Perhaps it seems a little time consuming or old fashion but I still find it useful for groups to develop a Team Charter.  Before explaining why, let’s begin by defining the term. A Team Charter has the following components:

• a written document
• defines the mission or purpose of the team
• states the performance goals and the end products
• may include a brief background as to why the team was formed
• most teams include the ground rules once they have been agreed to by the members
• may also include the team members’ names and a team name

• to express the values of the Team
• to make sure every Team Member knows and agrees with what is expected of him or her
• to develop “norms” that support the needs of the Team Members and the needs of the organization
• to help the Team evaluate its performance
• to help a new Team Member know what is expected
• to have everyone agree on what is important to the Team and to guide behaviour

As stated in the opening post on this series, team members must share common goals.  This represents the what.  The Team Charter captures the shared purpose which represents the how.  A common goal may help focus direction but without a clear purpose there is no guarantee of alignment or synergy.

If you now think that writing a Team Charter for your team might prove productive, here are some questions to answer to help you get started:

• What is our team purpose?
• What makes our team unique?
• What end results do we want to achieve?
• What are our performance goals?
• How do we state them so we can measure our success?
• How is what we do essential to our organization or business?
• What end product(s) do we deliver?
• What is within the boundaries of our work as a team?
• What is outside our boundaries?
• Who are our clients / customers and how will we serve them?

Next post, I will discuss the issue of trust in teams.  In a future post,  I will go into what makes up team norms and guiding principles.

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