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After much research, we have updated the Team Health Monitor to one template, available for all teams, with new and improved team health attributes.

Team Health Monitor

Just as you'd see a doctor for a health check-up, signs of decreased engagement or productivity signal your team needs one too.

Atlassian's Team Health Monitor Play, developed from years of research on successful teams, offers a comprehensive assessment based on eight key attributes.

Suitable for any team size, this tool is designed to boost performance without requiring a medical degree.

Pencil icon
Prep Time
15-30 mins
Stopwatch icon
Run Time
90 mins
Connected people icon
People
3-10
Thumb icons

Team Health Monitor

Just as you'd see a doctor for a health check-up, signs of decreased engagement or productivity signal your team needs one too.

Atlassian's Team Health Monitor Play, developed from years of research on successful teams, offers a comprehensive assessment based on eight key attributes.

Suitable for any team size, this tool is designed to boost performance without requiring a medical degree.

Thumb icons
Pencil
Prep Time
15-30 MINS
Stopwatch icon
Run Time
90 mins
Connected people icon
People
3-10

Team Health Monitor

Just as you'd see a doctor for a health check-up, signs of decreased engagement or productivity signal your team needs one too.

Atlassian's Team Health Monitor Play, developed from years of research on successful teams, offers a comprehensive assessment based on eight key attributes.

Suitable for any team size, this tool is designed to boost performance without requiring a medical degree.

Pencil icon
Prep Time
15-30 mins
Stopwatch icon
Run Time
90 mins
Connected people icon
People
3-10
Thumb icons

Health Monitors


The Health Monitor is your team's chance to take an honest look in the mirror. You'll assess your team against the eight attributes most commonly found among healthy teams. At the end of Health Monitor session, you'll identify strengths to exploit as well as challenge areas to grow.

Anybody can run a Health Monitor session, so don't wait for some directive from on high.

Read why Health Monitors help your team Copy link to heading Copied! show

As a leadership team, you are a multiplier. You have many people looking to you for inspiration and direction. You produce work that is visionary and strategic instead of tactical and operational. Your leadership team might consist of senior executives charged with increasing customer engagement by 30% this year. Or it might be a collection of junior leaders from across the company whose teams are taking your product to market in a new country.

Over the years, we've observed eight attributes common amongst healthy leadership teams. This Health Monitor is a chance for your team to get a reading on each of them – to check your vital signs, if you will. From there, you can run other plays that change the way you work so you're building muscle in your weak areas, and follow up with quick checkpoints to track your progress.

Although the leadership team Health Monitor is most effective when run at the start of an initiative, you can run it at any point. For longer-term initiatives, we recommend running the full leadership Health Monitor play every three months, with quick checkpoints every 2 weeks.

Bring all members of your leadership team. Remember: these are the people responsible for directing the day-to-day work involved in this initiative – not the ones executing it.

Team performing a health monitor

See how it works in under 60 seconds

What you'll need

Video conferencing with screen sharing

Digital collaboration tool (see templates)

Butcher paper for in-person

Red, Yellow, Green markers

Notepads

Optional templates

Atlassian Templates
Other Templates

What is a team health check?

Team health checks or team health monitors are like medical check-ups for a team's wellbeing, focusing on emotional wellness, relationships, work-life balance, and efficiency.

The goal is to identify and address issues that may affect functionality and productivity by evaluating metrics like happiness, morale, communication, trust, and psychological safety.

The 8 attributes of healthy teams

According to our years-long research and our work across hundreds of teams internally and externally, we have ascertained 8 attributes that make for a healthy and effective team.

1. Team cohesion

We have the mutual trust and respect necessary to be an effective team for healthy collaboration. We have a strong sense of connectedness between members.

2. Balanced team

We have the right people, with the right skills, in the right clearly-defined roles. This enables us to successfully deliver the value for which this team is accountable.

3. Encouraging difference

We seek and voice different viewpoints from diverse sources, both internally and externally, and we take the time to respectfully work through points of difference.

4. Shared understanding

We share an understanding of our mission and purpose and our key milestones to deliver our strategic plan effectively as a team.

5. Value and metrics

We understand the value we provide and the value back to the business, our definition of success and how that value is tracked and measured. We ultimately leverage our metrics to make decisions and action as necessary.

6. Suitable ways of working

Our ways of working together within the team enable us to do our jobs effectively, whether we are distributed or co-located. This includes the tools we use, how we meet and collaborate, and how we make decisions.

7. Engagement and support

It's clear to other teams how and when to engage with us, teams do this effectively and consistently receive the support they need to progress. We have a clear understanding of who we depend on, and who depends on us. 

8. Continuous improvement

We always make time to celebrate our successes as well as earnestly reflect on, take action against, and fulfil our improvement opportunities. We have regular and intentional feedback loops within and outside of the team to make improvement decisions.


What are the eight attributes of healthly teams?

According to Atlassian’s years-long research and our work across hundreds of teams internally and externally, we have ascertained eight attributes that make for a healthy and effective team. They are:

  1. Team cohesion: We have the mutual trust and respect necessary to be an effective team for healthy collaboration. We have a strong sense of connectedness between members.
  2. Balanced team: We have the right people, with the right skills, in the right clearly-defined roles. This enables us to successfully deliver the value for which this team is accountable.
  3. Encouraging difference: We seek and voice different viewpoints from diverse sources, both internally and externally, and we take the time to respectfully work through points of differences.
  4. Shared understanding: We share an understanding of our mission and purpose and our key milestones to deliver our strategic plan effectively as a team.
  5. Value and metrics: We understand the value we provide and the value back to the business, our definition of success and how that value is tracked and measured. We ultimately leverage our metrics to make decisions and action as necessary.
  6. Suitable ways of working: Our ways of working together within the team enable us to do our jobs effectively, whether we are distributed or co-located. This includes the tools we use, how we meet and collaborate, and how we make decisions.
  7. Engagement and support: It's clear to other teams how and when to engage with us, teams do this effectively and consistently receive the support they need to progress. We have a clear understanding of who we depend on, and who depends on us. 
  8. Continuous improvement: We always make time to celebrate our successes as well as earnestly reflect on, take action against, and fulfill our improvement opportunities. We have regular and intentional feedback loops within and outside of the team to make improvement decisions.

When should you run a Team Health Monitor?

We recommend running a Team Health Monitor on a quarterly cadence to help move along your journey to becoming a dream team.


3 benefits of engaged teams

Quarterly health monitors can help harness the benefits of engaged teams. According to Gallup, engaged teams have the following:

  1. Higher profitability: Companies with highly engaged employees are 21% more profitable than companies with disengaged employees.
  2. Reduction in turnover rates: Companies with engaged employees experience a 43% reduction in turnover rates.
  3. Incrased productivity: Engaged teams are 18% more productive than low engagement teams.

How to perform a team health check

5-SECOND SUMMARY
  • Assess the team’s health against the eight attributes of successful teams
  • Select three attributes to focus on
  • Brainstorm solutions and create an improvement plan

1. Initiate a Team Health Monitor Play 5 MIN

As the meeting facilitator, book 90 minutes with your team to run this Play. Send a brief description of the Play and review the attributes. Prepare the meeting based on your setup:

  • Remote setup: Copy our template and invite your team.
  • In-person setup: Gather writing materials (butcher paper, whiteboard), red, yellow, and green markers, and notepads

The facilitator is also responsible for running the Play. It’s optional to assign a notetaker or let the facilitator be that as well.

EXAMPLE EMAIL TO ThE TEAM

Hi Team!

I recently sent out a calendar invite for a Team Health Monitor Play. The purpose of this Play is to evaluate our team’s health based on the eight attributes of successful teams. This workshop will take approximately 90 minutes.

Here’s a quick preview of the eight attributes we’ll be assessing against:

1. Team cohesion

2. Balanced team

3. Encouraging difference

4. Shared understanding

5. Value and metrics

6. Suitable ways of working

7. Engagement and support

8. Continuous improvement

You don’t need to prepare anything in advance. Please come to the meeting ready to participate.

Thank you!

Tip: For Bigger Groups

If your team includes 8 or more people, you might want to divide into sub-groups and work through the initial ratings for each attribute. Then, come back together and converge on full-team ratings.

2. Share the agenda and rules of the road 2 MIN

At the start of the meeting, reiterate the purpose of the Health Monitor is to assess how well your team is working together and identify next steps to improve.

Next, you’ll want to share the workshop agenda and rules of the road.

AGENDA
  • 5 min: Intro / Rules of the Road / Questions
  • 35 min: Health Monitor Assessment (~8 min per attributed)
  • 10 min: Prioritize Attributes / Identify Top 3
  • 20 min: Breakout Session - Brainstorm Solutions and Next Steps
  • 15 min: Group Reportouts / Action Items / Next Steps
RULES OF THE ROAD

 

1. You are present and attentive.

2. You are honest. Accept that we all see the world through a different lens and embrace those differences.

3. Listen with an intent to understand, not correct.

4. Take the spirit of the attributes. Ask questions if you need clarification don’t look down at your team/function.

5. Don’t sit on the fence.

6. I (the facilitator) talk less than you.

7. We are not comparing teams! Your results are for you alone. And if you do get a few reds and yellows, don't be disheartened - this is perfectly normal as teams evolve and it is unlikely it'll ever be all green. This exercise is about helping your team identify opportunities for improvement.

8. Always remember the retrospective prime directive: Regardless of what we discover, we understand and truly believe that everyone did the best job they could, given what they knew at the time, their skills and abilities, the resources available, and the situation at hand.

 

3. Establish voting criteria 2 MIN

Each of your participants will be asked to vote how well they think the team is doing against attributes with:

  • “thumbs up” (green)
  • “thumbs sideways (yellow)
  • “thumbs down” (red).


Your team's perspective on red, yellow, and green will be unique. Use your intuition, and don't worry about establishing standardized criteria for each color—that only distracts from the discussion.

Explain to your team that when an attribute is being considered, the team will be asked to add their vote through a thumbs up, sideways, or down.

In the case of an in-person meeting, a notetaker should record the votes on a piece of butcher paper or whiteboard that all can see.

Tip: Don’t Settle

If your team tends to "settle" or call something "okay” when it really isn't, start with red as the default rating for all attributes, and make groups justify their way to a green rating.

4. Vote and capture feedback for each attribute 35 MIN

Now it’s time for the facilitator to follow these instructions to run the health monitor assessment:

  • Read the attribute. As a facilitator, use the list above or our template to read each attribute and the description.
  • Ask the team to reflect on how they will vote on each attribute. It’s best to hold off on voting until everyone is ready so that you avoid groupthink and bias.
  • As a group, vote at the same time. If you are in-person, do a countdown before voting with thumbs. If you’re remote, try to cast your vote without being influenced by others.
  • While thoughts are fresh, ask the team to take 1-2 minutes to capture their thoughts or feedback. Try to encourage everyone to capture “why” they voted the way they did and whatever comes top of mind. This helps us capture feedback as we go, especially since it’s unlikely the team will cover all attributes.
  • Quick 2-3 minutes to discuss top-of-mind thoughts. This will help tease out any nuances to the voting, or be an opportunity for everyone to understand the “temperature” of the result to help with voting on the next step.
  • Once some thoughts are captured, move on to the next attribute. Plan on spending 5 minutes on each attribute.

EXAMPLE IN-PERSON VOTE
Health monitor in person
IN person health monitor
EXAMPLE Remote VOTE
Health monitor remote
Remote health monitor
Tip: Questions To Prompt Discussions
  • Why did you vote the way you did for this attribute?
  • What feedback on this attribute are you curious about or would like to learn more?
  • Why do you think others voted this way?

5. Reflect and vote on the top three attributes 10 MIN

Review all the votes and feedback, pick 1-3 areas that the team would like to actively work on and improve.

These could be obvious areas that had red or yellow scores, or they could be areas that the team all assumed were green, but have some red votes.

EXAMPLE REMOTE REFLECTION
Health monitor in person
Top attributes

6. Brainstorm solutions 20 MIN

Next, divide the team into three groups— one to brainstorm solutions for each priority attribute. Give each group 15- 20 mins to discuss solutions, document and share them. Here are a few questions to answer in the brainstorm session:

  • What is the problem?
  • What does success look like in six months?
  • What actions could we take to reach that outcome?
  • What action will we take NOW?
EXAMPLE BRAINSTORM SESSION
Health monitor in person

7. Create an improvement plan 15 MIN

Share action items, assign owners, and define next steps. To keep the momentum going, schedule routine check-ins to track progress. Facilitators should thank the team for their effort. High-performing teams thrive on collective effort, just like in a Health Monitor Play.


Follow-up

Set a regular cadence for Health Monitor checkpoints. Are your reds and yellows moving toward green? Have any of your greens slipped into the red? Celebrate your wins and address your challenges. Regular checks help keep momentum high and catch problem areas before they become too damaging.


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Still have questions?

Start a conversation with other Atlassian Team Playbook users, get support, or provide feedback.

Still have questions?

Start a conversation with other Atlassian Team Playbook users, get support, or provide feedback.

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We will take you step-by-step through a Health Monitor, record results, and recommend next steps for your team.

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Tips for facilitating a Health Monitor

Setting the context Copy link to heading Copied! Show

The purpose of the Health Monitor is to assess how well your team is working together. Brutal honesty is the key here. It's not all doom and gloom, though: you'll uncover good things too, and exchange some high-fives…

You'll be assessing your health strictly within the context of the project you're working on. There are no right or wrong answers, and everyone's opinion is equal.

During the Health Monitor Copy link to heading Copied! Show

If your team includes 8 or more people, you might want to divide into sub-groups and work through the initial ratings for each attribute. Then, come back together and converge on full-team ratings.

If you're new to the Health Monitor, it helps to display the names and descriptions of the eight attributes on a screen, so the team can see them easily.

How you think about red, yellow and green will be unique to your team. Use your intuition and don't worry about establishing standardized criteria for each color – that only distracts from the discussion.

Make sure each person has a voice and a chance to contribute to their group's ratings individually before moving into whole-team discussions.

If your team members tend to "settle" or call something "okay” when it really isn't, start with red as the default rating for all attributes, and make groups justify their way to a green rating.

Resist the temptation to solve problems, and just focus on observations.

Next steps Copy link to heading Copied! Show

Set a regular cadence for Health Monitor checkpoints. Are your reds and yellows moving toward green? Have any of your greens slipped into the red? Regular checks help keep momentum high and catch problem areas before they become destructive.

Some teams incorporate checkpoints into an existing team ritual, like a weekly team meeting. Other teams periodically replace rituals like sprint retrospectives or stand-ups with a checkpoint. But you can schedule the checkpoints separately, if need be.

For the checkpoint, pull up your Health Monitor grid. Have the full team assess how they're doing on each attribute using the same red/yellow/green ratings.

Pay special attention to the attributes you chose to focus on during the full Health Monitor session. When one goes green, choose a new focus and look for plays that will help. Remember: the plays are different ways of going about your daily work, which means you can run them even if you aren't struggling. Preventative care works for teams just like it works for our bodies!