Each person on a team has a specific role. Generally, on the senior executive team each person is responsible for a particular function, geography or product. The same structure usually applies at other levels in the organization as well. This can easily translate into silos - functional groups that work in isolation from other groups with little or no inter-group communication or collaboration. That's a natural outcome of the manager's focus only on her part of the organization. But it's not good for the business.

When your team functions in isolation from others, you get what is sometimes called "sub-optimization." That just means that your part is working well (optimized) but not in a way that optimizes the performance of the whole. To fix that problem, you have to learn to pay attention to both the parts and the whole.

Turn some of your attention away from your part. Pay attention to the connections and relationships among the parts. Look for places where there is overlap between two areas or a gap between to parts of a process. Consider how your decision will impact not just your function or team but the whole organization. In team meetings when you are discussing a decision, be sure that the connections among the parts are explicitly considered.

Since most Western thinking is focused on parts, this attention to connections is critical. Without it, the whole can never be more than the sum of its parts. You'll always be stuck with a system that is doing less than it could.

About the Author

Dr. Linda Ford helps leaders create organizations that achieve superior performance. She has consulted to companies ranging from small start-ups to Fortune 100 companies as well as non-profit organizations. She spent 15 years in line roles in large, global companies and has owned her own business since 1991. Ford has a PhD in Human and Organization Systems from the Fielding Graduate University. To learn more, visit http://www.TameTheGorilla.com.