WORKPLACE EXCELLENC THROUGH A VIBRANT TEAM CULTURE
The strength of a workplace is in essence the quality of a team climate. Employee satisfaction survey testify this. A good manager in one branch may spike the satisfaction level and vice versa. Hence Client Companies have team building training as a mandatory feature in their training calendars. I've discovered there are a few essential ingredients that consistently crop up in creating high performance teams.
Listed below are the top things a team leader can do to create a great workplace and energize
and motivate employees to extraordinary performance:
1) COMMUNICATION:
Open, honest communication between team members and
the team leader about an organization's vision and clearly defined goals. Not
to mention a team leader needs training in people skills and how to manage
people effectively. Most team leaders are promoted based on their "hard
skills" or technical skills, but it doesn't mean they can create high
performance teams. They must become effective at communicating, listening and
resolving conflict. And everyone on the team needs training in conflict resolution
and how to be an effective communicator. Each team member has been raised
differently from childhood in terms of what's acceptable communication. So
training helps to keep the team leader and team members on the same page. The
key is in becoming tactfully direct.
2) PURPOSE AND DIRECTION.
They have clearly defined goals, objectives and
responsibilities. When I go into an organization and conduct team building
training, team leaders tell me all the time how important it is for teams to
understand their roles, expectations, and responsibilities. Team members want
to know what specific goals and objectives they're being evaluated on. Make
sure the performance objectives are measurable, quantifiable, and in writing
for accountability. Have goals and objectives for the team as a whole as well
as for each team member and include everyone on these goals. For example, if
team members are in sales, a goal states in writing that each of them are to
develop ten new accounts representing gross sales of at least rupees
twenty lacs by December 31 of this year.
3) ACCOUNTABILITY & SENSE OF OWNERSHIP
active participation, accountability and sense of
ownership on the team leader's end as well as from the team members. Being a
more powerful leader means being an involved leader. Participation and
ownership also sets a precedent for what's expected of each team player -
teamwork. One contributor to low team morale is when one or two team members
hide out in the success of the rest of the team. Everyone else is doing the
work. I guarantee you this is not going unnoticed. Hold everyone to the same
high standards. Start taking progressive disciplinary action if a team member
is not doing his or her job. If you don't take progressive disciplinary action
you'll lose credibility as a team leader who enables poor performance.
4) TRUST
Trust between team members and the team leader.
Effective team leaders are listeners. They solicit feedback and listen to
employees' concerns and suggestions. It's difficult for a team to be productive
if there isn't trust between the team members and the team leader. Always do
what you say you are going to do.That one thing you promise your team that you
can't deliver will be the one thing they remember. In being a team leader and
managing people, as the saying goes, "They remember your last act."
Many employees don't quit their jobs. They quit their team leaders and
managers.
5) TEAM LEARNING
Strong, effective leadership filtering down is
essential to effective team building and creating high performance teams. A
team leader must possess the ability to coach. Having a "coach
mentality" and helping team members to grow, develop and mature is a
necessary skill. It's part of your job! Don't do everything for your team
members otherwise they never learn to do things themselves. Even if you're
thinking, "Well, if I want it done right I might as well do it
myself." Look at the word "team leader." You are there to lead.
6.
CONNECTIONS
A cohesive work team can only add value if it pays attention
to the ongoing development of three important connections: to the larger work
organization, to team members, and to other work teams.
When a work team is connected to the organization, members discuss team
performance in relationship to corporate priorities, customer feedback, and
quality measures. They consider team needs in light of what's good for the
whole organization and what will best serve joint objectives. Leaders can
encourage such connection by keeping communication lines open. Management
priorities, successes, and headaches should flow one way; team needs,
successes, and questions should flow in the other direction.
When a work team has developed strong connections among its own members, peer
support manifests itself in many ways. Colleagues volunteer to help without
being asked, cover for each other in a pinch, congratulate each other publicly,
share resources, offer suggestions for improvement, and find ways to celebrate
together. A few ideas for developing and maintaining such connections are:
allow time before and after meetings for brief socialization, schedule team
lunches, create occasional team projects outside of work, circulate member
profiles, take training together, and provide feedback to one another on
development.
Teams that connect well with other work groups typically think of those groups
as "internal customers". They treat requests from these colleagues
with the same respect shown to external customers. They ask for feedback on how
they can better serve them. They engage in win/win negotiating to resolve
differences, and they share resources such as training materials, videos,
books, equipment, or even improvement ideas. To build stronger connections with
other groups, work teams might consider: scheduling monthly cross-departmental
meetings, inviting representatives to their own team meeting,
"lending" personnel during flu season, and combining efforts on a
corporate or community project.
To compete effectively, leaders must fashion a network of skilled employees who
support each other in the achievement of corporate goals and the delivery of
seamless service.
with best compliments
Dr Wilfred Monteiro
www.synergymanager.net
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