Senior Team Performance

Senior Team Performance and Executive Team Effectiveness

Senior leadership teams set the tone for the entire organisation, and their effectiveness has a direct impact on executive team alignment and organisational performance. The relationships they demonstrate, the standards they uphold, and the way they communicate with one another signal what is acceptable and what is not. Their behaviour does not stay in the boardroom; it is observed, interpreted, and repeated.

When direction is unclear, when roles and responsibilities overlap or remain implicit, or when difficult issues are avoided at the top, that lack of clarity filters down. Teams experience competing priorities, mixed messages, and uneven accountability. Even strong strategy struggles to translate into coordinated action without alignment and trust at senior level.

High-performing senior teams are characterised by shared direction, clarity around contribution, constructive challenge, and a genuine sense of collective ownership. They communicate openly, appreciate one another’s contributions and working styles, focus on what matters most, and deliver sustainable value through their teams.

“The behaviours and conversations of the leadership team trickle through the whole organisation.”

“Jenny led group sessions expertly and vibrantly, amongst a group where some were initially sceptical of the value add but who, ultimately, were all impacted very positively by the process. In addition, the individual sessions with the group had every single member of the team thinking differently about themselves, as well as thinking differently about how they interacted and worked with other members of the Leadership Team. ”
— Paul B. CEO

Our Approach

We work with senior leadership teams to strengthen the quality of their conversations and the clarity of their collective direction, improving senior leadership team effectiveness and strategic execution.

Our approach is structured and diagnostic-led.

  1. We begin with psychometric profiling at both individual and team level, exploring strengths and challenges, roles and preferences, gaps and weaknesses, and opportunities across the team as a whole. This creates a shared understanding of difference and a clearer picture of how the team is currently operating.

  2. Second, individual coaching conversations in advance of the team session. These allow each leader to articulate their perspective, concerns, and ambitions, and ensure that the facilitated work reflects the realities of the team rather than assumptions.

  3. Third, a focused team diagnostic to identify the specific challenges, tensions, and priorities shaping how the team currently operates.

These insights inform facilitated sessions that build trust, deepen mutual understanding, promote open communication, and strengthen alignment, decision-making, and accountability across the senior group.

“The quality of a senior team’s conversations determines the quality of the organisation’s execution.”

What changes can you expect?

Senior team interventions strengthen the conditions for high performance, including:

  • Clarity and alignment about direction, priorities, responsibilities and expectations

  • Strong, effective relationships built on trust, collaboration and mutual respect

  • An environment where change can be navigated openly, and where people can experiment, learn and iterate

  • Systems and processes that support high performance rather than create friction

  • The skills and confidence to act decisively and collectively

“Unclear accountability at Executive level multiplies friction everywhere else.”

Ready to explore how this could help your organisation?

Contact us

FAQs

  • Senior leadership team development is particularly valuable where there is poor cooperation, weak relationships at executive level, persistent conflict, or a lack of clarity around decision-making and accountability.

    It is also highly relevant during periods of integration — for example following mergers and acquisitions, restructuring, rapid growth, or leadership transition — when two teams need to align around shared direction and ways of working.

    Strengthening senior team effectiveness improves executive alignment, reduces friction between functions, and increases the team’s ability to implement decisions consistently across the organisation.

  • Misalignment at senior level often stems from unclear priorities, different assumptions about pace, or unspoken expectations about roles and ownership. It can also arise when people do not feel able to raise concerns openly or challenge assumptions without consequence.

    Effective senior teams discuss issues, concerns and competing priorities directly. They are explicit about what matters most, appreciative of one another’s strengths and contribution, and willing to test assumptions before decisions are made.

  • Executive team effectiveness improves when the team develops clearer collective direction, more robust decision-making processes, and stronger peer-to-peer accountability and relationships. This typically involves behavioural insight, structured facilitation, and individual coaching to address both interpersonal dynamics and execution discipline. The focus is not on team building activities, but on strengthening how the team leads together.

  • Conflict at senior level is rarely about personality alone. It often reflects differences in behavioural preference, decision style, or how individuals respond under pressure. Without shared understanding, these differences can become personal rather than productive.

    Resolution requires clarity about acceptable behaviours and clear boundaries, alongside a structured space to explore disagreement. When leaders understand one another’s strengths, triggers and working styles, challenge becomes more purposeful and accountability easier to uphold.

  • Decisions are often revisited because priorities were not fully aligned, dissent was not surfaced, or ownership was left ambiguous. In some cases, colleagues do not fully trust one another to act within their area of responsibility, so issues resurface at the top.

    Clear decision rights, visible ownership and confidence in one another’s judgement reduce the need to reopen settled issues and allow leaders to get on with leading their own areas.

  • Psychometric assessment is a core part of our senior leadership team interventions. We use well-validated occupational psychology tools like Hogan Teams to explore leadership strengths, behavioural risks, decision styles and working preferences.

    In executive team development, psychometrics create a shared language for understanding difference. They help identify friction points, gaps in capability, and opportunities to strengthen collective effectiveness.