate the shared sense of your team.

SECTION 4: DEVELOPING TEAM NORMS (5 MIN)

Goals

  • To learn how to facilitate a group through setting norms
  • To help create a collaborative group environment

Facilitator Instructions

  • Use the worksheet to guide you in facilitating team norms.
  • You will need to establish norms to manage time (1 MIN), honor commitments.
  • You will also need to decide on a norm corrections to ensure accountability (2 MIN), and decision making norm(2 MIN).

WORKSHEET:

DEVELOPING TEAM NORMS

Review suggested norms below and add or subtract as your team wishes.

Time Management (1 MIN): How will we manage meetings to respect each other’s time?
Always Do
Start on time; stay on time
Be fully present throughout the meeting / Never Do
Come to meetings unprepared
Answer cell phones or do email
Honoring Commitments (2 MIN): How will we delegate responsibilities for actions and activities? How will we follow through on commitments?
Always Do
Clarify understanding
Provide follow-up on action items
Ask for/offer support when there is a need
Weekly check-in / Never Do
Assume you have agreement
Assume tasks are getting done
Commit to a task that you know you
won’t do
How will you "self correct" if norms are not followed?

How will we make decisions together?

Discussion and Decision-making (2 MIN): How will we discuss options and reach decisions as a team to ensure vigorous input and debate?
Always Do
Engage in open, honest debate
Ask great questions
Balance advocacy with inquiry / Never Do
Engage in personal attacks
Fail to listen to what others say
Jump to conclusions
Decide how you will decide: voting, consensus, delegation, a combination

SECTION 5: TEAM ROLES (5 MINS)

Goals

  • To practice matching people and roles based on strengths
  • To ensure your leadership team is appropriately diverse

Facilitator Instructions

  • Use the worksheet to guide the team through the roles needed.
  • Decide upon your roles, define characteristics needed for each role and discuss who would be a good fit for the role.

WORKSHEET:

DEVELOPING TEAM ROLES

(1)Review the sample team roles below and quickly discuss what each role entails. Discuss what it would take to do each role well. (2 MINS)

(2)Based on the discussion about the roles, go around the circle and ask each person to tell others what role best fits their experience and talents and any limitations they may have. If you have more people than roles, ask people to pair or team up. (3 MINS)

Note:When you do this for your projects, team roles should not be seen as permanent. Also, for the team to be strong, all leaders should have to earn leadership by carrying out responsibilities relevant to the role they seek.

Role / Responsibilities / You would be good for this role if you . . . / Interested Team members & Related Skills/Talents
Team Coordinator / Coordinate the work of the leadership team. Prepare for meetings, give support and coaching to the team.
Venue
Coordinator / Coordinate with the venue for food, drinks, etc..Manage your team as you create a, theme design and set up appropriate to the location.
Fundraising Coordinator / Coordinate and track the funding necessary for the celebration. Develop the budget and manage required costs.
Entertainment Coordinator / Coordinate with team on the various types of entertainment that will take place. Recruit entertainers and prepare icebreakers, games, etc.
Communications Coordinator / Coordinate local messaging. Produce regular email updates to keep local students informed and engaged.
Logistics Coordinator / Lead the team in creating a plan for team actions. Coordinate logistics for team actions. Help generate resources necessary.
Data/Reporting Coordinator / Coordinate data collection and data entry to track all student attendance and get feedback on the campaign goals.

SECTION 6: DECISION MAKING (10 MIN)

Goal

  • To facilitate a decision-making process based on criteria
  • To come to a decision using the norm you agreed upon in Section 4

Facilitator Instructions

  • Using the 5-step process below, facilitate the team’s choice of what theend of class celebration will be.

Stages of a Decision Making Process:

  1. Identify Your Goal (1 MIN)

To come up with a celebration for the end of the class.

2. Identify Outcome Criteria (3 MIN)

Generate a list of agreed-to criteria for the appropriate celebration. Write these on a flipchart paper.

Criteria that previous groups have used include:

  • We can afford it
  • Our people will enjoy it.
  • It will get publicity.
  • It will help us learn new skills.

These criterions are important because they reflect the values you share.

3. Open - Generating Alternatives (BRAINSTORMING) (2 MIN)

Facilitate a brainstorming session where the team throws out ideas of what a celebration could be. Write your ideas under your criteria.

4. Narrow - Evaluating Alternatives (3 MIN)

Review your criteria, then facilitate a discussion using the following steps:

  • Synthesize: group similar ideas together
  • Advocate: team members can support one over another
  • Eliminate: rule out any obvious outliers

5. Close – Decide (1 MIN)

Choose one idea based on your decision-making norm.

Section 7: Commitment to Action (2 MINS)

Goal

  • To help the team move into action by committing to specific next steps
  • To have a shared understanding of what everyone will be doing

Facilitator Instructions

  • Based on what was decided and everyone’s role, ask each person what their next step will be.
  • Make a detailed next steps list of who will do what by when. Write this on the flipchart.

Section 8: Closing (2 mins)

Goal

  • To end with clarity and shared understanding of how the team will move forward
  • To learn about how best to work with your group

Facilitator Instructions

  • Review the decisions made (what kind of celebration you’ll have), who will do what, by when.
  • Evaluate the meeting with plus/deltas. Write this on the flipchart.
  • End with a closing reflection.