Describe a time when you inherited a struggling team. What did you do to turn things around?

Situation: I joined a Series C company as an engineering manager and inherited a team of 8 that had gone through three managers in 18 months. Velocity was down 40%, two engineers had resigned in the prior quarter, and the rest were demoralized. The team had a reputation for missing deadlines and for internal friction. Leadership was considering splitting the team.

Task: I needed to diagnose root causes, build trust quickly, and turn the team around without making assumptions or imposing solutions from day one.

Action: I spent my first two weeks in listening mode. I had 1:1s with every team member and asked what was working, what wasn't, and what they needed. I learned the main issues: unclear priorities, no psychological safety to push back, and a sense that leadership didn't care. I shared a summary of themes (anonymized) with the team and committed to addressing them. I established a simple weekly prioritization ritual so everyone knew what mattered. I also ran a blameless retro on a recent failure to model that we'd learn, not blame. I made small, visible wins a focus—we shipped a small improvement in week 4 and celebrated it. I documented everything and kept leadership updated so they could see progress.

Result: Within four months, velocity recovered to 90% of historical levels and team NPS went from 28 to 52. No one else left. We delivered a key project that had been stalled. I learned that struggling teams often need clarity and psychological safety more than process—and that listening before acting is non-negotiable.