Picture this: you’ve been granted your singular career wish – a promotion to stamp your legacy and lead your faculty or department. Pop open the sparkling - this is your moment to shine.

Around the table, there’s a talented but possibly tired, disenfranchised group of educators. At best, you may have inherited a graduate eager to impress, bound with zestful energy and enthusiasm you wish you could bottle.

Nobody doubts their passion for their work or students, yet they’re weighed down by the demands of lesson planning, grading, and the myriad of administrative tasks that seem to multiply like weeds.

As you announce the day’s agenda—a review of the school’s strategic goals—there’s a collective sigh, not of relief, but of quiet dread.

The team has heard it all before.

Initiatives pronounced with gusto seem to evaporate in the fog of daily routines weeks later.

Progress stalls, and the team languishes, firmly parked in mediocre-ville. This common struggle is not due to a lack of talent or dedication but rather the absence of a multiplier effect that would turn individual effort into a force greater than the sum of its parts.

Imagine if that same team walked out of the meeting energised, with clear objectives, a shared vision, and excitement about what’s next.

The change?

Leadership that knows how to create a high-performance culture.

How to Create a Culture that Produces a Force Multiplier Effect

The concept of the force multiplier is borrowed from military strategy but aptly applies to leadership in education. It refers to strategies or tools that amplify a team's effectiveness far beyond what could be achieved by individuals working alone.

This comes down to fostering a culture that nurtures individual excellence and aligns collective talent.

A common mistake among leaders is assuming that more effort leads to better results. The reality is more nuanced. Productivity stems from focus, strategic alignment, and a collective sense of purpose.

But it’s not just about setting goals—it's about crafting them collaboratively so that they resonate with the entire team.

So, how do you create this culture?

Start by empowering your team members.

Leaders who make all the decisions may feel in control but risk stifling their team’s potential. Instead, involve team members in setting goals and establishing expectations. This applies not just to their performance but also to the broader objectives of the team.

Next, be strategic with your meetings.

Shift from reviewing the past (analysing the minutiae of what went wrong) to planning the future. Use lead measures—forward-looking metrics that help predict the likelihood of achieving the desired outcome—instead of lag measures, which reflect results after the fact.

By focusing on lead measures, academic leaders can drive day-to-day behaviour that leads to the ultimate success of strategic goals.

How to Improve a Team That Languishes as Average

Being stuck in a cycle of mediocrity is frustrating. The ingredients of a high-performing team are there, but something is preventing the chemistry from igniting. Improvement doesn’t come from simply pressing harder on the accelerator. It comes from recalibrating how the team works together.

One of the most counterintuitive insights for leaders is understanding that a successful team isn’t necessarily one that avoids conflict.

In fact, research from organisational psychologist Charlan Nemeth has shown that dissent fosters better decision-making. A harmonious but unchallenging atmosphere can lead to groupthink, where poor ideas go unchallenged, and genuine innovation is stifled.

Fostering constructive conflict can breathe life into a stagnant team.

One tool that I have found super-helpful is the five conflict management styles. Helping teams understand how they naturally deal with conflict and the preferred alternative within a high-performing team is paramount. The structure of this tool lends itself to providing a language within meetings when calling out conflict aversion or personal confrontation.  

A good team leader should encourage an environment where ideas are openly challenged without fear of personal attacks. Consider implementing structured debate sessions during meetings where team members argue for or against new proposals. By encouraging respectful discourse, you engage cognitive diversity—a critical factor in driving innovation.

Incorporate these discussions into your planning. Before setting final objectives for the term, ask each team member to identify one potential roadblock and one area where the team could "double down" for a more significant impact. This approach brings problems into the light early, turning obstacles into opportunities.

What Kind of Team Must We Become to Lead Our Strategy?

The leap from an average team to a high-performance one starts by answering this critical question: What kind of team must we become to lead our strategy? Too often, teams focus on the "what" without considering the "who." The best strategy in the world will fall flat if the people executing it aren’t equipped or motivated to carry it out.

Leadership starts by identifying the competencies required to carry the strategy forward.

This is where personal development becomes central. Ask yourself: Do my team members have the necessary skills and knowledge? Or are we assuming that their past performance guarantees future success? Or, worse still, have we been negligent in developing their talents to support our school’s progress?

One effective technique for raising the bar is establishing peer mentoring programs within the team. Pair less-experienced teachers with senior members not just for traditional mentoring but for co-mentoring, where both parties are responsible for teaching and learning from one another. This encourages knowledge sharing, reinforces a sense of team unity, and ensures that skill-building happens organically rather than in isolated professional development days.

It’s also essential to align the team’s capabilities with the school’s broader goals.

For instance, every academic team member should feel proficient if a school's long-term vision involves a shift towards technology-enhanced learning. Regular assessments of team competencies—conducted through surveys, one-on-one check-ins, and performance reviews—can help identify gaps before they become major roadblocks.

How Do We Set Lead and Lag Measures and Achieve Them?

In his book The 4 Disciplines of Execution, business consultant Chris McChesney points out that while most organisations are good at setting goals, they often fail in executing them because they don't focus enough on the distinction between lead and lag measures. This concept can radically improve how academic teams track progress.

Lead measures are the specific actions that predict and influence the achievement of the larger goals.

In contrast, lag measures only report outcomes after the fact. For example, if your school’s strategic goal is to improve student outcomes, a lag measure would be the final test scores. However, lead measures might include increasing time spent on personalised tutoring sessions or enhancing teacher collaboration on curriculum planning.

To achieve your goals, you need to identify suitable lead measures. These should be:

• Controllable: Ensure your team has direct influence over these metrics.
• Measurable: Establish clear benchmarks so that progress is easy to track.
• Predictive: Choose lead measures that accurately forecast success.

Implement regular "scoreboard meetings" where the team reviews these metrics and adjusts strategies. Celebrating small wins along the way is essential, reinforcing that steady progress is valuable even when it doesn’t immediately translate into the final results.

Final Thoughts

In academic leadership, the quest for a high-performance team is an ongoing journey rather than a destination. Even the best teams experience setbacks and periods of stagnation.

But with a thoughtful approach—one that involves strategic planning, the right kind of conflict, and a clear focus on lead and lag measures—any team can break free from the average and begin to thrive.

Remember, leadership is as much about cultivating potential as it is about directing talent. As you apply these techniques, you’ll find that your team and your ability to lead them will improve. And perhaps one day, those dreaded team meetings will become the breeding ground for innovation and excellence that leaves mediocrity far behind.

It’s not easy, but McChesney aptly states, "Execution doesn't like complexity." Your team can break through barriers and achieve the extraordinary with the proper focus.