Managing a team in an office setting can be a very rewarding experience if the proper steps are taken to ensure three things: overall happiness, effectiveness and clear communication. A successful manager knows how to incorporate the entire team into the success, and it shines through in productivity. Learning to build up and manage a good team can be done by following 6 important office rules.
1. Pick the correct team and communicate effectively with them - Commitment is a crucial part of building and managing a successful office team. A good manager picks the right team for the job, but makes sure that team commitment is present. Members of the team who do not want to be involved with the project will not be committed to seeing good results. Team members need to evaluate their contributions to each project and a good manager knows how to encourage member productivity and to help them develop their individual skills. The team has to have a high level of competence, stemming from the original designation by management. If members of the team feel that others are contributing more or less to the project, a good manager should know how to deal with such situations. A good manager also needs to be able to provide the team with sufficient resources, support and capabilities to perform the task at hand, and to perform it to expectations.
2. Know what skills are needed and who can fulfill those needs - A good manager knows that teamwork is about collaboration and that a team member is ultimately part of a bigger, group project. Picking team members is the first step and includes knowledge about each members skills and what can be brought to the team environment. It is management responsibility to ensure a team atmosphere and that each member understands what skills they have that helps the project move forward. Cooperation and communication are key aspects of managing effectively and keeping the team happy and healthy. Members need to be clear about their particular role within the group and a good manager knows how to put members skill sets together efficiently.
3. Set high goals and make your expectations known - It is important that the entire team knows why they are there. A good manager sets goals with deadlines and is around to make sure that those deadlines are met. Setting goals also means providing discussions that outline those goals. Each team member needs to be in agreement about the project, the work it includes and the expected results. Discussions should involve different strategies for achieving project goals and how each team member is a crucial part to the accomplishment of those goals. A good manager instills vision within the team and upholds team values as the leader.
4. Stick to guidelines, but know how to handle mistakes effectively - Mistakes are bound to happen, as human beings are involved in team tasks! However, the real success is in how a good leader handles the mistakes and turns them into potential team success stories. A good leader manages mistakes in a clear and effective way, being strict on the task but handling team members with softer gloves. Members should take pride in their successes and responsibility for their mistakes; a good manager knows how to instil these qualities in their team members and how to avoid "finger-pointing" and blaming techniques, creating a reward based system that celebrates victories and doesn't focus on failures.
5. Give out the credit but accept the blame for mistakes - Blame games are not the way of the effective managers and the team members that represent them. These techniques only create "bad vibes" throughout the team, leaving residue of grudges and making team members more disgruntled than anything else. An effective team has to respect one another, through mistakes as well. A good manager will celebrate every success, no matter how small, to instil a group feeling among the team. Allowing team members to fail is the only way a learning experience can be found and staying out of the team limelight will make them feel more responsible for outcomes. Good managers give credit where it is rightfully due, and accept the blame for mistakes so that the team can move on from them, together. Management so often tries to control every aspect of the team environment too harshly, leaving the members feeling less in control and more like background players.
Good managers build and manage successful teams from the ground, up. Choosing the team is only half the battle; managing it effectively can be quite a task if the manager is not ready to assume responsibility for team mistakes and is unwilling to share in the team successes. Building a successful team work environment is a learning experience; an experience based on communication, effectiveness and happiness of team members.
James writes about business supplies for Office Kitten, a UK based specialist in stationery and hardware for offices.
