Building teams for the future - the Deliver, Evolve, Grow framework - Part 1

Organizations that are scaling up often face this conundrum: How do we balance the needs of the client, the organization and its people?

This two part series discusses how, when building teams for client projects, having experienced team members for long periods of time helps retain context, ensures delivery excellence and a happy client. However, it will not offer growth for team members nor is it sustainable for the organization. On the other hand, moving people to new opportunities may result in a team that constantly experiences churn, affecting customer experience. 

We recommend the Deliver, Evolve, Grow (DEG) framework, designed to ensure that teams are built to cater to the needs of all three stakeholders — Client, Organization and People, in a sustainable way. We focus on identifying and growing the right set of capabilities that equip teams for project-level success as well as for the longer term and bigger impact. 

While this framework can be used irrespective of the stage of the project, it works well for teams that have been working together for 3-6 months, have a basic understanding of the project goals and what is required to deliver them.

But before you make any changes to your team, assess your capabilities thoroughly.

Prepare: Building a capability map for your teams

Identify the right set of capabilities

The capability map for a team typically covers the technical or functional skills required by each person on the team to perform their responsibilities effectively. Such teams tend to operate as a collection of individuals with matching skill sets. Every team also has additional attributes required to address the client’s and the team’s needs beyond role-based. The shift from role-based to goals-based attribute identification is key for delivery excellence.