Complementary Strengths vs. Interchangeable Roles

I really believe in focusing on strengths, rather than trying to shore up one's weaknesses. Often in teams, it may seem prudent to have someone trained to serve as a backup for another in case of absence; to have team members able to interchange roles. However, when it comes to sailing, and high performance teams, I question this practice.

If I were to change roles with the foredeck crew from being the skipper, it would be a freaking disaster! In fact, we tried this once on a light-wind, up-river, long distance race, just for fun. I gained a new appreciation for the work involved on the foredeck! This awareness, along with the fact that I realized that we contributed best in our chosen roles where we had practiced and honed our skills, was the real benefit of interchanging our roles.

I've heard many stories about how one crew member absent from the regular team causes havoc on the race course. When the skipper decides to mix it up and interchange roles, performance really takes a hit. In fact, I recently heard a story in the One Design racing where a C&C27 team learned this lesson the hard way. They won the first race of the season this year, with the crew in their usual roles; then last week the helmsman was absent, they mixed up the roles, and mixed up their performance as a result. It must have been bad, because they wouldn't even admit how they placed in the results!

I really feel that high performance teams gel when they have team members with complementary strengths, and they focus on their strengths, instead of putting effort towards backup or fallback plans in case of absence. It would be better to put effort on getting committed crew! Do you think America's Cup teams have crew members who interchange roles?! crew who aren't completely, utterly, totally, unquestionably committed to the team?! I don't think so!

WDYT? Do you agree? Or disagree? Share your opinion!