This approach is based on Prof Marcial Losada’s findings that the most successful teams are distinguished by asking as many questions as advocating opinions, showing as much interest in others as in themselves and making six times as many positive as negative comments. Seems simple? Maybe, but few teams achieve it.

Among poorly performing teams one is more likely to find two negative comments for each positive one, twenty opinions for each question and thirty times as much interest shown in one’s self as in anyone else.

Fortunately most teams are better than that, but few achieve the optimal balance. We’ve all been in some teams that just clicked and many more than didn’t quite. Prod Losada’s work suggest why that it and it is not about personality type, role preference, or inherent competences, it is about how people in the team relate to each other and the team as a whole.

So we observe a typical team get-together (usually by videoing it) and note what they actually do, how they interact with each other in these three specific ways: Interest in Self v Interest in Others, Questions asked v Opinions advocated and Positive v Negative comments. We feed back our observations to the team and coach them if appropriate, how to change their behaviour towards the example of the top performers. As they move more closely to what we call the “connectivity cocktail” their engagement and hence performance improve significantly and sustainably. Interestingly, no one behaviour is more or less important than any other. It is the mix that makes the magic.

In one sentence.

Performance is not about what you have, it all about what you do.

Since our support, Rhein Papier went on to set a world production record. Another major bank commented, “The proof of the pudding is in the eating. Our meetings will never be the same again!”

Assessments are quick and easy to arrange. Please call or email Jonathan Wilson for details.