Leading Remote Teams Through Influence: Program Overview

Leading Remote Teams Through Influence

Pre-work

Surveys

Individuals identify an important opportunity to influence in their remote team within the next two to three weeks and make notes.

Session One

Activities

Notes

8:30

Introduction and overview (30)

Welcome and overview of program

Objectives and Learning Journey

Overview, using Framework

Norms

Introductions (chat or unmute)

Name and role

One thing you love and one thing you hate about remote teams

Position program

Definitions of influence, power, etc.

Why is this important for your role/team/organization now?

Debrief

9:15

The Nature of Teamwork (60)

Define team, virtual team

At tables, identify key challenges of teamwork, especially remote teams. Share examples and facilitator charts some specific challenges for later use. Use the form: "Influence my [remote] team to (observable action"). If vague, ask: "What would success look like? How would you know you had achieved your objective?"

Best team/Worst team exercise

Individuals make notes

Share and discuss, chart

World Class Team model: introduce, relate to previous exercise, discuss and reflect on team's interaction. (Alignment of Purpose, Ability to Learn and Change, Attitude of Trust, Attention to Process and Artistry in Action)

10:15

Break

10:30

Team Influence Exercise (45)

Introduce and conduct team influence exercise

Form teams of 3 - 5 (Breakouts)

Goal: Get team to agree and commit to donating ($1 - $10 each or equivalent in other currency) to a charitable cause of your choice

3 minutes to prepare without talking. Each participant writes down his or her goal.

7 minutes to discuss and agree.

Debrief in teams:

Who influenced you? How did they do so?

What enabled/stopped you from reaching agreement?

How satisfied are you with the agreement and why (if made)? How satisfied are you with your own level of influence in the team? What could you or others have done differently to be more influential?

Discuss in plenary:

How many teams reached agreement? How many were more than halfway there?

For those who reached agreement, was it strong or weak? (How much were people willing to commit in money or an alternative?) Why?

Which individual behaviors moved the team toward agreement? What, specifically, influenced you to agree and/or make a stronger commitment?

Which behaviors made agreement or commitment more difficult?

Summarize:

What insights do you have about influencing in a team, based on this exercise?

Make notes about your own influence behavior in this exercise; what worked, what didn't, what you would do differently if you could start again.

11:15

Influence Tactics Introduction (45)

Review high-level model.

Demonstrate bicep/tricep exercise, relate to Expressive/Receptive and the importance of balance.

Teams meet briefly and identify which specific influence tactics they used and the balance of Expressive and Receptive behaviors in their discussion.

Share insights

12:00

Lunch break

1:00

Introduction to Behaviors (45)

Hand out wheels.

Walk through behaviors, tactic by tactic, using a situation from the flipchart. Give an example of each behavior.

Table groups come up with another example.

Get an example from one or two tables each time.

1:30

Open practice (45)

Direct open practice activity

Three people sit in the front as team members, but their backs are turned to simulate a teleconference

Show the rest of the group (using a flipchart, sign, or other silent method) an influence goal - what they want the three team member to agree or commit to.

Others, one at a time, use each of the behaviors in turn and team members respond. Facilitator may intervene from time to time to ask team members how they are responding to the influence being used.

Debrief

Have team members turn around and describe their experience, noting when and how they were influenced to agree or commit and when they were more resistant.

Whole group reflects on the experience - what they observed and any conclusions.

2:15

Break

2:30

Influence assessments (30)

Assessment overview

Individual work

Form pairs or trios

Pairs or trios discuss: Which behaviors would others like to see me use more, less, or differently? Which do I think would make me more effective with my team if I were to improve or increase my use of them?

Individuals choose one Expressive and one Receptive behavior to focus on, using criteria in a balanced way (i.e., choices may not meet all criteria but should meet most of them:

I use it less often or less effectively than I would like in my team(s)

Others have indicated that they would like me to use it more/differently

It's at least a moderate stretch for me to learn to use it well

I believe it will help me influence my team in a good direction and help the team function more effectively.

Debrief and show follow-up article.

3:00

Isometrics (75)

Do physical demo

Introduce criteria and give participants a few minutes to review the information about their Expressive behavior of choice.

Form trios: roles are influencer, target, observer.

Describe and demonstrate exercise:

Choose a team influence situation

Try the behavior solo and receive feedback based on the criteria

Try it a second time with an increasingly resistant response from the "target." Use the information contained in the resistance to improve results.

Observer provides feedback based on criteria, target provides feedback based on response.

Rotate and repeat

Conduct Expressive Isometrics (20 minutes)

Make notes, debrief.

Give participants a few minutes to review the information about their Receptive behavior of choice.

Repeat the process. (20 minutes)

Make notes, debrief.

4:15

Close day and prepare for Day 2

Ask participants to choose learning partners and summarize key learnings from Day 1, then share in plenary

Assign prep work (readings, team assessment, etc.) for Day 2

Describe what to expect on Day 2

Close session

Day Two

Activities

Notes

8:30

Review and preview (45)

Questions and discussion based on assignments

Meet with learning partner to discuss team assessment and select area of focus (alignment, change, trust, process, or artistry)

Form teams based on focus areas

9:00

"Remote team" assignments begin (120)

Challenge: Develop a report that can be a "virtual handbook" of best practices and skills needed to help remote teams become "world class" in the area of focus

Process:

All work is to be done via phone (or back-to-back if connections aren't good or phones can't be used for some reason)

Teams must self-organize to plan their approach, but it should include:

Individual assignments

Agenda and timing for a meeting following individual work

Access to resources (internet, class material, individuals to interview, etc.)

Criteria for decision-making

If using phones, members of the group should place themselves at different tables. They should have one another's phone numbers for collaboration purposes and agree on who will host the conference or web calls (using an agreed-upon platform)

Initial meeting should include establishing goals, norms, roles and responsibilities and process/timing. Facilitator will make a brief presentation on these points.

At the end of the initial meeting (no longer than 30 minutes) teams should do a process check:

What was useful/effective about the way we worked together?

What do we want to do differently in our

next meeting?

Remind participants to stay conscious of the way they're using their influence skills; use wheels and/or app.

During the first 75 minutes, teams should vary activities between individual work and group or subgroup sessions.

10:15

Reflection break (15)

Conduct a brief intervention:

Individually, reflect on your team's process. Make notes on the form in your book. Consider leadership, communication, and influence practices so far. For example:,

how well is the team using the resources of all members?

How easy or difficult is it to get your ideas heard?

How is the balance between Expressive and Receptive influence behaviors?

Share reflections in the team and upgrade as needed.

10:30

Break

10:45

Complete team assignments (60)

Teams complete assignment and develop their reports, continuing to work "remotely."

11:45

Reflect on and review team process and experience (15)

Individuals reflect on their experience of being part of their team, making notes on the form as before.

Teams summarize what worked well and what was less effective in their process.

12:00

Lunch break

1:00

Reports and key learnings (60)

Teams report out briefly, first the content and then what they learned about the process.

Summary discussion on best practices and suggestions as to how to use the reports.

2:00

Influence Framework (30)

Ask one participant to share an example of an important upcoming team influence opportunity or use one of the situations from the flipchart.

Introduce Influence Framework and walk through the example. Ask them what they might want to know.

2:30

Break

2:45

Baseline Framework Application (15)

Return to learning partner

Develop information on the Framework, consulting with partner

3:00

Goals, Issues, Tactics (30)

Demonstrate with situation discussed earlier and then ask participants to develop goal, issues, tactics, and behaviors for their upcoming team situation.

3:30 (45)

Behavior Workout

Pairs meet and form quads

In turn, play out a key part of the opportunity, using the influence behaviors consciously.

Get feedback from partners, using behavior criteria.

Make notes, debrief.

4:15

Summary and Next Steps (15)

Learning partners agree on a follow-up time and discuss key takeaways.

Share key learnings in "popcorn" style.

Review EI principles.

Evaluate and close session.