Framework for Effective Team Design

1. Organize – Define Team Objectives

• Topic of Concern: Identify a specific concern in the community and decide to form a Design Team (DT) to address it.
• Clarity in Objectives: Clearly establish the team’s goals and objectives, defining the project’s purpose and expected outcomes.
• Alignment with Vision: Ensure the team’s objectives align with the organization’s vision and mission.

2. Select Team Members & Strategic Recruitment

• Competency Analysis: Identify the skills and competencies necessary for achieving project objectives, such as graphic design, UX/UI, research, and product development.
• Diversity of Skills: Build a team with diverse skills and perspectives to address the problem comprehensively.
• Recruitment Criteria:
  • Select team members based on required skills and their ability to work collaboratively.
  • Prioritize individuals with relevant experience and knowledge.
• Ideal Team Size: Aim for a group of 5-12 members, ideally 7-11.

3. Bonding/Formation of Trust

• Dedicate sessions to team bonding to strengthen relationships, group dynamics, cohesion, and trust.
• Engage in social activities, such as storytelling, to build trust.
• Create a safe space where vulnerabilities can be shared, ensuring respect and constructive reflection on conflicts.
• Foster an environment where every member feels their contributions are valued.

4. Foster a Collaborative Work Environment

• Culture of Collaboration: Promote collaboration, openness, and innovation.
• Spaces and Tools: Provide physical and digital tools for communication and teamwork, such as design software and project management platforms.
• Etiquette Training: Teach team etiquette and the importance of graceful interactions.
• Bias Awareness: Recognize and address personal and group assumptions, biases, and prejudices.
• Interpersonal Skills: Prioritize communication and collaboration skills alongside technical competencies.

5. Define Roles and Responsibilities

• Clarity in Roles: Assign specific responsibilities to each team member to avoid confusion.
• Flexibility: Allow members to adapt roles as project needs evolve.
• Spiritual Integration: Understand the role of spirituality in the co-creative design process.
• Facilitate role discovery within the team and identify a celestial consultant and a Transmitter/Receiver for guidance.

6. Implement Effective Work Processes

• Agile Methodologies: Train the team in Scrum, Kanban, or similar methodologies for adaptability and iterative design.
• Continuous Feedback: Establish loops for regular evaluation and improvement.
• Learning Organization: Develop a creative and continuous learning culture.
• Design Consciousness: Foster intentionality and purpose in design thinking.
• Meeting Practices: Emphasize courtesy, weekly meetings, and openness to growth.
• Inclusivity: Ensure communication accommodates non-English speakers.

7. Encourage Systems Thinking

• Train members in systems thinking to understand interrelationships and their systemic impact.
• Use impact analysis to evaluate potential outcomes of proposed solutions.

8. Use Appropriate Tools

• Discover tools to enhance the co-creative design process, such as sustainability schematics.
• Utilize design tools incorporating members’ beliefs, assumptions, and the 7 Core Values for evaluation.

9. Determine Value System

• Train members in the 7 Core Values for ethical and moral decision-making.
• Provide practice with tools like the schematic for effective application.
• Promote growth across the 7 Human Spheres of Development: physical, emotional, mental, intellectual, social, cultural, and spiritual.

10. Support Professional Development

• Training Opportunities: Provide ongoing training to keep skills updated with design trends and technologies.
• Mentorship Programs: Establish mentoring and coaching for personal and professional growth.

11. Establish Facilitating Leadership

• Servant Leadership: Adopt a leadership style focused on facilitating and supporting the team.
• Collaborative Decision-Making: Encourage inclusivity in decisions by valuing all opinions.

12. Measure and Evaluate Performance

• Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Define metrics to assess progress and success.
• Regular Evaluations: Conduct periodic reviews to refine processes and improve team performance.

“You would ask yourselves in your small Design Team that you’re using to reinvent education as a social institution, you would ask them how they would apply this…”

– Machiventa Melchizedec