Team Diagnostic for
Start-ups

The Team Diagnostic for Startups is the only researched team assessment specifically developed for Startups and scaleups. It focuses on the 6 key success factors required in the design of a startup or scale up leadership team, which together can account for up to 80% of a team's effectiveness and impact.

The 6 Success factors were identified by bringing together decades of research into high performing teams, and the unique requirements of startups. We found that if startup teams continued to focus on these 6 factors, it would give their team a greater chance of becoming and remaining a high performing team.

The TDFS is the only assessment that has been designed to address the specific factors that need to be in place to ensure you have an effective team that can in turn lead a growing business. Most other assessments of team design do not take into account the unique challenges that startup teams face. Or, they focus on personality and skill mix. These are important, however will not address the challenges a badly designed team will experience.

Team design is about thoughtfully ensuring you have aligned the right people to do the right work using practices and team strategies that respond to the changing pressures placed on the startup team. It goes deeper than traditional team building and has greater impact.

We cannot promise you that by completing the TDFS, your business will be a success. What we can offer a belief and experience that if you focus on how you work together as a leadership team, you create the conditions to lead a successful business.

Each team receives their own TDFS report which includes a collection of team improvement suggestions based on your team results. Your results are also shared with you through a 45 - 60 minute coaching call with an experienced TDFS coach.

No. The skills and competence you need on your leadership team will differ depending on your product or service offering, business context and strategy. The TDFS will support you once you have identified the right people for your leadership team.

The minimum size leadership team that would benefit from the TDFS is 3.

Having a trained coach debrief or facilitate your results ensures that you have both a deep understanding of how effective your team is, as well as develop an action plan to improve your team’s performance. A coach will help you ensure that completing the TDFS delivers tangible benefits to your team and business performance.

This feedback process, although an extra step, adds real value to your TDFS experience. This is not only our view, but also feedback from the teams who have already gone through the TDFS. 

Ideally, your team should have spent three months working together. This is long enough to start developing team norms and practices that are assessed in the TDFS.

 A team that is just starting out can benefit from you using the TDFS canvas. This is freely available and provides a number of thought starters as you build your team and business.

After each member of your team has completed the TDFS, we will arrange for a certified coach to arrange a call with you and your team to debrief the results. They will then arrange to provide you with your report. The debrief is a critical, and many so most valuable aspect of the TDFS process.

Having a trained coach debrief or facilitate your results ensures that you have both a deep understanding of how effective your team is as well as develop an action plan to improve your team’s performance. A coach will help you ensure that completing the TDFS delivers tangible benefits to your team and business performance.

This feedback process, although an extra step, adds real value to your TDFS experience. This is not only our view, but also feedback from the teams who have already gone through the TDFS.

The TDFS costs USD $995 per team. It does not matter how big your team is.

It is important that the coach that debrief’s you has a thorough understanding of the 6 Success Factors and the underlying 6 Team Conditions framework. That is why we will match you with a certified coach. We would be more than happy to explore certification with your existing coach.

It is better if all members of the leadership team attend the debrief. This will allow for a sharing of perspectives and developing agreements going forward.

Short answer is no. The TDFS process is not designed as a due diligence tool. The reason is that teams may answer the assessment so that they “look good”. We have an alternative and more comprehensive approach, the Team Diagnostic for Investors which can be used for due diligence.

We also do not make any recommendations whether you should invest in a team or not.

Our experience has been that this could be too early in the life of the start up. We have found that early stage incubators, or those teams involved in an accelerator programme, are still working through the development of their idea and whether it is a viable business. 

Even at such an early stage, founders will benefit from using the TDFS canvas.

Yes. We can further work with you to arrange either individual team debriefs, a session with the team leaders or a blend.

Yes we do. Get in contact with us and we can explore the various options with you.

If you are already a certified 6 Team Conditions practitioner, you need to complete a bridging learning module. After that we will add the TDFS to your 6 Team Conditions account. 

If you are not already 6 Team Conditions certified, you can do that today, online here.

The TDFS is designed for startup and scale-ups. If an enterprise has been around for a few years, or there are now multiple layers to the organization, and the size of the team has grown beyond around five, it may be more appropriate to use the TDS. If you are unsure, get in touch and we can explore the options for the team you are supporting.