Managing complexity to Lead More Effectively
The Challenge
Some teams can feel harder to lead than others with more going on than meets the eye. When a team struggles to collaborate, misses deadlines, or seems to be caught in a loop of blame or disengagement, it’s easy to assume the problem lies with individuals or a lack of accountability. But team dysfunction is rarely that simple.
In many cases, the real challenge is complexity – the number of relationships, expectations, and hidden pressures influencing how a team operates. And when complexity goes unaddressed, it can quietly erode trust, clarity and performance.
What is a Team?
Traditionally, we are told that teams are defined by a shared goal or the same line manager. But just calling something a team doesn’t make it behave like one. At Organisational Coaching Hub we understand that there is more than one type of team.
In some teams, the members depend on people outside the team, such as external stakeholders, rather than the internal team. For example, a team of sales managers. Teams with this dynamic are commonplace in organisations but largely unrecognised. We have called them Extra-Dependent Teams because of this outside dependency.
Understanding ‘Extra-Dependent Teams’
Unlike what we might think of as traditional teams that have clear boundaries and shared goals, Extra-Dependent Teams (EDTs) operate in a much more complex environment. They may have multiple stakeholders, cross-functional demands, and competing agendas. In these settings, the usual approaches to team building or conflict resolution often fall short, because the issues aren’t just interpersonal, they’re structural. Recognising the team type in these scenarios is essential for navigating team dynamics and managing complexity.
Taking Action
Instead of jumping to solutions or assuming the problem lies with individuals, it helps to map the team’s environment: Who’s influencing outcomes? Where are the competing demands? What assumptions are going unspoken? Naming the complexity allows leaders to shift from blame to clarity and to start addressing the real issues, not just the symptoms.
You can find out whether your team is Interdependent or Extra-Dependent by running our Team Dependency Diagnostic.
How We Help with Managing Complexity
By creating space to explore what’s really going on beneath the surface, team coaching allows teams to develop new ways of working, thinking and relating. Whether it’s navigating role ambiguity, managing external pressures, or building trust in a dispersed or matrixed team, coaching supports leaders to work with the system, not just within it.
Our unique coaching program, Introduction to Extra-Dependent Teams, provides leading edge solutions to help leaders and teams explore why they work the way they do, and how to develop an aspiring team.
You can read more about how EDTs differ from conventional teams in our overview article, or explore how models like Lencioni’s Five Dysfunctions connect to this deeper systemic view.
Challenges
Related Reads
Understanding Inter-Dependent and Extra-Dependent Teams
Practical Steps to Build Stakeholder Empathy
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