TeamKraft Blog - Leading Human Performance in the Age of AI

Reflection as a tool

Mon, 15 Jun 2026 08:12:57 GMT

It all started together with my previous team back in 2022

"You know Cecilia, I am destroyed from TikTok... I don't know how to focus nor reflect because I have never done it. I don't know how to stay focused that long" a team-member told me.

Those words motivated me to demonstrate their inaccuracy . If you've managed to complete five years of engineering studies at university, you should be capable of self-reflection and personal growth. That’s what I believe. Consequently, as I lead a team of engineers, I must introduce innovative formats for team development that are underpinned by a solid purpose and well-founded facts for so called "soft" topics. Yes, I could easily bring the idea upon the table, but to proceed and to take action the background and facts are important. (Please note: This also applies for me, having my background within statistics...)

During my investigations and research on the topic of reflection I wanted to introduce for my team I found this article from Harvard Business Review: "Don't underestimate the power of self-reflection" (you need to create an account to be able to read it). The short version of this article is:

"Research shows the habit of reflection can separate extraordinary professionals from mediocre ones. But how do you sort which experiences are most significant for your development? To answer this questions, the authors asked 442 executives to reflect on which experiences most advanced their professional development and had the most impact on making them better leaders.

Three distinct themes arose through their analysis: surprise, frustration, and failure. Reflections that involved one or more or of these sentiments proved to be the most valuable in helping the leaders grow. Surprise, frustration, and failure. Cognitive, emotional, and behavioral. These parts of you are constantly in motion and if you don’t give them time to rest and reflect upon what you learned from them, you will surely fatigue."

After reading this article, my own reflection was : I recognize that those I work with do not see themselves as mediocre in their efforts. Furthermore, the executives mentioned in the article are after all... just people. Ultimately, leadership is about guiding oneself as well as others, right? Therefore, if 442 individuals have reached this conclusion, how can we apply it to our DevOps team to foster our growth as individuals: both for the benefit of ourselves and the team?

I shared this article with my team and together we decided to read it and conduct a "Share & Reflect" session afterward. Once that was completed, I asked my team if it would make sense to incorporate a self-reflection on surprises, frustrations and failures into our 1-1s as a starting point. When I, as the team leader, feel that everyone is ready for group reflection, we'll integrate it into our sprint retrospectives. The goal is to understand how raising our awareness of these perspectives can enhance our teamwork and overall outcomes.

The team reached a decision : every member voted "yes" marking the beginning of my impactful toolbox, which I have named Reflection as a tool .

Are you curious about what makes it so impactful?

Team Maturity Status Check

Mon, 25 May 2026 11:56:12 GMT

Ready to check your team's status?

Are you curious about your team’s current maturity level, efficiency and wellbeing state but hesitant to explore it because you are unsure what the results might reveal? Many teams avoid taking a closer look because they fear what happens when unspoken tensions, misalignment or frustrations become visible. Yet the teams that dare to understand their reality early are often the ones that create the strongest long-term performance.

With TeamKraft's Team Check using GDQ (Group Development Questionnaire) your team invests just one hour to complete the questionnaire and gain valuable insight into your current team status. This means, with minimal effort on your end you will receive a clear snapshot of your team’s strengths, blind spots and development areas. There is no commitment to continue afterward if you for some reason are not prepared for it.

This is a low threshold for checking your team's status = your current reality. For doing so, we start with clarity to create awareness. Awareness is not the end goal. It is the starting point for taking action.

Who is this for?

Any team but even more highly valuable for knowledge-intensive teams
Teams in operational functions
Teams at the strategic level

Requirements on you

One hour team presence for responding to the questions in GDQ in a full remote setting.

Fianally, I believe you have the courage to face your current situation with openness and curiosity and the willingness to grow and develop as a team.

So, are you ready to check your team's status?

Share & Reflect

Wed, 15 Apr 2026 09:10:04 GMT

Is it possible to make people talk through active listening?

That is a question I asked myself back in 2021. It led to a journey that eventually became the Share & Reflect model. I will share that story another time. For now, I want to focus on what the model actually does and what happens when you use it consistently over time.

Most teams have experienced when decision-making feels slow or unclear, discussions go in circles, a few people speak and others stay quiet. Everyone wants constructive dialogue but it rarely happens in practice. The missing piece is better listening .

As Amy C. Edmondson puts it, “To make talking efficient, you need a culture of listening.” That idea is also reflected in insights from World Economic Forum and The Future of Jobs Report 2025 , where skills like active listening, collaboration and reflection are becoming increasingly important.

When people actually listen to each other something shifts. If I feel heard, it becomes meaningful to share. When ideas are shared and received, it becomes possible to explore differences and alignment. Pros and cons become clearer, understanding deepens and that is where better decisions are made .

That is the foundation Share & Reflect by TeamKraft is built on .

There are many strong formats for team dialogue such as Lean coffee , Hot potato , 1-2-4-All . I have used many of them and over time, I kept what worked and refined what did not. One key learning stands out: Consistency builds trust . When a team uses the same structure repeatedly and sees that it leads to real action, the format becomes part of how the team works, not just something you try in a workshop: that format is Share & Reflect.

Share & Reflect: running it is simple, but it requires discipline.

Start with a clear facilitator and a defined topic. If preparation is needed, be explicit about expectations in advance. Begin with a short check-in by asking if there is anything people need to leave behind before starting. It sounds small, but it helps people become present.
Set the scene clearly. What is the purpose, what is the topic, how will the session run and what is expected from the team. Engagement and active listening are not optional.
Move into the first round of sharing (1 min): Each person gets up to a minute to share their own perspective . What do I think, what do I believe, how do I see this.
Move into the second round of sharing (1 min): Each person builds on what they heard . What do I agree with, what do I see differently. The goal is not consensus, it is clarity .
Open up the discussion. This is where facilitation really matters. It should not become a conversation between a few people. It needs to stay a team dialogue where everyone is heard. Capture insights transparently and use a consistent tool, i.e. Miro, regardless of whether you are remote or in the same room.
Close the loop. Mirror and summarize what you heard. What are the agreements, what remains unclear and what actions should be taken. Always define who is responsible for driving each action , who else will be part of the progress, what we expect from taking action, what needs to be done and when. And most important - follow up .

Because this is where most teams fail. Without follow-up, trust is lost. And without trust, the format will not last. If you want to start somewhere I suggest you to start right here:

"How do we build trust in how we follow up on action points?"

That conversation alone can change how your team works.