UACPA Leadership Academy - Strengths in Teams

Building a High-Performing Team Team

Diverse Strengths & Shared Values

The Research: Which Puppet Would You Choose?

We Tend to Gravitate Towards People Who Are Just Like Us . . .

It Happens in the Workplace Too . . .

Common Ground is Important . . . So is Diversity

Shared Values

Diverse Strengths

“We wanted to come up with committable core values and by committable, meaning we're actually willing to

hire or fire people based on whether they're living up to those values, completely independent of their actual job

performance.“

-- Tony Hsieh, Zappos Founder

Do Values Really Matter?

Zappos Hiring Process . . .

How can you find out what their values are?

Values & Motivation

“Man is so made that when anything fires his soul, impossibilities vanish.”--Jean de la Fontaine

Passion = Values in Action

How Can We Get Them to Bring Their Values to Work?

A Word About Strengths

• Is it just something that you’re good at?

• Is it different from a skill or ability?• Traditionally we would define a

talent in terms of the output• Strengths theory defines it in terms

of energy and engagement

Know Thyself

A leader needs to know his strengths as a carpenter knows his tools, or as a physician knows the instruments

at her disposal. What great leaders have in common is that each truly knows his or her strengths – and can call

on the right strength at the right time. This explains why there is no definitive list of characteristics that describes

all leaders.

- Dr Donald O. Clifton

Why do we fail to get to know ourselves?• Fear – maybe we don’t measure up• Compartmentalization• The “busyness” of life and other distractions

Leadership is the capacity to influence human thought, emotion, and behavior starting with my own.

How do I identify my strengths?

• What is working well and how can I do more of it?

• What things energize me?• Do I feel a sense of yearning or

inevitability?• Would I do this even if I weren’t getting

paid?• VIA and SBL surveys

Net Energy Yield

Where Do You Invest Yourself . . .

Compounding . . . Small, Intentional Tweaks

Change the Frame

Why Focus on Strengths . . . What About Weaknesses?

Focus On Strengths

Not Weaknesses

Strengths in Overdrive

How Well Do You Know Your Team?

Why Should I Get to Know My Team?

• Can’t they just put their heads down and do their work?

• This is a fast-paced work environment. We focus on results. We don’t have time for personalities.

• I’m not your therapist. We have a job to do, so let’s do it.

Strengths and Motivation

What works for one employee may not work for another. The approach needs to be tailored to each team member.

A Tale of Two StaffExecuting

Relationship Building

Personalize

We’re all unique (no this is not photo shopped)

Build a Common Vocabulary

Strengths assessments are a doorway to a conversation . . .

Build a Common Vocabulary

Engagement – The Holy Grail of Organizational Success

How Engaged is a Pitcher in the Batter’s Box?

Are any of the members of your team playing out of position?

Why did I swing at a sinker?

Please don’t miss!

When can I get back on the mound?

How good are A. Rod’s

lawyers?

Gallup 12 Keys to Engagement• At work, I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day.

• In the last seven days, I have received recognition or praise for doing good work.

• My supervisor, or someone at work, seems to care about me as a person.

• There is someone at work who encourages my development.

• In the last six months, someone at work has talked to me about my progress.

Bringing It All Together: Strengths in Teams

• Individual Exercise

o Think of a team project that went really well. Why did your team succeed? What roles did different members of the team play?

o Think of a team project that went off the rails. Why did your team struggle? What roles did different members of the team play?

o What strengths are missing on your current team?

o Is there anyone who is currently playing out of position? Brainstorm other roles they may be able to play.

o Do you notice any strengths in overdrive, individually or collectively?

E-Bay: A Case Study“Jeff and I had very complementary skills,” Omidyar told us in our interviews. “I’d say I did more of the creative work developing the product and solving problems around the product, while Jeff was involved in the more analytical and practical side of things. He was the one who would listen to an idea of mine and then say, ‘OK, let’s figure out how to get this done.’ ”

Team Strengths in Overdrive• Case Study #1: Is too much Harmony a bad thing?• Case Study #2: Achievers collide . . .

Contact InfoDan Griffiths, CPA, CGMA is the Director of Strategic Planning at Tanner, LLC, a Salt Lake City-based professional services firm with 85 team members. Prior to merging his practice with Tanner, he co-founded Proficio Services Group to provide strategic & business planning, leadership development, and business coaching services. Dan is a graduate of the 2010 AICPA Leadership Academy and in 2011-2012 served as the chair of the Young CPA Network Committee for the AICPA. Dan has also been very active with the UACPA and in 2011 was recognized as the Outstanding CPA in Business and Management. He was recently selected to serve as Utah’s elected member of the AICPA Governing Council. Dan is an avid flyfisher, backpacker, and gardener. He and his wife Bibiana just welcomed their fourth child to the family.

Contact Dan at: dgriffiths@tannerco.com Or connect with him on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/dangriffithscpa