20. CENTRE Tool

When a new team forms, it is prudent to establish how the team will function. Another tool, CENTRE, is a team guideline that provides direction for clarifying expectations for communication and behaviors (22).

The confidentiality guideline is meant to ensure confidentiality. Discussions that occur among team members at team meetings are confidential and the team should feel secure in their agreements about confidentiality.

Each member is expected to to contribute to team decisions and discussions. All contributions should be respected, valued, and considered . This is achieved by providing everyone with equal time for input. You can support this by monitoring your own participation and using group facilitation to ask others for their input.

Non-judgmental listening is closely related to equal participation. When someone is contributing their thoughts, there should be an attempt to hear the person and understand their role on the team. You can achieve this by understanding the common ground upon which the team stands.

Timeliness is about behavior and expectations within the team. Arriving on time and ending on time are some examples of timeliness within a team. But so are following up on your contributions to the team. Teams function best when each person is accountable to the team and respectful of each other's time and contributions.

Right to pass refers to being able to pass on group decision making or giving your input. There may be times that you, or another team member, need to "pass." Teams should be open to members choosing to pass sometimes. There may be good reasons for the person choosing to pass on that decision or taking on that task. When people use their right to pass it should be accepted by the team with no questions asked. Using the right to pass is a right but should not be overused because  this may create challenges for teams and team functioning.

Being engaged means being an active participant. This can be subtle engagement like using active listening, open and responsive body language, and balancing your time between speaking and seeking input from other members. Disengagement from team members affects team efficiency because  more time is spent reviewing or revisiting key discussions and decisions.