How can you develop a team that is comfortable with taking risks?

Wenn ein Team Risiken eingehen soll, so brauchen Ihre Mitarbeitenden die Sicherheit, dass bei Ihnen eine positive Fehlerkultur herrscht. Nur wer weiss, dass die Vorgesetzten einem im Rücken stehen, die Verantwortung für Risiken gemeinsam getragen werden, entsteht eine Bereitschaft Risiken einzugehen. Dafür brauchen Ihre Mitarbeitenden gleichzeitig die Sicherheit, in welchem Rahmen Risiken toleriert sind und wo Risiken unverhältnismässig für die Instituition werden. Risiko einzugehen erfordert in erster Linie viel Sicherheit auf struktureller und persönlicher Ebene.

Foster Psychological Safety: Cultivate an open, judgment-free space where team members freely express ideast🗣️ Lead by Taking Risks: Set an example by embracing calculated risks transparently🌟 Promote Innovation: Encourage creative thinking & experimentation💡 Offer Support and Training: Provide resources for risk navigation🤝 Embrace Failure as Learning: Celebrate lessons learned from failures🌱 Define Clear Parameters: Set boundaries aligning risks with objectives🎯 Recognize Risk-Taking: Appreciate & reward calculated risks, regardless of outcomes🏆 Encourage Collaboration: Blend diverse views for informed risk-taking👥 Implementing these strategies nurtures a confident team ready to take risks, fostering innovation & success

When working with teams I ask them to consider turning risk management into a collaborative exercise where team members actively participate in defining acceptable risks. I challenge them to propose novel, unconventional risk-taking strategies that could disrupt the status quo while adhering to the organization's overarching values and goals. By involving the team in shaping the risk landscape, one not only fosters a culture of innovation but also harnesses diverse perspectives to identify potential game-changing opportunities.

It is a product of your management philosophy. If you as the manager believe your role is to enable and empower your team, rather than managing the team with a top down approach, you will find a better sense of ownership in your team. With the ownership comes the ability and willingness to take the risk.

Setting clear goals and boundaries with teams is essential for alignment and productivity, we can start by defining specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time bound (SMART) goals. It's important to communicate these goals transparently, ensuring that everyone understands their role and plays a part in contributing towards achieving them.

We always look at those who are successful and used to trying things differently. They are the risk-takers. To inspire your team to take risks, first, set an example for them. Take on more challenging work and just nail it. Once you become highlighted in the organization because of your risk-taking nature, others will follow you automatically. They will seek advice from you and learn from you. Taking risks at work will give you the chance to discover hidden potential.

Lead by example and demonstrate a willingness to take calculated risks. Share your own experiences, both successes and failures, to showcase that embracing risks is a natural part of growth and innovation. When team members witness leaders taking risks, they are more likely to feel empowered to do the same.

Narrate some stories of personal success that the associated teammates can corelate to, thereby opening up their thoughts of writing their own stories of success. Let the rule prevail as - Small things fast and big things first, so as to challenge their own thought process of analysing their abilities of risk orientations that they are thinking or planning to go through.

Encourage risk-taking by being the trailblazer. Lead with a bold stride, embracing new ventures and learning from missteps. Share your risk-taking tales, victories, and fumbles alike, highlighting the lessons learned. Applaud team efforts, even if wins aren't immediate. By showcasing risk-taking as a pathway to innovation and growth, you signal a culture valuing boldness and creativity over perfection or stagnation. Your example becomes a beacon, illuminating the way for a team unafraid to explore the uncharted territories of possibility.

To truly cultivate risk-taking behavior within an organization, the culture and values need to serve as a strong foundation. It is not enough for companies to simply claim they are innovative and daring in their approach when their culture and values fail to reflect this mindset. To successfully align the organization's words and actions, leadership must prioritize the integration of these fundamental values into their everyday operations.

I will lead my answer with a short experience from my life. At college, I tried out for one of my campus cricket teams to keep wickets. The first match was disastrous - dropped catches, missed stumpings and all. I was sure my captain would take me off the team. Right after the match he walked to me and with a hand on my shoulder said "You can do it"! He assigned one of the bowlers to bowl to me every day for 2 hours and I practiced diligently. Soon the difference was visible. After a few, I was having matches with 3 catches and 2 stumpings. My answer...pick the ones you feel confident about and then trust them with the job. You may have to help them at first, but the trust will bring out the best... always

Its important to encourage open communication, build trust, promote empathy and respect, have a psychological safe environment and encourage a growth mindset within the team

No Risk , No Gain. It applies to all aspects. You have to create an open environment where all are free to air their ideas, challenge the proposed approach/design and encourage to ask questions. Back them up if there is a failure after all efforts were made to make it successful. The trust the leader gives is the trust the leader will develop/gain from the team. Ensure that retrospective is done and learnings are taken so that there is no repetition of any mistakes. Knowledge of why it failed is important. And it is important for the leader to separate the person and the process. The person is not a failure, the process has failed . Recognise the "what worked well" and discuss " what could have been better" . Make it as a team work.

Foster a culture where team members feel safe to take risks without fear of harsh consequences. Emphasize that mistakes are viewed as opportunities for learning and improvement rather than as failures. Provide support, encouragement, and constructive feedback to create an environment that values risk-taking.

I am not sure if this is practically possible. Creating a team that is NOT averse to take risks is something directly related to "Fear of Failure" and being penalized. Most times appraisals and salary are directly related to performance. Unfortunately even if a person takes a risk and fails, this will reflect in his performance appraisal. If a risk taking culture that is not lined to performance appraisals is created, then everyone will be willing to take risks.

Promote collaboration and diversity within your team. Encourage diverse perspectives and ideas, as this can lead to more innovative solutions. A team that values and integrates different viewpoints is more likely to feel comfortable exploring new and unconventional approaches, fostering a culture of risk-taking.

Elevate risk-taking by weaving a tapestry of collaboration and diversity. Embrace risks as a collective journey, where diverse perspectives merge to craft innovative solutions. Cultivate a culture of curiosity and empathy, where collaboration trumps competition or isolation. Encourage an appetite for varied viewpoints, inviting a symphony of backgrounds and approaches. Empower the team to seek insights from diverse stakeholders, enriching their risk-taking ventures. In this mosaic of collaboration and inclusivity, risks cease to be solitary endeavors; they become vibrant quests fueled by collective wisdom, yielding richer, more impactful outcomes.

I would normally encourage teams to have a 'golden hour' where they all get together and brainstorm and have varied views and alternates. The future is to co-create and that can only happen when you allow your teams to make mistakes without any fear and openly share ideas with complete authenticity.

Risk taking is great, but without reflecting you won't know if what you're doing is working. One of the ways my team reflects on our risk taking is to come together to review our student data each week. During this time we are looking for proof that our decision is working and we look for areas where improvement is necessary. This is a time for my team to share what's been working in their spaces and what challenges they experienced. We offer feedback and ideas to help us continue to drive student success and then we set a goal/commitment for the upcoming week.

Regularly review and reflect on the risks taken by the team. Assess the outcomes, identify lessons learned, and celebrate successes. Likewise, address challenges and failures with a constructive and forward-thinking mindset. This practice reinforces a culture of continuous improvement and learning from the risks undertaken.

Elevate risk-taking from an event to a journey of perpetual learning. Regularly dissect and ponder on your team's risk escapades—what soared, what stumbled, and where enhancements lie. Unearth invaluable lessons, refining strategies and practices. Embrace these insights as guiding stars for future endeavors. This reflective approach isn't just about evaluating; it's a blueprint for continuous growth, empowering your team to evolve, pivot, and excel amidst change. Through this iterative process, risks become stepping stones, each review a compass guiding them toward mastery and innovation.

Together with one of my clients, we set up a "Risk Aversion Day" where, once a month, team members are encouraged to deliberately take a calculated risk within the realm of their projects or tasks. This experimental approach not only normalizes risk-taking but also provides a structured platform for learning from both successful and unsuccessful endeavors. By embracing this periodic ritual, your team can organically cultivate a comfort zone for risk in their day-to-day work.

If your team Culture includes Data-Driven Decision-Making, you'd be able to calculate Risk tolerance versus desired business Outcomes.

In essence, developing a team that is comfortable with taking risks involves setting clear goals, modeling risk-taking behavior, creating a safe environment, encouraging collaboration and diversity, and consistently reviewing and reflecting on the risks taken. By cultivating these elements, you create a foundation for innovation, resilience, and a positive attitude towards calculated risks within your team.

Imagine risks as seeds planted in fertile soil. Beyond strategies and frameworks, it's about nurturing a mindset—an ethos of daring exploration. It's the untold tales of the first timid steps into uncharted territory, the shared laughter amidst uncertainty, and the unspoken resilience forged through setbacks. It's not just about encouraging risk-taking; it's about cultivating a culture where risks are embraced as catalysts for evolution. These narratives of courage, resilience, and collective growth weave the tapestry of an intrepid team, pioneering the landscapes of possibility with unbridled curiosity.

Express the value of the goal orientation and the means of achieving it through some real out of box thinking by giving some examples to boost up their confidence and thereby their faith and trust on what needs to be initiated by them in inching towards a defined common goal.