Five ways to improve team-working in your company

The old saying goes, “A company is only as good as its employees”, and few would argue against the power of effective teamwork in firms. If your staff is working in synergy with one another, they’ll be far more likely to operate efficiently and constructively.

Here are just a few ways you can improve team-working in your company – while also having a little fun along the way through getting to know your staff better.

Organize social events and gatherings

All work and no play never did anyone good so encourage your staff to congregate socially outside of the workplace by organizing social events, gatherings, or evenings out. Teamwork goes far beyond just day-to-day work tasks. Rather, working as a team is more about getting to know each other on a personal and professional basis. By organizing out-of-work gatherings, your staff will be much more likely to gel together and actually get to know one another.

Provide staff the right tools for the job

One of the most common grievances among employees is not being given the right tools or equipment to perform their jobs effectively so check with your staff what they need. In today’s modern office environment, personnel spends a huge amount of time working on computers, so be sure to check the hardware and software you provide is up to date. You could also look at providing team-working applications to aid staff working together. Open source slack software empowers staff to share and work on files collaboratively while also improving communication and allowing employees to stay in the loop with one another.

Make sure staff are clear what’s expected of them

All members of a team must be aware of what their role is and what’s expected of them, so spend time clarifying with your staff what you want from them. If there’s any ambiguity in their roles and responsibilities it will be impossible for them to work effectively together.

Reward staff when they perform well

It’s all too easy for bosses to fall into the trap of only identifying faults rather than also praising good work, so remember to recognize when your employees have worked hard. Praising and thanking staff for their work goes a long way to building self-esteem in an organization – and will also make you a far more personable and likeable boss.

Avoid micro-management

Another very easy trap that bosses often fall into is trying to take control rather than trusting and leaving their staff to work on their own. If you treat your employees like children and are constantly on their backs and micromanaging, you’ll only breed resentment and feelings of inadequacy.

Rather than watching over everything your employees do, set goals at the start of a project and leave them to work alone. You should also make it clear that you’re there to offer support and guidance should they need it – however, that same support should be prompted by them – not you.

The take-out

Instilling a sense of teamwork among your employees takes time and effort but the results will have huge benefits for your business and your staff’s ability to work together. Rather than just focusing on work requirements, spending a little time fostering these all-important in-work relationships will vastly improve your staff’s capabilities to work together.