Our last several blogs have been offering guidance and advice on leading a divided team. Obviously, there are degrees of division. On one end of the spectrum, you have minor disagreements or personality issues that interfere with smooth functioning but are normally easily addressed and resolved. On the other end of the spectrum, you have a team which blogger Abbey Churnow-Chavez and her colleagues identify as toxic. https://www.glassdoor.com/blog/fix-a-toxic-team/
We hope this is not what you are dealing with as a pastor/leader. Churnow-Chavez shared the following list as signs that you would be seeing if this was the case with your team:
- Members of the team are constantly complaining about each other
- Team members spend as much time watching their back as doing the work
- People make plays behind the scenes, undermining and sabotaging one another
- Suspicion and mistrust pervade every interaction; it seems like there are a lot of personal agendas
- People avoid working together and seem to dread team meetings
- Teammates would be perfectly happy to see others on the team fail; they criticize and point out the faults and failures of fellow team members
She goes on to point out that that the longer-term consequences of this type of team extend far beyond the daily frustration of managing them. It tends to cause better, more cooperative team members to leave, it prevents others from getting involved and it compromises decisions and problem-solving efforts.
Correcting this type of dynamic is not easy and is further complicated if you have inherited this situation from the previous pastor. The team may not accept the “new” you, but you must stay strong as you begin to turn the dynamic around. One of the first steps is to look at yourself honestly. Accept responsibility for your part in this. Were there things you ignored and did not address just hoping they would go away? It might benefit you to get feedback from some trusted advisors or team members. They need to provide candid and perhaps difficult feedback which you cannot see in yourself. Accept it, as well as suggestions as to ways they think you could change for the better.
The need to establish stricter standards and strong compliance needs to happen as soon as possible. If you have been lax in this area perhaps the most difficult task will be the changes that are required of you to correct this problem. The bar must be high, and no exceptions should be made to accommodate non-compliance even among those you consider to be friends or high performers. Uniformity in applying this evenly to everyone is critical.
It may help to engage a coach or consultant to assist with both the implementation and the ongoing commitment to ensure success. Having said that, their role is to serve as an advisor, offering criticism and guidance. They are not to serve as surrogate disciplinarians or scapegoats to blame for the new tougher standards. These need to be seen as coming from you as the leader. As we said, this will not be easy, but it is critical for the success of your team and your parish. Don’t wait – begin now!