Ten Tips for Teams

A well established and cohesive team is powerful. Teams foster a healthy workplace culture, and help your employees to cultivate a sense of camaraderie and group strength in the workplace. Are you looking for some key tips that can enhance your team and take them to the next level? We’ve got you covered with these ten tips for teams.

Ten Tips for Teams

1. Ensure project clarity

Clearly defined roles and project goals instill a strong sense of direction for your team. This helps a team to focus, and to rally together in order to get to that finish line on time and with gusto.

2. Equip your team with all necessary resources

One of the number one causes for project failure or team inefficiency is an outright lack of resources. Team members may not have all of the information they need, or may not be able to access other team members for tasks that require collaboration. Make absolutely sure your team has the tools it needs.

3. Foster frequent and healthy communication

Don’t make the mistake of declaring a “team” and then sequestering each of its members into their own little cubicles! Consistent team communication is vital for getting all of the great advantages of a diverse team, so be sure to include specific time set aside for cooperative collaboration.

4. Don’t squash individuality

Remember that team is not synonymous with hivemind. A team works together to reach goals, but don’t deprive the team of the advantages of a diverse workplace culture and individual strengths.

5. Resolve conflicts

It’s only natural for team members to find some friction during the stresses of tackling a big, important project. Conflicts should be mediated carefully and quickly — find out why the conflict exists, what needs to be done to resolve it, and then act on it.

6. Remember that the leader is still part of the team

Active leadership ensures you don’t come across as a taskmaster, and helps to keep you on-hand if the rest of the team requires leadership guidance, further clarity, or just another point of view on a particular facet of the project.

7. Avoid excessive micromanagement

Participation is key for a leader, but overly micromanaging is not. Not only is it an inefficient use of your time, it also puts excessive pressure on the members of your team, and stifles their particular talents and creativity. What’s the point of a team if you’re trying to do it all yourself?

8. Consistently seek feedback

It’s not always the easiest thing to keep track of how well a team is operating together. There are just too many moving parts! Is the project on target for time, do your team members work cohesively, is there any friction, is anyone lacking a sense of purpose or a defined goal? In order to make answering these questions easier, make time for feedback frequently. Meetings, comment boxes, one-on-ones — all of these are a great idea.

9. Reward effective teamwork

Teams are strong because they band together in order to share the workload and tackle challenges together. When a team shows signs of excellent camaraderie, be sure to reward that behavior in order to reinforce it. Dinner, a party, or even just formal verbal recognition goes a long way in making your team feel appreciated!

10. Review the effectiveness of your team

After the team finishes a project, take the time to look over the lifespan of the task as a whole. Identify sticking points or team weaknesses and take note of particular strengths so that you can focus on where your team needs to grow, and what it’s best at doing.

Utilize these ten tips for teams and help maximize your teams potential!