Management teams develop the most when they work together in a productive way. ‘Optimal teaming’ can considerably boost this process by making this development an explicit object of attention and giving feedback about the behavior and contributions of all the team members during a real team assignment. Apart from leading to better team performance, ‘Optimal teaming’ provides high quality solutions for the issue at hand.

 
Method

• Management team coaching consists of meetings of management teams meant to develop together an optimal approach to a certain issue
• In advance, the facilitators interview the individual participants about the issue, their experiences with the other team members and their values, suppositions and goals, in order to map relations, suppositions, goals and constraints
• Further assessment by walking around and with questionnaires is an option
• At the start of the first meeting, the facilitators formulate the specific goal of the meeting(s). This goal serves for all participants as a touchstone for the relevance of what happens during the work conference
• At the end of a session specific goals for the next session and action points for the next meeting for all participants are formulated
• In principle, the work conferences go on until a feasible and well-specified solution or plan is developed
• Mutual expectations of the participants are specified
• The facilitators give the participants feedback on their individual functioning and social dynamics. The participants do the same to the other participants
• If needed, techniques to enhance creativity and attention, as well as to reduce tension are available
• Video-feedback is an option

Management team coaching can focus on a great variety of issues, for example:

• Improving team performance
• Developing a mission or vision for the organization
• Specifying goals and strategies
• Implementing well-specified changes in the organization
• Improving organizational functioning
• Integrating different cultures within an organization, ethnical and national cultures, as well as organizational ones due to a merger or acquisition
• Conflict solving and team building
• Solving the problems at hand
  
  Optional: In addition, there is the option of individual coaching for the team manager.

Results at the team and organizational level

• Improved team functioning and performance
• A shared and well-specified solution of or plan for the issue in question
• More effective management team meetings
• Clearer specification of team roles and more synergy

Results at the individual level

• Higher job satisfaction
• More creativity and individual development
• Improved inquiring and advocating skills
• Improved self-knowledge

Participants
A management team with a certain issue


Facilitators

• Marc Schabracq
• Roos Schabracq

Book
All participants get the book Changing Organization Culture (Marc Schabracq, 2007, Chicester: John Wiley & Sons) 

Track record
A great number of times in organizations such as Ministry of Finance, Province of Gelderland, Maetis, IBM, HvA Verpleegkunde, ProRail, Roland Berger, EFP, Kringapotheken, RABO, ING, Shell

Location
The program can be given in an external congress center or in-company.