Using the TMP HUB Applications – My Team and Pacing in a One Day Offsite

Tom GibbonsLearning, Organization Development, Preference Assessments, Stories from the Field, TMS Applications1 Comment

We will be writing a series of posts (and hopefully having Online Activity Centersome guest posters as well) about designs using the additional resources available in the TMP HUB.  This one focuses on using the My Team and Pacing apps found in each person’s Online Activity Center in their TMP HUB.

It was a group of 36 people and I had worked with the senior management team who this group reported to a few months earlier.  The management team was part of the 36 people and we had a day (yes an ‘event’) of which 2 hours in the afternoon was going to be spent with a Mater Trainer from VitalSmarts; the Crucial Conversations company.

In order to offset the problems with an event design and its effect on sustainability I knew I wanted to get the group actively using the apps in their Online Activity Center, both as real value added content for the session and as an illustration of how they could use these apps ongoing on their own.  To do this, it was critical to begin talking about this in the design phase with the leader of the group to enable better understanding of why were doing this, the value it would add and also secure their active support.

This is an important point in designs using the apps.  The apps are ‘ interactive content’ (although more sustainable content than most) and they need to be treated that way from a design perspective.

The overall agenda for the day was as follows:

  1. Introduction to the day and the Types of Work Model.
  2. Warp Speed experiential exercise and debrief (available in Network Member Resources) with 3 groups.
  3. Split into 3 intact sub groups (determined by the team lead) and active use of the My Team app by all participants. Moving forward points identified.
  4. Human Continuum exercise (available in Network Member Resources).
  5. Use of the Pacing application live.
  6. Additional content on Levels of Engagement (contact us if you want to learn more) plus identification of a situation and person this content and Pacing could be applied.
  7. Crucial Conversations using the output of point 6 above.
  8. Team Preference maps and next steps focusing on point 3 above.

 

From a design perspective, in order to use the apps live you need to ensure the following:

  • Everyone knows they are required to, and can bring a laptop or tablet to the session (don’t ask people to use smart phones, the screens are too small).
  • Internet access and capability is good.
  • People are reminded how to access their HUB and the access emails have been resent a day prior to the day you will be using the apps live.

In this case I had a company IT person check the internet capability with the off site location and also check tablets and laptops that were common in the organization using our sample HUB (we can help you here).  TMS Americas looked after resending the access links and I sent an email to participants with reminder instructions.  The leader communicated the need to bring their laptops or tablets.

This was not a lot of work and we can help you with this design prep but the end point was, when we got to point 3 of the agenda, everyone was into their My Team app live within 10 minutes.  Below is the slide I used for the exercise using the My Team app.

My Team exercise slide

This exercise produced excellent, challenging discussion and some valuable moving forward points. The My Team app is effective in this regard since it produces concrete, objective data about team member’s perspectives on team performance focused on a real work issue. In most cases it will be data they have never had before about differing perspectives.  In 45 minutes they had identified real performance improvement steps.

You will also notice in the agenda up to this point (about 2 – 2 1/2 hours in) the group has not looked at their profile nor have we talked about preference.  Everyone had access to their profile within 5 minutes of completing their questionnaire and as pre work were required to review it and watch the first 2 Overview videos and have soft or hard copy available for the session (everyone did this, most had soft copy) but we had yet to look at it as part of the session.  As we say, preference is important but the work still has to be done so we always focus first on the Types of Work Model and get right into the work. The My Team app is the best way to do this if you design it in.

The human continuum exercise was great, like it always is and right after we used the Pacing app live.  Below is the slide used for that exercise.

Pacing app exercise slide

The reason the Pacing app was designed in here was the human continuum exercise provides knowledge of the measures of work preference and since you don’t need to know someone’s TMP results to use the Pacing app (I actually think it’s better if you don’t) it’s easier to complete it. As well using the app here illustrates how this app can be used time after time to sustain the learning about preference in a very practical way. This work was also going to feed into the Levels of Engagement work and the Crucial Conversations work.

The remainder of the day went well and the last agenda item of the day was a look at the sub team’s preference maps (graphic template available in Network Member Resources) and referring back to the moving forward points from agenda point 3 to see if their team’s preferences might require some additional activity into those points.

For follow up, what I do is send the group emails reminding them about using the My Team app again as part of a team meeting to get ongoing objective data about team performance perspectives.  I remind them of the Pacing app and also get the team lead to remind them of the same.  In this way we design in the possibility for more sustainable action even with primarily an ‘event’ initiative.

So even though you may have an ‘event’ as your primary engagement with a group (very common with external consultants) it does not have to be designed as an event.  Designing in the apps from the TMP HUB builds capacity for applying the TMS material over time in a self managed way and thus creates sustainability.  And because you are building this sustainability with interactive content you are modeling what you are there to do in the first place; create better team performance.  You are also supporting the most important people in the room; those that self manage and take accountability for their own learning and performance.

Connect back with your comments or contact us directly if you would like to talk at a more detailed level about this type of design…. it works!

One Comment on “Using the TMP HUB Applications – My Team and Pacing in a One Day Offsite”

  1. Thanks for sharing Tom.
    In a recent half-day session I also asked participants to bring that laptops/tablets and they were able to access the Online Activity Center, review their profile summaries (for the human continuum exercise) and then I did a quick demo of the Pacing App.
    For that specific group, as half of the group was composed by split wheels (9 out of 18!!), low scores and equal %’s between the Major role and 1st Related, I felt it was really important that they understood what a split wheel is and how it happens so I used the ‘Team Management Wheel’ video – also available on the Online Activity Center(https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Yp5BXYjbxvQ) – from minute 2:52 to explain the details of the model including the differentiation between inner and outer roles. Bonnie also helped me by creating a more detailed team role display clearly showing those who were inner and outer wheel, which I showed them right after the video.
    I am a big fan of the HUB as an end-user and found it was easier than I originally thought to incorporate some of the resources available there in the design of my sessions.
    Thanks to all TMS Americas team for the great support. It was a success!

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