A happy team is a productive team, although that can far too easily be forgotten which can lead to disinterested employees and missed targets.
Far too often businesses suffer from a breakdown from a lack of teamwork, either because there is not enough communication, an understanding of everyone’s strengths and weaknesses or because of low morale.
As a business owner, it is in your best interest to keep your employees happy and motivated at work – so, how can you achieve this?
Keep your Employees in the Loop
Openly discussing business matters with your employees, such as potential projects in the pipeline and other news will make your team feel included and more valued.
Don’t feel that this communication has to be a one-way street, ask for their opinions and any feedback they have to offer – employees that carry out day-to-day tasks that have been implemented often have the best ideas to refine processes.
Listening to your employees will not only improve team morale, but it may just improve your business for the better in ways you were unable to see beforehand.
Team Building Exercises
Businesses of all shapes and sizes use team building events all with the goal of building stronger relationships amongst the team and improving communication.
This should not be something that employees dread, it should be an event that is marked on the calendar in anticipation – it is meant to be a fun and enjoyable experience. Some of the best team building events involve members of staff working together to solve a problem and achieve the same collective goal.
A successful team building exercise will result in members of the team having a better understanding of one another’s strengths and weaknesses having broken down barriers that had previously stood. Everyone has their own particular skillset and learning how to utilise those effectively will have a positive effect on team morale and business performance.
Make use of Technology
We are in a golden age of technology where it is possible to communicate with anyone, anywhere, at any time. It is simply not enough to introduce this to the office, maximise its use to make use of its full potential.
This can be especially useful for any team members that work remotely who do not see their colleagues on a day-to-day basis. Instant messaging services and conference calls improve conversation and also help to iron out any misunderstandings quicker and easier than emails.
A popular app that businesses use is Slack, an instant messaging service that incorporates group chats, varied channels and file sharing. Skype is a similar application that can also be used across various devices.
As technology and applications such as those aforementioned can be used remotely, this open source of communication does not have to begin at 9 and end at 5. This can remain openly constantly for employees to communicate around the clock and share ideas and bounce off of each other.
Encourage Responsibility
This can be a tough one, particularly for owners of start-ups as the business in their baby. Encourage your employees to take on certain roles within the team and manage projects. This responsibility will make them feel more valued and will also be keen to prove themselves when presented with an opportunity.
Responsibility promotes ownership, which will see your employees taking more pride in their work and encourages your employees to take on tasks outside of their job description. Once they have taken on such a role once they will be keen to do so again, this time with added confidence and improved leadership skills.
Delegating responsibility shows that can you trust your employees with important tasks and projects that are vital to your business.
When in a relaxed work atmosphere with opportunities aplenty to test themselves and prove their worth to the company, both your team and business as a whole will thrive.
About Carson Derrow
