Team Health check up: ultra simple template for facilitators
The presence of psychological safety in a team is one of the most important factors associated with success (see Game Outcomes Project).
While there are foundational and maintenance practices that promote psychological safety in teams, it is beneficial to do a team “emotional health” check up every now and then, especially following periods of stress or product trouble of any sort.
Below I share a template for a team check up. As with any template, adapt as appropriate for use in your context. Thanks for reading, may it be helpful for you.
~~
***
*Ground Rules*
(To be shared with all participants and read at the opening of group session)
By attending this session you will agree to some basic ground rules that create safety & trust in any group sessions.
1. What’s said in here stays in here (this session is confidential, and I will not bring things said here up later)
2. Feelings & thoughts are expressed using I-statements “I feel…” and You-statements or He/she statements are not used. For example, “I don’t know how my new role fits into the team, and I feel sad” is fine, whereas “You guys are leaving me out” is not following the I-statement ground rule.
3. We agree to accept any and all statements that people make about their own feelings without addressing, answering, correcting, or refuting. For example, we don’t say “I don’t know why you feel that way, it’s obvious that X…” or “I disagree, that’s not what happened” but rather say, “the way I feel about X is this…”
***
*First Session Template*
Timeframe: 60 minutes
Purpose: Trust Building, Processing/letting go of feelings (eg about recent changes), Strengthening Team Cohesion (relationships among team members)
I. Facilitator opens session.
Read ground rules together (see above)
II. Opening check in round.
5–10 minutes, Round-Robin format (going around the room)
#How do I feel today (where am I on a scale of 1–10, and how do I feel about being here in this room with all of you, today, etc)
III. Kudos Round
10 minutes, free format (not Round-Robin — anyone inspired to speak can speak)
#What’s going well for me in our team, what do I want to acknowledge, appreciate
IV. Speak it Out Round
10 minutes, free format
#What’s challenging for me right now. What struggles am I having working in our team.
V. Look Ahead Round
10 minutes, free format
#What do I want, hope for the future of the team, or myself
VI. Closing Check Out
5–10 minutes, round robin format
#How do I feel now (where am I on the scale).
VII. Facilitator Closes
Mention ground rules again (ref. confidentiality), & make clear any next steps (when/if you will meet again).
~~
***Notes on Implementation
Who should facilitate?
Ideally a facilitator is a neutral party who does not possess any decision-making power. Usually facilitator doesn’t share own feelings, and serves as the one keeping the eye on the time, the content, the trust, & the emotional safety in the room. A coach, hr person, or just someone neutral from another team can serve. Not recommended to be people with a lot of authority or influence in the organization.
What is this session suitable for?
Offers a structured, facilitated format to share feelings, thoughts, needs with each other. Amplify trust & cohesion in the team by providing a safe format to talk to each other & clear peeves & fears, as well as create shared experience. Suitable to talk about feelings about the team in general, and about how one feels about the common situation.
What is this session not suitable for?
Session is not designed to answer questions or clarify decisions, such as “why did leadership make decision X?” Participants can say things like, “I am wondering why they made decision X. It has made me sad and scared,” in the spirit of self-disclosure rather than asking for answers (questions not answered here).
Session is not designed to confront a teammate with a problem you have with them. (Not mediation). If you have a problem with the leader or someone in the team you can consult privately with facilitator/neutral party about it in a separate talk, & s/he can give you support on what to do/how to get those needs met, since it won’t be in this session.
***Pre-Sessions Checklist (Important in cases where trust is lacking)
- If facilitator has time it is generally better (esp with big team, team with poor trust, or team who has never done anything like this before) to check in one on one with each person who will be invited or encouraged to attend. Assess for: willingness, buy-in, trust, & give each person a chance to share his or her individual experience with the facilitator before sitting in the group round, share anything they may be feeling that’s not right for group share.
- If for any reason anyone in the group does not have strong-enough goodwill towards the group (excessive fears or anger), do not proceed and consider a different intervention. Other options: individual sessions only, sub-group only, wider round without unwilling participants, etc. Decide on appropriate intervention for this team.
- If appropriate, you can do sub-group check-ins in smaller rounds. For each functional group (product, devs, & art), facilitator to check in with all members of subgroup before meeting in larger team round. Assess for: subgroup trust, buy-in, cohesion, goodwill, potential for conflict. Tend to be safer/people know each other better.
- Decide on the level of participation. Will it be mandatory or optional, what is the course of sessions (eg number of sessions, purpose & scope of sessions).
***Follow Up Sessions
As trust & cohesion develops, introduce more ice-breakers, activities, & gradually increase opportunities for emotional risk, sharing of conflict, etc. The following could also be integrated into retrospectives, or done all in one day at an off-site.
Purpose of continued session work:
1. Continue trust building/cohesion, further clarification of conflicts & needs of the group
2. Practice problem definition (group definition of goals as well as barriers)
3. Practice group Solution generation/ improve collaboration in a safe format
4. Planning of solutions, including discussing how solutions will be maintained, followed up on
Sample Follow Up Themes:
(For structure, adapt from above-shared session template, keeping opening & closing formats, but filling the middle with versions of the following contents, as desired):
A. What Does this Team want for itself (Vision Activity)
Writing, art & verbal reflection activities — assembles into a group vision, including product vision & work agreements
#what do I want this team to look, feel, & behave like, what do I want our outcome to be like
B. What’s in the Way of that Happening (Barriers Activity)
Writing & Art & verbal reflection activities
#What’s in the way of making vision set out on part A happen
C. How could we overcome Barriers to Make Vision Happen, & Enforce those Changes (Solutions Activity)
Writing, Art & Verbal reflection activities
#Which of the barriers identified in B do we want to lift away, & how will we do that, how will we keep them from showing up again
D. Tune-Up Session, How are the Solutions we implemented in part C doing, anything to change
Writing, Art & Verbal reflection activities
#Which of the changes implemented in step C are working, what needs to be replaced, any new changes or issues to talk about?
~~
As always feel free to contact me for support with implementation in your context: hollymaehaddock@gmail.com
Thanks!
