A great amount of success in today’s work environment is highly dependent on team performance than individual performance. After attaining the goal of hiring or bringing the best people on your team, it is important to show them a sense of belonging in order to get the best out of them. This means first understanding them and then understanding how to effectively manage them for high performance output which would be beneficial to your business or organisation.

As a team leader or manager, a few tips amongst others that you would need to manage your team members/ employees to enable high performance in your workplace include:

Having a clear goal: Make sure the overall goal of the team is clearly defined and understood by all team members. This you can do by setting-up “SMART” goals that are measurable in terms of project completion time and the specific action steps required for goal attainment. Make your team members/ employees aware of what needs to be achieved as a team; whether long term or short term; and the steps involved in attaining it[1].

Ensuring roles for every position is clear: In situations where team members are not clear on what they are supposed to do or on the role of other team members especially in interdependent roles, there would be results of counter-productivity instead of desired productivity. Therefore create a work environment where team dysfunction is avoided by making sure every team member knows and understands what everybody is supposed to do and keep reminding them of it as the need arise[2].

Have a reward system: Rewarding them should not necessary mean giving them money. It could mean applause from other team members during team meetings or working from home in two weeks or even recognizing a job well done through on-spot acknowledgement which goes a long way to boost their morale and engagement. You could also consider rewards that addresses the interest and needs of your employees/ team members[3].

Engaging them with projects they are good at or passionate about: Do not engage your team members with jobs or roles simply because they have worked a long time in that role. If you feel they are better suited and could make a bigger contribution working in another role, do not hesitate to effect the right changes. Find out what your employees/ team members are passionate about and see if you can align it with job roles that help channel some of that passion[4].

Avoiding apportioning blames: Try not to publicly blame your team members/ employees for not meeting deadlines or carrying out a job as you would expect them to. If necessary, let them know how you would expect such jobs to be handled in the future. Understanding that we are humans and there would be times when we would fail in some areas of our duties, by blaming your team members/ employees you risk creating an atmosphere in which people are so afraid to make mistakes that they do not spend enough time doing the proactive and creative work necessary to avoid future problems or to drive new innovations.

Encourage their creative thinking: As humans, we all have lots of interesting and different ideas towards a subject matter, but not all of these ideas would be impactful or needed at a particular time. However, encouraging your team members/ employees by empowering them to own solutions and embrace a mind-set of change will help ignite more creativity from them going forward.

Help develop them: Be it internal or external programs, formal or informal, ensure to provide a platform where your team members/ employees can grow and develop their skills and abilities. This sends a message to your employees that their experiences and attributes are valued and you are backing their potential to do more. Training opportunities demonstrate your willingness to invest in the career growth of your employees and brings additional skills and expertise into the business as a result of their professional development.

The key to managing your team for high performance is implementation of the above suggestions consistently. It is also important to be flexible; focusing on the works of your team.

[1] David Haldorsen B.A. (Psy.) M.A. (OD) CCWC CSSC, Aug 28, 2015: Top 10 Leadership Tips for High Performance Team Building, https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/10-leadership-tips-building-high-performance-teams-david-haldorsen accessed Apr 11, 2017

[2] David Haldorsen B.A. (Psy.) M.A. (OD) CCWC CSSC, Aug 28, 2015: Top 10 Leadership Tips for High Performance Team Building, https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/10-leadership-tips-building-high-performance-teams-david-haldorsen accessed Apr 11, 2017

[3] Ibeziako Gloria, “Steps to Recruiting and Retaining a High Performing Team”, 2017.pdf accessed Apr 12, 2017

[4] Jason Hiner, May 1, 2017: 10 tips for leading your team to peak performance, http://www.techrepublic.com/article/10-tips-for-leading-your-team-to-peak-performance/ accessed Apr 12, 2017