How many hours have you spent this month in meetings that felt more draining than energising? If you’re leading teams, supporting talent, or driving organisational change, you’ve likely noticed: meaningful connection is something many (I’d like to think most) of us aspire to, but it’s also a challenge with so many other competing demands at the moment!
Last month, our spotlight on ‘humanity and connection’ seemed to really strike a chord, sparking some lively coffee conversations across our network. As many of you shared, the battle with meeting overload is still very much alive, and the dilemma of under or over collaborating becomes more fraught, as resources are stretched and the ‘do more with less’ narrative pervades.
In times of pressure, people’s motivation and bandwidth for connecting is tested. We see some teams rally together tightly, but this can be at the expense of wider connections, risking the rise of silos and echo chambers. We see other teams become disconnected, with team members ‘hunkering down’ to protect their limited energy, and others withdrawing to just get on with it rather than ‘imposing’ on others’ limited time and attention. For Leaders and Talent professionals, the challenge is clear: how can we foster and sustain connection, without sacrificing wellbeing or organisational coherence?
This month, we’re taking a deeper dive into the art and science of connection. Our blog unpacks the age-old challenge of ‘meeting well', and we’re sharing Kilmann’s model of conflict as a practical tool for balancing collaboration and healthy debate. Plus, in ‘Insights & Inspirations,’ we feature Priya Parker’s transformative book, The Art of Gathering - an essential read for anyone serious about purposeful connection.
As you read on, ask yourself: What’s one thing you could do differently to build more meaningful connection in your team or organisation this month? We invite your thoughts, stories, and strategies. Let’s keep the conversation going.
We’ve had some really rich conversations lately with teams diving in and getting curious about collaboration; too much? not enough? doing it well? could do better?...
The very essence of teamwork is a task or mission that is too complex for one person to achieve. Connection and collaboration are therefore fundamental to effective teamwork (and the ultimate delivery of that complex task). Before diving into the ‘Goldilocks’ dilemma of 'too much / too little?' – it’s critical that teams first bring their attention to answering this question: “What do we mean when we use the term 'collaboration'?” And, if it’s also been on the table: “What do we mean when we use the term ‘over-collaborating’?”
Testing assumptions is a skill and practice we encourage all teams to master, and this is a great question to practice on. Pausing to ask - “What do we mean by…?” is habit of highly effective teams.
In terms of getting curious about collaboration; Tomas Kilmann’s ‘Conflict Modes’ (the key elements represented below), provides a valuable start point for unpacking frequently used but rarely tested terms such as collaboration and compromise. His model is particularly useful as it offers insight into when and why you may step into the different modes – including collaboration.
Next time you hear any of these terms, don’t assume you’re on the same page, check in to test what the user means. This reduces the noise of misaligned assumptions, and brings clarity and efficiency to the connection.
2025 New Zealand HR Leadership Summit
We are excited to be sponsoring the upcoming 2025 New Zealand HR Leadership Summit in September.
The program, themed Forward Motion – leveraging the collective strength to shape change, focuses on how HR can drive organisational, workforce, and community transformation. It explores sustainable people strategies, skills- and work-based talent development, and the integration of Kaupapa Māori to deliver meaningful change. Central themes include leadership development, safety-first cultures, and future workforce planning. The program highlights trends and strategies shaping the future of HR, leadership, and talent management.
Winsborough are excited to contribute to this discussion. We will share insights and practical steps on how talent data holds hidden potential to help teams and organisations to shift from reactive problem-solving to intentional, evidence-based culture shaping and collective action. One example is the wider use of 360 data that we explored in our June blog. It talks about how by looking at 360 data through a wider and aggregated lens can facilitate moving from individual insights to organisational wisdom.
Rocket ModelTM Certification Workshop
Our workshop co-facilitated by Brendan Lynch and Dr. Gordon Curphy is all but completed. Thank you for the attendees who joined from all over the Asia-Pacific region. We are excited for them to utilise their new skills in diagnosing and improving team performance, and scaling high-performance teamwork.
Meeting Well
By Rachael Stott
Meetings are not neutral; they either build or diminish culture. When leaders gather with purpose, they do more than run meetings.
They create moments that shape culture, accelerate progress, and remind people why their work matters. Meeting well is more than an efficiency tactic, it is an expression of leadership and culture. In our ‘Meeting Well ‘blog, we explore how leaders can move beyond routine gatherings to create purposeful, engaging meetings that drive clarity, connection and impact.
The Art of Gathering, How We Meet & Why It Matters.
By Ruth Cornelius
In the face of endless meetings, hui, workshops, and events, Priya Parker challenges us to rethink why we gather and how to design gatherings that truly matter.
She argues that too many professional gatherings default to routine, missing the opportunity to connect people in meaningful, purposeful ways.
The way you gather and meet shapes organisational culture, change and performance. Key themes, from the Art of Gathering, include:
Purpose first:Start by clarifying the real reason you’re bringing people together vs. defaulting to habit or tradition. Gathering begins at the moment of discovery, from the moment of the invitation, so think about how you prime your guests to this purpose before bringing them into the shared space.
Design with intention: Every element should be chosen and curated to reinforce that purpose. This includes the gathering name, the rituals, the format, who you invite, space, the questions you ask, duration and timing. This also includes how you send your guests off, what actions they commit to that serve to remind them of the value of the gathering.
Courageous curation: Great gatherings require leaders to make deliberate choices, sometimes saying no to what dilutes the purpose. That can include declining requests to squeeze just one more important topic onto the agenda, to include an ‘inspirational’ speaker, or to bring along a colleague or ‘plus-one’.
The way in which tangata whenua welcome manuhiri onto the marae, epitomise the art of gathering, recognising the mana of those involved, encompassing the spirituality of Te Ao Māori, and holding whanaungatanga (connections) front and centre. I know at times I am more deliberate about ‘gathering well’, and celebrate when I have made space for connection before mahi; and at other times I get caught up in focusing on the agenda of the gathering and am less intentional than I would like to be in the way that I invite or close.
A well-designed gathering or meeting can accelerate trust, unlock creativity, and shift culture in ways no policy or system can. Next time you plan a team offsite, leadership workshop, or even a key meeting, pause and ask: What is the bold, specific purpose here? And how can every choice I make serve that purpose?
