The world has been irrevocably changed by the pandemic.
After a long and challenging year of lockdowns, we are coming out of a recession, out of a pandemic, and into a new era with new challenges and new opportunities for those who can think ahead. As managers and business owners start to reopen offices to their employees (and employees are able to return), a key part of being prepared for this transition is having collaborative teams that can function without being on-site every day.
As a manager, you know it's important to have an effective and collaborative team. This can be difficult, especially with the fast-paced nature of today's workplace. There are five factors that are key for building productive teams.
In the past, teams have worked together to achieve results. Today, if you want to lead a successful team and grow a business, that's not enough. Teams need to work together to develop solutions that push their companies forward. Team members must be willing and able to collaborate on innovative ideas, not just perform their individual tasks. The best leaders do more than lead teams; they cultivate cultures of collaboration in their organizations.
Creating the culture of collaboration begins with recognizing that every person is unique: they have different viewpoints and perspectives on work issues, they bring different skills and capabilities to the table, and they express themselves differently. To form an effective team, these differences must be respected and leveraged. When a leader sets the stage by making it clear that each individual's contributions are valued and that diversity among team members is not only accepted but encouraged, it paves the way for genuine collaboration and teamwork.
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Make sure that you're setting your team up for success from the beginning. In my experience, it's best to set clear expectations and then provide constant feedback and reinforcement as needed.
This can take many forms, but at its core, it means creating a culture where people feel comfortable asking questions and seeking help. Instead of being embarrassed when people ask questions, you should encourage them to do so.
If team members have an issue with working in a remote environment or aren't sure how to approach conflict resolution on video calls, they should feel comfortable raising these issues and getting support from their manager.
One of the most important things you can do as a manager is to celebrate your team's successes. This makes people feel good about their work, encourages them to keep working hard and shows them that there are rewards for their efforts.
Everyone likes to feel like their hard work is recognized and appreciated, so don't forget to recognize your team members for individual wins — both small and large. When you celebrate a team win together, consider who contributed what and reward those contributions appropriately, even if they're not big enough to merit a bonus on their own.
Recognizing your team's successes can also build loyalty and make them more likely to stick around in the long run.
To continue to drive engagement despite all the odds, managers and employees need to work together. You know your team better than anyone else, so it's up to you to identify their strengths and weaknesses and make sure that they're in the best position for success. It's also important that you communicate the company's goals and expectations clearly. What does your company want? How are you going to get there? What do you expect from everyone on your team?
Once you have a sense of what makes each team member tick, make sure they have opportunities to share their ideas. Employees who participate in decision-making tend to be more engaged in both their work and the overall direction of the company. They'll be able to propose solutions that might go unnoticed if they're not given a platform—and both they and their colleagues will feel more included in the process.
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In today’s world, technology can facilitate team collaboration in numerous ways. Conferencing software, online collaboration tools, instant messaging software and more are used to keep employees connected and collaborating from wherever they happen to be working. To help you get an idea of the many different types of technology that exist to support teamwork and collaboration, here are several examples:
Takeaway: Teamwork truly is the key to success, especially in today’s workplace.
In many ways, teamwork is more important than ever. We know that when people work together, growth and innovation can happen at a greater rate, but also with less risk; Coordinating efforts among a group of people who share the same goal is one of the key elements in business success today. But collaborative teams cannot be built overnight.
You must remember, collaboration is a habit and every tiny effort at the workplace counts in building great collaborative teams. It's about creating an environment where people feel safe to share their ideas with one another or ask for help when they need it.
Bonus: Regular team building activities are one of the greatest ways to promote collaboration and teamwork. Partner with us to unleash the fullest potential of your team with the help of fun and engaging experiences
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