How to stand out in a large team

I remember  being a young associate in Big Accounting, being thrown on 30+ people engagement teams, with no idea who was who, who to talk to, where to go, what to say…Never mind communicating effectively…Amazon’s Jeff Bezos had a golden rule: if your team comprises more people than it takes to eat two pizzas, that may be just too much…Well, depending on the eating capacity of your attendees, this may shift a bit, but you get the drift…

Unfortunately, not all of us work for Jeff Bezos, or Amazon, and not all of us like pizza. End result: many of us end up being lost in teams that are too big, too unproductive, and too ineffective. And there’s never enough pizza… Yet, since not all of us get to work in optimal environments for us, here are a few ways to stand out in large teams ( and still manage to get a slice of pizza):

1. Be yourself! It’s easy enough to blend in into a large team and go unnoticed. Be yourself, volunteer for opportunities and show your talents.

2. Ask, ask, ask! Seek opportunities, do not just sit on the sidelines waiting to be assigned tasks. Ask who needs help with what. I still remember a brand new staff, straight out of college, who sent a mass email to the entire team asking if anyone needed any help because she was tired of re-arranging her cube multiple times. She’s now on the fast track to partner.

3. Receive gracefully! As much as you may need to ask for assignments if you haven’t been assigned anything, be also willing to tackle any tasks. Part of making yourself indispensable to a large team is being able to pick up the slack fast and efficiently. And if that means making copies for the group, so be it!

4. Voice your concerns! One of the impediments of working in large teams is how slow the process can be. Voice your opinion, but always accompany any concerns you may have with at least 2 suggestions for improvement.

5. Be open! From working with people you’ve never worked with to switching projects on a last minute notice, be open to change and learn to adapt quicly.

6. Be flexible! In the same token, show flexibility with people and with the work. Bureaucracy and rigid methods are lethal in teams, especially large ones.

7. Have fun! A large team presents many challenges, but also offers many opportunities. Take advantage of them! Get to know and network with people, seek high-profile assignments, roll up your sleeves and offer to help anyone! And in the meantime, learn and have fun!

How do you stand out in large teams?

The Corporate Sis.