Are you ready to lead your team to success in 2025? Many leaders recognise the importance of setting the tone at the start of the year—but what happens when your team thrives on processes and procedures?
Encouraging a discussion about team culture can feel tricky with black-and-white thinkers. Here's how one leader I coached tackled the challenge:
This leader, an engineer, excels in process-driven thinking. Her team of five shares her love for systems, yet she wanted to open the conversation about the "fluffy but important stuff"—team culture. Together, we created a checklist to guide her team through meaningful conversations about culture, framed entirely as processes.
Checklist of Processes to Discuss as a Team:
How we handle confidentiality: What’s confidential, what’s not?
How we share knowledge: Who, how, and when?
How we make decisions as a team.
How we handle disagreements.
How we ensure accountability.
How we engage in feedback conversations.
How we listen to each other.
How we share ideas.
How we ask questions.
How we ask for help.
How we support each other.
How we keep learning and growing.
How we communicate when we’re tired, emotional, or overwhelmed.
How we brainstorm and collaborate on projects.
How we handle mistakes (because they will happen).
How we back each other up.
Every team has a culture—whether intentional or not. By taking a proactive, process-driven approach, you can align your team’s values and behaviors with their preferred way of thinking.
How to Start the Conversation:
Share the list with your team: Get their input on what’s essential, irrelevant, or missing.
Prioritize the topics: Ask your team to rate the top three most important ones.
Start small: Begin with a few easy topics to build momentum.
Create a system: Incorporate one or two topics into each team meeting, revisiting processes as you work through the list.