#MiPDV – Working As An Ensemble

It’s widely believed that a team should work together – after all, that’s what the term “teamwork” means. 

But maybe there is a better analogy – working like a musical ensemble. 

Most readers know that I’m an amateur musician when away from work and that I play in a couple of local bands. That musical experience helps in leadership situations. 

There are two key leadership lessons I’ve honed in musical settings – listening and playing my assigned role. 

Let’s start with listening. 

Musicians in an ensemble must listen – really listen – to each other in an ensemble. It’s much deeper than just listening for the melody so that you are not playing so loud as to prevent the melody from being heard. Here are a few examples of other reasons musicians need to listen to each other:

• Volume – are you playing louder than those around you who have similar dynamic markings on the music?
• Intonation – are you in tune with the rest of the ensemble?
• Timing – are entrances together? Do rhythmic patterns perfectly align so the group moves together? 

Listening can be very difficult. Composers and arrangers often move the melody around the ensemble, or they may have musicians in different locations in the ensemble playing in unison, or sometimes chords built across the group. 

If a musician is not concentrating and listening intently, then the ensemble’s performance suffers. 

The same is true in business situations. Each person on the team – not just the leader – must listen to everyone else to ensure is performing at the best possible level. Those who do not listen cause the team’s performance to suffer. 

Moving to the point about performing your assigned role. In music, all parts are important, even the ones that sometimes seem boring to play. If a part wasn’t important, then the composer or arranger would not have written it (although fans of Pete Barbutti may disagree: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJBggMTZI7w ). 

Granted, at any given moment, one part may be more important than another, but it’s relative importance at that moment. While most people want to play first part for their instrument, other parts may be more important in a given moment or passage.

I’ve learned this point while playing music from the British Brass Band genre. Every part is not only important, but each player at some point also has the most important part for the moment. Whether first part or the lower end of the section, everybody has the melody or key part at some point in the music. 

Musically, there is nowhere to hide: each musician in the ensemble must recognize their importance to the group, own the responsibility to lead in the moment, and perform to the best of their ability. 

It is the same on every project. Every role is important – if a role not important, especially in today’s scarcity of time – it would not be part of the team. 

There is a corollary to this principle: while you are performing your role, don’t try to perform someone else’s role. In music, you don’t find the trombone playing the trumpet part, or the violin playing the tuba part. 

The leader’s role is to ensure that the team is providing the best possible results. 

In business, just as in music, the best results are seen when each person listens to all other team members, and when each person does their job. 

That’s mi punto de vista #MiPDV.