Summary
- Natural behaviours emerge under pressure – uncertainty reveals how people instinctively operate, showing both strengths and potential limitations.
- Smaller teams work better – focused sub-teams are easier to manage, collaborate within, and understand clearly.
- Communication and flexibility are critical – teams that adapt how they communicate and redistribute responsibilities navigate change more effectively.
- Trust and psychological safety matter – teams thrive when members feel safe to share ideas, voice concerns, and rely on one another.
- Leverage the team’s internal resources – effective teams recognise and use the skills, experience, and perspectives within the group to tackle challenges.
How can we help teams to thrive in times of uncertainty?
Uncertainty is no longer a temporary phase – it’s part of how we work now.
Organisations continue to face rapid change, and the old ways of managing teams are being tested.
In these conditions, the behaviours and dynamics that make teams genuinely effective become clearer.
This isn’t about fancy frameworks; it’s about how real people operate when circumstances are unpredictable.
1. In times of uncertainty, we fall back on what we know
When pressure mounts, we revert to what we know – the behaviours that come most naturally.
Team Role strengths show what we prioritise and how we see the world – whether it’s supporting colleagues as a Teamworker, keeping an analytical eye on options like a Monitor Evaluator, or connecting people and ideas as a Resource Investigator.
Pressure can also highlight limitations – anxiety, frustration, or difficulty coping when things don’t go to plan.
Understanding these tendencies helps teams work with, rather than against, their natural behaviours.
2. Size matters – small means manageable
Smaller groups tend to function better, even if a team exists on paper as part of a larger department.
We know that for an effective team, it is important to ‘reduce noise’ and maximise involvement by keeping teams small.
In today’s more flexible working world, small, focused sub-teams often emerge naturally, helping people collaborate more effectively.
3. Communication changes
Uncertainty affects how we communicate.
Remote and hybrid work demand clarity, frequency, and appropriate channels.
Teams that adjust their communication patterns to fit new realities stay aligned and prevent misunderstandings that could slow progress or cause friction.
4. We need to be flexible
Flexibility is essential.
Teams that can adapt, shift priorities, or redistribute responsibilities when circumstances change are more resilient.
This doesn’t just mean procedural flexibility – it also includes adjusting how people contribute according to their Team Role strengths.
5. Trust and psychological safety are more important than ever
Trust forms the foundation of effective teamwork, but in uncertain times, it must go hand in hand with psychological safety.
Teams need to feel safe to speak up, share concerns, and offer ideas without fear of negative consequences.
When these conditions are present, collaboration flourishes, and teams can respond to challenges creatively and confidently.
6. Make the most of the team’s resources
Effective teams know how to use the skills, experience, and perspectives within their own group.
Uncertainty can expose gaps, but it also highlights the unique contributions of each member.
By recognising and deploying the team’s internal resources wisely, teams become more capable of handling unexpected challenges and delivering results.
Seeing the real team
Uncertainty doesn’t destroy teams – it exposes them.
It reveals strengths, highlights weaknesses, and shows which groups are functioning effectively.
By understanding our behavioural strengths, keeping teams manageable, communicating well, staying flexible, fostering trust and psychological safety, and making full use of the team’s resources, organisations can cultivate teams that are not just surviving, but thriving in today’s unpredictable world.
About the author: Victoria Brown is the Head of R&D, Belbin Ltd. Victoria commissions and oversees internal and external research projects and leads the analysis, refinement and innovation of the Belbin inventories and reports. In 2022, she edited the third edition of Meredith Belbin’s Team Roles at Work, authoring a new chapter on the subject of virtual and hybrid teams.
Victoria has authored a range of content across the business, including white papers on Belbin in different cultures, virtual and hybrid teams and more. Her thought leadership pieces have been published in HR Director, the International Association of Project Managers, the Staff Development Forum and the Charity Learning Consortium, and she has featured as a guest speaker on a number of HR webinars and podcasts.
This article has been kindly repurposed from Belbin and you can read the original here.