Episode 225: Creating High Performing Leadership Teams with the AWESOME Framework

Dr. Darrin Peppard (00:00.846)

All right, everybody, welcome into the Leaning Into Leadership podcast. This is episode 225. As always, I am your host, Dr. Darren Peppered. And today's episode is going to be something a little bit different. I am going to go solo today, and we're going to dive into something that I've been living, breathing and coaching for the last several years, but very intensely over the last six to eight weeks. All over the country, I've been working to help build highly effective leadership teams. Now, earlier this week, I was in Nashville at the Innovative Schools Summit and had an opportunity to lead a workshop specifically on this. And like I said, I've been working with district and school teams from coast to coast throughout the course of the summer. And I've seen the difference really between leadership teams that

just kind of get by and those that are truly successful. Spoiler alert, it's not about working harder. It's about working with clarity, intention, and alignment. So today, we're going to dive deep into the behaviors, the mindset, and the tools that turn good leadership teams into awesome leadership teams. We're going to do it all right after this very quick break.

Dr. Darrin Peppard (01:33.123)

All right, here we go, folks. Welcome back in. Let me take you back to a leadership retreat that I facilitated not too long ago. It's an amazing school, incredible people, but they just were not functioning well as a team. They were showing up, they were checking the boxes. For the most part, they were avoiding conflict, but they really weren't moving the needle. Does that sound familiar to you? Now, by the end of the retreat,

One of the assistant principals pulled me aside and threw some tears. said, man, I finally feel like I'm part of something bigger than just my job. That's what happens when we work to build highly effective leadership teams. But let's be real, creating teams, it just isn't that easy. We're all under pressure. We're juggling initiatives, we're putting out fires, and we've got evaluations, and we got a hundred thousand emails coming in.

And somewhere in there, you're supposed to lead. You got to lead your school, you got to your organization, you got to lead your district, right? And when I ask leaders, you know, to describe for me, what does it really mean to be a highly effective team? What is it that really highly effective teams do well? They tend to tell me the same things. And I think for some, it's aspirational. This is what we believe it should look like. For some, it's, you know, I actually worked.

a phenomenal team once, but the words that I hear are very common. Typically, I'll hear things like, highly effective teams have clarity of purpose, or clear direction, or they know what they are all about. I hear things like, highly effective teams operate with trust, and they create a space where there's psychological safety within the group.

I feel like I can speak my mind. Those are the kinds of things I hear. I also hear everybody understands what their role is. Everybody knows what they're responsible for and not just the individuals, but those they lead know and understand what everybody's roles and responsibilities are.

Dr. Darrin Peppard (03:53.985)

One of the things that I hear quite frequently is that they share a common language. In other words, they're aligned in their actions. They walk the same walk. They talk the same talk. And that's really what it takes to develop a highly functional leadership team. But again, the truth is we're so busy in so many other ways that unless we take the time, set the time aside and be intentional,

about the work that's necessary for this team to truly go in this direction and do all the things that I just listed. It just doesn't happen. It tends to lead to the flip side, which are the less than effective leadership teams. What do they look like? They are teams that typically struggle with unresolved conflict. Somebody said something about one of them at some point in the last five years, and they just can't let it go.

or somebody doesn't trust somebody else because adult drama, right? That unresolved conflict within the team. If it sits and it festers, you do, you just don't move forward.

Sometimes teams that are completely misaligned, that also becomes the issue. Like they aren't clear what is the end goal? What are we trying to accomplish? What is it we believe is possible? It might just be that it's one person who's making the decisions for where the team is gonna go and the team itself does not have a shared voice, which leads to that misalignment. That could also very easily lead to role confusion.

When leaders aren't clear what their roles are, then things tend to get dropped. Things slip through the cracks. Or people end up working on the same work and it doesn't tend to go.

Dr. Darrin Peppard (05:58.471)

All of that tends to come together and create a complete lack of feedback and a complete lack of accountability. So how do we get from that place of dysfunction to one of clarity and performance? Well, I will tell you what starts with a framework that I like to call awesome. Yes, that's right. The awesome framework for leadership teams.

Let's break it down letter by letter. Let's start with A. A is for accepting the challenge. Look, being on a leadership team is a privilege, but it can also be one whale of a challenge. Well, I mean, let's be honest, being a leader is hard work and we have to accept that challenge. It means that we have to be willing to step into some diff's comfort. It means we have to be willing to step into addressing conflict.

We have to do the real work of leadership, not just simply be a manager. As sometimes leaders fall into what I've called here on the show several times, superhero syndrome. You know, thinking we have to do it all for ourselves. But leading a team isn't about being the hero. It's about empowering others so that they can be the hero in the story. You're almost more the guide when you're leading the leadership team than you are the hero.

You want to allow others to take on that challenge. We have to allow others to accept the challenge of leadership in order for us to become a better team. And to be honest, another part of accepting the challenge of becoming a better team is being a better team member yourself. I mean, ultimately, I look at it this way. If I want a better we, then I need to be a better me.

Let that one sink in a little.

Dr. Darrin Peppard (07:59.152)

If I want a better we, I've gotta be a better me.

Now, the letter W, welcome, feedback and support. Here's where trust becomes absolutely non-negotiable. If your team can't engage in honest conversations, if people are afraid to disagree or not speak up when they see a problem that could be coming up from somebody's idea, then you're not growing. You're just kicking the can down the road.

I love leaning into Patrick Lincione's work here, the five dysfunctions of a team. And that base level is trust. Without trust, you cannot get to the second level, which is healthy conflict. Healthy conflict is how we hash out ideas, how we work through things that may or may not work, how we ultimately get to the third level, which is shared commitment. We won't have shared commitment if we don't allow each other to have

any of that healthy conflict. And again, that doesn't happen without trust. The fourth level for Lencioni is accountability. right, that accountability comes from collective commitment, where we are holding each other and ourselves accountable to the work that we say we're going to do, to the goals that we've committed to. Ultimately, that's what leads to results. And you don't get there without those other elements.

Folks, if you have not checked out Lincioni's Five Dysfunctions of a Team, do yourself a favor. Get the book, grab the audiobook. It's like a three hour read. It's not super complicated, but it's brilliant. If you're trying to build a leadership team and you're struggling, read Lincioni's Five Dysfunctions of a Team. You see, if you don't have that foundation, then what happens is your team just sits and spins their wheels. You've got to develop some team norms too.

Dr. Darrin Peppard (10:00.675)

because that will help you create that safety and that structure that's necessary. And they don't have to be anything super complicated. They could be things like presume positive intentions. know, come to the table assuming everybody here is trying to work together to find a solution or to come up with a common goal. One of my favorite norms, and this actually comes from one of the teams that I've been supporting over the course of this last year, is don't be the one.

And by that, they mean, and I'll pay this one forward, they mean don't be the one who does the thing that they shouldn't do. You know, think about it like this. Don't be the one on the team who goes and tells others outside of the team what we're trying to accomplish before we're ready to share it out. Don't be the one who leaves the room after we've made a decision and tells others, yeah, I didn't really want to do that anyway. Don't be the one.

who talks bad about other members of the team and so forth. Just don't be that one person. Also, another good norm is just ask for some input. Be willing to ask questions like, how might my idea fail? What have I possibly not thought of? What might you guys think about this? What if we tried this? You've got to be willing to both.

ask for input, but you also be willing to put your ideas on the table, right? And then when you're confused or you don't understand something that's being said, instead of just sitting back and not asking, you need to ask for clarity. hey, I'm a little confused about this. Please tell me a little more. You know, that's one of the most powerful tools you can use right there, folks. When

When you feel like you're a little confused or you feel like you're not sure, or maybe the person hasn't gone far enough with their idea, just simply say, tell me more. It's a really powerful tool, really powerful tool, because here's the thing, great teams don't just talk. They listen, they challenge, and they work to align. All right, the first E is examine your priorities. You know, let's talk here about your time bandits. I ask leaders all the time.

Dr. Darrin Peppard (12:21.913)

Where does your time go? And more often than not, it's being stolen by email, discipline, meetings that could have been an email, or just the endless list of the urgent that drowns out the important. Start auditing your calendar. Color code it by priority if you need to, or time block for visibility, coaching, and reflection. Set aside specific time for the work that only you can do so that you know it's going to get a

accomplished. Most importantly, let your admin assistant be a true partner in the work. I didn't figure that one out until a few years into my principalship, but man, when I did, it changed everything. You have to lead with your time, not just with your title. Say that again. You have to lead with your time, not just your title. Be really mindful of your title.

Make sure you're examining those priorities. And again, that goes back to in order to have a better we, I have to be a better me. Next up is S and that's stand on your values. Your values aren't just the why, right? They're truly your compass. You know that every decision you make as a team should be connected to your values.

And maybe a great exercise is to go through and as a team, let's say, here are the things that we truly value. This is what we collectively as a team believe in. I think I've shared mine here on the show before, but I'll share them really quick just as an example for you. I have six. As a school leader, I believe very strongly that my values are number one, build and maintain positive culture and climate. Number two, ensure every

member of our school feel seen, heard, valued, and trusted. 3. Empower and embrace student voice. 4. Be the instructional leader of my campus. 5. Lead with that coaching mindset. 6. Be the champion of your organization. Whatever your values are, those are what should be driving your actions. If your team hasn't, clarify their values. Here's the place to start.

Dr. Darrin Peppard (14:54.411)

owes for operating intentionally. Intentional leadership is not only about alignment. It's about vision. It's about how you spend your time. It's about how you communicate. When we do things on purpose, when we do things because they align with our values, it's incredible what happens. I always go back to

my four questions about instructional leadership. You know, when I talk about schools, I think one of the most important things and the reason we open the doors is teaching and learning. And so if we're not focused, if we don't have a value that connects specifically to teaching and learning, then we're kind of missing the boat. And so when we focus on being intentional about instructional leadership around teaching and learning,

I love to lean into these four instructional leadership questions. Very simply, I would say this, and I would ask and challenge you as a leadership team. This is my favorite exercise to do with leadership teams, is simply to ask these four questions. Number one, what do you want to see in every classroom every day? Now, understand this. When I say this, I am not asking about the, wow, this would blow me away if I saw this every day in every classroom.

Now I'm talking about the floor, not the ceiling. What is the absolute minimum standard of what you must see in every classroom every day? This is an excellent leadership team exercise. Talk it through, have somebody facilitate that conversation because it's that important.

What do you want to see in every classroom every day? Man, there's some there's some extreme clarity right there. Once you have that you move on to question number two, which is how will you know when you see it? What does it look like? Can you define it? How will you define it for your teachers? How will you how will you support through feedback? You've got to know

Dr. Darrin Peppard (17:17.476)

What it is, how will we know when we see it? Question number three, how are we going to support it when we don't see it? In other words, what will feedback look like? What will coaching look like? When people aren't meeting the standard, what are you going to do about it? And then question four, what are you going to do when they are? How will you celebrate it when you do see it?

To me, these things are the North Star when it comes to teaching and learning. I'll give them to you again very quickly. one, what do we want to see in every classroom every day? Number two, how will we know when we see it? Number three, how will we support when we don't see it? And number four, how will we celebrate when we do? These questions can become the heartbeat of a highly functioning team.

And this is where retreats truly matter. Get off of campus, get clear, get aligned, get a facilitator, whether it's me or somebody else, get somebody to help you with this work because you, if you're the primary leader who's listening to this right now, you can't facilitate this. You have to be a participant because you're a part of the team. When you lead and facilitate this meeting, this discussion, you're not a part of the team.

you need to have somebody come in separate and lead this work. I'll be honest with you, some of the best work I've seen leadership teams do happened on totally neutral ground with structured facilitation, and it led to an incredible shared purpose. I'm telling you, three teams I'm working with this summer alone, where they have come through these four questions, through role clarity and through having somebody come.

and support them. It's remarkable. MS for model. Here is a huge truth bomb for you. We've got to model what we expect. Your team watches everything you do. Your tone, your presence, how you handle criticism, all of it. You need to be the thermo, or the thermostat, not the thermometer.

Dr. Darrin Peppard (19:44.273)

Don't just reflect it. When you show up with calm, purpose, vulnerability, your team is going to mirror that energy. When you show up chaotic, reactive, unprepared, when you show up with that busy energy, you know the rest.

The last E is engage in reflection. You know, this might be the most underrated leadership behavior of all. Build time into your day, every single day, even if it's just five minutes to reflect. What went well today? Where did I show up really well for my team today? What do I need to do to shift a little bit tomorrow?

I'll tell you one of my favorite protocols you've heard me talk about here on the show before is start stop continue consider. I love doing that with teams. love doing it with my own work.

And what should we start doing now that we're not currently doing? What should we stop doing because it no longer serves our purpose? What should we continue to do because it's working extremely well? And what might be something we consider for the future? Hey, growth all starts with reflection. Because if we don't reflect, we don't grow.

Dr. Darrin Peppard (21:21.444)

So, let's bring it all together. If you want to build a highly effective leadership team, start with these five moves. Number one, develop or revisit your team norms. Number two, clarify your roles and responsibilities. Three, audit your time, eliminate those time bandits. Four, align around that shared instructional focus. And five, model the leadership you want to see.

and reflect on it often. You don't have to do this all overnight, but you need to start with intention. Because great leadership teams aren't built by accident, they are built on purpose. Now if this episode resonated with you, I'd love to hear about it.

Give me a shout on social media. I'm at Darren and Pepper literally everywhere. And tell me what one step is that your team is going to take this week. Also, if you're ready to take your leadership team to the next level, let's have a conversation. I facilitate custom leadership retreats all year round. I'd love to help your team get clear, get aligned, and get awesome. Now you can reach me through our website at rhodaustin.net.

or connect through a link down in the show notes. Don't forget, make sure you check out the Principal Academy and make sure you check out our Road to Awesome blog. Both are linked down in the show notes. They will help you get clear, be purposeful, and simply be awesome.