Why Strengths Matter in Teams

Team coaching unlocks collective potential, strengthens collaboration, and drives high performance. It helps teams become more self-aware, aligned, and intentional in how they work together. One of the most effective ways to achieve this is by focusing on what energises people. Strengthscope® is a scientifically validated tool that identifies the qualities that energise individuals and teams. Unlike competencies, which reflect what people are good at, strengths reveal what people love doing and where they thrive. When teams understand and value each other’s strengths, they build trust, communicate openly, and align around shared goals, creating the conditions for peak performance.

How to Use Strengthscope in Team Coaching

Strengthscope®’s practical and energising framework for team coaching is built around our Peak Performing Team model. High-performing teams consistently demonstrate clarity around goals, roles, and responsibilities; build trust through awareness of strengths and performance risks; take action by leveraging each other’s strengths to drive accountability; and develop agility to respond positively to change. They also celebrate achievements and regularly review performance to identify growth opportunities. This model helps teams move from insight to impact.

Here’s how to apply this model practically using Strengthscope® with teams:

1. Start with Strengthscope® Profiles and Strengths-Based Conversations:

Begin by having each team member complete their Strengthscope® profile to identify their energising strengths. Use these insights to build self-awareness and spark meaningful team discussions. Facilitate strengths-based conversations to deepen understanding and trust.

Coaching questions to try:

• “What are your top 3 energising strengths?”
• “When do you feel most energised at work?”
• “How have you used these strengths within the team?”
• “How can your strengths support the team’s current priorities, and what does that look like in action?”

2. Create a Team Strengths Wheel:

Use StrengthscopeTeam™ to map out the team’s collective strengths. This visual tool serves as a prompt for valuable discussion.

Reflection prompts:

• “What shared strengths will enhance our performance as a team? How?”
• “Which strengths could we use more intentionally as a team? What would that look like in action?”

Use insights from conversations to discuss tasks and roles based on what energises each person. This helps teams play to their strengths in everyday work.

For example:

Someone with Results Focus might lead delivery, while someone with Collaboration could manage stakeholder engagement. Encourage the team to articulate how their strengths will impact team outcomes.

4. Explore Stretch and Risk Areas:

Discuss how strengths might go into overdrive under pressure and identify common triggers. Use this awareness to co-create strategies that keep strengths in balance.

For example:

Compassion in overdrive may lead to over-involvement, which can impact capacity. A mitigation strategy could be using Critical Thinking to evaluate priorities and manage time effectively.

5. Schedule Regular Check-Ins:

Keep strengths alive in team culture with regular reflection and reinforcement.

Ideas to embed strengths:

• Start meetings with “strengths shares”: team members name a strength they’ll bring to the meeting and what impact they are hoping to bring with that strength.
• Reflect weekly on strengths in action: share examples of how strengths impacted collaboration or outcomes for the team.
• Use Strengthscope® reports outside coaching sessions: integrate strengths into project launches, 1:1s, and performance reviews.

Conclusion

Strengths-based team coaching with Strengthscope® empowers teams to build trust, boost engagement, and achieve peak performance by focusing on what energises them most. By understanding and applying individual and collective strengths, teams can work more effectively and thrive together.

Ready to take the next step? Explore how Strengthscope® can transform your team and ask yourself: “What energises your team, and how can you use that to thrive together?”.

Schedule a discovery call with our team.