Is your team under performing, or are you not setting them up to be successful? Managers concerned about the poor performance of their teams often assume it is lack of effort or motivation that is the problem, but this is rarely the case. By and large, employees want to perform well in their job, but they either don’t have the tools or training they need to succeed, or there is a cultural problem negatively affecting morale.
Instead of blaming employees or chocking it up to a bad hire, perhaps leaders should be asking themselves, “What can I do differently, so my team is more successful?” After years of hiring, training, and coaching people of all ages, skillsets, and experience levels – I have found that the one thing that determines whether a person will be “good” at a task is whether they have been trained effectively and have the grit it takes to learn new skills until they achieve mastery. Ultimately, while it’s up to the employee to take what they’ve learned and run with it, they can never start the race if management doesn’t provide the tools they need to succeed in the first place.
One skillset that is commonly underdeveloped and often ignored by corporate leadership is telephone communication. This is not a skill that’s taught to us by our parents, nor is it in high school, college, or military curriculum. So why do we assume these skills are developed by the time somebody is entering the job market (particularly for an entry level position)? Text and email have reduced the need to make calls, and therefore decreased opportunities to practice verbal communication. But if telephone and verbal skills are still needed in most of the roles we fill as adults, how do people develop these skills to be successful? In essence, unless management is proactively providing coaching and training to develop these skills, their employees are set up to fail.
What about motivation? People in all roles, regardless of age, experience, or skill level, need to feel that they can be successful and understand how to hit the targets that measure that success. If your team members are consistently not hitting their goals, or you are experiencing high turnover in that role, it is a sign that the problem is environmental and it might be time to evaluate the KPI and compensation structure for team members. Studies have shown that it is achievable goals and proper reward systems that improve productivity and success over time.
Finally, team morale is another big factor that can contribute to the lack of success or high turnover. Work flow issues, a lack of collaboration, and employee disempowerment are all roadblocks to team harmony. While a “dog eat dog” mentality is effective for some, most people cannot thrive in this structure. Open communication, clearly defined expectations, and a culture of growth are all key success factors in building a healthy and happy team environment.
People deserve to be set up for success, and if they aren’t it won’t matter how slick or sophisticated your campaign strategy is. Without a confident and productive team to carry it out, it’s dead in the water. Luckily, the problem is often an education gap that is easy to correct with the right approach and coaching. I can help managers identify these pain points and develop a plan to get your teams where they need to be.
Contact me today for a free 30 minute consultation to learn how I can put your team on the road to success.