Practices for Psychological Safety & Autonomy In Teams

In this podcast I explain the six main ways to ensure that your team agreements make a difference.

We have been doing action research with a range of leaders across health and social care to explore a different approach to one-to-ones. This has involved using Confirmation Practices around the person's roles, and around building psychological safety within the team. In this episode Lu Dash, Deputy CEO, describes her experience of being part of this research.

What do you do when new team members join an established team? Do you start Team Agreements from scratch again, or expect them to accept the Team Agreements as they are?Michelle explains how she approached this in a service in Camden.She also introduced the principles of Team Agreements with the people who live in the Extra Care Scheme.Michelle Livesley is my friend and colleague, and you can find us both at helensandersonassociates.com.To talk more about Team Agreements please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

What difference could it make if Team Agreements were part of the recruitment, induction and probation process?This is what Sam is experimenting with. Sam Jones is an Associate Director,Locality Impact in North East and Yorkshire at the Stroke Association.To talk more about using Team Agreements in recruitment and practices for psychological safety please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

We have been doing action research with a range of leaders across health and social care to explore a different approach to one-to-ones. This has involved using Confirmation Practices around the person's roles, and around building psychological safety within the team. In this episode two Speech and Language Therapists from Communicate SLT CIC Caroline Coyne, the CEO and Founder, and .Rhian Owen describes their experience of being part of this research.

What can you do when your team keeps getting stuck with one of their Team Agreements?One option is to use an Immunity to Change map, and in this podcast Diana explains how we did this, and the impact that it had on the team, and what they are doing now.Diana Cole is the CEO at Community, Equality, Disability Action (CEDA).To talk more about using Immunity to Change maps and Team Agreements please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

Can Team Agreements be scaled across an organisation?Martin is a clinical and coaching psychologist in Ireland and talks about how he is introducing Team Agreements at scale and what he is learning from this.To talk more about Team Agreements and practices for psychological safety please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

Rachel describes how she introduced Team Agreements to Flying Start at the Isle of Anglesey Council. She talks about where the team was at the beginning, what she did and the impact that this has had.A podcast to listen to if you want to hear a team leaders perspective on developing Team Agreements.To talk more about usingTeam Agreements please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

If you have imposter syndrome, can you change it?I supported Barb Swartz-Biscaro to develop her Immunity to Change map and in this podcast she talks about they change she wanted to make around her confidence, how she created her map, and the impact of the experiments she did.PS Barb shows that the answer is yes.To talk more about Immunity to Change maps and how they are used in practice please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

Liza opened my eyes to the potential of Team Agreements being a potential preventive strategy. Can they help prevent bullying and harassment in the workplace? Liza thinks so and explains why in this podcast.Liza has her own podcast series and you can find her at the Positive Change Podcast on Spotify.To talk more about Team Agreements and practices for psychological safety please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

What is it like to start using Confirmation Practices around your roles?In this episode Sam explains what it was like to get started, how she is using them, and the difference they are making.This is what Sam is experimenting with. Sam Jones is an Associate Director,Locality Impact in North East and Yorkshire at the Stroke Association.To talk more about using Confirmation Practices and practices for psychological safety please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

We have been doing action research with a range of leaders across health and social care to explore a different approach to one-to-ones. This has involved using Confirmation Practices around the person's roles, and around building psychological safety within the team. In this episode Lyse Edwards, Head of Operations with the Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, describes her experience of being part of this research.

We have been doing action research with a range of leaders across health and social care to explore a different approach to one-to-ones. This has involved using Confirmation Practices around the person's roles, and around building psychological safety within the team. In this episode Sam Jones, Regional Director with The Stroke Association, describes her experience of being part of this research.

I spent the day with Vicky and her team supporting them to create their Team Agreements and decide on ways to keep them alive.If you want to know the steps you can take to create Team Agreements, from individual, team to organisation, then this is the podcast to listen to.Vicky Ferrier is the Chief People and Commercial Officer at Konsileo. Konsileo is an innovative, self-managed brokerage team. You can find them at Konsileo.com.To talk more about using Team Agreements please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

What are values and why do they matter in the workplace?Jackie and Alan are the leading thinkers and practitioners around values in the UK. Jackie was one of our national advisors in Wellbeing Teams and helped us to identify and embed our values in the teams. In this podcast we talk about what values are (and are not) and what they can mean in practice in teams and organisations.You can find Dr Jackie Le Fevre at magmaeffect.com, and Alan Williams at servicebrandglobal.com.To talk more about values and Psychological Safety and what they mean in practice please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

What is psychological safety, why does it matter and what practices can help?In 2024 I completed an in-depth programme on psychological safety with Tom and Jade and love their informed, considered and practical approach. I highly recommend their newsletter (sign up at psychsafety.com). In this podcast we talk about the importance of social contracts, like team agreements in building psychological safety.To talk more about Psychological Safety and Team Agreements and how they are used in practice please connect with me on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

Confirmation Practices are simple routines for systematic reflective practice. They were developed by Andy Brogan and help individuals and teams hold themselves to account and set goals to keep improving.Confirmation Practices are a way to transform how organisations approach accountability and performance management. They replace what Andy Brogan calls ‘traditional scorekeeping with sense-making’. I have been using them with individuals and teams to reflect on roles, team agreements, meetings, development, implementing learning and values.In the podcasts in this series we talk about Confirmation Practices as a fresh approach to one-to-ones.The key principles underpinning Confirmation Practices are:1. Psychological SafetyEnsuring that individuals feel safe to express ideas, concerns, and challenges without fear of judgment or blame. This creates an environment where people can learn and grow.2. Reflective LearningConfirmation Practices start with the person's or team's reflection on how they are doing, instead of a manager giving feedback.3. Human-Centered Accountability:The focus of Confirmation Practices is on the meaningful conversations about commitments and outcomes, based on shared expectations.4. Collaborative Sense-Making:The practice seeks to "put the elephant in the room" by openly addressing critical issues in a constructive way.To talk more about Confirmation Practices and how they are used in practice please come and connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/

What do you do when you get stuck on a goal you have been working on? Or a team agreement that the team is struggling with? Could it be that your/their mindset is getting in the way?The Immunity to Change approach developed by Harvard’s Robert Kagan and Lisa Lahey is a way to identify the assumptions (mindset) that gets in the way of making progress, and how to overturn them.This is crucial for leaders at every level.“Many, if not most of the changes you face today and will face tomorrow will require something more than incorporating new technical skills…these are ‘adaptive challenges’ and can only be met by transforming your mindset.” Kegan and Lahey 2009This year I completed nearly three years of study in Immunity to Change and became a certified Immunity to Change coach. I have working with leaders and teams and in my podcasts in this series I talk to people are their individual or team Immunity to Change Maps, how they developed them and the impact it has had.To talk more about Immunity to Change Maps and practices for psychological safety please come and connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/  

Team Agreements are a co-created list of statements that describe the behaviours that the team commits to in their work together. They are a foundation of psychological safety.In these podcasts we talk about the impact of team agreements on how teams work together and how to ensure that they are living, and make a difference to peoples relationships and work, and not just words on a file.To talk more about Team Agreements and how they are used in practice please come and connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/