5 Surprising Traits of Google’s Highest Performing Teams

5 Surprising Traits of Google’s Highest Performing Teams

How do your teams score?

Google thought building the best teams meant recruiting the brightest minds with ivy-league credentials.

They were wrong.

Hand it to Google to deep dive into analytics to build a better mousetrap…or in this case, a better company. For two years, Google studied data around their most productive departments. “Project Aristotle” examined 180 teams and revealed surprising data.

Even their human resources department was caught off guard.

What did they find?

That team’s success is not tied to the number of summa cum laude graduates, exceptional engineers, IQ or longevity at Google.

Success came down to specific behaviors that stem from company culture.

Google’s study found 5 key factors in their best teams, one being the cornerstone of the rest. If you miss one, you miss a game-changing opportunity.

1. “Because I said I would”
   Successful teams have members that have a sense of honor around their word. They follow through on what they say they will do, keep deadlines, consistently communicate with each other and follow through on their commitments.
2. Structure and Clarity
   Everyone knows their role, and job descriptions are documented and clear. Each person on the team is aware of exactly how they fit in, the ways they are being measured, and understands how to achieve professional success.
3. Meaning
   Team Members are aware of how their particular job matters to the team and the vision/mission of the organization.
4. A sense of purpose
   The individuals on the team believe that they work for an organization that is making a positive contribution to the world.
5. Psychological safety
   A workplace culture where employees feel safe in expressing their ideas and thoughts without being mocked or ridiculed. Gossip and backstabbing are not tolerated, Each member knows they are valued and is encouraged to fail forward and grow.

Why does this research matter?

Google has been named the best place to work in the US for the 6th year in a row. And for the second year in a row, they earned the most respected employer in the world.

Model your teams after this research and set them up for high performance!

Want to see how your teams stack up? Take this short assessment and find out!