Effective Team Management Tips
Whether you’re currently a manager or an aspiring manager, you could benefit from these simple tips on how to manage your team effectively.
Communication
When it comes to managing a team, effective communication is essential, so find out what the most effective channel of communication is for your team and implement it. This could be slack, email, scheduled face to face meetings, Skype/Zoom, etc. Slack is a great example as it integrates other apps and allows for quick, effective communication, to your laptop, desktop and phone so you’re never out of the loop (yes, you can put it on “do not disturb” when you need to).
Let’s be friends
Your whole team isn’t going to be best friends, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t get along. Some managers are under the impression that employees that are friends will distract each other when they chat all day, but that’s not always the case. When members of your team get along they’re more likely to work well together on team activities and help each other with different tasks. So next time you see your team catching up in the kitchen or chatting while waiting for the kettle to boil, let them be! They’re also less likely to chat while doing their work if you allow them time to chat in passing around the office.
Don’t beat around the bush
Your team can’t read your mind (which is probably a good thing) so stop expecting them to know your expectations or what you want them to do. Be clear and concise when you explain tasks and expectations of projects so that everyone is on the same page with the same goal in mind. Allow them to ask questions and remember they look to you for advice and guidance, so make yourself available to them.
Stop stressing
Workplace stress and mental health is spoken about more and more these days, so you should not only be aware of it but also research methods of handling it within your team.
Make time to catch up with each member and ask how they are doing, both in the workplace and out of the workplace. This will benefit you as well as you will be able to understand certain behaviours when your employees are dealing with a lot of stress and make you aware of the amount of stress you are creating for your employees.
Keep track
When you’re a manager, it’s easy to lose track of individual employee’s success because you’re looking at the outcome of your team. Although it is important that your team is successful and that their group efforts are celebrated, it is just as important to acknowledge individuals. Keep track of their achievements and take the time to congratulate them, it’ll go along way and make for a more effective team too.
Of course, there are so many blogs on how to be an effective manager, but we have found that these 5 tips are a great place to start.
Let us know of any tips you have for effective team management!
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