Lead Teamwork from Any Seat
- Mar 2
- 5 min read
Successful teamwork is a shared responsibility for everyone on the team, not just the manager. The expectation that only managers create and maintain teamwork is outdated.
To be certain, the boss does have a lot of influence on teamwork, but every member of the team upholds it. It is something you help build, every day, in how you show up, what you do and what you say.
Too often, team members take a hands‑off approach. A colleague misses a deadline and, instead of asking about it directly, others either ignore it or immediately escalate to the supervisor. They mentally step back, telling themselves, “That’s not my job to address it.”
That’s not true. The highest performing teams are those where colleagues hold each other accountable.
When everyone takes responsibility for how the team works together, performance improves. Better yet, the Gallup Organization has found time and again that when the team holds each other accountable (in addition to supporting each other), the work environment is more satisfying for everyone.
A helpful way to think about this is to “lead teamwork from any seat.” You can do this by consistently doing three things: orienting the team to “we,” shaping how the work gets done, and choosing how you talk and listen.
Let’s explore those three further.
Start with “We,” Not “Me”
Many teams function as a loose collection of individual contributors who occasionally sit in the same meeting. Everyone is working hard, but not necessarily together. One of the most powerful contributions you can make is to repeatedly bring the group back to a shared purpose.
You do this through simple, steady questions and language that center “we”:
Ask “What do we want to accomplish?” at the start of meetings or projects, especially when the purpose feels fuzzy.
Link your update to the team’s goal: “Here’s what I did this week and how it moves us closer to X.”
Redirect side conversations or tangents with “Can we table that and pivot back to the agenda?”
A small example: in a weekly status meeting that routinely derails, you might say, “Before we go further, can we clarify what we want to achieve in this meeting? I want to be sure I’m on the same page as everyone else.”
This can help everyone recalibrate to a shared outcome instead of individual agendas.
Shape the Process, Not Just Your Tasks
When people say “we have a communication problem,” the real issue is often that expectations and processes are unclear. The assumption is that the boss must fix this, often through training or a new tool.
In reality, anyone on the team can start improving how the work gets done. Think of yourself as a designer of small processes that make collaboration easier. For example:
Propose simple meeting norms: time limits for updates, a consistent agenda, and agreed start/stop times.
Ask “What is the expectation?” when tasks or deadlines are vague, and invite everyone to confirm their understanding.
Suggest lightweight structures for recurring frustrations, such as a standard format for sharing updates or a simple decision rule (for example, vote versus manager call).
If your team’s weekly update is a time‑waster, you might say, “What if we each share a quick win, a challenge needing team input, and our ‘hot item’ for the week?” This kind of structure often shortens the meeting and makes it more relevant for everyone. You are not taking over the leader’s role; you are offering a practical way to make better use of everyone’s time.
Questions are your best tools for shaping process:
“How do we want to handle this kind of issue next time?”
“Who needs to be involved in this decision, and how will we decide?”
“What would make this meeting more useful for all of us?”
That said, when you see an opportunity to strengthen teamwork in these ways, it is worth taking a moment to align with your boss before you act. Even if you are confident they would approve. A brief check‑in such as, “I’m noticing our update meetings feel a bit scattered. I’m happy to suggest a simple structure that could help. Would you be comfortable with me proposing X to the team?” shows professional courtesy and respect for their role.
Choose How You Talk and Listen
The third way to lead teamwork from any seat is to pay careful attention to how you talk about problems, people, and decisions. Gossip, chronic complaining, and conflict avoidance erode trust and productivity faster than any missed deadline. On the other hand, curiosity, directness, and perspective-taking strengthen the team, even when things are hard.
You can set a different tone by doing three things consistently:
Use questions to elevate the conversation.
When teams get stuck in unproductive patterns—dominating voices, quick reactions, or heated disagreement—questions can reset the tone. High-impact questions include:
“What do others think?” when one or two people dominate or when your idea is challenged.
“What is the other side of the story?” when the group is swept up in blame or complaint.
“What is the next step?” at the end of a long discussion that has no clear conclusion.
Imagine a tense discussion about a project delay. Rather than defending your part or criticizing another area, you say, “I hear this is frustrating. What do you think is the other side of the story?” This shifts the group from venting to perspective‑taking and problem‑solving. The key is that you use curiosity, not accusation, to move the conversation forward.
Protect connection without pretending you are a “family.”
When pressure is high, it can feel efficient to focus solely on tasks, but teams that neglect connection often struggle more over time. You can champion practices that build genuine, work‑relevant connection:
Start meetings with a brief “quick wins” round, inviting people to share small successes they’ve seen in themselves or others.
Use a recurring prompt in chat, such as “What’s one small thing that went well this week?”
Suggest a short “learning share” in an existing meeting, giving teammates space to talk about an article, podcast, or lesson they found valuable.
These moments do not replace performance goals; they make it easier for people to speak up, support each other, and stay engaged with the work. Connection is really about building enough trust and goodwill that difficult conversations, tight deadlines, and inevitable mistakes are easier to navigate together.
Set boundaries on unhelpful talk.
You do not need to police anyone, but you can choose how you participate. For example:
Decline to join gossip and gently redirect to facts or solutions: “If this is a problem, should we bring it to them directly?”
Limit complaining by time‑boxing it: “Let’s give this five minutes, then shift to what we can change.”
Model speaking up respectfully in disagreement, using “I” statements and questions instead of blame.
Leading teamwork from any seat is not about being louder or taking over. It is about three steady practices: keeping the focus on “we,” shaping the small processes that make collaboration possible, and choosing a way of talking that builds trust instead of eroding it. Over time, these behaviors change how it feels to be on the team—for you and for everyone around you.
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Until next time!
Amy Drader is a management consultant and credentialed coach with over 20 years’ experience in HR and operations. She knows first-hand the joys and challenges of leading people and is dedicated to helping managers and teams advance their performance. She is the owner of Growth Partners Consulting, a boutique leadership and team development consulting firm that provides customized training, coaching, and professional development resources.
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