I’m a huge sports fan. Whether it’s playing sport, watching sport live (pre-Covid) and on TV or watching my kids play sport.
I draw significant parallels from sports teams/coaching and product teams/coaching. I recently watched Last Dance, a series that revolves around the career of Michael Jordan, Chicago Bulls and the incredible team including, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Steve Kerr, and coach Phil Jackson.
Watching the series and how coach Jackson transforms the Bulls from relative success (reliant on the individual brilliance of Michael Jordan) to an NBA dominating franchise. I was struck by the One Team culture and belief system coach Jackson weaves into the Chicago Bulls team from the very start of his tenure.
“Winning culture” has become an important ingredient for companies trying to survive and strive in the digital age.
Thinking about the work I do with companies and product teams and watching Last Dance. I think a “winning culture" has a lot to do with fostering a One Team spirit. This is what great teams like the New Zealand All Blacks and the Chicago Bulls have got right, they have built a winning culture, based on togetherness, openness and with an emphasis on One Team.
Here are some of my favourite moments in the film that underline these One Team cultural aspects and the impact I think it has on overall success.
Great leaders create structures that unlocks One Team Culture
From the 86/87 to the 89/90 season, Doug Collins (Phil Jackson’s predecessor) designed the team around Michael Jordan. His system of “plays” all ended with Jordan in the key position to score. When Michael was on fire the team won. He single handedly won games and along with it, the Most Valued Player (MVP) for all three seasons leading to the NBA play-off final defeat of 89/90.
These were significant achievements in their own right, so when Phil Jackson took over at the start of 90/91 season, his first head coach position, it was a huge risk. As assistant coach, Jackson had long been an admirer of Tex Winter’s “Apex system”, which would allow anyone at the point of the apex to score. This offered flexibility, adaptability without the reliance on a single person, even if that person was the greatest person to ever play the game.
As Jordan says “I wasn’t a Phil Jackson fan… he was coming in to take the ball out of my hands, Doug wants to put the ball in my hands”
The Apex system and team centred approach enabled other key players (Pippen, Rodman, Kerr) to shine and the results speak for themselves. The Bulls go on to win 6 NBA titles between ’91 and ’98, becoming the most successful NBA franchise of all time! Jordan doesn’t win another NBA MVP award!
Phil Jackson to Jordan “I’m not worried about you, you’re already the best. We need to figure out how to make everyone else around you better”
I’ve often worked with and coached teams with superstars and built fantastic products. But the real magic happens when:
the superstars become mentors, they help others get better and the whole team stronger
the team can adapt, switch roles and self organise to get the best results
the team are empowered, accountable and responsible for their success
I realise there is a lot more to creating successful companies and teams, but these are the things I believe help with building a “winning culture” and lasting change.
Empathy and understanding individuals to develop One Team Culture
Understanding the needs of all your team members especially those more vulnerable is critical.
When the Bulls sign Dennis Rodman, the most controversial player in the NBA, most pundits believe he will never fit in or be accepted at the Bulls. From the outside Rodman is everything the Bulls are not, piercings, dyed hair, outrageous clothes and frequently sent off by the ref (sorry for football term) for overly aggressive behaviour.
Bulls general manager Jerry Crouch explains “If we had not had the structure and togetherness and if we’d not had Michael, Scotty and Phil, I don’t think we would have taken Dennis”
Confidence in the structure and process coupled with One Team spirit and openness, enabled the Bulls leadership team to see past the "Rebel" status and to see the big advantage Rodman would bring to the team.
When Rodman announces he needs a holiday mid-way through the season. It would have been easy for Coach Jackson and the senior players to say… no way… WTF! But Rodman is the maverick, they knew he needed that little bit of freedom (rope), to not feel boxed in. His 48 hrs in Vegas is a great story, but the idea that team members are unique and have different needs is the real story.
Yes there is risk of other team members saying “what about me?” But when your team trust each other, when there is togetherness and openness, then these kinds of unique individual requests that will ultimately benefit the wider team - become easier as a leader/manager to handle.
Ceremonies create safety and enhance One Team Culture
Jackson brings in Native American culture, Zen Buddhism and mindfulness into the team coaching structures. Under normal circumstances this could have been laughed off the court by senior players and other members of the coaching staff.
Bulls guard Steve Kerr “it brings the group together, he weaves this into our own culture” and Bill Wennington says “he used this to focus us, to get us to feel as one unit and no doubt helped us play as one on the court”
Introducing small ceremonies like this to the team warm up, stretching and cool down routine further enhances the team togetherness and the One Team spirit - makes them a better team.
Agile ceremonies like sprint reviews, stand-ups and retrospectives are great techniques for helping to organise teams and their work. But they are also great catalysts for building and developing team spirit and togetherness. I might introduce some Native American chanting and/or Buddhist breathing techniques into some of my team ceremonies in the future ;)
As you can tell I really enjoyed Last Dance, even more so the second and third time while writing this. If you haven’t watched it I encourage you to, even if you are not a sports fan, there are so many great lessons about people and teams throughout each episode.
Feel free to discuss and share your views on teams, people and culture.