From talk to action, without an outside coach.

The Story of Wouter Berkelaar

"There were so many similarities." That was our first reaction when we looked over the " Teamenergy" report together. Not because we discovered anything new, but precisely because it was so relatable. It felt as if someone had observed our team and written down exactly how we Collaborate.

That realization ensured that the report wasn’t the end point, but rather the beginning of a productive conversation. During that conversation, we kept coming back to the same question: How can we bring even more focus to our work and become more efficient? It turned out to be a much more important question than we had initially thought.

The Other Side of Harmony

We’re a small team where “ Collaborate ” comes naturally. We take a genuine interest in one another, enjoy helping each other, and the atmosphere is exceptionally good, as the test results showed. That’s a strength we’re proud of. At the same time, we discovered that there are still areas where we can improve.

Our meetings often ran long. We discussed a lot of things, but sometimes lost focus. Giving each other feedback is also an area for improvement. We’re all open to it and do give feedback, but sometimes we’re still a bit too cautious about it.

During our discussion of the test results, we realized that we could challenge each other a little more often in our work. Not to be more critical, but to help each other—and the business—move forward. Precisely because we recognized our own patterns, it became clear that we could continue to grow in our behavior. So these were valuable insights.

From Insight to Action

That was perhaps the greatest gift of the “ Teamenergy ” approach. Not the report itself, but the conversation it sparked.

We have made specific agreements. We have restructured our meetings, set AI to take minutes, and set up a tool to track actions and decisions. We also hold each other more accountable for the agreements we’ve made.

Review regularly

In addition, we’ve agreed to review our strategic goals every quarter. Are we still on track? Do new ideas align with the direction we’ve chosen as an organization? And just as important: how do we develop ourselves as a team and as individuals?

Something else also came up spontaneously. We realized that we should celebrate our successes much more often. We work hard and achieve great results, but we didn’t really take the time to reflect on them enough. Now we make a point of doing so Space . That, too, contributes to the energy and engagement within the team.

We believe in the principle of continuous learning. That’s why, in the future, we plan to reassess our progress to see what steps we’ve taken and where there’s still Space for further growth.