King Arthur: the first 100 days

A splendid education, training and a correct installment are an excellent start. It does not guarantee, however, that the new team leader will automatically gain the much needed natural authority from his team members...

The company Gore (developed Goretex, among many other things) is one of most successful organizations when it comes to training, installing and guiding its team leaders. A quick overview of the company’s organizational structure: Gore has over 10,000 employees, yet all of its production units consist of max 150 employees, and there are always max 3 different management levels (director, head of division, and team leader). Furthermore, each team leader never has more than 15 employees on his team. On top of that, every employee always has two mentors. Firstly, the direct team leader or manager (who is required to fully support his mentoree in their further development). And secondly, another neutral mentor.

Gore invests a lot in the further training of its employees, and seeks to strengthen the identification with its standards and values. Gore also recognizes the importance of the growth process of its leaders towards natural leadership. For example, you can only become a team leader after your colleagues have confirmed your competence and natural authority!

King Arthur’s first 100 days as a King also present us with a nice little overview of some smart moves that can contribute to starting off as good as you can as a new team leader. Naturally, this does not mean that you are required to implement all of these 7 steps. Just glance over them, and think to yourself: which steps might – given my specific situation – be a smart move?

1. Resolve old feuds:

Collect good advice from inside as well as outside of your team to get a good overview of the unresolved conflicts within your team. Invest the needed time and energy to solve these conflicts within the first 100 days. With regard to the reconciliation, it is important to make sure that the solutions are clear and realistic. If certain conflicts simply won’t be resolved, it might be best to put the troublemakers out of the team.

2. Ensure that everyone finds their own unique place within the team:

Intrinsic motivation lasts longer if you are able to utilize your motivating skills to find your unique place within the team, and to contribute in a meaningful way to an inspiring mission.

3. Create a ‘Camelot’:

Each team needs a home, a place to which everybody contributes, a place where everybody experiences mutual respect and trust. As a team you also need some ‘shared rituals’, things that remind you that you are part of something.

4. Do not postpone the ‘Power Struggle’:

Invite the people who consciously undermine your authority with subversive actions to quit doing so, and – instead – to start building a meaningful future together with you. If they neglect that invitation, you have to explicitly and publicly address the issue. And if someone reluctantly chooses to remain a subversive manipulator, you will have no choice but to kick them off the team.

5. Clearly express your commitment:

Trust is essential for each form of successful collaboration. Make sure that you and your entire team create a solid foundation for mutual trust by expressing a commitment towards you as a team leader, each other as team members, and your mission as a team.

6. Develop strategic partnerships outside of your team:

To be able to realize your mission successfully, you often need to have strategic partners who – just like you – believe in your mission. There will always be various people and organizations that will consider you to be their ‘enemy’ (competitor). King Solomon says the following about that: ‘Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken (Ecclesiastes 4:12).

7. Create a sense of unity within your team:

The first 100 days are meant for recovery, reconciliation, building trust and healthy alliances. If the first 3 months have been particularly well invested, it enables you to become highly productive for the following 3 years!