A permanently overloaded team, with people who worked hard and intensely, but in a climate of constant tension: high-intensity conflicts that flared up and died down quickly, yet drained energy and trust. Suffocated by the volume of tasks, people had reached exhaustion, with increasingly visible demotivation — and, despite the effort, without commensurate results. The leader, in turn heavily pressed by headquarters on group-related matters, had gradually drifted away from the team’s daily reality and could no longer manage situations on the ground.

The analysis revealed several overlapping causes, beyond mere overload. Individual roles were not clearly defined, with areas of responsibility that overlapped and generated friction. Added to these were dysfunctional beliefs about what “teamwork” means — implicitly assumed, never made explicit — and a discrepancy in how people perceived their own contribution relative to results: a lot of effort, but without a clear sense of value and direction.

The intervention acted on all of these levels: clarifying roles and areas of overlap, re-establishing healthy perceptions of collaboration and responsibility within the team, and explicitly recognizing how each person contributes to the result. In parallel, we worked with the leader to reconnect their attention to the team’s reality, without ignoring the pressure from headquarters. The result: less agitation and exhaustion, clearer priorities, and a team that had regained both its direction and its motivation.

Intense effort doesn’t compensate for a lack of clarity. When people don’t know exactly what they own, how they collaborate, and why their work matters, they burn out without moving forward. The intervention restores structure and meaning — and only then does effort turn into results.