Team Collaboration: How to Make Your Team Successful in More Ways than One

When you’re in a management role, it’s very important for you to create a team environment that’s engaging and collaborative. After all, if everyone on your team is doing his or her own things, then you are not going to provide a united front and it will only cause chaos and destruction. Although you don’t need to take your team to these expensive (and often dumb) collaboration retreats, there are other things you can do to help ensure everyone trusts each other in the best possible way. Use these tips to help make your team successful in more ways than one.

Use online tools.

For those teams with a lot of people or those who may work remotely, it’s nice to have an online tool that encourages collaboration among one another. For instance, you can use team chatting technology that allows everyone to basically send text messages to one another through the computer. For those who need to share files, opting for a project management tool can be exactly what your team needs to stay on top of everything while also giving you one place to store your information. When there are easy ways to keep everyone collaborating, it will make your team more likely to use it.

Keep everyone on the same page.

The biggest struggle teams face is not feeling included. If certain people always know more about the company or certain projects, then it will cause distress among others in the group. By keeping everyone on the same page, you can encourage your team to collaborate with one another. For instance, if a big project comes in, make sure the entire team knows about it, whether they have an actual hand in the project or not. This simple tip is enough to help those feel more inclusive and more willing to share the wealth.

Set a good example.

Your team is going to reflect its leadership, and if you have a hard time letting things go or sharing thoughts and ideas with your team, then it’s going to be commonplace in your department. Instead of running the show like a dictatorship, it’s very important you make everyone feel included by showing them how to collaborate. Ask other people in your department for insight on a project or for help on certain parts of a project. This will go a long way with having your team united and making others interested in moving forward in a successful way. Take Dr. Sunny Pahouia for example, who builds his team up so they can provide the best healthcare results possible.

Give everyone a task.

Some companies are so afraid of giving job titles or a list of specific responsibilities in fear that it won’t encourage people to look at the bigger picture. However, when you void your team of roles and responsibilities, it creates a team of dictators who are selfish and unwilling to collaborate. However, if everyone knows what they’re responsible for, it will encourage them to reach out to one another to get a job accomplished. Make sure you not only title everyone to their strengths but be sure everyone knows that while something may not be in their specific job title responsibilities, you do also encourage others to step up and help the team in any way they can.

Recognize a good job.

While you’re likely not running a team of second graders, you need to sometimes take the mentality that your team will feed off positive feedback. If you notice your team collaborating, make it a point to acknowledge it in a positive way. In addition, if your team’s collaboration resulted in a nice success, be sure to call this out. You can do this in your own way, but sometimes giving an “atta boy” every now and then will create an environment that helps your employees thrive.

Back off.

As a manager, you know your reputation is on the line with your team’s work, which means you want to know it’s always being handled in the best possible way. However, hovering over your team or constantly monitoring how they’re getting the job done is also known as micromanaging, and it can be a major deterrent for a lot of employees. While it may be hard to do, it’s very important for you to put your trust in the team and let them make their own successes and mistakes together. This way, when your team celebrates losses and victories together, it makes them want to either work harder to get the success or continue doing what they’re doing to feel that success again.

Team collaboration is important in any job, so using these tips will help your team want to work together and deliver a final result you can be proud of.