There is a clear and direct connection between effective leadership and team performance. Gallup’s 2024 State of the Global Workplace report underscores this relationship, revealing that managers account for a staggering 70 percent of the variance in team employee engagement. Yet, with only 23 percent of global employees actively engaged, the statistics paint a picture of poor leadership.

In today’s workplace, success is no longer about individual performance. It’s about building teams that work cohesively, communicate effectively, and share a sense of purpose. But how do you create a high-performance team? Is there a scientific formula to unlock team success? The short answer is yes—team building is both an art and a science, and the best leaders use a combination of research-backed strategies and intuitive people skills to cultivate strong teams.

Google has spent years, collected tons of data, and invested millions trying to better understand its people. One of its most prolific projects, Project Aristotle, aimed to crack the code on what makes a team super effective.

Google's big question: Why do some teams excel while others flop?