In this episode, we delve into the intricacies of proposing a new team structure as a manager. Drawing from real-life scenarios, we explore the key considerations, pitfalls to avoid, and best practices to adopt. Whether it's navigating growth, mergers, or downsizing, proposing a new team structure demands careful planning and insight.
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Hello, and welcome to this week's episode.
2
:Today, we are talking about how you can
propose a new team structure as a manager,
3
:because we know that as a leader, as a
manager, you're going to be in a situation
4
:at some point in your career where you
are asked to propose a new team structure.
5
:And for most people, this is going to send
them into a tailspin of where do I start?
6
:How do I do this?
7
:This is not something that as a
leader or a manager we do on a daily,
8
:weekly, even monthly or yearly basis.
9
:This is usually something that is
very much a one off unless it's
10
:an area that you're working in.
11
:What we're going to do today is we're
going to unpack all of this and we
12
:actually came about this episode
because Jackie had a client who
13
:was going through this very thing.
14
:So what we're going to do is we're
going to quiz Jackie on exactly
15
:what happened on that call.
16
:And you can basically start to think
about what you would do if you were in
17
:that situation where you as a leader
or a manager needed to restructure or
18
:create a new structure for your team.
19
:Jackie, where do we start with this?
20
:What are the considerations that we need
to think about before we get into this?
21
:So I think, like you say, this is
something that very often comes
22
:up at a point in time where you
then suddenly realize, hang on,
23
:I'm not prepared, I don't know.
24
:For me, this happened when I was promoted
to my first leadership role and The
25
:business was a growing business, so
we'd increase the size of the team,
26
:would increase the capacity of the team.
27
:And I was then asked by the CEO
to propose a different structure.
28
:So growth is one area that can
cause it, and that can come from
29
:Organic growth of the business.
30
:It can come from mergers and acquisitions.
31
:But it also can come up in
situations that are not as positive.
32
:When a company needs downsize restructure,
when there are, the potential for
33
:roles being at risk of redundancy.
34
:So there are often a lot of emotional
factors that come into play and certainly
35
:on the call that you're talking about
where this was happening for a client
36
:was this whole thing of, Oh, it's the,
it was a positive circumstance for the
37
:business that they were in, but equally,
then it's I know that this is going to
38
:have an impact on my team and I know it's
going to have an impact on some of the
39
:roles and maybe what people enjoy doing.
40
:And I don't know either how to logically
think about what structure there needs
41
:to be, but also then how do I factor
in the people stuff as part of that?
42
:So I think, both of those are really key.
43
:Yeah.
44
:And I think that's the thing is now,
because sometimes it can be a really
45
:positive situation and sometimes it
can be a really daunting and stressful
46
:situation, and I think as long as you've
got a process and framework to work with
47
:and you know what to think about, it will
just make that whole thing a lot easier.
48
:Where do you start?
49
:What are the first things
that you need to do?
50
:So I think the first thing you really
need to do is understand what is
51
:the brief that you've been given
because very often people will just
52
:be asked, can you have a thought
about, can you propose a structure?
53
:Can you suggest how things could be?
54
:And I think very often when
that's the case, if you're not
55
:familiar with this situation.
56
:The temptation is to think
about the relatively short term.
57
:It's to think about, okay, if for example,
it's a merger and acquisition, we might
58
:have, several businesses and now we're
going to, bring them under one roof.
59
:Do, how do we do that?
60
:And what I say to people is first thing
to always do is to think about what are.
61
:What is going to be the shape of the
business and what will that impact
62
:on the structure that's needed over
the sort of mid to longer term?
63
:So if for example, it is a
merger and acquisition situation,
64
:then what will that look like?
65
:Is this a business that's going to
continue to grow in that way and
66
:is going to have to integrate more
different things in the future?
67
:Is that part of the strategy?
68
:The business strategy, if the business is
growing its own revenue and not looking
69
:at mergers or acquisitions, but is
looking at, increasing and very ambitious,
70
:that was the situation that I was in.
71
:And I was heading up customer
services at the time.
72
:For, from an operational
perspective, every.
73
:2 million or 5 million that
we were growing in revenue
74
:that was on the business plan.
75
:That then meant that we needed more people
and there was more stuff that needed
76
:to be dealt with in customer service.
77
:So it's understand the ambition and kind
of the intent over the mid to longer term.
78
:And equally, if it is a situation
where potentially, a business has been
79
:contracting and has been reducing, it can
then also be about, okay, and do we feel
80
:like this is where, we need to cut once
and cut quite tight so that we can then
81
:get back to profitability and then we can
aim to grow again, or is this perhaps a
82
:kind of more gradual thing of, we just
need to get through the next few months
83
:and then hopefully we can get back to it.
84
:So it's really understanding what
is it that you're designing a longer
85
:term structure for and what will that.
86
:Business in, three, four, five years,
what will that structure need to be then?
87
:And I think if you start from that place,
you often get quite different answers than
88
:just, here's a piece of paper, potentially
whip up a team structure and have some
89
:ideas on what would improve it for now.
90
:I think that's a really
good point, isn't it?
91
:Because in the past, when I've been
involved with things like this, it's
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:very much about what do we need now?
93
:What is going to drive
the business forward now?
94
:And it's very, Rare that people
think ahead and think where do
95
:we want the business to be in
like five years or 10 years?
96
:And how does this structure affect
that progress moving forward?
97
:And I think one of the key things
that I like to do, and we mentioned it
98
:before we started recording was just
finding out about what what, where
99
:people have been and what experience
they've got, because a lot of the time
100
:you've got really good people sat within
your teams that have got these huge
101
:skill sets that you just don't know.
102
:What they can and can't do that.
103
:They're doing a specific job because
that's what you've employed them for.
104
:But a lot of the time, there's a
lot more to the person isn't that.
105
:And I think you were saying about like
their career stories and their career
106
:goals, like asking people about that.
107
:It's a great opportunity, isn't it?
108
:To really lean into that and
just find out, what you can do.
109
:What can people do?
110
:What other skills have they got?
111
:What do they want to do?
112
:Where do they see themselves?
113
:Because sometimes that can really affect
the team structure corner as well.
114
:Yeah, absolutely.
115
:And this is where the balance comes in.
116
:So I think, once you know what
you're designing for the future, you
117
:then have to look at the existing.
118
:Current picture, because you're
effectively what you're doing with
119
:your, the structure that you're
proposing is starting to build the
120
:bridge to get from the structure that
we currently have to the structure
121
:that is going to be needed at that
given point longer term in the future.
122
:So you need to assess and understand
what is the current workload.
123
:So we did the episode on the impact
effort matrix, which was about balancing
124
:strategic and operational workload,
and that's a really good framework
125
:that can come into play here of
understanding within this team, what
126
:are the things that need to be done?
127
:What are the things that need to happen?
128
:What are the things that
need to be delivered?
129
:Understanding with the team that
we currently have and the degree of
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:workload, how does that plot in terms
of what are the high impact things that
131
:we need to maintain during a transition
phase as we get to a new structure?
132
:And what are the things that
potentially might need to change?
133
:What workload might we be
able to automate or change?
134
:Does everything that's currently under
this team's remit need to still sit
135
:under this team's remit, or could there
be things that could potentially sit
136
:better elsewhere within the organization?
137
:And then like you say,
really understanding.
138
:So a skills matrix can be a great idea at
this point of really plotting out who have
139
:I got, what skills do they currently have?
140
:Because as you get to the point of
proposing the structure, what you're
141
:then going to need to do is understand
what might some of the gaps be.
142
:And part of what you're going to need to
propose is what might we need to do in
143
:terms of recruitment, what might we need
to do in terms of upskilling, what might
144
:we need to do in terms of consulting
with people around changes to their role.
145
:So you absolutely need to start with
real solid understanding of the existing
146
:workload, the existing requirements,
the existing team, but with that longer
147
:term view in mind of where do we need
to transition that to ultimately.
148
:Okay.
149
:Yeah, definitely.
150
:And I always love the
skills matrix exercise.
151
:I just always love uncovering
different things about the team
152
:that you really didn't know.
153
:And there are always lovely
conversations, aren't they?
154
:What can you really do this?
155
:Why didn't we know about this?
156
:Why have you never told us?
157
:And I think that is like probably
one of my favorite things about
158
:creating a new team structure.
159
:But in terms of looking at the logistics
of design and the structure and some
160
:of the real key questions that you
need to ask yourself and maybe, key
161
:stakeholders and other senior leaders
within the business like what are
162
:those questions that need to be asked.
163
:So beyond that point of what are we aiming
towards, you then also need to consider
164
:what is the organizational structure
and hierarchy like, what is in place in
165
:other teams within this business, and
do we need this structure to fit in.
166
:So some organizations will have, for
example, salary bandings or job grades.
167
:That will need to be accommodated
or equivalent to different
168
:functions or departments.
169
:So if that's the case,
you need to know that.
170
:And you need to be planning and
designing that from the start.
171
:So what else then?
172
:Is there anything else?
173
:Another area that I think is a real
interesting I'm interested actually in
174
:your experiences of this because I've
certainly considered it is thinking
175
:about the balance of specialization
versus generalization for roles.
176
:Because I think what can often happen
when you're proposing a structure and
177
:you've looked at that skills matrix and
you've thought about who have I got and
178
:how does that work, is there can be a
tendency to move towards specialization.
179
:But equally, you need to
really think about what might
180
:be the risks of doing that.
181
:And if somebody has got a really
specialized role and that knowledge
182
:and experience isn't shared or
understood within the team, then
183
:that can play present a risk.
184
:So you want people to have the degree
of specialization that allows them to
185
:be really effective and bring their
own kind of knowledge and skill set
186
:to bear, but you also want to make
sure that you're not doing that to the
187
:degree where there's such specialist
roles that if, for example, that
188
:person's on holiday or that person
were to hand their notice in, there's
189
:going to be massive panic stations.
190
:And I think finding that balance
can be a real challenge when
191
:you're proposing a structure.
192
:Yeah, definitely.
193
:And I've seen that myself as well.
194
:And I think if that's where you do really
need to look into what, you need the
195
:team to do what you want individuals
to do what you want to deliver overall,
196
:because it might work out better to
have a couple of specialists and, the
197
:majority generalist or, it could be
caught anyway, really, but it's just
198
:about really analyzing it, isn't it?
199
:And just knowing what you need.
200
:So that if you do lose a specialist.
201
:It's not chaos because somebody else
can just pick up where they left off.
202
:And I think the specialization
with roles, but there's also
203
:specialization in terms of tasks.
204
:So I've seen it as well within an HR
function where there was one person
205
:who was effectively doing all of the
admin of very specialized systems.
206
:And that kind of admin level, perhaps
felt like it was the right level for
207
:those tasks to sit at, but then what that
meant was there was one person who had
208
:the knowledge of all these systems, and
like I say, they go on holiday or they
209
:leave and all of a sudden it's going to
place quite a requirement in terms of
210
:handover and in terms of actually other
people being able to pick up and make
211
:sure that things can still function.
212
:Yeah, definitely.
213
:So is there anything else
then that we need to consider?
214
:Yeah, so I think, You also need to
really look at what cross functional
215
:dependencies and what collaboration
does the need to be because you
216
:typically will propose a structure to
your line manager or your boss's boss,
217
:and you need to really understand.
218
:How is the structure that you're
going to propose going to have an
219
:impact in terms of points of contact
in terms of established working
220
:relationships in terms of how things
get done within the organization.
221
:So you really need to be factoring
some of that in both in terms of
222
:communication plan, but also in terms of.
223
:That whole workload piece
of how does that continue?
224
:How does that work?
225
:And how does that continue to
work during a transition to a
226
:new structure and then beyond?
227
:Yeah.
228
:So I suppose that's covering off the main
bulk of the questions that you need to
229
:ask and the analysis that you need to do.
230
:But what about career growth
opportunities or financial implications?
231
:Like where do you stand with those?
232
:Yeah, those are also really Important
to consider because if you can create
233
:opportunities, so to give that example
that I talked about from my own
234
:experience, what we did was created
more specialization within the customer
235
:service function, because people
were coming in and we're having to
236
:learn all of the different workflows
and aspects of customer service.
237
:So we created four smaller teams
within one overall team so that
238
:people gained experience, but then
they could move from team to team.
239
:So they didn't have to stay in
one of the smaller teams forever.
240
:Over time they could, be upskilled
and move, but it meant when we
241
:were initially training people,
the budget required was lower.
242
:The training phase was slower.
243
:Shorter because we didn't have to train
people on everything all at once in order
244
:to be able to put them into the role.
245
:And what we also did simultaneously
was created then a team leader role,
246
:as opposed to a manager role, so that
those people within that smaller team
247
:had somebody that was their kind of
go to person that was overlooking.
248
:And there was then a progression
path to the manager level
249
:that was already in place.
250
:So you got those opportunities to
consider how can this work to provide
251
:the upsides and the benefits, both
for individuals in terms of career
252
:progression and skills development,
but also for from a budget perspective,
253
:how can we make things more efficient?
254
:How can we make things more productive?
255
:So that you've then got potentially
that budget saving that you
256
:might be being asked to deliver.
257
:So that will totally make sense.
258
:And then in terms of the pitfalls and
things that we need to avoid what do we
259
:need to think of from that perspective?
260
:There's, again, there's
a, there's loads on this.
261
:So I've just pinpointed some of
the key ones and things that either
262
:that I've done in the past or
that I've seen happen for others.
263
:So one is designing a perfect structure
on paper when you don't have anyone
264
:in reality to sit within that.
265
:So this is why that element of the
skills matrix and the understanding
266
:of who you've got now is so important
because you could have this amazing
267
:idea of this is the perfect structure
if I was building it from scratch today.
268
:But if what you've got is totally
different to that, and you don't have
269
:people aligned with those roles in the
slightest, then A, you increase the
270
:risk of that creating roles at risk of
redundancy, But also that has a knock
271
:on effect on morale and that also has an
effect then potentially on loss of skills,
272
:experience and knowledge of the business.
273
:When what you could do is to have
a slightly less perfect plan or
274
:structure on paper, but where you
can slot existing people into roles.
275
:So it's very much that balancing act.
276
:I think another one I see is
that people make assumptions that
277
:everything has to be done in house.
278
:So everything that is
currently done, it's right.
279
:Okay.
280
:That needs to sit within house.
281
:And sometimes.
282
:You will find that things either
are better outsourced to, an
283
:agency or a freelancer or what
have you know that there may be not
284
:big enough to constitute a role.
285
:Or there's something that
actually could be done.
286
:Better and more productively by an expert.
287
:So this again comes back
to that question of kind of
288
:specialization and generalization.
289
:And I think sometimes people assume
that everything is currently done
290
:in house has to stay in house, but
that you can absolutely propose
291
:that things can be outsourced.
292
:And then I think the other thing is linked
to that kind of what's perfect on paper.
293
:is creating roles that are impossible to
recruit externally and this is often done
294
:almost the flip side where you take the
people that you've got and because they've
295
:got experience of the organization you
then end up with these kind of roles that
296
:wouldn't exist in another organization and
so if somebody leaves it's really hard to
297
:recruit and replace that particular role.
298
:So you also need to be thinking about
not just the people that you've got
299
:now, but if you were recruiting for
this externally, and really get that
300
:balance of making sure that you retain
engagement and morale and retain people
301
:where you can, but also that you have
something that you can recruit into that
302
:structure externally, if the need arises.
303
:So that's brilliant.
304
:And that is like a pretty
comprehensive overview, but just to
305
:finish off, what are your top tips?
306
:And I suppose the best
practice elements of this.
307
:So there's a few that I'll just again,
run through really quite briefly.
308
:So one is to really think about the
input gathering and analysis stage before
309
:you start proposing your structure,
the thinking piece before you come
310
:to the planning piece is so key here.
311
:So look at, you know, data, look at
information from those team members,
312
:look at what other businesses
do that have similar challenges.
313
:You might want to speak to people in
your network about how they've approached
314
:creating structures, that kind of thing.
315
:So lots of different inputs and thinking
before you get to the planning stage.
316
:I think clearly defining the
roles and responsibilities
317
:and reporting lines is so key.
318
:And I think the reporting lines tend
to be pretty clear, but sometimes the
319
:roles and responsibilities are not.
320
:It's almost, they're a bit fluffy around
the edges and it's yeah, I could sit here.
321
:But I think what that can do is
because this often creates upheaval
322
:anyway, That lack of clarity on
roles and responsibilities can lead
323
:to problems further down the line
if you don't define them up front.
324
:I think you also need to be aware that you
might get it wrong or not quite perfect.
325
:So build in ways of
reviewing it and adapting it.
326
:Make it a plan where you can get from
here to the longer term without having
327
:to completely rip it up and start again.
328
:So build the flexibility in
and build the review points in.
329
:And then I think really the communication
and the transparency around it is so key.
330
:And that is something that again,
often is underprioritized or
331
:not given as much attention to.
332
:It's again, I remember, that first
time that I had to do it, it was Ooh,
333
:the relief that I've got the sign off
and this is what we're going to do.
334
:And then it was Oh, and now actually
I need to go away and implement this
335
:and I need to bring people on that
journey with me and I need to talk
336
:to them about why it's happening and
I need to think about what's in it
337
:for them and how I communicate that.
338
:So yeah be ready for the fact
that the work is not done when
339
:your structure is signed off.
340
:That's the start point, not the end point.
341
:And then you've actually
got the work to do.
342
:To do that.
343
:So that is, that's just perfect advice.
344
:And if you are looking for support with
anything like this, please do get in touch
345
:with us because we do provide training
and consultancy in all areas of team and
346
:leadership development, and as usual, we
hope that you enjoyed this week's episode.
347
:And please do share it with anybody else
that you think might find it useful.
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:And don't forget to rate and review
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:to make sure that more people see
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:and we will see you again next week.