Table of Contents
Table of Contents
What is Team Management?
Team management is a broad term used in a variety of contexts. Here at Factorial, we think of team management as coordinating the professional activities of a group of people (the team) to meet their shared business objectives.
A team can be managed by an individual leader or more than one person sharing leadership roles. It’s also important to recognise that the ethos of an organisation shapes how teams are managed. For example, a business with a hierarchical structure may have a different approach to team management than one with an egalitarian (flatter) style where more people are involved in decision-making.
Effective team management is important for business success: when teams are managed well, the individuals within it perform to the best of their abilities, leading to increased productivity and improved employee engagement.
What are the Benefits of Effective Team Management?
Effective team building and management has several benefits for business:
- Improved productivity: in a well-managed team, employees know what is expected of them and how to do it to a high standard. They also understand their contribution to the wider success of the company, which can lead to greater motivation to do their job well.
- Creative problem solving: good communication between team members leads to regular collaboration making it easier to work together to overcome challenges and find solutions to issues.
- Increased employee engagement: effective teams have good relationships and trust their leaders, creating a sense of belonging and support that helps them feel fully engaged in their roles. Engaged employees are more likely to produce high-quality work, stay in their roles for longer, and generate new ideas, which can benefit the company’s bottom line.
Key Team Management Skills
Effective team management involves a mixture of skills and characteristics incorporating problem-solving, emotional intelligence, organisational expertise and mastery of communication. This combination of soft skills often creates a supportive and open team environment clearly focused on achieving shared goals.
Problem-Solving
A key skill for a team manager is working with other team members to objectively analyse a problem, think creatively about a solution and execute it.
Emotional Intelligence
Being self-aware and able to empathise with individuals in the team helps to build relationships (and improve collaboration) and to motivate and influence others to do the work required of the team to a high standard. Emotional intelligence also involves being flexible, open to feedback and honest about issues, creating an environment which is supportive and people are trusted to contribute ideas and do their job well.
Organisational Expertise
Managing a team is a complex role with various competing demands on an individual’s time and technical skills. Good team managers are able to manage their own time, delegate tasks appropriately and stick to agreed schedules and plans.
Mastery of Communication
Effective team management relies on strong communication between the whole team and the communication skills demonstrated by the team leader. Strong communication involves more than just what is said or written, it also involves active listening, understanding body language and be aware of tone and facial expressions.
8 Team Management Tips
An individual’s management style is personal, but there are some basic principles that lay the foundation for successful team management.
1. Set Shared Goals and Behaviours
While the team manager has the strategic overview for the team, spending time working together to create a shared vision and objectives is essential for it to be effective. It is also important to set expectations so employees know what they are expected to deliver and how they are expected to behave.
2. Be an Active Communicator
Take time to think about the best way to communicate effectively with the team. Communication is essential if a team is going to work well together. Good communication usually involves a mixture of both written and verbal methods, both in person and via digital platforms. Practising active listening and paying close attention can help team managers understand what is going on for individuals, which in turn can help to ensure the team is functioning well.
3. Make Feedback and Training Your Friend
Teams that are well-managed regularly invite and give feedback and ensure that they respond and follow up on it as required so that team members know that their views have been heard. A culture of feedback or adopting a growth mindset approach creates an open and supportive environment where team members are not afraid to take risks and learn from their mistakes. Ongoing training links closely to this idea as teams committed to learning and development demonstrate that they see the potential in each employee and the team as a whole, motivating all involved.
4. Recognise and Reward
When team managers regularly recognise and reward high-quality work and positive behaviours in individual team members, they create a team environment where people feel noticed and valued. Combining recognition with a feedback culture ensures that team members feel supported in their work: they know what they are doing well, and that it is valued, but they also know what they need to improve and how to do it.
5. Get Organised
Team management usually involves many different streams of work, including both the tasks involved in meeting the team’s objectives and those required to manage individuals and the whole team actively. Being organised and managing your time well, especially in meetings, will ensure you are able to keep on top of everything required of you, including timely responses to questions or feedback from team members.
6. Be a Role Model
The principle of ‘show not tell’ can be powerful in a team management style. Leaders who show their vulnerability and acknowledge when they have made a mistake help create a team environment where transparency and honesty are valued. Being a role model in terms of self-care and having a good work-life balance also makes a significant contribution to a team dynamic that focuses on working smarter, not harder.
7. Take Accountability, be Transparent
Effective teams trust their leaders and are motivated to do better work as a result. One way teams lean to trust their managers is when those managers are honest with the team, accept their own mistakes and take full accountability for the overall functioning of the team.
8. Be Proactive with Problem-Solving and Conflict Resolution
How well a team functions is often determined by how those managing it deal with challenges and conflicts that arise between team members. Bringing the entire team together to understand a challenge and find a solution creates a culture of collaboration and support. Addressing conflicts as they arise and with an understanding of both perspectives can make it easier for those involved to feel supported and to find a solution.
