MANUAL TEAMWORK, LEADERSHIP AND NEGOTIATION

TEAMWORK, LEADERSHIP AND NEGOTIATION

respect and also avoid arrogance and severity on the part of the leader or any member, as this can lead to low participation by the other members of the meeting.

I constantly had to redirect the discussion. Agustin came ready to address the issue of staff reorganisation, and again and again I had to remind him that this was not the purpose of our meeting. We should prevent the entry of new topics that are not on the agenda, unless they are closely related and have been proposed by a member at the beginning of the meeting. Particular attention should be paid to informal comments, which can easily get people hooked and disrupt the whole discourse.

By the way, speaking of gardening, did you know that the other day I got some beautiful roses as a present?

The next comment might be "what were you celebrating? or "who? Such comments are common in cohesive teams whose members already have a certain degree of trust. The co-ordinator needs to quickly redirect the issue: Is that so? Listen, we'll have to ask you to explain it to us at the end of the meeting...

The counter-leader

Raul was trying to play the role of coordinator. At first I thought he wanted to give me a hand, but I soon realised that his intention was to lead the meeting. I gently reminded him that this was my role.

What should we do when a character appears who pretends, consciously or not, to take on our role?

• Above all, avoid confrontation and remain calm. • Give the floor to other participants, politely cutting them off if necessary. • Remember the role of each member.

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