Your MVP is Your Team

As 2020 comes to a close and we look towards 2021, few of us could have imagined all that transpired this past year. Our understanding of what is essential and non-essential has been redefined. Old teams were disbanded and new teams were formed to deal with unanticipated events. Working and living in a virtual world became the norm for many of us.  And we’ve seen teams of people joining together in order to provide much-needed nurture and support. People, some known to us but mostly unknown, have been what is most important.

Too often teams are treated as producers, not always regarded as important. As results are achieved, new goals are placed on them with little fanfare or recognition of what gets accomplished. We’ve seen, this past year, the power of recognizing a team’s purpose and its results. Examples range from first-line responders to scientific communities working on a vaccine. In our workplaces, it’s those teams that looked for new ways to get business done, ship products out the door, and keep the company running. As the heart is to the body, teams are to the company. Their importance cannot be understated.

Let’s make our New Year resolution to celebrate the value of teams and their results. To do so requires work on the part of leaders to ensure teams are aligned on purpose and goals; teams are working in safe environments which encourage the exchange of ideas; and, that they are recognized for their contributions. Let 2021 be the year that teams become Time’s “Person of the Year” award recipient.

This Week: Pause and celebrate all that your teams have accomplished this year. Let them know they are valuable to the company. Ask them what you can do to help them achieve their goals.