Managing teams for high performance is always a hot topic in the business world. People must work together to create larger sustainable companies because one person, however talented, cannot create this alone. To be successful, you need your teams to be working optimally, delivering your vision. This blog post looks at what high performance looks like and what skills are needed by managers to cultivate teams that perform well.
What does high performance look like?
There are many elements to managing teams for high performance but one of the most crucial starts right at the top with leadership vision. If you and your teams aren’t clear on where you are going, you’ll struggle to perform optimally because you’ll always be feeling directionless. When senior management has clarity on the direction and communicates coherently and in a timely way, resources align creating momentum. If teams are not sure how they should be contributing and why, they flounder, lose focus and achieve less.
You can recognize high performing teams as those where all individuals are engaged and motivated by a common purpose. Communication into, out of, and within the team is open and frank. Skillsets within the team complement each other, leading to stronger delivery of outcomes. Managing high performing teams requires trust between managers and staff, enabling a no-blame culture to flourish.
The key to managing teams for high performance
When you are managing teams for high performance, it’s vital to pay attention to the following:
- Transparent goals that are closely aligned to organisation vision and objectives
- Well defined roles and responsibilities – everyone understands their and others’ purpose.
- Efficient and well understood priorities management process
- Respect for and trust in each other
- Open and direct communication, fostering pyschological safety
- Reward and recognition of success
- Opportunities for personal growth and development
- Encouraging innovation and creativity
Creating high performing managers
High performing teams are not born, they are created. Managers of high performing teams will generally engage in some or all of the following behaviours:
- Goal setting and alignment
- Devolved decision making where appropriate
- Outcome focused rather than output focused
- Relevant, timely communication
- Listening and responding to feedback
- Team before self
Encouraging your managers to move more towards a coaching mentality rather than a purely management one can give employees more space to find their optimum position in the team. Understanding what makes individuals behave the way they do is the key to unlocking great performance and using a more collaborative, consultative style can improve creativity as well as increase trust between manager and employee.
Creating the right environment which enables the team to learn and grow together is essential. Consider not only the physical environment for optimum performance but the cultural and emotional environment that enables staff to express themselves freely without fear of judgment and to work in ways that align with their preferences.
How to reward high performance
Motivations vary widely between individuals so understanding what drives your staff can enable to create reward and recognition programmes that work for the whole team. However, be mindful that wherever possible you should seek to reward the team for its performance as a team rather than focusing on individuals within the team. If you have control over compensation, you could tie a portion of salary increase or bonus to the achievement of team objectives.
If not, use rewards that benefit the whole team such as team breakfasts in the office, tickets to events, additional time off, or even something as simple as hand written thank you notes for all team members.
Getting support to improve team performance
If your teams performance is not where you’d like it to be, the first thing to do is a SWOT analysis to understand where the issues lie. Identifying yout team’s strengths and weaknesses can highlight where each individual needs to focus to improve overall performance. It can also identify recruitment or training requirements. By analysing opportunities and threats, you can create a prioritised plan for success and mitigate any potential issues. To get support with building and managing teams for high performance, let’s talk. Email zoetheva@yahoo.com or complete my contact form.