Actualized Teamwork: Unlocking the Culture Code for Optimal Performance

By William L. Sparks

Why do some teams experience synergy and outperform their competitors while others lag behind with low engagement and poor performance? The answer is culture, and the underlying emotional dynamics contained therein that impact both team performance and member satisfaction. In this groundbreaking book, Amazon #1 Best Selling author Will Sparks provides a roadmap for teams and organizations to both identify their current culture and to implement evidence-based strategies to enhance team communication, increase trust and improve performance.The first research-based book to introduce the term “ team-actualization” and to operationalize the concept of culture, this book provides a straightforward assessment and methodology to measure and manage this often elusive aspect of organizational life. The book identifies the 5 Dimensions of Teamwork and provides resources for teams to both assess and improve each key aspect of working in teams. A short, free team assessment is included in the book and is available online at http://www.atpfree.com/.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Independent Publishers Group
• Release date: May 7, 2024
• ISBN: 9781586446857

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Additional Praise for

Actualized Teamwork

In Actualized Teamwork, Will takes the many complex components of self-awareness and explains them in a way we can all understand. His approach and framework will provide you with the type of self-awareness necessary to become a more effective and resilient team leader who is comfortable and confident leading any group.

—Steve Clifford, Charlotte Hornets

Actualized Teamwork is the leadership book that needed to be written. With his insights into the interdependencies between leader style and team culture, Sparks provides a roadmap for how to build resilient teams that can consistently achieve ambitious goals. A must-read for anyone leading teams.

—Jennifer LaClair, Head of Global Business Solutions, Fiserv, and Director, Whirlpool Corporation and the Federal Reserve Bank (Richmond)

If you currently lead others or aspire to lead, you will benefit from Will’s work. Perspective and self-awareness are difficult to ascertain and often hold many back from reaching their true potential. Actualized Teamwork is a must-read for anyone who wants to become the type of C-suite executive who can guide a best in class organization while also being an example for others to model.

—Pete Guelli, Chief Operating Officer, Buffalo Bills and Sabres

Dr. Sparks’ decades-long research has explored two of the most critical components of organizational success—culture and teamwork. In Actualizied Teamwork, he translates his findings into insights for how leaders can optimize their team’s performance and improve the long-term success of their organizations. I would strongly recommend this book to any leader who is committed to developing a high-performing team.

—Dr. Pamela Davies, President Emerita and Professor of Strategy, Queens University of Charlotte, Director, Sonoco, and Board of Governors, Center for Creative Leadership

Actualized Teamwork provides a powerful framework for understanding how leader styles and shadows create and reinforce team culture and performance. Anyone who is committed to becoming a better team leader should read this book.

—Kim Henderson, Executive Vice President and Chief of Staff, Novant Health

Building a world-class organization is done through building outstanding teamwork. The Actualized Teamwork Framework is the ideal tool for unlocking superior group effectiveness and ultimately, sustainable team and organizational performance.

—Ken Walker, Partner, Falfurrias Capital Partners

In Actualized Teamwork, Sparks provides critical insights on communication and trust—two elements that are often misunderstood or altogether missed by managers and leaders when establishing an identity and culture for their team. The real-world application makes this book a must-read for all leaders.

—Daniel Eller, President, Ally Insurance

Actualized Teamwork will take your self-awareness journey to the next level. Will provides the reader with a framework for creating the optimal balance between attending to both results and relationships. I recommend this book to any leader who wants to foster a dynamic culture and build high performing teams.

—Michael Faulkner, President, Sealing Segment, Enpro Inc.

Breaking new ground in organizational psychology, Actualized Teamwork introduces the transformative idea of team actualization and brilliantly operationalizes the concept of culture. If you are seeking to enhance the dynamics of your own team, or if you just want to understand the dynamics of groups and their broader impact, read this book!

—Angela Yochem, Chief Information Officer, Krispy Kreme

At Nucor, culture is our most important competitive advantage. In Actualized Teamwork, Sparks provides critical insights into how to measure and manage this foundational aspect of exceptional performance.

—Donovan E. Marks, Vice President and General Manager, HR and Safety, Nucor

Actualized Teamwork offers an integrated, research-driven approach for unlocking the process of exceptional team performance. Dr. Spark’s framework reveals how to intentionally shape team culture, manage emotional dynamics, and achieve the synergy that comes from a sense of collective purpose and trust.

—Dr. Shawn Bergman, Professor, Founder and Director of the HR Science Research Team, Appalachian State University

In Actualized Teamwork, Dr. Sparks gives you unequivocal and highly pragmatic insights to foster the right team dynamics necessary to fully unleash the collective power and full innovative potential of any team.

—Renato Derraik, Chief Information and Digital Officer, Live Oak Bank

Copyright © 2024 William L. Sparks. All rights reserved.

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information regarding the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that neither the publisher nor the author is engaged in rendering legal or other professional service. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent, licensed professional should be sought. The federal and state laws discussed in this book are subject to frequent revision and interpretation by amendments or judicial revisions that may significantly affect employer or employee rights and obligations. Readers are encouraged to seek legal counsel regarding specific policies and practices in their organizations.

This book is published by SHRM. The interpretations, conclusions, and recommendations in this book are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the publisher.

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SHRM is a member-driven catalyst for creating better workplaces where people and businesses thrive together. As the trusted authority on all things work, SHRM is the foremost expert, researcher, advocate, and thought leader on issues and innovations impacting today’s evolving workplaces. With nearly 340,000 members in 180 countries, SHRM touches the lives of more than 362 million workers and their families globally. Discover more at SHRM.org.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Sparks, William L., author.

Title: Actualized teamwork : unlocking the culture code for optimal performance / William L. Sparks, Ph.D.

Description: Alexandria, Virginia : Society for Human Resource Management, [2024] | Includes bibliographical references and index. | Summary: The first research-based book to introduce the term team-actualization and to operationalize the concept of culture, this book provides a straightforward assessment and methodology to measure and manage this often-elusive aspect of organizational life. The book identifies the 5 Dimensions of Teamwork and provides resources for teams to both assess and improve each key aspect of working in teams—Provided by publisher.

Identifiers: LCCN 2024012396 (print) | LCCN 2024012397 (ebook) | ISBN 9781586446796 (trade paperback) | ISBN 9781586446840 (pdf) | ISBN 9781586446857 (epub) | ISBN 9781586446864 (kindle edition)

Subjects: LCSH: Teams in the workplace. | BISAC: BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Leadership | BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Human Resources & Personnel Management

Classification: LCC HD66 .S67828 2024 (print) | LCC HD66 (ebook) | DDC 658.4/022—dc23/eng/20240404

Printed in the United States of America

PB Printing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

This book is dedicated to my mother, Linda Lee Sparks. Mom, thank you for being my lifelong role model for hard work, faith, and resiliency, and for never settling for less than my best.

In loving memory of my father, David Sparks.

Contents

Figures and Tables

Foreword

Preface

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Part I. The Wisdom of Teams?

Chapter 1. Group Dynamics 101

Chapter 2. Actualized Teamwork: A Framework

Part II. Leader and Team Dynamics

Chapter 3. The Detached Culture

Chapter 4. The Dramatic Culture

Chapter 5. The Dependent Culture

Part III. Pitfalls in Team Decision Making

Chapter 6. Groupthink and Managing Team Conflict

Chapter 7. The Abilene Paradox and Managing Team Agreement

Part IV. Team-Actualization

Chapter 8. The Dynamic Culture

Chapter 9. The 5 Dimensions of Teamwork

Chapter 10. Transforming Team Culture

Part V. Appendixes

Appendix A. Team Culture Style Summary

Appendix B. The Culture Code Benchmark

Appendix C. 5 Dimensions Development Resource Guide

Appendix D. Team Purpose Worksheet

Appendix E. Team Intervention Handbook

Appendix F. Dynamic Team Decision Making: Managing Conflict and Agreement

Appendix G. What’s Your Team Culture? A Role-Play Simulation

Appendix H. Technical Statement: Reliability and Validity for the ATP

References

Index

About the Author

Figures and Tables

Figures

Figure 2.1. Team culture illustrated

Figure 2.2. Leader style matrix

Figure 2.3. Team culture matrix

Figure 3.1. Detached culture team profile

Figure 3.2. The achiever style

Figure 3.3. The achiever and fear of failure shadow bias cycle

Figure 3.4. The leadership shadow cycle: Achiever

Figure 4.1. Dramatic culture team profile

Figure 4.2. The affirmer style

Figure 4.3. The affirmer and fear of rejection shadow bias cycle

Figure 4.4. The leadership shadow cycle: Affirmer

Figure 5.1. Dependent culture team profile

Figure 5.2. The asserter style

Figure 5.3. The asserter and fear of betrayal shadow bias cycle

Figure 5.4. The leadership shadow cycle: Asserter

Figure 6.1. Dysfunctional group decision-making: Detached or dependent teams

Figure 6.2. The process of groupthink

Figure 7.1. Dysfunctional group decision-making: Detached or dependent teams

Figure 8.1. The achiever style: Actualized

Figure 8.2. The affirmer style: Actualized

Figure 8.3. The asserter style: Actualized

Figure 9.1. The 5 dimensions of teamwork

Figure 9.2. The 5 dimensions of teamwork: Communication

Figure 9.3. The 5 dimensions of teamwork: Conflict management

Figure 9.4. The 5 dimensions of teamwork: Engagement

Figure 9.5. The 5 dimensions of teamwork: Purpose

Figure 9.6. Team purpose

Figure 9.7. The 5 dimensions of teamwork: Trust

Figure 10.1. The actualized performance cycle

Figure 10.2. The achiever style: Detached

Figure 10.3. The affirmer style: Dramatic

Figure 10.4. The asserter style: Dependent

Figure E.1. Force Field Analysis

Figure E.2. The Fishbone Diagram

Figure H.1. Bionic terms in relation to ATP scales and corresponding emotionality

Figure H.2. ATP and team culture

Figure H.3. Statistically significant correlational relationships

Tables

Table 2.1. Unconscious and conscious elements of team culture

Table H.1. Six steps of the scale development process

Table H.2. Sample demographics

Table H.3. PCFA four-factor solution

Table H.4. Cumulative variance

Table H.5. Factor loading scale component ranges

Table H.6. Reliability assessment

Table H.7. Word pairs

Table H.8. Word pair achievement scale: Inter-item correlation matrix

Table H.9. Word pair achievement scale: Item-total statistics

Table H.10. Word pair affiliation scale: Inter-item correlation matrix

Table H.11. Word pair affiliation scale: Item-total statistics

Table H.12. Word pair power scale: Inter-item correlation matrix

Table H.13. Word pair power scale: Item-total statistics

Table H.14. Word pair self-actualization scale: Inter-item correlation matrix

Table H.15. Word pair self-actualization scale: Item-total statistics

Table H.16. Team sizes and profile scores

Table H.17. Descriptive statistics for response data

Table H.18. Team sizes with achiever style and detached culture scores

Table H.19. Descriptive statistics for achiever scores and detached culture scores

Table H.20. Pearson’s correlation between achiever scores and the detached culture scores

Table H.21. Team sizes with affirmer and dramatic culture scores

Table H.22. Descriptive statistics for affirmer scores and dramatic culture scores

Table H.23. Pearson’s correlation between affirmer scores and the dramatic culture scores

Table H.24. Team sizes with asserter and dependent culture scores

Table H.25. Descriptive statistics for asserter scores and dependent culture scores

Table H.26. Pearson’s correlation between asserter scores and the dependent culture scores

Table H.27. Team sizes and profile scores

Table H.28. Descriptive statistics for response data

Table H.29. Pearson’s correlation between actualized leaders and the dynamic team culture

Foreword

I first met Will Sparks in the spring of 2014 when he was serving our organization as a leadership and group dynamics consultant. I spent time with Will as he led several sessions focused on organizational leadership and team culture. Later, over several ownership and management retreat meetings, Will led us in a number of exercises and discussions based on our assessment results that were designed to help us learn more about our individual and group leadership strengths and weaknesses. From my experiences with Will I knew that he could be a great asset for me and our coaching staff as we attempted to establish and sustain an effective and resilient culture for our basketball team. After that time, he worked with me as a trusted advisor.

Over the years the teams I have coached have always played above or below their collective skill and experience level, never at their actual aggregate level. While there are numerous factors that account for this observed outcome, what we often call chemistry—or what Will refers to as team culture—determines actual performance. My coaching staff and I are aways looking at ways to improve our general group culture and we decided that it could be worthwhile to bring Will in for a series of practices and get his thoughts on the dynamics of our team. He agreed, and after the practices we would sit down, and he would give me his impressions from what he had observed during our workout. He started with his thoughts on individual players and then gave me some ideas on everything from staff dynamics to practice structure. Will also had some recommendations on how we could improve individual and group work and culture. Some of his thoughts were structured in a way to help out in the short term while he also had ideas designed to improve our culture for the long term. I was amazed at how on target his general thoughts were regarding our players, and we immediately implemented some of his ideas.

I now speak with Will regularly to discuss leadership, group dynamics, and team culture. I utilize his background and depth of knowledge in each of these areas in attacking both individual and group challenges. Will has a terrific perspective on the type of culture we are trying to establish each season and constantly comes up with suggestions on how to improve our efforts. He has become an important asset for me, our staff, and our basketball team.

This book is a great read for anyone who is truly interested in learning more about themselves—which is where leadership starts. It is nearly impossible to set a definitive direction for a group and establish the type of connection necessary to have the buy-in from the players to follow you if you don’t have a great understanding of who you are. In this book, Will Sparks will give you the opportunity to learn more about yourself, your leadership potential, and your impact on others as it relates to culture. As he always does, Will takes the many complex components of self-awareness and explains them in a way we can all understand. His approach and framework will provide you with the type of self-awareness necessary to become a more effective and resilient team leader who is comfortable and confident leading any group, whether a professional sports team, business unit, or entire organization.

—Steve Clifford, head coach,

Charlotte Hornets

Preface

I wrote Actualized Teamwork to help teams, groups, and organizations realize or actualize their highest collective potential. This process of a group of individuals reaching their highest collective potential, what I refer to as team-actualization, results in optimal performance and higher levels of personal satisfaction. This realization of collective potential comes from intentionally unlocking your team’s culture code that underlies exceptional performance. To this end there are three major points I want to make from the outset that set this framework apart from other models of group behavior and team performance:

Team-actualization, much like self-actualization, is the process of reaching a group’s highest collective potential by unlocking the team’s culture code and managing the emotional dynamics of optimal performance. Sometimes referred to as synergy it is the result of a collective sense of purpose, trust, andengagement.

Culture isn’t just something that happens to you, you happen to it! To some degree we all inherit the dominant culture, whether at the team or organizational level, of the enterprise for which we are working. However, we aren’t just passive spectators in this dynamic. We contribute to the culture based on our Style and Leadership Shadow and, as such, we happen to it. The Actualization Team Profile (ATP) Framework identifies the emotional dynamics and resulting culture that your style and leadership shadow will likely help create andsustain.

The ATP Framework has effectively operationalized culture. The research underlying this effort has identified the benchmark scores (code) necessary for the optimal team performance. Culture is often thought of as nebulous and difficult to define. The ATP Framework not only defines culture, it also provides the necessary roadmap to help you and your team achieve breakthrough performance by appreciating and managing the emotional dynamics and interplay of individual style and teamculture.

Whether we realize it or not, we spend most of our lives in a group setting. Whether at work, our family unit at home, or our foursome on the golf course, we spend a significant amount of time in the company of others. If we adopt the British psychoanalyst Wilfred Bion’s definition of a group as three or more people who share a mental set, what we might refer to as a common goal, physical presence no longer becomes necessary to meet the definition of group or team. As my late mentor Dr. Jerry B. Harvey pointed out, even the hermit living alone is often doing so because of not wanting to be a part of a larger collective. And the more that person thinks about them, even if it’s in a I’m-so-glad-I’m-not-a-part-of-that-community sense, the more they are very much a part of their culture. In this sense, the definition of a group is greatly expanded to include all of us, from Zoom meetings to those living a life out of avoidance of others.

What’s critically important for you, the reader, to realize is that even if you are not leading a work team, the concepts in this book will be relevant to you. The more time you spend in work team settings, whether in person or virtually, the more important the concepts, suggestions, and strategies outlined in this book will be to you. While some of the book does focus on the critical role that the leader plays in creating and sustaining culture, each individual contributes in some way and, as such, bears some responsibility for helping to improve the culture and performance of the group. This book will highlight specific strategies and techniques, what organizational psychologists often refer to as interventions to help facilitate positive change in Appendix E.

Moreover, this book is focused on helping you better understand that your style and your leadership shadow help create the culture you are currently experiencing in whatever group setting (e.g., work team, family unit, friendship group, etc.) you experience. While the culture of your group has an objective reality unique from the individual members, each member contributes to the culture. In other words, while we