How Do You Build a Working Alliance Between Two Teams That Used to Operate Like Separate Ships? | A Real Conversation on Communication, Requests, and Saboteurs
Summary:
What happens when a team stops assuming how people should work together and actually designs the relationship?
This week on The UpLevel Podcast, we return to the Designed Alliance conversation between UpLevel's Brand Acceleration and Operations teams. If you missed part one, that episode focused on the human-to-human foundation between two team leads. This episode widens the circle to the full team.
We open with a shared vision exercise. Each person names what it would feel like if these two functions worked in true partnership, one crew rowing the same boat rather than departments handing things off to each other. From there, the conversation moves into something most teams avoid: naming specific, actionable requests around communication to reach real agreements that people can say yes to, no to, or counteroffer.
You will hear the team talk through email protocols, response time expectations, meeting cadence, and what to do when a saboteur voice shows up mid-project. One team member shares a vulnerable moment about self-criticism, and the group responds with the kind of care that makes this episode worth listening to. This is what building a coaching culture actually looks like in practice.
In this episode, you'll hear:
What a Designed Alliance is and why teams benefit from creating one
How Brand Acceleration and Operations can move from separate functions toward greater integration
Why shared vision should come before detailed protocols and processes
How clear requests can reduce confusion and unnecessary frustration
Why requests should allow for a yes, no, or counteroffer
How unclear expectations can activate workplace saboteurs
Creating communication agreements around email, response times, and urgent requests
Why acknowledging receipt can matter even when you do not have an immediate answer
How teams can give and receive feedback with greater clarity and care
The relationship between operational excellence and operational elegance
Why perfection cannot be the standard for a healthy team
How vulnerability can strengthen rather than weaken working relationships
What it means to be the work instead of simply talking about the work
If this conversation has you thinking about what it takes to build a culture like this on your own team, The School of UpLevel has on-demand courses designed to help you build these same skills, from coaching conversations to designing working alliances that actually hold up under pressure. You can explore what's available here: https://course.uplevelproductions.com
Order of Topics:
The High Dream
One Boat, Different Roles
Yes, No, or Counteroffer
Naming the Saboteurs
What Brings Out Our Best (and Worst)
Redesigning How We Email
How Fast Is Fast Enough
Text, Email, or Something Else
Fixing the Tools, Not Just the Habits
What a Thumbs-Up Really Means
Meeting Protocols That Stick
Role in the Bigger Picture
Scheduling in Real Time
What's Next on the Table
One Inbox to Rule Them All
Coming Back to the Vision
Elegance Over Perfection
Action Items:
Communication Agreements
Answer all questions in an email, or explicitly acknowledge which ones remain unanswered and when a full response will come.
Start a new email thread when introducing a new topic rather than adding it into an existing chain.
Reply inline, under each specific question, so it's clear which answer belongs to which question.
Use clear, specific subject lines that reflect the actual topic of the email.
Never remove anyone from CC. Always reply to all so no one loses visibility into a decision they were included on.
Add a "by when" date any time a question can't be answered immediately.
Response Time and Availability
Acknowledge receipt of an email within 48 hours, even if the full answer isn't ready yet.
Commit to full responses within 48 hours where possible, with flexibility for back-to-back meeting days.
Communicate out-of-office windows in advance so the team knows when someone is unavailable before it affects a project.
Use text only as a ping, not as a place to make full requests. Texts should say "check your inbox," not contain the actual ask.
Meeting Protocols
Request agenda items one week before each meeting, so people have time to prepare.
Send meeting notes and follow-up emails within 48 hours of each call.
Team Dynamics and Accountability
Name saboteurs out loud when they show up, rather than sitting with them alone.
Call each other out with love when an agreement is dropped, using direct, non-shaming language.
Hold a dedicated conversation on giving and receiving feedback, including how to be with each other during challenging moments, as the first topic of the next meeting.
About Chrissy, Kaitlin and Brittany:
Chrissy Bernal is a brand architect and PR strategist who helps entrepreneurs and authors build brands with intention and clarity. Based in the Greater Houston area, she's the founder of Be a Better Brand, where she works with clients on strategic marketing, PR, and brand positioning. Chrissy is also a published author, and her own journey publishing children's books shaped much of her approach to branding, giving her firsthand insight into what it takes to build a message that actually connects. She's a previous guest on The UpLevel Podcast, where she spoke on brand growth and PR for authors, and she brings that same strategic, story-first thinking to her work leading marketing at UpLevel.
Website: https://beabetterbrand.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chrissybernal/
Kaitlin Voellinger is the Director of Operations at UpLevel, where she brings structure, clarity, and steady presence to the work behind the scenes. She's known for creating safe, supportive spaces for the people around her, whether that's mentoring a colleague through a new challenge or holding the practical details that keep a team moving. Kaitlin leads with integrity and honesty at the center of everything she does, and she believes real success isn't just about hitting a goal. It's about building right relationships along the way and taking the time to actually feel the accomplishment together. She's currently co-leading UpLevel's marketing and operations alliance, bringing the same care and intention to that partnership that she brings to every part of her work.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kmaevoellinger/
Brittany Geier is an empowerment coach and guide who helps women reconnect with their inner wisdom, build self-trust, and create lives rooted in authenticity and freedom. A certified Co-Active Coach with a background in industrial engineering, Brittany draws from coaching, embodiment practices, Internal Family Systems, Somatic Experiencing, and Shamanic wisdom. Her work centers on helping women reconnect with themselves and bring their unique gifts and visions into the world.
Website: https://www.brittanygeier.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brittanygeier/
🎉 The UpLevel Podcast was listed as one of the Top 10 Best Coaching Culture Podcasts!!! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/coaching_culture_podcasts
🎉 It was also ranked #4 among the top 50 Best Workplace Mental Health Podcasts! https://podcast.feedspot.com/workplace_mental_health_podcasts
About UpLevel Productions: Founded by Christie Mann, MA, CPCC, PCC, and Rachel Baldi, CPCC, PCC, UpLevel creates, produces, and delivers Transformative Experiences, Workshops, Training, Events + Media that develop leaders who make our world a healthier, more alive, and connected place to be. As Associate CTI Faculty Partners, UpLevel is licensed to sell, produce, and deliver Co-Active coach training and leadership development programs around the world to support the transformational growth of individuals and culture inside the workplace and organization. www.uplevelproductions.com Instagram @uplevelproductions Facebook & LinkedIn @uplevelproductionscompany
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