high performance teams learn from their mistakes through formal debriefing sessions: hughes

high performance teams learn from their mistakes through formal debriefing sessions: hughes
High performance results come from teams prepared to aim for perfection and then learn from their mistakes, according to former Red Arrows aerobatic pilot Justin Hughes.
He told the Leaders in Dubai Business Forum 2007 today that every aerial performance by the Red Arrows is followed by a formal debrief at which every member of the team, including the leader, is expected to be completely honest about their performance.
He said he is surprised at how few businesses carried out similar sessions, because this is the only real way to learn from a team’s mistakes.
To get the most from such debriefings, the team leader needs to be first to admit any mistakes as this gave other team members the confidence to speak up about their own shortcomings.
Such honesty helped build trust and credibility, especially for the team leader. Without honesty it was very easy for a leader to lose credibility and once that occurred, it was very hard to get it back again.
Mr Hughes said building high performance teams relied more on attitude and behaviour, rather than skills, which could be taught.
Good team players were those who recognised that the way to individual success was through a team environment and that they had to make a commitment to the success of the team as a whole in order to get their rewards as individuals.
The Red Arrows final selection processes focused almost completely on how a pilot would fit within the team. There was a 20 minute formal interview, and a similar length flight test, but the rest of the week-long selection week was based on the social interaction between the nine display pilots.
He said the 100 strong Red Arrows team had a third of the personnel replaced each year and that included three of the nine pilots. The remaining six were then rotated to different places in the formation, but the team continued to perform at a very high level year after year in spite of the personnel changes.
This was a clear indication that the processes – and the hard work that also went into training the team – were sound.
Mr Hughes said high performance results could only be achieved in an environment where everything had been planned for. That means developing contingency plans for things that could go wrong, so that there was always a process to be followed when there may only be seconds to avoid catastrophe.
Clearly understood processes backed by equally clear communication were the keys to dealing with the unexpected in high pressure circumstances. All of the planning done in a low pressure environment meant the pilots could react instinctly if required. 
Leaders in Dubai Business Forum 2007 is supported by Founding Sponsors: Citi Private Bank and Nokia; Leading Master Developer: Dubai Properties; Headline Sponsors: Addax Bank, Bidaya and The Monarch Dubai; Supporting Sponsors: Omniyat, Ithmar Capital, Al Barari, Damac Properties and Dubai Real Estate; Official Technology Partner: Fujitsu Siemens; Knowledge Partner: SP Jain; Official Event Courier: TCS.