Managing a team properly and guiding it towards success is nothing short of a miracle for most managers these days. A team which is disoriented and unmotivated is hard to manage and drive it towards the completion of a goal or project is really tough. Meetings and counseling sessions go unfruitful because of this fact. Improving team performance requires commitment, conviction and leadership skills from the manager. That’s what all managers try to achieve but exactly how to go about the task is the real challenge for them. Following are some of the actions you can take as a manager to lead the situation on your own terms and make sure you are on the right track to achieve your goals.

1. The Establishment of a Measurement System

Measuring team performance is critical to chalk out course of action for the future. It is also vital for how to improve your team’s output. But without concrete data you will be lost as how to move forward. One ploy is to put into practice Objective and Key Results (OKRs) across your team. Initially used at Intel and Google, this methodology is about aggressively planning your month or quarter, for example, and stack up what you actually completed against your forecast. At both team and individual level, OKRs should be created for maximum benefit. In some cases like IT or Marketing industry, this form of measurement can be used for just about any team.

2. Provide an Incentive

Once your OKRs are established, it’s time to create some type of incentive for your team to motivate them. If your team will know for sure they will get something substantial in terms of a bonus or anything else, they will be inclined to do the job even more. Due to the nature of OKRs, an aggressive goal-setting strategy can be the key with 70% of the goals to be hit. An example can be a trip to the Rockies in the Summer if the team achieves 70% of the OKRs.

Individual goals can also be given to team members for making them involved in the proceedings of the project. Incentives and motivation can yield truly amazing results in terms of increased productivity among team members.

3. Create Templates

You don’t have to re-invent the wheel by wasting precious time. Instead focus on building templates. A project that is reoccurring and involving lots of steps, a template can save your day. Let me give me an example so that you can understand the template thing better. Planning an event involves lots of key details and keeping in mind looming deadlines. A template can be handy in situations like these by insuring every detail is assigned to a team member and completed in the time frame.

Adopting task management software for teams like TaskQue is one way to achieve this for a manager to make sure every task by individual team members is being completed according to the strategy.

4. Schedule Meetings Critical to the Cause

There are lots of meetings involved in any project and many of those can be scheduled later to make the progress of the tasks faster. Studies show that employees attend, on average, a whopping 62 meetings a month and believe that many of them were not fruitful. So making sure you attend only the meetings which are critical for the success of your project or goal. The role of the manager in this regard is of great importance as scheduling only the important meetings is the way to go.

One way is to ensure the meetings are effective and always start with a purpose. Also, end the meeting with a clear agenda and subsequent steps needed to make meetings worth the effort and time involved.

5. Engage in Team Building through Fun Activities

Have you ever heard of the phrase, work hard, play harder? One of the ways through a high performing team can keep its level is through having a break from the tough schedule. This factor do lead towards productivity as team members get the much needed break from the work and involve in fun activities like games, outdoor events, etc. Team bonding activities are crucial for making team members feel that they are being taken care of and are not treated just like cogs in the wheel.

6. Become Agile

One of the most important steps in improving the performance of the team. Effective team performance is not always about numbers and statistics. It’s about how you cope with the missing numbers, deadlines and the usual issues in daily operations. Adapting to the principles of agile project management is one of the safest and proven ways to make sure your team also quickly adapts to the project plans change instead of panicking and looking for excuses.

It’s a key aspect when you are building you OKRs. Don’t just focus on executing the best 5 ways to increase your market share. Instead, look for 1 or 2 best ways that can yield much higher leads.

7. Celebrate your Achievements in Style

Another motivating factor for your employees is how the company celebrates the success. Even a little target achieved commendably can be a reason for a celebration on a smaller level. Planning a cake-cutting ceremony or an hour off from work for the team members can be a pleasant surprise for them. These forms of appreciation really works to enhance the motivation and productivity of employees of especially the ones just inducted in the team.

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