No one said that building an effective team is easy!
Having a successful team in your company is essential to helping your business to thrive.
Needless to say, it’s crucial to get it right.
Whether you are building a new team at work or leading a team that creates success, we have some tips to help you along the way.
How to build a successful team for your business
Hiring and Onboarding
Hiring the right people is one of the most important things you can do to build a successful work team.
Here at Your People Partners, we talk a lot about culture fit. Finding new hires based on their values and beliefs can outweigh their skillset and what’s mentioned on their CV.
It’s important to remember that a team built up of people who share the same values as the company they work for will be far more effective in helping the business thrive.
Get to know candidates during the interview stage by asking questions that encourage genuine answers.
Questions like:
‘What are you most passionate about?’ will gain a more insightful and genuine answer than the typical ‘Why do you think you are a good fit for this role?’.
The best companies hire for attitude and personality. The attitude can be great, but the applicant’s personality must fit the culture (Shep Kyken).
Onboarding new employees should also remain a top priority regarding team building.
Take time to allow your new employee to meet the rest of the team.
Allowing some freedom for your other employees to introduce themselves on a more casual basis, such as ‘coffee and chat’ situations, will be beneficial to helping those relationships build naturally.
It will also allow your newest hire to feel like a part of the team within a shorter amount of time.
Define your company goals and purpose
A clear purpose and set of goals are essential to building an effective work team. They should also be reminded of these goals in regular staff meetings.
Define your team’s purpose and how each of their individual contributions helps your business thrive. This should be aligned with your company’s values and clear to everyone working within it.
Make sure to clearly define the specific goals for each team member to achieve over time. This will ensure that everyone is on the same page regarding what they’re trying to accomplish so that you can avoid any confusion or miscommunication down the road.
Show strong leadership
Behind every effective team is strong leadership.
Whilst having a team full of passionate people who believe in the company is an incredible asset, ensuring they continue to feel supported and inspired is still essential.
It’s up to you as the leader, the manager to help continue that growth by supporting the whole team and each member individually with guidance when needed.
When each employee feels like a vital part of the team and is supported as an individual, your team members will feel more motivated to reach goals as a collective.
Strong leadership is essential to help keep staff morale on the up.
Keep your team motivated
As a manager, you need to understand what motivates your team.
Put in the effort to get to know each employee and what motivates them to keep them feeling aligned with the company goals.
Whilst this can be in the form of a pay rise, bonus and staff benefits, don’t underestimate the power of simple appreciation. It should be common practice to reach out to employees and thank them for their hard work.
Why not encourage the rest of the team to join in?
When you not only celebrate wins but encourage the rest of the team to do the same, this creates a supportive environment and helps continue uplifting staff morale.
Communicate, but most of all, listen
We have all heard the phrase ‘Communication is key’.
Well, it really is!
Poor communication can be the breaking of a company, whether that’s from Manager to the team of employees working under them or communication within the team itself.
Remember, people communicate differently, so it’s essential to consider what works for each employee. What works for one might not work for another.
Don’t just assume that your instructions are clear because you understand them yourself. Instead, ask your team how they best take in information.
Is it through a more visual system like Trello or Asana?
Do they prefer to get started but with regular video call check-ins?
Gain clarity on what works and what doesn’t. Then make sure the whole team have the same understanding to support one another.
Invest in your team
As your business grows, this often comes with many changes and challenges.
To reduce the chances of your team feeling overwhelmed or stressed in the workplace, take time to invest in training when needed.
Providing opportunities for your employees to grow their skills and knowledge in an area of their role will demonstrate that you see them as a vital part of your company.
Training as a team through team-building activities will encourage and improve employee engagement. This enhanced teamwork will filter through to your working environment. These team-building opportunities should be enjoyable as this helps relationships build more naturally.
Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is a success. (Henry Ford)
Building a successful team is all about creating an environment that allows everyone to be their best and do their best.
It’s not just about who you hire or what positions they fill; it’s about how you set up your business for success. When you focus on the people and their needs, then everything else will follow naturally.
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Still need help?
If you would like more advice regarding building your team or recruiting new team members, feel free to get in touch with the team at Your People Partners. We love to help!
Updated: Thursday, November 2nd 2023
Useful for hiring managers and business owners
