Establish Behavior Expectations

Understanding other people’s perspectives is a great way to improve relationships with them. However, teams still need to follow ground rules so they can accomplish their goals.

For example, you may know that somebody prefers to avoid conflict, however, you can’t really accept that from him if you also expect him to provide expert opinions that may not match the general consensus.

This is why developing a clear set of behavior and communication expectations is an important aspect of team coaching. The expectations help to build empathy and understanding, and ensure that individual preferences aren’t given more importance than team objectives.

A great way to formalize these expectations is with a team charter. In a charter or “contract,” you outline a set of behavior rules that everyone is expected to follow and support. Treating everyone with respect, offering opinions when needed, and talking directly to a person when you feel wronged – these are all examples of ground rules that a team can use.

Taking this one step further, you can also define processes for team members to follow to meet the expectations. For example, a conflict resolution process would define the steps to take when one team member feels offended by another. Typically, the process would state that the offended person first speaks with the offender before going to a supervisor.

Likewise, if expressing opinions is an issue, then you might use the Stepladder Technique to encourage individual participation. These types of rules and processes help build trust among colleagues and create a more unified team.