What does it take to lead a Team of Teams? With the layers of complexity and unpredictability that are omnipresent these days, a different approach to leadership is needed. Neither a command-and-control style nor a laissez-faire style of leadership can successfully get the most out of their teams and people. A Team of Teams can only be led by a gardener.
McChrystal Group Chief Marketing Officer, Danielle Tenconi, was joined by Dr. Kevin Claypool, Head of McChrystal Group Academy, and Bob Johnson, Chief Legal Officer & General Counsel at USAA, for a conversation on how leaders can move beyond the heroic commander myth to build organizations that adapt, learn, and thrive.
Drawing on real-world examples and decades of leadership experience between the three, the discussion reframed leadership as gardening by first: setting conditions and creating the environment for success, then removing obstacles, and ultimately nurturing the growth of teams.
This conversation draws on the Team of Teams lens and the gardener metaphor outlined in the article published, “From Commander to Gardener”.
Key themes
- From Commander to Gardener: Leadership that cultivates conditions beats leadership that controls activity.
- Eight Gardener Principles in Practice: Purpose, breaking up hard soil, monitoring the weather, planting seeds well, providing nutrients, watering with cadence, tending growth, and pruning.
- Lead With Love and Accountability: Compassion and clear standards are not opposites; they’re complementary.
- Shared Consciousness at Scale: Team alignment and trust come from consistent routines, open cross-communication, and awareness of individual styles.
- Pruning Without Fear: Addressing performance issues protects morale; avoiding them erodes trust.
- Adaptation ≠ Whiplash: Strategy endures, but execution flexes to meet new realities.
Watch the full conversation and explore how to Lead like a Gardener—especially in a complex and fast-moving environment.
“It’s not about controlling everything. It’s about creating the conditions for people and teams to thrive.”
– Dr. Kevin Claypool
The Gardener Mindset: Eight Principles Leaders Can Use
These eight principles are adapted from McChrystal Group’s “From Commander to Gardener”, part of the Team of Teams 10-Year campaign.
- One Team, Always One. A clear rallying cry - “Semper Unus (Always One)” -and a simple operating code: RESPECT behaviors (Responsive, Execute “what-by-when,” Share/Collaborate, Proactive, Empathetic, Communicate with Clarity, Teamwork).
- Lead With Love… And Standards. “You can still have hard conversations and hold people accountable—in a way that’s safe so folks bring their best self to work.”
- Routines that Scale Culture. Annual All-CLO Days (600 people, 3 days), skip-levels, and office walk-throughs keep a distributed team connected and consistent.
- Shared Consciousness > Hierarchy. The big unlock: improve cross-communication (between levels and peer-to-peer) so information doesn’t bottleneck at the top.
- Owner’s Manuals. Leaders must take time to understand how each team member thinks, decides, and prefers to communicate so they can lead with empathy, clarity, and effectiveness across differences.
- Upskilling for the Now. Targeted development keeps the team productive and future ready.
If you’re noticing the dripping faucet, others are too. Inaction hurts morale more than a tough, consistent decision.” – Bob Johnson
When Values Meet Reality: Pruning Without a Fear Culture
Leaders often hesitate to address performance issues for fear of damaging morale. But the conversation reframed pruning as an act of care—not punishment.
- Clarity Builds Safety: When expectations are clear and consistently upheld, pruning doesn’t feel punitive—it feels protective.
- Avoid the Fear Excuse: Leaders sometimes tell themselves a story that acting will create fear. But inaction breeds confusion, resentment, and mistrust.
- Coach First, Then Act: Compassionate accountability means giving people a chance to grow—but not avoiding hard decisions when growth doesn’t happen.
- Explain the Why: Transparency about the purpose behind a tough call helps teams move from anxiety to understanding.
Adaptation Without Whiplash
Adaptive leadership does not mean constant strategy pivots.
The North Star stays the North Star. You adapt your approach and pace as the weather changes.” – Dr. Kevin Claypool
Use operating rhythms to keep the lights on; flex tactics to meet reality.
Quotes to Carry Forward
Create the conditions for growth; don’t control the growth.” – Dr. Kevin ClaypoolAlways One: a clear, shared identity turns a distributed org into a team.” – Bob Johnson
Start now; experience will teach the last mile.” – Dr. Kevin Claypool
Continue the Conversation
- Explore the gardener leadership framework in McChrystal Group’s “From Commander to Gardener”.
- Access more tools and reflections from McChrystal Group’s Conversations on Leadership series.
- Watch our 3-Part Video Series on Building Trust, offering practical tools and examples to deepen one of the gardener’s most essential conditions.
- For leaders looking to go deeper, our article on psychological safety explores how to create environments where candor and accountability can coexist.
