Implementing public policy and solving complex development problems requires working in teams, but working in a collaborative way often creates significant challenges. In conversation with Building State Capability, Harvard Graduate School of Education Professor Monica Higgins shares critical insights on how to build and manage an effective team. Instead of viewing teams as simply a collection of individuals, Higgins emphasizes the importance of establishing clear boundaries, having a compelling direction, and the right representation of stakeholders.
Through practical examples from her work in education systems change, Higgins demonstrates how effective teams require leadership and management. She highlights that in addition to creating a clear and compelling direction, management should also enable the right conditions for success, whether that involves running effective meetings or creating psychological safety. Most importantly, she underscores how teams thrive when they meld external accountability with intrinsic motivation, creating what Higgins calls “felt accountability” through meaningful tasks and clear interdependencies.
This podcast offers several key lessons for practitioners:
- The value of leadership combined with tactical management of teams
- The power of fostering psychological safety while maintaining accountability
- The usefulness of assigning meaningful tasks that build intrinsic motivations
- The importance of clarifying teams and having proper stakeholder representation
Listen to the podcast episode on building effective teams.
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