As a manager, from the start of a project, you should encourage your team members to talk to each other, and to talk to you. What seems to be so simple at first glance requires energy and effort on your part. “How could I promote teamwork among my employees? ”. As a manager, you want your employees to work well together.
So here are 5 strategies to develop to improve teamwork within your company:
Give clear and motivating goals
To achieve the desired result, it is important for each employee to know:
- the overall objective to be achieved;
- the tasks that fall to him;
- the deadline by which these tasks must be completed;
- the tools with which they must be made.
In this way, you can avoid misunderstandings and wasting time.
Next, know that the goal should be challenging enough to be motivating, but easy enough to be achievable in the given amount of time. If the goals seem unrealistic to your employees, try to break them up into smaller goals in order to keep motivation high throughout the project.
Finally, discuss operating rules with your work team, for example the contact person to contact for a particular problem.
Facilitate communication
As a manager, from the start of a project, you should encourage your team members to talk to each other, and to talk to you. What seems so simple at first glance requires energy and effort on your part.
First of all, start with yourself. Be as transparent as possible. A boss who inspires confidence will more easily succeed in creating the climate necessary for employees to communicate together, especially during difficulties or conflicts. Do not hesitate to approach problems frankly while ensuring that you communicate your satisfaction in achieving goals.
Ideally, leave your office door open. This way, your team members will know that they can come to you to ask questions and to seek advice on project-related challenges. You could also implement the use of collaborative project management software, such as Asana or Monday. Each person will be able to better assess the progress of the project.
Also, consider scheduling a meeting at regular intervals. The Scrum approach offers a standing meeting every day, lasting 15 minutes, with a specific objective in line with the progress of the work. If you find this too demanding and difficult to fit into your schedule, you may decide to have this meeting every week, or every two weeks. But keep in mind that meeting at regular intervals will reduce the number of questions you receive each day.
Create a strong sense of belonging
According to an article from the Ministry of Economy and Innovation, “the employee must feel useful and important to be fully involved.” Set aside time in your schedule to spend time with them in a friendly and informal way. For example, you could celebrate a win by bringing them lunch before work hours. Also, you could organize a group sports activity or go have a drink with your team.
If the individuals on the team get along well as people, they will want to work together and succeed in the project. They will trust each other and will also communicate more easily together during problem situations or problems. Their social bond will facilitate their professional relationship.
In short, it is up to you to create a strong team spirit. Show your team that you recognize their efforts and achievements. Set an example by being very involved. Your employees will thus be more motivated to do the project with commitment and pleasure.
Establish a climate of trust
Of course, every manager has their own leadership style. However, it is good to know that the younger generation prefers collaboration over authoritarian and hierarchical management.
So learn to trust your employees, while being available to support them in their tasks. Show them that you believe in them, in their potential and in their strengths. They will be ready to work hard if they feel that you value their work and that you trust them. As Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German writer and poet, said so well:
“Treat an individual as he is and he will remain what he is. Treat him as he should and can become, he will become what he should and maybe be.”
The climate of trust, once established, will allow your employees to express their doubts, their opinion and to propose ideas that could save a project.
Create a space conducive to teamwork
To make it easy for your employees to access each other, you could create an open-plan workspace. However, this type of arrangement is not suitable for individuals who need silence. You could therefore install these people in a closed office and place an L-shaped desk without a box so that a second person can sit there if necessary.
Teamwork, well managed and well rewarded, is a powerful driver of success. According to Forbes, companies that encourage collaborative work are five times more likely to be successful. It is therefore worth investing time and effort in promoting communication, trust, a sense of belonging, in short everything that helps with teamwork.
