Virtually every team we measure scores high on the statement, “I have at least one trusted colleague on the team.” Far fewer clients, however, reflect full-group trust in the survey questions designed to evaluate the psychological safety of the entire team. Almost everyone has a trusted teammate as one-to-one interactions are easier to navigate than group dynamics. Without full-team trust, the organization’s energy is misallocated to internal politics. Consider these steps to building or rebuilding a sustainable foundation of trust in the workplace.

The aging Baby Boomer generation is gradually giving way to eager GenXers. The face of leadership has fewer wrinkles despite the weight of responsibility that will someday cause them. Professional service firms are great examples of this transition as attorneys, accountants, engineers and financial planners design their careers with specific retirement dates in mind. Succession planning anticipates these departures and develops new talent accordingly. As long at the outgoing leader is graceful and the incoming replacement is respectful, everything runs smoothly. What happens when grace and respect are subtracted from the recipe?

Diversity is a strength when harnessed for connection, innovation and change. While holding tightly to your own perspective and protecting the status quo brings comfort, growth gets stymied. What would happen to your team if respectful conflict was invited? What if there was more than one right answer? How can we bridge diverse perspectives in our professional interactions? Consider this model.

A decade ago, Seth Godin, inspired by the Team Clock methodology, said, “…think hard – really hard – about what it means to join or lead a group of people.” He was referencing the powerful responsibility we each have to our teammates regardless of our position or role on the team. On most teams, sadly, only a small percentage assumes that level of ownership. The norm is under-engagement or disengagement. Imagine the characteristics of the ideal team. The Center for Team Excellence sees a rare few of these examples but they do, indeed, exist.

How do you define “team?” Your workplace colleagues? Your romantic partnership? Your book club? Your neighborhood? Your recreational sports buddies? Your family? Perhaps all of the above? Defining teams is both simple and complex. The complex view is an interdependent ecosystem of complementary roles advancing a common mission through shared values toward a clear vision. The simple view is two or more people collaborating on a goal. Let’s break down the simple definition into its key parts.

Ground delivery services and retail outlets ramp up manpower during the holidays. Sports teams begin each campaign with new rosters. Educational institutions make transitions based on the academic calendar. Corporate teams recalibrate when quarterly or annual goals are not met. Like families, team dynamics get refreshed every time you add or subtract a member. What holds everything together when membership is always changing?

As the primary driver of team trust, accountability is elusive. Meeting deadlines, keeping promises and behaving in a way that is true to company values are examples of the daily contributions we all make to team wellness. In a culture of accountability, only exceptions to these behaviors are noticed. When getting a pass is the norm, following through with commitments gets celebrated as special. So, how do you build a culture of accountability?

While change is often experienced as a loss, transitions usually become the fuel for renewal. The disruption is simply the trigger stage for the differences that are about to unfold. Because change causes emotional depletion, most teams devote their energy to coping and refueling. Thriving teams see this stage as the launch point for innovation. Answering these five questions will help your team move to action.

Every challenge has two elements – naming the source of the pain (crisis) and deciding how you’re going to deal with it (opportunity). The second stage requires the first. Teams must acknowledge what hurts before they can embrace new circumstances. As quickly as you can finish trumpeting how awful a change is, commit to the task of figuring out what to do about it. Here’s a simple roadmap to get you started.

When we are able to be our best selves, we manage change with maturity. We acknowledge what has been lost and wrap our brains around the new conditions. We take some time to lick our wounds and then figure out what to do about the transition. We bring our best coping skills to the team and try our best to do nothing that might get us stuck or set us back. In a perfect world, the stress of the change doesn’t turn us into a child. Occasionally, these best intentions break down. Here’s what that looks like.

The teamclock.com website was originally designed as a tool for teams. With a few clicks, you could easily find best practices on team effectiveness and a path to diagnose your organization’s wellness. That was a decade ago and, like most tools, we’ve needed to refresh our approach a few times. Like all living things, the Center for Team Excellence has evolved through many cycles of change. Our new website reflects today’s focus: helping our partners know what stage of growth they are managing, why they are in that stage and what to do next to move forward. We encourage you to take a self-guided tour after enjoying this preview.

How do you know if your team is operating in a healthy workplace culture? Measurement seems subjective, at best. The task of capturing reliable metrics on team effectiveness involves knowing what to measure and how to measure it. Consider the ways teammates interact and evaluate those exchanges on a scale from function to dysfunction. Now, take a snapshot of the pervasiveness of the wellness or the sickness. Does everyone on the team feel this way or just a few outliers? Is the team unified or split into factions? How do we acquire this data?