Establishing a New Team Norm

The unwritten rules that guide team interaction are more powerful than most leaders realize. 

Because they shape how team members work and make decisions together, norms have a tremendous influence on team effectiveness. 

Without a clear understanding of which behaviors are valued by the group and which are to be avoided, teams often have a difficult time working through difficult issues and building a collaborative spirit together. 

Good leaders don’t take the powerful influence of norms for granted. They make sure everyone on the team understands how they are expected to interact and engage as productive members. 

Better yet, good leaders enforce team norms by calling out any breach. On the best teams, leaders and team members discuss any norm violations with colleagues quickly after they occur, clearly establishing what is expected going forward.

As a rule, teams with strong norms operate more smoothly and effectively than those without. But because most norms develop gradually over time, it is difficult to purposely reset the norms of an existing team. 

The challenge for most leaders is how to introduce new norms within a team that has worked together over time but would benefit from a reboot. 

The first step is to make the case with the team as to why a new behavior is needed. 

Usually, the new norm is a response to a missing ingredient that would benefit the team, such as new behavior for showing respect, disagreeing constructively, or raising issues and concerns more openly in meetings. 

It is not uncommon for leaders to use a recent bad or negative team episode to illustrate the need for the new norm. 

Once the case has been made, the next step is to be specific about what the norm is and how it will influence ongoing team interaction. The best way to achieve this clarity is for the leader to demonstrate the new norm by modeling it themselves and asking others to do the same. 

For instance, if the new norm involves when and how team members should ask for help from their colleagues, the leader can repeatedly engage in the behavior to drive the point home. After leading by example, the leader can then ask others to follow suit. 

The best norms are not guidelines, rules, or principles, but specific behaviors that leaders and team members can learn and enact. 

Until the new norm takes hold and becomes a part of the team’s ethic, it is essential to keep talking about it, reinforcing the new behavior through acknowledgment when it occurs and when it doesn’t. 

Highlighting whenever a team member exemplifies the new behavior strengthens the team’s commitment to accept the norm as a permanent part of how they interact together. 

The best leaders introduce new norms one at a time, waiting patiently for the new behavior to take hold before initiating another one. The timing of introducing a new norm can also help in its reception and integration. 

Consider pioneering a new norm when the team begins a fresh project, initiative, or assignment. New beginnings can aid in the introduction of norms, as team members naturally expect differences as they embark on a new journey. 

Working seamlessly together is always the biggest challenge for teams. Norms are essential for creating a cohesive, collaborative, and productive team. 

It’s never too late to reset or introduce a new team norm. Exactly what are you waiting for?