Punk or hard rock? Frankly, who cares?
Released in 1986 by American band Bad Brains, I Against I is gloriously angry and has been incredibly influential for the punk bands that followed them.
As my role is changing, I have been reflecting a great deal on the nature of teams. Like many, I am a member of many teams; some are closer to my heart than others but in order for teams to really function effectively, each has to be a priority. But is that possible? How do you know which team to prioritise the most?
Over the summer I finally read The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. I was particularly interested in the idea that sometimes teams don't commit, individuals are hesitant given they already belong to other teams, with strong relationships.
In education terms, does an English teacher ultimately retain their loyalty to the English Department when joining the Senior Leadership Team? Because if they do, and the rest of SLT have similar commitments to their other/previous teams, then SLT will never build trust, resolve conflict, hold each other accountable and will not be able to focus on results as its not truly a shared goal.
I like a good sporting analogy - and the conflict in professional football between club and country is a common one. Indeed, it is often suggested that Sven-Göran Eriksson's England team of the early 2000s underachieved because so few of the players could put aside home club allegiances, even to share breakfast at the same table. And some players struggle to put club or country above themselves - that's not just football, think Kevin Piertersen, perhaps.
In the quest for the test to fulfil an achievement
Everybody's always going to pursue themselves
When the fact of the matter is they just don't care
To extend a helping hand to anyone else
One of the very first things I have done when leading a team is to establish amongst all members that their allegiance must be to THAT particular team and to support with understanding the importance of this and how to do this. Afterall, it is not saying that the other teams are not important, just that the new one is more important. When driving forward school improvement, that is the singular goal and we all have to focus on that.
After six years of building, developing and leading my own school team - not just SLT but the whole community - I am now in a position to hand this on to someone new. I am stepping away from the Executive Headship of the school I have led for over six years; it feels really quite odd. And in return, I am now joining other teams - a new school that I am Executive Headteacher at for the rest of the year; a central MAT team I am a small part of. I know I have realign my thinking, my allegiances, my priority team because if I am to contribute to systemic change, I have to build trust, resolve conflict, holds other accountable otherwise there is a risk that I will not be able to focus on the collective results of the entire team.
Of course, you have to also completely buy into the shared goal otherwise you are in the wrong team. Just as well that I do.
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