You don't need to lead the team to change something. When the mood turns, everyone notices, and everyone tends to wait for someone else to say it. You can go first: name what you've seen in the team meeting, ask who owns the task that's been sitting there, or offer two colleagues a conversation. Start with one small step everyone can see.
Find out what it's really about. If work stalls because nobody knows who decides, you need clear ownership. If people stay quiet in meetings and talk afterwards, trust is missing. If two people are fighting, a conversation someone guides can help. If you keep clashing with another team, ask what sits behind each side's demands. Start by writing down what you've actually seen in the last few weeks.
Give the conversation a clear question. An open round on “How are we doing as a team?” easily ends in silence. Specific questions get answers: Who signs off on the proposal? What should stay as it is, and what should change over the next four weeks? If two people are meant to give each other feedback, each names one specific wish for the coming weeks. The other listens and only asks questions.
What you can say
Nobody speaks up in the meeting, everyone does afterwards
“I've noticed that in the last three team meetings nobody pushed back on the plan, and then we talked about it in the kitchen. I'll go first: I'm worried about the release date. Can we take ten minutes for everyone to say what concerns them?”
Work gets done twice
“Lena and I both worked on the client proposal this week without knowing about each other. Can we quickly agree who owns the proposal, who reviews it and who signs it off?”
Two colleagues avoid each other
“Since the argument about the rota, everything between you goes through me, and I'm passing on things you could sort out directly. I don't want to decide who's right. Would you sit down together for half an hour? I can be there and make sure each of you gets to finish.”
Another team needs the same resource
“You need the test environment until the end of the month, and we need it for the load test. Before we take this upstairs: what exactly do you need to test, and by when? Maybe both plans fit if we split the time.”
Common questions
How can I fix a bad team atmosphere if I'm not the manager?
You can change your part: say what you've seen, bring one specific question to the next meeting and disagree openly when you see it differently. If the problem is structural, like unclear ownership, take your examples to your manager and suggest a first step.
Two coworkers are fighting. Should I get involved?
First ask yourself whether the conflict affects the work or other people on the team. If it does, you can raise it. Offer both of them a conversation where each side gets to finish, and hold back your own verdict. If one of them refuses, or it involves insults or pressure, it belongs with your manager, HR or an employee representative.
How do I deal with gossip on my team?
Don't join in, and say so calmly in the moment: “I'd rather talk to her about it directly.” If something really bothers people, suggest raising it in the team meeting, where the person concerned can respond. If the gossip keeps targeting the same person, it can turn into bullying. Then get support.
Our team keeps clashing with another team. What can we do?
Write down what you're asking for and why you need it, and ask the other team the same. Behind “We need the resource by Friday” there is often a deadline that could be protected another way.
Common mistakes
Taking sides
If you pick a side early in a dispute between two colleagues, two people become two camps. Listen to both before you form a view.
Only talking about it in the kitchen
If the problem only gets discussed in private, the people involved never hear about it. Bring it to a meeting where they can respond.
Starting with a team event
A team dinner won't settle who owns what. Sort out the question the work is stuck on first.
Escalating straight away
If you hand the dispute with the other team straight upwards, someone who doesn't know the details decides. Talk directly once about what each team needs and by when.
Methods for tension in a team
- Five Dysfunctions: Build trust and open debateWhen people pull back, stay quiet in meetings and talk afterwards, or don't keep commitments.
- Delegation: Clarify who decides whatWhen work stalls or gets done twice because outcomes, authority and limits are unclear.
- Mediation: Get two people talking againWhen two colleagues are in conflict and you want to guide a conversation without taking sides.
- Feedforward: Guide feedback between two peopleWhen two people should tell each other openly what they'd like from each other going forward.
- Interest-Based Negotiation: Reach agreement with another teamWhen priorities, resources or responsibilities collide between two teams.
Is a particular occasion coming up?
Finding your place, and your team's, in a new setup.
Deciding together what next year makes room for.
“Who needs to know about this, and who can change it?”
That's what I ask when someone tells me the mood on their team is bad. The answer usually shows me whether it's about ownership, two people or the whole team, and who the first conversation should be with.