How Do You Make Your Weaknesses Your Strengths? Building High-Performance Teams

Forbes 09.19.2018 1 min read
BY: KEITH KRACH
How Do You Make Your Weaknesses Your Strengths? Building High-Performance Teams

A Wealth of Weaknesses

Imagine having your best people come up with a list of your strengths and weaknesses. Maybe a little threatening? Now imagine their list of your weaknesses is three times longer than their list of your strengths. Humbling! But it was just what I was hoping for.

In my early days at Ariba, when the company was just a little over a year old, we hit a dry patch in sales. The leadership team—my direct reports—were a smart, energized bunch, and they were concerned. So they all started running a million miles an hour, trying to solve problems and get things going.

Sounds good, but it got a little crazy. Sometimes we wound up working at cross purposes and getting in each other’s way. Ever seen an anthill that’s had a bucket of water poured on it? Something like that.

After a few experiences with signals getting crossed, I realized we needed to do a better job communicating and pulling together as a team. An offsite seemed like a great way to focus and get everyone on the same page. I really wanted this meeting to matter, so I was especially concerned about getting everyone to share their honest input about the business—and about me.

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