Assembling Individuals Into The Best Team

/in /by

No team comes together overnight; most people are so focused on doing their own job to the best of their abilities, that they often fail to consult their colleagues on what needs to be done. Just because they’re all doing different jobs, does not mean that they’re not all working towards the same goal. As a team leader, you now have the unenviable job of turning all these hard-working individuals into a strong team. Unfortunately, this is sometimes easier said than done; on an average workday, most people would rather focus on their own workload than think about the bigger picture and how their job affects someone else’s tasks. To help team leaders on the challenge ahead, here are a few tips to help them bring everyone together.


Team-building exercises

Whilst getting them to do trust-falls or play Blind Man’s Buff would probably cause them to resent you, team-building exercises gives you the chance to bring your employees together, and maybe even share a few jokes if the right opportunity presents itself. That way, there’s something social that they can all share, which helps them to bond and unite. Alternatively, try an exercise to get to know every team member on a personal level. That will help you get to know them, and allows the team to view one another as people, not just co-workers. Anything you can do to build trust between co-workers will develop team cohesiveness, and it will make it easier for everyone to think of themselves as part of a unit, instead of one of many employees.

Promote communication

Communication is key to making sure your business runs efficiently. Technology has provided companies of all sizes with a very efficient tool to improve team communication; while you should never underestimate the value of the phone or email, instant messaging apps such as Slack, Hipchat, or Campfire instantly pass work updates to your colleagues. You can also use them to share files, start conversations for group projects, and automate tasks. This is faster than typing an email and waiting for the recipient to type one back. Good communication also means that you have to be clear about goals, deadlines and expectations for each business term. Sometimes efficiency can drop because employees haven’t been updated about new company goals, or the communication about new business goals weren’t clear. As the team leader, you have a better idea of the company’s business goals, but you need to accurately communicate it to your employees if you expect productivity to remain high. If emails aren’t clear enough, arrange a meeting and encourage your employees to ask questions. It will go a long way to preventing further confusion.


Make sure everyone has support

As the team leader, whenever your team is at work they are under your care. This means that you have to provide them with enough support for them to do their jobs properly, whether it’s making sure the IT support is always on hand whenever the computers are down, providing them with further training, or just making sure you have a good open door policy. If someone on your team is having problems with a co-worker, their workload, or something personal that is affecting their work, then make sure they know they can come to you without any judgements. Encourage everyone to give you feedback on their work environment and policies, so that you can tell upper management what is working and what needs improvement. Productivity will improve as a result of a more positive office morale, and your team will work better for you if they feel supported.


Assemble the right individuals

When hiring someone to do a job, it’s also important that they know how to work well with others, and know to collaborate or work independently as necessary. Everyone has different strengths; your campaign strategist might have excellent ideas, but they might be terrible at communicating these ideas with the rest of the team. If someone on your team is consistently struggling to meet deadlines or contribute to team projects, find out what it is they need to get them on everyone else’s level. Chances are, they are just not the right fit for the rest of the team and they might be better off somewhere else.

Ultimately, a good team comes together when they have a leader that inspires them. Someone who knows how to give instructions, but doesn’t micromanage. Make sure you take on a few tips to become a great team leader.

Gain Their Respect: Be The Best Boss For Your Employees

/in , /by

Being the head of a company and running a business comes with plenty of challenges; you’ll have to navigate your role as the boss day by day and ensure that you deal with things as quickly and efficiently as possible. The greatest assets you have as the leader of your company, are your employees; they are all essential cogs in your machine and need to be happy and motivated to do their job properly. As their boss; your staff will look to you for guidance, advice, and the opportunity to progress and develop alongside the business, so you need to be ensuring that you’re doing all you can to fulfill their needs.

If your team respect you; they’ll listen to you, keep a significant level of communication open with you, and you should be able to run a successful company with their help and dedication. The following are some things to consider to help you be the best boss your employees could ask for, so your business goes from strength to strength with a fully functioning team at the wheel.

StrategyDriven Talent Management Article
Photo courtesy of Pexels

Communication And Feedback

Every employee appreciates the opportunity to share their thoughts, ideas, and worries with senior members of the team. Therefore, you need to ensure that you’re giving your staff ample and regular chances to speak and communicate. Set up brief morning meetings each day, with a longer meeting on a weekly basis. A staff meeting will encourage everyone to share their thoughts and bounce new ideas off one another. It’s also a chance to check on the mood of your company and make sure that everyone is on the same page regarding what needs to done or changed.

Make sure you’re there for one-to-one catch-ups with your employees; you’ll get a thorough understanding of how they’re feeling and you can pass on any feedback or criticism in a professional manner and private setting. You may come across challenging members of staff; you can check out the 10 ways of dealing with insubordination in the workplace and tackle any issues as soon as they arise. The rest of your employees will appreciate the action you’ve taken, and any problematic team members will gain respect for you and should improve.

Reward And Respect

There’s no better incentive to meet and exceed expectations than reward. Figure out what drives your team; get to know them i order to offer a reward that they’ll work hard to achieve. You can also let your team know how much you appreciate them with regular social events, like drinks and a meal, outside of the office environment. Relationships are often strengthened outside of the work setting, and you’ll understand what makes your staff tick a bit better. Take a look at 101 ways to reward employees without giving them cash and get some inspiration to gain their respect.

Try to remember what you wanted from a boss or a leader in the past; be a better version of what you expected, and you’ll have a loyal workforce behind you, ensuring your business progresses and grows.

How To Attract The Right Employees

/in , , /by

StrategyDriven Talent Management Article
Finding the right employees is no easy task, but it’s very important. Not having the right people in place can make or break your company. That’s why businesses everywhere are always trying to come up with the precise formula for drawing in the most ideal candidates for the job.

While it’s not going to solve all of your problems, there are important steps a company should take to ensure they’re bringing in worthwhile people to interview. It’s a waste of everyone’s time when the potential hire isn’t a good fit right off the bat. See how to attract the right employees.

Technology

One way to attract candidates is to have updated technology. Having current computers, systems and an IT department is important. All of these aspects help draw in the right people, so they apply for positions at your company. It’s difficult to get any work done without modern technology, and smart candidates will recognize this and run the other way. You need it to do your job too. For example, xcdhr is an easily configured online self-service system for HR visionaries in ambitious, growing firms. This system makes your HR vision a reality by helping you attract and retain talent.

Culture & Strategy

Potential employees want to know that who they’re going to work for has a strategy and all of the latest gadgets and upgrades. Culture includes having a fancy office to display and a great management team to brag about. It encompasses how the teams celebrate successes and what the company does for fun and offers for volunteer opportunities. Candidates want to know that who they’re working for is going to respect their work-life balance desire. Culture is about the people who work there and how they carry themselves. If your culture is very attractive, then let that be known, so the right people come knocking.

Benefits & Incentives

A big magnet for potential hires are the benefits and incentives packages and competitive salary offerings. People want to know they’re going to get paid well and be recognized for their hard work. Emphasize the perks that are available, such as free coffee, a game room and Friday afternoons off. You have to be willing to give if you want to bring in the right people for the job. There are lots of companies out there, and yours needs to be able to compete if you want the best people working for you.

Career Path

It’s likely a potential hire is going to ask you about a career path in the interview. It’s a good idea to have an answer, instead of saying that you’re unsure. People want to visualize their future and know that they could be with your company for years to come. They want to be assured that their salary and bonuses will rise the longer they work for you. Have performance measures in place so you can track how well each employee is doing.

Conclusion

Finding rock star employees is a challenge. Your job becomes easier when you make your company a desirable option for potential candidates who are a good fit. This is how to attract the right employees.

5 Signs Your Office Space No Longer Works For You (And How To Fix Them)

/in , /by

Your ideas and the skills of your employees will push your company forward, but your office space will be the backbone that allows them both to thrive. If your office is no longer working for you, it’s working against you – and no good can come from that. Below, we take a look at five telltale signs that something the office needs to change, as well as offering some useful tips to fix the problems.

StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article
Photo courtesy of Pexels

Your Surroundings Don’t Match

In the early days of your business, you were not so concerned about where you worked. Any office would do: getting your business off the ground was the important part. There comes the point, however, when reputation starts to become a factor. If you look around at the companies in the neighboring offices and realize they don’t have the same ambition as you do, it might be time to begin looking for premises that the go-getting companies call home. It’ll help you step up your game.

Your Staff Are On Top Of Each Other

As a business owner, few things are more challenging than trying to gel your employees into a cohesive, well-oiled team. This is all the more difficult if your office is overcrowded and your workers are always getting in each other’s way; it’s a surefire recipe for workplace tension. If you have room, build extra office space on your premises and give people space to breathe. The relatively small steel building cost will be a small price to pay it if it leads to a happier workforce, and it’ll also enable you to add more employees should you need to. People always work better when they’re happy in their surroundings.

Relaxation Is a Memory

If you’ve got a cookie-cutter office space, then it’s unlikely to be relaxing or inspiring to your employees. But adopting the Silicon Valley approach of ensuring your workers feel comfortable at work can have real benefits, and it’s worth putting in the extra effort to create a space for them to unwind. Add a bigger kitchen, or chilled out reflection zone. It’ll be money well spent, as your employees will be at their creative best when they feel calm and relaxed.

Meetings Aren’t Productive

There’s a school of thought that says meetings aren’t productive even at the best of times, but there’s no denying that sometimes they’re just necessary. However, you’ll find them all the more difficult if you have to add extra chairs to a room just to accommodate people. If you have an important meeting, rent a conference room at other premises until you’re able to expand your office.

Targets Are Harder To Hit

If you’re failing to reach your goals or deadlines are getting stressful, your office might be playing against your worker’s productivity. If you have a big project that needs to be completed, consider allowing your workers to work from home. Studies have shown it boosts productivity, and you’ll also be freeing up office space for the people who need to be there.

Young Business Owners: Gain Respect From Older Employees

/in , , /by

When you’re working with a team of people who are older than you, it can be difficult to get them to take you seriously. It doesn’t matter how qualified you are or how much experience you’ve gained in a short amount of time; an older generation will always believe that life experience is more valuable. It’s a tough situation to be in, but you won’t be able to achieve your goals if your team can’t view you as their boss. The fact that youth doesn’t necessarily equal inexperience is something your employees will need to learn. Here’s how you can prove it to them.

Show Your Knowledge

There’s no point walking into a room full of older people with plenty of knowledge and only knowing bits and pieces. You need to demonstrate that your knowledge of the industry is second to none. Make sure you’re doing thorough research and staying abreast of innovative ideas. Subscribe to reading material with the latest trends and make connections with people of influence. Most importantly, focus on doing your job well, instead of showing off. If you’re dedicated to your job and willing to go above and beyond, you’ll gain more respect than if you were to spend your time competing against employees.

StrategyDriven Talent Management Article

Lead by Example

There’s no doubt that every business owner has to be a leader. If you’re managing a team of employees who are older than you, you need to be the best leader you can be. Perhaps you could benefit on a leadership MBA online to brush up on your skills.  When you want to set a good example, you have to be the first one to arrive at the office and the last one to leave. You have to do your fair share of work, but you also have to have others on your mind. The point of being a leader is guiding people in achieving their goals.

Allow Suggestions

No matter what your age is, no-one likes a boss who thinks they’re better than everyone else. If you’re working with a team of older people, you’re in a prime position to gather valuable advice. Don’t get so preoccupied with proving yourself, that you forget to take advantage of the expertise of your team. No-one knows it all, and trying to demonstrate that you do just because you’re young is a fool’s errand. If you want to be taken seriously, learn to listen. People are far more likely to want to work with you if their suggestions are used.

StrategyDriven Talent Management Article

Be Determined

One of the barriers to working with an older generation is that they may be used to using different methods in their work. As a young boss, you may have more insight into how to move the business forward. You’ll have a fresh perspective that some of your workers may not agree with. This is when you’ll need to put your foot down and demonstrate the benefits of your ideas and overrule anyone who disagrees with you. However, if there are instances when your ideas prove to be wrong, it’s important that you admit your mistake instead of making excuses. Your staff will respect you more, even if you feel embarrassed.

Stay Calm

There are many times when business doesn’t go to plan. You’ll be faced with difficult decisions and stressful times. You may be under a lot of pressure, but it’s important you remain calm and don’t let the pressure effect your mood or your relationships. As a boss, your staff will be judging you on your behaviour during the most testing times. So, show them you can handle stress as well as they can and you can come up with solutions when they’re needed. Your calm attitude will reassure them in times of high stress.

Dress Appropriately

If your staff members are turning up to work in a suit and tie, well-groomed and ready for anything, and you’re turning up in a t-shirt and jeans, you’ll inadvertently be making the gap between you and your staff even larger. If the older members of your team are putting a huge effort into the way they present themselves, you need to do the same. You won’t necessarily have to wear a suit every day, but it’s important you show up looking smart. You can also try introducing a more relaxed dress code for work so you and your team meet somewhere in the middle.

StrategyDriven Talent Management Article

Your Business Persona

The way you behave in work may be very different to the way you are outside of work. As a boss to older people, you may not have the luxury of being their best friends. You need to present yourself in the way you want people to see you. So, if you want to be respected leader, you need to act like one. Ask yourself how you want to be viewed in your job role and create a business persona accordingly. Sometimes, it has nothing to do with your natural personality. If you have to act your way through to getting the respect you desire, don’t be afraid to do it.

Expectations

Lastly, start off your new team with an open mind. It isn’t safe to make assumptions because you may have one older person on the team who is determined to find fault in your leadership and one older person who’s determined to help you reach your goals. It’s important that your employees know what you expect of them and you listen to them when they tell you what they expect of a good leader. Always keep the lines of communication open and never forget how much an older person can bring to a team.

At the end of it all, the best way to show your team, no matter what age they are, is to achieve your desired results. It’s only when the business reaches desired outcomes that your employees will see the benefit of working hard and working together. So, as a leader, be patient and let your work speak for itself.