What to Do:

Overview

It happens to most teams: at some point, the team doesn’t seem to be working as well as it should. You may have a nagging suspicion that things could be more efficient ... or it may be very obvious that the work just isn’t getting done. Sometimes the first thing you notice is that people aren’t coming to the team meetings anymore ... or that they come, but don’t seem to have any energy for the project. Perhaps the initial excitement has worn off, other priorities have been established, or frustration at the magnitude of the task has set in.

How to prevent this from happening:

1. Follow this guide’s suggestions for holding the first meeting; establishing team goals, roles, and procedures; having effective meetings; making decisions; etc.

2. Take time on a regular basis to assess how the team is doing, identify any issues, and make necessary adjustments. (Think of this as the Control phase of your team, where you monitor performance to ensure it doesn’t deteriorate.)

Not all problems can be prevented, however, so what should you do when you do encounter difficulties? You need to act quickly to figure out what’s going on, and then do what’s required to get the team back on track.