TLP244: Not All Work is Teamwork

Carlos Valdes Dapena is the author of “Virtual Teams: Holding the Center When You Can’t Meet Face-to-Face, ” and “Lessons from Mars: How One Global Company Cracked the Code on High Performance Collaboration and Teamwork.” Both his books are based on original research into collaboration he conducted during his 17 years as an internal consultant at Mars where he worked with teams responsible for iconic global brands like M&Ms, Snickers, Wrigley’s Gum, and Iams. In this episode, you’ll hear Carlos’ ideas on how to make the workplace more engaging, more human, and more productive..

Key Takeaways

[2:05] In addition to being an author, Carlos also spent 15 years teaching yoga.

[6:25] Carlos was familiar with the literature on how to build better team collaboration, but nothing seemed to really be moving the needle and having an impact.

[7:15] Carlos went back to the drawing board and conducted his own research on what really makes a high-performing team click.

[9:25] What most leaders miss is understanding each individual’s core motivational needs and fueling that to collaborate with others.

[11:55] Carlos shares where he and fellow author Patrick Lencioni differ when it comes to building trust within teams.

[13:25] We can no longer do typical “trust-building” exercises in this digital world. Leaders aren’t sure how to build trust now.

[16:25] Leaders believe we can enhance collaboration and trust by doing more meetings, but people are fatigued out.

[17:25] Collaborate better by collaborating less on what matters the most. Carlos shares what he means by this.

[19:25] Leaders need to get good at recognizing when tasks require collaboration, and what tasks can be done solo.

[22:10] Carlos shares his definition of what a good meeting is, and when to use a meeting effectively.

[23:45] Organizations waste a lot of money on team-building exercises.

[28:55] We think when people don’t like one another on a team, we think of it as an interpersonal problem. Actually, it’s a problem of personal responsibility.

[32:05] We’re such an action-orientation culture that we focus solely on what you do, and not on what we did.

[35:35] Kings, leaders, and more, throughout time have always had a “right-hand man” who complemented the leaders’ strengths and weaknesses. We seem to have lost it in today’s modern age.

[39:55] Carlos shares the three criteria needed for an individual to find meaningful work.

[42:35] The best salespeople Carlos knows are lone wolves. It’s very difficult to get a good salesman to collaborate with the team.

[45:05] Listener challenge: If you want a good relationship, assume 100% responsibility for that relationship.

The Leadership Podcast is sponsored by W.S. Darley & Company.

Founded in 1908, Darley remains a family owned and operated business, providing the highest quality equipment solutions to our country’s warfighters and firefighters.

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