What is a Team Temperature Check

A team temperature check is a management process you can use to assess the perception of the team so you can more effectively and appropriately act and communicate as a leader in a way that creates camaraderie and cohesion.

Why perform a Team Temperature Check

It's important to perform a team temperature check as it allows you to stay ahead of the curve of workplace culture challenges that may be waiting to make their appearance. It also allows you an opportunity to connect with your team members and have them feel cared about in a work context. Without a regular check-in, the workplace can quite often create a sense of being "a cog in the machine" even in cases where leadership is otherwise regularly engaged.

This small act of taking the temperature of your team members has significant positive consequences in supporting our culture pillar of Known - where team members feel seen, known, witnessed, and ultimately cared about as human beings above and beyond who they are as a worker.

When to use the Team Temperature Check

The Team Temperature Check is a process to be used when your team is in an operational place. Meaning there are no major challenges or workplace culture failures and misses. This is not a process to use when it's clear that many people are upset, your team is confrontational, or in conflict. We recommend a different process for when you're in the "thick of it."

A temperature check is not a daily check-in rather it's best used at most on a weekly basis, less if needed.

Particularly, in times of high-delivery expectations or high-stress situations, the Team Temperature Check is a powerful way to help you manage the team and keep them feeling motivated in that challenging setting.

Also if you have the sense a particular team member doesn't feel connected, this quick effort on your part can help turn that person's experience on its head!

Without the Team Temperature Check

How often have you asked someone on your team, “How are you doing?” with the intent of looking for ways you can help that individual perform better, up their mood, or even out of actual care and concern only to get one of the following responses:

"Fine."
"Good."
"Eh."
"Not too bad."
"Alright."
"Fair to middle."
"Another day in paradise."
"Livin’ the dream."

As a leader, these are not the types of responses that will provide you with meaningful insight into what's really going on with this individual.

So how can you really find out how your team is doing, being, and feeling in a way that’s meaningful?

Consider Using Our 2 Question Team Temperature Check

Question 1 - On a scale of 1-10 how are you doing?

Question 2 - What would make that a plus one?

PRO-TIP: if someone says a number below 5, take a few minutes in the moment or set aside time that same day to sit down and really connect with your team member to understand what's going on in their world.

How happy are your employees, what's affecting them?

Without these insights into your team members, you will find it incredibly difficult to lead effectively.

Well-intentioned actions seem to just be a distraction, or even worse they cause blow-ups.

With the Team Temperature Check, you'll be amazed at the insights you can gain to truly impact your team's morale and work experience!

This process has multiple advantages:

• You’re able to quickly ascertain morale progress or decline.
• Once this process becomes a habit, your team will be thoughtful in their response to you.
• You’ll notice your team will begin to own their number, as well as their role in creating it.  People become accountable to their own answer.
• Hypocrisy becomes incredibly self-evident if they tell you an “8” and then turnaround and kvetch to their co-worker.
• Question two allows for solutioning and improving.
• You will learn about the specific challenges facing the individuals on your team – both professional as well as personal.
• You will learn about their successes and where things are working and be able to celebrate them.

Caveats to make this work:

• Keep in mind that someone’s 6 is someone else’s 7. We all have different expectations.  The point is not the number, but rather the why behind it.
• Don’t ask to ask – ask because you genuinely want to know.
• Be fully attentive when you ask and listen to the answers - give your undivided attention.
• While this process is wonderfully efficient – don’t make it a “fly by.”
• Know that when you ask you will likely walk away with one or two action items.
• Follow through on those action items and share with them that you followed through.
• Sometimes no action is required – and you just need celebrate someone or to hold space (have empathy and compassion) for someone going through a tough time.
• Be prepared to answer these same questions when asked of you.

Here's to getting a REAL read on how your team members are feeling.

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