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James A. Chatfield, Ohio State University Extension, Northeast District/Horticulture and Crop Science; Joseph F. Boggs, Gary Y. Gao, Erik A. Draper, Keith L. Smith, Barbara G. Ludwig, Stephen R. Baertsche, |
ENLTT benefitted from being the first commodity team in the Ohio State University network and the positive energy that being present at the creation provides. Whether your team is the first of its kind or not, though, it is important to constantly nurture this type of creative energy. Some team-building techniques we recommend to try to keep fresh are presented here.
What Works What Doesn't
One of our team mottoes comes from William Shakespeare: "A lily that festers smells far worse than a weed." We use this to jettison programs that do not work for the team.
We learned early on that certain programs become more vigorous from team cooperation (BYGL is an example), but that others flounder. One example was a Perennial Plants School that one team member had successfully developed for years. It was in fact growing in attendance and quality.
For one brief non-shining moment it became a team activity, with shared responsibility and leadership by none. The energy was lost, the program suffered, and we quickly realized: this was not an example of the energy of synergy. It would decline as surely as a hosta planted into a hot, sunny site. This program was one that was best done by the person who had developed it rather than as a team activity. The team member re-claimed the program, and it prospers anew.
A Standing Invitation to Commitment
We decided early on that membership in ENLTT was not guaranteed, simply by job description or other presumptions of interest. We formed as a team partly to foster better communication with our clientele and were concerned that if any member of our team was not involved enough to know what the team was doing, we would all suffer if that person was unable to relate what the team was doing to clientele asking about our efforts. So we do expect some level of commitment to team activities. We do not automatically assume someone to be a member of the team when hired, no matter their position. We post a standing invitation on our team directory:
"Membership on the team is based on interest and commitment to the vision and mission of the team. Potential members are encouraged to participate in some of our activities to determine if they would like to become a part of our team. If you are interested in the work of the team, contact any of the team members."
Mission and Vision: What We Are
Our mission and vision statements, torturous as they are to thrash out, provide a good opportunity to think about what we are as a team. As we progress, we periodically revisit and rewrite these statements. Are we just a commercial horticulture team or do we also serve the consumer horticulture area? Should we include members from outside the university? How should we proceed to expand our funding base? These are important itches to constantly scratch.