The coach’s corner -- April/May 2024

Julia Rowan answers your management, leadership and team development questions

Q. I manage a team of four people in a large organisation. Up until recently, we all got on and worked well together. However, the mood has changed. The work is getting done, and everyone is polite, but I am being shut out. I think this is in response to company-wide changes during which we lost a popular team member. I had no control over this.

A. One of the key things leaders do is act as a buffer between the hard shell of the organisation – with its policies, structures and procedures – and the social and emotional needs of individuals. It is a tough gig. 

Right now, it sounds like your team is angry with the organisation. Sadly, they are not going to tackle the CEO, so you are getting the flack.

When change is perceived negatively, there is a lot of blame. Leaders often get sucked into explaining, defending and rationalising – which only makes things worse. In reality, people are frightened and worried. They are wondering, ‘Can I cope with the changes?’, ‘Will I be next?’ They are placing blame at your feet to hold those fears at bay.

While you may be unable to control the changes your company decides to make, you can help your team to navigate them. 

Allow people to air their fears – and listen without judgement. Underneath it all, your team does not blame you. They understand that changes need to be made to keep organisations competitive. When you listen, people will start talking about what is important to them, and this is where you can have a connected conversation.

I suggest you raise this issue at a team meeting. Say that you have noticed a change in the team mood and feel it would be useful to discuss this in one-to-ones or at the next team meeting. 

If people bring up the issues, connect with them where they are. Prepare to listen and absorb. You might have to listen to a rant – at the end of a rant, there is often an apology and an acceptance of the need to move on. 

When the time is right, agreeing on how to move forward may be useful. Have some ‘connecting’ questions ready, for example:

• What is important for you/the team?
• What could I/we have done differently?
• What do you want from me/from each other at this time?
• What can I help you with? 
• How do we support each other?
• How do we want to move forward?

Finally, it may be important to look at how your team member left. Did you and the team get a chance to mark that properly? If not, the team may like to fix that.