How to Improve Team Performance

If your team is working like crazy, but not delivering results, you have a problem…

Team performance is all about communication, quality and pace. Which you can measure at both team and individual level. 

Most leaders struggle to strike the right balance between subjective and objective opinions around team performance. Whatever that balance ends up being, you need to know your numbers to get insights that will help spot team improvement points. Your goal when collecting these numbers should be to reduce subjectivity and increase objectivity when evaluating team and individual performance. 

The problem with team performance is that different opinions arise when things aren’t going the way the team hoped. At this point you can go into a downward spiral of endless conversations, unfounded opinions, and lack of focus. All resulting in finger pointing and excuses that split the team apart. 

As a leader you need to keep a cool head and naturally assume that it’s all your fault...

1. If team members don’t communicate well with each other: it’s your problem!
2. If team members aren’t skilled enough: it’s your problem!
3. If team members don’t deliver quickly enough: it’s your problem!
   

The beauty of switching to this mindset is that team performance is all in your hands. You as a leader get to define what ‘good performance’ means. What actions should be taken in each situation at both team and individual level. What should you focus on the most as a team: sales, marketing or product? And, what should the team prioritize: quality or quantity?

At the end, you define the tactics. And if you manage to get your team to communicate efficiently, do their job effectively and improve quickly you are going to reach your goals. 

And if you don’t, you need to rethink your business challenge...