The reflective team is a structured conversation in a group that encourages learning on both an individual and organizational level (Madsen, 2016). The conversation unfolds on two levels 1) a conversation with a focus person and an interviewer about a situation or challenge that the focus person has experienced and wants new perspectives on; and 2) a conversation where the reflective team is present, which comprises three to four colleagues. Their purpose is to provide new perspectives, ideas, and solutions to the challenge experienced by the focus person. Hereby, the team assists the focus person in gaining a deeper understanding of the issue at hand, allowing the focus person to view the challenge from a new perspective and develop new strategies for handling the situation.
The reflective team can be understood as a think tank that broadens the focus person’s reflections on their challenge. This is based on the idea that several minds can generate better solutions than just one (Danish National School of Performing Arts). In this way, the reflective team can provide more perspectives and ideas than would be possible in a conversation between just two people.
The spatial arrangement of the conversation is as follows: The focus person and the interviewer face each other while the reflective team are positioned behind the focus person so they do not have eye contact. This arrangement might seem odd; however, the purpose is to make the focus person comfortable.
The duration of the conversation is 45-60 minutes depending on the time available and the challenge presented. The conversation alternates between listening, reflections, and questioning, and it consists of four phases.
The most important duty of the interviewer is to be attentive and ask clarifying questions, while the reflective team reflect on the challenge presented by the focus person. In phase 1, the reflective team observes and takes notes, and in phase 2 the focus person listens to the feedback and ideas that the reflective team discuss. In phase 2, the reflective team speaks about-and-not-to and without eye contact with neither the interviewer nor the focus person (Madsen, 2016).
In phase 3, the interviewer uses the perspectives from the reflective team to formulate follow-up questions for the focus person (Karlshoej & Co., 2021).
In phases 3 and 4, the focus person selects undisputedly between the statements that come from the reflective team, and the team accepts that the focus person may not – perhaps even rarely – respond to all the "pearls of wisdom" (Madsen, 2016).
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Phase 1
Phase 3
