Focus Magazine - Summer 2015 - 23

FEATURESTORY

Leading Cross-Functional
Teams
I By Tom Kukla

E

ﬀectively leading teams -
especially cross-functional
teams - is not for the
faint of heart. Like any
worthwhile endeavor, leading a
new team requires planning,
preparation and intentional behaviors
on the part of the leader. To have an
eﬀective team, you need two
fundamental building blocks: Vision
and leadership.

Vision
Great vision precedes great
accomplishments. Have you ever been
a part of a team that doesn't seem to
get anything done? If so, you were
most likely on a team that lacked
vision. Vision works like a ship's
rudder - it determines the direction of
the team. Without a rudder, ships are
directionless. Without a vision, teams
are directionless. In today's medical
and pharmaceutical world, teams need
to reach their destination by the
shortest route possible.
Legendary coach Pat Riley once
said, "Teamwork requires that
everyone's eﬀorts flow in a single
direction. Feelings of significance
happen when a team's energy takes on
a life of its own." A well-craed vision
energizes the team. Team members
feel empowered to fulfill the vision.
One definition of vision is about
how you see the world aer you
accomplish your mission. Vision
statements contain inspiring, powerful
and compelling words about the
future. ey are also simple, clear, and
concise. In short, team members need
to feel like they are doing something
FOCUS | SUMMER 2015 | www.L-TEN.org

important;
that they are moving in
a specific direction and not simply
checking oﬀ tasks. So, once you have
developed the vision for your new
team, how do you get team members
to buy-in? According to leadership
expert John C. Maxwell, you have to
transfer the vision both emotionally
and logically.

Emotionally Transferring
Your Vision Requires:
* Credibility. Team members buy
into the leader before the vision.
* Passion. Team members need to
feel your excitement.
* Relationships. Do you know them?
Do they know you?
* Timing. A right decision at the
wrong time is still a wrong
decision.
* Signiﬁcance. Vision has to be
bigger than we are.
Logically Transferring
Your Vision Requires:
* Realistic understanding of the
situation today.

* Engaged team members.
* Sound strategy.
* Acceptance of responsibility by the
leader.
* Celebration of each victory.
* Evaluation of each defeat.

Leadership and R.E.A.L.
Success
With the vision now in place, the
real work of leadership and leading
your team begins. You have been
given a leadership title but you must
develop leadership skills. Leaders
aren't born and leadership skills are
not developed overnight. Your
journey to becoming a leader begins
with the understanding that
leadership is influence - nothing more
and nothing less.
How you will become an eﬀective
R.E.A.L. leader of cross-functional
teams requires mastering four key
elements of R.E.A.L. success:
23
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Focus Magazine - Summer 2015

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