Imagine that you lead a team. There are many models for putting together people who will combine their strengths to do superb work and deliver success.
One approach is to get the right blend of soul players and star players. The star players must also be soul players, however, and embody the spirit of the team. There is no room for semi-detached players who are pursuing their own agenda.
Different people follow this approach in different ways. One leader I worked with expressed it in the following way.
“Every good team I have built has had at least 70% soul players. They have a strong work ethic and can always be relied on to deliver high standards. Sometimes that can also develop their talents to become star players in certain areas.
“My successful teams have also had around 30% star players. They are prepared to sweat, however, and sometimes add that touch of magic.”
Imagine that you want to follow this approach in your own way. Let’s explore how you can make this happen.
Soul Players
Soul players embody the spirit of the team. They have a strong work ethic and aim to deliver high professional standards every day. They provide the backbone and make sure the team always gets to at least 8/10.
Such people are loyal and low profile but neglect them at your peril. Soul players need encouragement. They believe that, providing they do a good job, their loyalty will be rewarded. They may suffer in silence, however, while watching others grab attention.
Reward them for their contribution, because otherwise one day you may find they hand in their resignation. One person described this in the following way.
“For years my partner kept telling me to move on. I felt loyal to the company, however, and put in lots of hours that nobody noticed.
“My previous team leader used to meet with each of us off-site every six months. She took the time to find out how things were going and if we needed support.
“The new boss did not seem interested. They spent a lot of time with the vocal people in the team. I carried on, however, because that was my job.
“But then the company put in a performance management system where people had to be ranked along a bell-curve.
“That was the last straw. I was told that I must increase my profile in order to stay out of danger. But that is not my nature.
“Fortunately I had kept contact with my previous team leader. I now work for her in her new company.”
Superb teams make sure that more than two-thirds of their team are soul players. Such salt-of-the-earth people can also sometimes become star players in a particular niche. But they are happy to put in a daily shift that provides the platform for success.
If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to do the following things.
Describe the soul players in your team. Write the names of these people.
Describe the specific things you can do to encourage the soul players.
Describe the specific things you can do to – if appropriate – add more soul players to the team.
Star Players Who Are Also Soul Players
Star players who are also soul players embody the spirit of the team. They can sometimes add that touch of class that takes the team from 8/10 to 10/10.
Superb teams often have around one-third of their team made up of such star players/. But talent brings obligations. It is vital for them to act as positive models and also encourage other people in the team.
Such individuals can find themselves in an interesting dilemma when progressing in their career. They may have been a star player at one level but then find they are considered a soul player at the next level. They can then ask themselves the following questions.
Do I want to start by being a soul player? Do I want to put in the work to consistently deliver the required professional standards? Do I want to be a soul player and then maybe even a star player at this level?
Imagine that you have several potential star players in your team. How can you ensure they make their best contributions to the team? One approach is to continually ask yourself the following questions:
If everybody in the team left tomorrow and offered their services back to the team: Who would I rehire? What would I rehire them to deliver?
Imagine that you would rehire some of the potential star players. You can then make clear contracts with them about their best contributions to the team.
One approach it is to start by making the professional deal clear. The potential star player needs to be prepared to do following things:
To want to contribute towards achieving the team’s purpose;
To follow the team’s principles and required professional standards;
To build on their strengths – whilst managing the consequences of their weaknesses – to make their best contribution towards achieving the team’s picture of success.
Imagine that you have explained these things to a potential star player and they want to opt in. If so, you can then encourage and enable them to achieve peak performance.
If you wish, try tackling the exercise on this theme. This invites you to do the following things.
Describe the star players in your team who are also soul players. Write the names of these people.
Describe the specific things you can do to encourage them to make their best contributions to the team.
Describe the specific things you can do to, if appropriate, add more star players who are also soul players to the team.
Semi-Detached Players
There is little point in employing semi-detached players who pursue their own agenda or show disregard for people. They can cause lots of collateral damage.
Everybody gets down at times. But people who choose to work for a team need to accept a certain package. This includes being professional, encouraging others and making their best contribution.
One key point is worth underlining. Some people who provide services on a part-time basis may actually be fully committed when working with the team. They are not semi-detached players.
Let’s look at another scenario. Imagine that you take over a team that contains several uncommitted people. There are several steps you can take to make clear working contracts.
Before taking the job, make sure you have the mandate to build a superb team. You are then in a strong position when meeting each of the potentially difficult people.
You are making the rules, not them. Meet with each person individually. You can create an encouraging environment but also give them clear messages. You can describe the following things.
The team’s purpose and picture of success;
The team’s principles and professional standards that people will be expected to follow in order to deliver the picture of success.
Invite each person to go away, reflect and decide whether or not they want to opt into the team. Remember, it is their job to persuade you that they want to be in the team, it is not your job to persuade them.
People must actively make the decision to commit – or re-commit – to the team. They can then make clear contracts about their contribution towards achieving the picture of success. If they do not commit – in actions rather than just words – they are choosing to not be in the team.
If you wish, try tackling the following exercise. This invites you to do the following things.
Describe the potentially semi-detached people in your team. Write their names.
Describe the specific things you can do to communicate the team’s purpose, principles and required professional standards to these people.
Describe the specific things you can do to replace any people who choose not to follow the required professional standards.
Continuing To Get The Right Blend
Of Soul Players And Star Players
Superb teams evolve. Some people will stay, some will move on. That is the nature of evolution. If you want to build a second and third generation superb team, however, it will be vital to continue to get the right blend of people. Bearing this in mind, it can be useful to do the following things.
Keep In Touch
With The Soul Players
Meet with them on a regular basis and ask how things are going in their world. Such people are prepared to work hard, but it may be useful to explore the following things in your discussions:
To ensure they have clear goals and know how their work is contributing towards achieving the team goals;
To ensure they have the support they need to do their job and are well rewarded – both emotionally and economically – for the work they do;
To encourage them to build on their strengths, keep developing and do satisfying work.
Keep In Touch
With The Star Players
Meet with them on a regular basis. It may be useful to explore the following things in your discussions:
To focus on how they can continue to build on the strengths – plus manage the consequences of any weaknesses – and make their best contribution to the team;
To clarify the possible routes they may want to take in their future career – inside or outside the team – and the specific things you can do to, if appropriate, help them to pursue these routes;
To finish the session by making clear contracts about their continued contribution to the team or the specific things that can be done to help them to move on in a positive way.
This approach may seem counter intuitive. But it is important: a) to build on their strengths; b) to recognise they may have aspirations; c) to, in the meantime, make clear contracts about the best contribution.
Keep Making Sure You Have The Right
Blend Of Soul Players And Star Players
If you are a leader, you are judged by the performances of your people. Bearing this in mind, it is important to keep encouraging the people in your team.
Looking ahead, however, there may come a point when you need to rebuild the team or even build a new team in a new place. It can therefore be useful to do the following things:
To keep a list of the soul players you want to employ in your present and future teams;
To keep a list of the star players who are also soul players that you want to employ in your present and future teams;
To keep making sure you get the right blend of people in your teams and to act appropriately if any appear to be becoming semi-detached players.
If you wish, try tackling the final exercise on this theme. This invites you to do the following things.
Describe the specific things you can do to maintain the right blend of soul players and star players in your present team;
Describe the specific things you can do to keep a list of such people who you may want to employ in your present or future teams.
Describe the specific benefits of maintaining the right blend of such people your team.
Leave a Reply