In a recent survey, People Management, have highlighted the effects that Leaders have on their organisation when they don’t lead and manage effectively. The survey reports that around four in ten managers do not resolve conflict effectively and thus this leads to a lack of team work and low engagement. This low engagement is evident in a low performing team.
The survey suggests that individuals are aware of their performance yet have never been part of a discussion where team performance was on the agenda. The consequence of this is that team members then have a preference for working alone and the team culture is broken down. This could then lead to difficult interpersonal relationships across teams creating an unproductive working environment. When team members are then working against each other rather than for each other performance dips and results are sacrificed. Leaders need to influence team members to focus on team goals and build strong relationships with other teams members. They should hold regular meetings to discuss team performance and create an atmosphere that nurtures team development, give the team opportunities to social and support each other.
When leaders and managers create a high performing team then as a group, a community, they begin to support each other and exceed targets set. When a team is part of this community they spend more time reaching goals and supporting others to do so. Outside of the community you will find loan workers spending time finding ways to work alone and their focus on the goal is an individual one. This has a strong negative full on the focus a person has as they spend more time thinking of wonderful ways not to be in the team and less time focussed on performance.
Leaders that actively focus on developing a team environment will reap the reward when it comes to reaching and exceeding targets. The high level of engagement created within a team as they all work towards a common purpose will show. Research shows us that organisation with high levels of engagement out perform those with lower levels every time and benefit from double digit growth.
Leaders with a developed sense of emotional intelligence are better equipped to engage with individuals and teams and inspire high performance. Having an awareness of the social factors involved and being able to manage the emotions of others to create positive outcomes are the skills needed to take the team forward. Developing that understanding within the team and giving them insight into the characters around will create strong communication across the team. From there each person is then involved and takes ownership of the goal moving forward, this common goal for everyone will see the team go on to succeed and value the part they play for each other.
2013 is the year that will make or break any organisation, look at the people around you and ask how well you are engaging with them. Are you creating a high performance culture that has the team at the heart of everything they do. Are your teams focussed on results and who do you need to bring back into the team in order to be even more successful?
