In the first installment of the Building Your Branch series, I talked about what it means to have a successful branch team, and focused on how to combat lack of communication. The next topic I’d like to explore is how to handle differing priorities among team members, and how having a branch vision can mitigate potential conflicts.

In order for a branch to run like a well-oiled machine, the advisor, office manager, and any other additional team members in the office should all be on the same page. Occasionally, the individual responsibilities of team members can come into conflict with each other. Disagreements around whose priorities are more important can cause tension in the branch and lead to lack of trust between team members, which could ultimately cause a breakdown of the partnership.

To avoid these types of conflicts moving forward, it is key for each branch to have a clearly defined vision. The purpose of the branch should guide the overall priorities and keep all members in alignment.

There are a few easy steps you can take to create your office vision:

1. Ask each team member to answer the timeless question, “Why are we doing this?”
2. Set a group meeting with all members in the branch to review the individual answers and determine how they fit together.
3. Simplify the answer into a succinct, high-level mantra of what motivates the team to work toward the daily, monthly, and yearly goals.
4. Task each team member with finding ways to connect their individual vision with the team vision.

Having a vision can help make clear which priorities should take precedent if they are ever in conflict, and can help each of the team members maintain focus, energy, and attention on the important things that serve this vision.