Latest news with #teamPerformance
Fast Company
01-07-2025
- Health
- Fast Company
The 9–5 schedule might be hurting your team's performance
As a manager, you're constantly navigating the many individual differences within your team that affect performance. Some people are more analytical, others more creative. Some thrive in structured environments, while others excel when given more autonomy. But one area that dramatically impacts performance that isn't talked about enough is chronotype—the natural biological rhythm of an individual that determines when they feel most alert, focused, and productive throughout the day. People have different chronotypes—some are more focused in the morning, while others do their best work later in the day (researchers have mapped more than 80 genes that regulate circadian rhythms). But many workplaces still stick to a 9-to-5 schedule that doesn't fit everyone. According to recent research, this circadian misalignment can lead to decreased productivity, increased stress, and even health problems. Workers who don't fit the norm may face challenges in the workplace—yet it's imperative for organizations to tap into their full contributions. As a researcher studying work-life balance and applied chronobiology, I've discovered how chronoinclusive work cultures can improve both performance and well-being. In my work with multiple Fortune 500 companies in 17 countries, I've discovered three key ways that leaders can introduce the conversation around circadian rhythms and chronobiology, and ensure they're positively—not negatively—impacting your team's performance. 1. Challenge stereotypes about late risers In our culture, we venerate early risers—from Benjamin Franklin's 'early to bed and early to rise' to bestselling books like The 5AM Club (which has sold over 15 million copies worldwide). We think they're the serious, industrious workers. And yet: There are more late chronotypes than early chronotypes in the population. According to research, only about 30% of people are 'early chronotypes,' while the remainder are either night owls (40%) or fall somewhere in between (30%). That means a significant portion of your team may be biologically wired to perform better later in the day—and may be disadvantaged by the early start. This early riser bias equates early arrival with traits like conscientiousness, motivation, and reliability. As a manager, it's important to notice these common stereotypes—and take steps to challenge them. You might ask yourself: 'Have I inadvertently favored early starters on my team, perhaps through access to me or when important decisions are made? Does our organization equate prompt morning attendance with being 'leadership material'? Am I less patient with team members who message me in the afternoon or evening? 2. Map chronotypes in your team Teams can improve both performance and well-being by learning when each person works best. Understanding these differences can help you plan smarter and lead more effectively. You can use a validated tool like the Morningness–Eveningness Questionnaire (a 19-question self-assessment). Or, you can simply ask team members a few basic questions: If you had no meetings or responsibilities, when would you naturally start your day? When would you go to bed if you could set your own schedule? What time of day do you usually feel most focused and productive? Once you know more about your team's chronotypes, you can use this information to: Assign deep-focus tasks when each person has the most energy. Schedule collaboration during times when energy levels overlap. For example, my client Julia, the head of HR at a media organization, is a strong morning type. She wakes up naturally at 4 a.m., does her most focused work in the early hours, and starts winding down by early evening. In contrast, David, a leader in a legal association, is a late chronotype. He finds early mornings exhausting and prefers quiet, flexible starts. His peak performance happens in the afternoon and evening, when he's most alert and focused. By recognizing and working with these patterns—not against them—teams can become both more productive and more balanced. 3. Foster chronoinclusive work cultures Many workplaces are unintentionally designed around early risers, who often claim prime resources. If you want to support both early risers and late chronotypes—and unlock greater performance across your team: Offer flexible start times and meeting hours: Allow team members to begin their workday in alignment with their natural energy peaks. This supports better focus, fewer mistakes, and improved well-being for both morning and evening types. When teams include a mix of early birds and night owls, the best meeting time is often between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.—a middle zone where most chronotypes have relatively good energy and focus. Ensure fair access to workplace resources: Be mindful that early arrivals often get first access to perks like premium desks, food options, or parking spaces. Design systems that don't unintentionally reward one chronotype over another. For example, assign desks and parking spaces, and make sure food prep and service hours match peak demand times. Lead by example: Share how you plan your own day based on when you're most alert—and make it okay for others to do the same. A culture of openness starts with you. Chronotype is a critical, yet often overlooked factor in how teams perform. By recognizing biological differences in how and when people work best—and making room for that diversity—leaders can reduce hidden bias, unlock untapped potential, and build more productive and inclusive teams.
Forbes
25-06-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Is Your High-Performing Team Hiding A Trust Problem?
Trust and Collaboration Is your most successful team a ticking time bomb? If you're confusing performance with psychological safety, that might just be the case. It's not uncommon for high-performing teams to deliver exceptional results despite operating in environments where trust is quite fragile. These teams are often populated by aggressive drivers who excel at execution and have developed efficient systems for getting things done. But this short-term success isn't always a good thing. In fact, their success can mask fundamental weaknesses that become catastrophic when circumstances change. How High Performers Succeed Without Trust Research has consistently shown that psychological safety is one of the strongest predictors of team performance, productivity, quality, safety, creativity, and innovation. But why, then, do some teams continue to succeed even when trust in the overall environment is low? The answer lies in understanding what drives short-term success versus long-term resilience. High-performing teams without psychological safety often succeed because they've mastered the art of getting things done within existing parameters. Team members are skilled performers who can deliver results independently, and each team member knows their role and executes it efficiently. They've developed systems that work when market conditions are stable. In essence, these teams succeed despite their trust issues. They're like high-performance race cars—they can achieve impressive speeds on a smooth track, but they're vulnerable when the road gets rough. When Success Becomes a Liability The problem emerges when these teams face challenges that require adaptation, innovation, or rapid learning. Under those conditions, high-performing teams operating in a low-trust environment often become victims of their own success. Because they're winning, questioning the status quo feels unnecessary and disloyal. Therefore these teams frequently operate in a state of "productive harmony" that looks healthy from the outside but suppresses the tensions that drive innovation, adaptation, and growth. To determine whether your high performers are operating with a trust deficit, ask yourself: "Who on your team consistently puts forth contrary points of view, and how are they treated when they do?" The answers are telling. High-performing teams often pause at this question. They'll mention someone who "sometimes plays devil's advocate," but when pressed about how those interventions are received, they reveal a culture where dissent is tolerated but not truly valued. The contrarian might be heard, but their input rarely changes course. True psychological safety means that contrary viewpoints don't just get airtime—they get serious consideration and can actually influence outcomes. The External Environment Test We're operating in an era of unprecedented uncertainty—supply chain disruptions, economic volatility, technological disruption, and changing workforce expectations. It's not enough for today's teams to perform well under optimal conditions. They need to demonstrate resilience when external conditions shift. When employees feel comfortable asking for help, sharing suggestions informally, or challenging the status quo without fear of negative social consequences, organizations are more likely to innovate quickly, unlock the benefits of diversity, and adapt to changing market conditions. On the other hand, teams that achieve success despite a lack of psychological safety often struggle when the rules change. Without a foundation of trust that enables rapid learning and adaptation, they become rigid and vulnerable. They find it difficult to quickly acknowledge what wasn't working and pivot their approach. Building Anti-Fragile Teams The teams that can adapt, learn, and innovate under pressure share several key characteristics: They institutionalize dissent. Rather than hoping someone will speak up, they create formal mechanisms for surfacing contrary viewpoints. Some teams rotate a "designated contrarian" role, while others end major decisions with a structured "pre-mortem" where members explicitly explore how things could go wrong. They measure learning, not just results. These teams track how quickly they identify and correct course when initial assumptions prove wrong. They celebrate the team member who first spots trouble ahead, even if it means acknowledging earlier mistakes. They practice vulnerability. Leaders model intellectual humility by regularly admitting what they don't know and asking for input. When teammates witness a leader taking responsibility for failure or admitting a shortcoming, they're more likely to trust that leader in the future—and to trust each other. Institutionalizing Trust If you're leading a high-performing team, don't assume your success guarantees future effectiveness. Instead, audit your team's trust foundation with these questions: The teams that will dominate the next decade won't just be high-performing—they'll be anti-fragile. They'll get stronger under pressure because they've built culture that turn groups of talented individuals into truly resilient teams.
Forbes
20-05-2025
- Health
- Forbes
Why Psychological Safety Drives Performance In High-Stakes Industries
LONDON - NOVEMBER 03: Production staff. (Photo by) To call psychological safety a strategic imperative across industries is no exaggeration. It is a proven driver of high-functioning teams, yet it remains one of the most misunderstood concepts. In complex, high-reliability sectors like healthcare and technology, where outcomes hinge on rapid decision-making, cross-disciplinary coordination and adaptive learning, creating an environment where ideas and people feel safe to speak, challenge and contribute is vital to cultivating a resilient and high-performing culture. Peer-reviewed studies consistently link psychological safety to greater innovation, more effective leadership, enhanced collaboration and measurable improvements in team performance. But widespread misconceptions often dilute its impact, framing it as comfort over honesty or consensus over constructive tension. This article examines the influence, common misconceptions and high-stakes applications of psychological safety, particularly within the evolving landscapes of healthcare, technology and modern organizational leadership. Psychological safety refers to an individual's perception of the consequences of taking interpersonal risks in a particular context, such as the workplace. It is the belief that one can speak up, offer ideas, ask questions or admit mistakes without fear of punishment or shame. This concept, introduced by Amy Edmondson in 1999, has since been recognized as a cornerstone of effective team dynamics across multiple industry sectors. A prevalent misinterpretation is equating psychological safety with comfort or the absence of conflict. However, proper psychological safety fosters an environment where challenging the status quo and engaging in constructive dissent are not only accepted but encouraged. It's not about creating a conflict-free zone, but about ensuring that team members and employees feel secure enough to express diverse viewpoints and take calculated risks. As a health journalist, I've spent years tracing the ripple effects of emotional environments on the workplace. What I've learned is this: Psychological safety is a significant multiplier of well-being. When people feel unsafe expressing themselves, asking for help or communicating discomfort, the stress follows them into the other areas of their lives; it settles in the nervous system and accumulates gradually over time. The body and mind respond to social threats in the same way they respond to physical threats. It spikes cortisol, disrupts sleep, suppresses immune function and erodes the capacity for recovery, emotional resilience and self-regulation. Research from the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2022) suggests that low levels of psychological safety in the workplace are significantly associated with increased rates of burnout, anxiety and emotional exhaustion, particularly among healthcare workers and employees in high-demand industries. Conversely, when psychological safety is present, teams perform and function more effectively. Individuals report increased levels of self-efficacy, greater emotional resilience and improved job satisfaction. Over time, this translates into better health and well-being outcomes, including lower inflammation, a more stable mood, enhanced relationships and a greater ability to self-regulate under pressure. If we want to future-proof our workforces and protect collective mental health, psychological safety is key in a world that increasingly runs on speed, precision, and pressure. The most humane and high-performing environments will be the ones that make it safe to be human. A study published in Frontiers in Psychology emphasized that healthcare professionals who feel psychologically safe are more likely to voice concerns, ask questions and deliver feedback, leading to improved patient safety and overall care quality. Further, fostering psychological safety can mitigate burnout and enhance job satisfaction among healthcare workers. In the fast-paced tech industry, psychological safety is equally vital. Research indicates that teams with high psychological safety are more innovative, as members feel empowered to share ideas and admit mistakes without fear of retribution. An analysis in PLOS ONE found that psychological safety has a positive influence on employee innovative performance through enhanced communication behaviors. While psychological safety flourishes within teams, its foundation is built by leadership. Business leaders are more than strategic architects; they are cultural stewards. Their behaviors set the tone for what is spoken, what is silenced and how people relate to risk. In psychologically safe environments, for instance, leaders model intellectual humility and leadership competency by inviting dissent, acknowledging uncertainty and rewarding sincerity, even when their ideas can be challenged. A 2023 study in the European Management Journal suggested that leaders who display transformational and servant leadership qualities, such as empathy, empowerment and active listening, inspired their followers to lead themselves. Conversely, fear-based leadership and micro-management can be correlated with team withdrawal, silence and reduced innovation. For executives navigating high-pressure sectors such as healthcare and technology, the implications are profound. When team members feel secure enough to challenge inadequate systems, report ethical concerns or propose unconventional ideas, organizations become more agile, transparent and resilient. And the benefits aren't abstract. Companies that prioritize psychological safety report lower turnover, faster problem-solving and stronger employee engagement. For example, Google's landmark Project Aristotle study on effective teams implied that psychological safety was the most critical factor driving team performance, surpassing expertise, intelligence or even tenure. In brief, psychological safety encompasses not only how people feel and behave, but also how they interact with others. It's about how leaders lead and inspire others to do the same within their organization while welcoming their teams' voices, input and feedback. Psychological safety is a biological, emotional and cultural imperative. In industries like healthcare and technology, where lives are saved and systems are built in real-time, the ability to speak up without fear is a key difference between innovation and inertia, between resilience and risk. And the data is clear: teams that feel safe to share unpolished ideas, ask questions and admit mistakes outperform those that don't. They adapt faster. They solve more complex problems. They build stronger cultures of trust where performance doesn't come at the expense of human fulfillment. Ultimately, leaders who cultivate psychological safety are raising the bar for relational excellence. They understand that creativity is fragile, feedback is transformational and psychological safety is the fertile soil in which both flourish. Whether you're a hospital executive, a tech founder, or a team lead navigating daily pressures, the boldest act of leadership today may be about listening more deeply, inviting more voices and making it safe to fail forward. Because the future of work and well-being depends not only on what we build, but also on how bravely we allow others to co-create it with us.
Forbes
20-05-2025
- Science
- Forbes
Build High-Performing Teams By Harnessing The Biology Of Behavior
Build High-Performing Teams By Harnessing the Biology of Behavior High-performing teams aren't just shaped by culture—they're built on biology. For decades, we've looked inside the body to understand what makes us human. DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, has given us extraordinary insight into how we grow, heal, and adapt. But what if we turn that lens outward? What if there's a kind of DNA that exists not within us, but between us? Just as nature optimized our internal code over millennia, leaders can now begin to understand and intentionally shape the relational code that drives team performance, trust, and collaboration. That's biohacking team performance. And it turns out, the blueprint for building high-performing teams may be rooted in biology more than we've realized. Traditional leadership theory often focuses on personality traits or management techniques. But as research in neuroscience and behavioral biology increasingly shows, what actually drives team dynamics is far more primal: how we signal, respond, and adapt in social contexts. For example, studies of social cognition in primates and humans have demonstrated that neurochemical signals like oxytocin play a direct role in shaping cooperation and affiliation, reinforcing the idea that our brains evolved to navigate complex social environments through finely tuned behavioral feedback loops In evolutionary terms, our survival has always depended on our ability to connect and coordinate. That's still true today—only now the stakes are organizational rather than existential. Studies show that high-trust teams consistently outperform low-trust ones, not just in morale but in measurable outcomes like speed, innovation, and resilience. This is where biology meets leadership. When trust is present, oxytocin levels rise, which strengthens social bonding and openness to collaboration. When psychological safety breaks down, cortisol spikes, impairing focus and increasing defensiveness. These are not abstract ideas. They're physiological responses that shape how people behave—moment to moment, meeting to meeting. And like DNA, these behaviors follow patterns. High-Performing Teams Depend On Relational DNA In my work on something called Leadership Biodynamics, a biology of behavior approach to 'executive presence,' I describe three core behavioral channels that function like strands of relational DNA: warmth, competence, and gravitas. Each one shapes how we're perceived and how others regulate their own behavior in response. Warmth triggers safety. It includes behaviors like listening with intention, validating others, and being approachable—signals that lower social threat and activate cooperative neural pathways. Competence signals reliability. Behaviors like preparation, punctuality, and clarity of execution reduce ambiguity, which the brain naturally resists. As I noted in a previous column on persuasive language, structured, noun-based phrasing like 'a strategic realignment' instead of 'we're changing everything' also cues competence by reducing limbic arousal. Gravitas creates gravity. I define it not as seriousness, but as the ability to bring others into your orbit—to project calm authority under pressure. This involves behaviors like using silence effectively, speaking with conviction, and making the tough calls with composure. These signals impact how others modulate their own behavior, shifting them from reactive to reflective states. When leaders learn to fine tune these signals with intention, they're no longer relying on personality alone. They're working with the relational equivalent of gene editing—subtle, targeted shifts that change the trajectory of how teams perform. The good news: you don't need a massive overhaul to change your team's relational DNA. You just need to start with the smallest units of change—what people see, hear, and feel from you every day. Take meetings, for example. Who speaks first? Who interrupts? Who gets the benefit of the doubt? These micro-moments either reinforce or rewire the social norms of the group. Over time, they create patterns that either support or sabotage performance. One of the organizations I've worked with, a large bank rethinking its approach to client relationships, applied this model to some of their commercial sales reps. They began by training leaders to identify their default behavioral channel—often competence—and then intentionally integrate more warmth and gravitas into their communication. The result wasn't just better rapport with clients; it was greater internal cohesion and accountability across the team. As I shared in an earlier piece on biohacking sales, this kind of shift doesn't just make teams more likable. It makes them more effective—because behavior is biology in motion. Biohacking leadership isn't about controlling people. It's about understanding how behavior flows through systems and learning how to shape that flow with intention. Here's a practical starting point: choose one channel, warmth, competence, or gravitas, and track how often you send clear signals in that category. Ask for feedback. Look for inconsistencies. Then make one small adjustment: more acknowledgment, more preparation, or more thoughtful pauses. Over time, those shifts don't just change perception. They change the system. Because when you change the signals, you change the story that your team tells itself about what matters, what's rewarded, and what's possible. The DNA of high-performing teams isn't just cultural—it's biological. By using biohacking leadership principles to shape trust, safety, and behavioral signaling, we can build teams that aren't just effective in the moment but engineered to sustain that performance over time. In today's complex environments, learning how to build high-performing teams isn't just smart—it's essential.
