I’ve just started reading a book titled Epidemics and Society. This book makes the point that epidemics have done more to shape society and the course of human history than wars. This book was written before our current battle with COVID-19 was even on the radar.
What will our Future Look Like?
During this time of self-containment, I’ve had many thoughts about what our future will look like when we finally emerge for the worldwide pandemic. My thoughts have taken me from movie theaters to the workplace and topics in between. We’re not in Kansas anymore!
Video Connected Teams
One of the things that I believe will happen during this time is employers and employees will realize that much can be accomplished over the Internet. While we’ve been moving this way already, this forced telecommuting may help us finally pull the trigger to use technology more broadly.
All of the collaboration software such as Microsoft Teams, WebEx for Teams, Zoom, and others are seeing this as an opportunity to push their technology farther and faster then they would have before we left Kansas. We’re not in Kansas anymore!
Art of Teamwork
We’ve heard “Art of Teamwork” used to show that collaboration is needed as much as simply getting things done by groups of people. In other words, there is an Art to building great teams with collaboration platforms.
A few years ago, a small group of my colleagues gathered to talk about creating an app that would help leaders form better teams. We believe it’s more than simply adding the “art” of great teams.
We called our app GPS4Leaders (You can see more on our webpage). In doing so, we were expressing that teams, like a good GPS system, is more than just functioning well at the moment.
Think about what a GPS system does for you:
- Clearly identifies where you are now.
- Helps you locate your desired destination.
- Maps out the best route to reach that desired destination.
Where are you now?
Knowing where you are now means knowing who you are as a team. GPS4Leaders uses four modules to help you assess your team and guide you toward the desired future.
GPS4Leaders is made up of four modules:
- Interact (available now)
- Teams (available now)
- Leadership (coming next)
- Culture (in the near future)
Knowing where you are now requires the first two modules.
Interact helps the team identify who they are as individuals and what the make-up of the team looks like when you put all the pieces together. This is accomplished by a self-assessment looking at personality types. You can think of these similar to the familiar DICS or Myers-Briggs. We’re not trying to build the best assessment; we’re trying to make whatever assessment you use more visible and useful.
Teams looks at the dynamics within the team. GPS4Teams has two assessments built-in. But again, we’re not trying to become the best assessment in the world. Our goal is to help you assess how your doing so that you know where you are now and your progress toward a better future team.
Leadership will be built in the near future. This will allow teams to assess their leaders. It will provide the same advantages as Team but be focused on the leader.
Culture will be coming in the future. This will look at the company as a whole and determine the extent to which leaders and leadership teams are being successful in pushing positive behavior throughout the organization.
We’re not in Kansas anymore
Just like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, we are now in a very different place. The rules and patterns of our old way of working together have disappeared. How are we to function now?
Please visit our website today and experience how this new app will help you navigate this brave new world.