September 17, 2024

Episode 107: Beyond Traditional Team-Building: Strategies for Stronger Businesses with Mark Cruth

This week on the podcast, Dane welcomes modern work coach Mark Cruth. Dane and Mark discuss incorporating storytelling in leadership, effectively sharing stories and messages across larger teams, and the need for foundational teamwork practices and work agreements (instead of another new tool). They then explore the effectiveness of traditional team-building activities and the need for leadership to drive team success actively. Finally, Mark shares his insights on how to build better team relationships and improve teamwork with practical, intentional strategies. This conversation is great for leaders who want to make a better, more synergistically working team.

Beyond Traditional Team-Building: Strategies for Stronger Businesses with Mark Cruth

Guest Bio

Focused on practice over theory, Mark is a pragmatic modern work designer and coach. With over a decade of experience experimenting with teamwork practices at places like Boeing, Nordstrom, Charles Schwab, and Rocket Mortgage, Mark’s mission is to inject modern ways of working, a transformation mindset, and the power of expert storytelling into everything he does.

Today Mark works as the Principal Modern Work Coach for Atlassian, a company focused on unleashing the potential of every team! Mark spends his days coaching both Atlassian and customer teams on new ways of working, then sharing what he’s learned at events around the world!

Key Takeaways

00:00 Introduction to the Future of Teamwork Podcast
01:33 Mark’s Beginnings
02:22 Mark’s Journey into Teamwork and Organizational Design
03:38 Transforming Team Practices at Atlassian
04:57 The Role of Modern Work Coach
09:22 The Power of Storytelling in Team Dynamics
17:11 Challenges and Solutions in Remote Work
23:05 The Importance of Foundational Solutions
24:34 Creating Effective Working Agreements
25:50 Communication Tools and Team Norms
27:25 Addressing Team Friction
28:38 The Role of Leadership in Team Dynamics
31:02 Tool Sprawl and Efficiency
36:33 The Future of Teamwork
40:19 The Value of Internal Consultants
45:07 Final Thoughts and Key Takeaways