Discuss external factors that have impacted the work (and success) of teams over the past several years: In my experience at Vanguard, the biggest external factors that have impacted the enterprise and much of our work is technology, global perspective and the economy.
- Which factors supported successful teamwork? Over the past ten years, prior to this year, from an economy standpoint, the economic external factor greatly benefited Vanguard and our clients. The markets were booming, the economy was strong and from a global perspective, Vanguard was boldly on the map as a top contender. Employees were thriving and the client mission always seems to be felt strongly when the markets are doing well – happy clients, happy crew as we like to say. Teams celebrated and engagement was high.
- Which factors prevented successful teamwork? As we see all around us, technology seems to be changing by the hour. It is constant and the competition to have the best platform, website, app and client experience is critical for success. This is an area that greatly prevented success on many fronts from both a client and crew experience. We did not keep up with technology advancements and were slow to incorporate new systems, especially internally. Although I applaud senior leadership for recognizing this mistake, especially as they are trying to course correct right now, the downstream and engagement effect is very real and difficult. In a state of a now dropping economy, continued struggle with covid, this impact is not short term and must be dealt with. The teams that are working on these topics are overworked, not as engaged and attrition is high. It is a true struggle.