Managing a team is a complicated process that requires you to navigate professional relationships and personal relationships and balance it all with the organization’s goals in mind. That’s why effective team management is so crucial. Not only does it take a special type of person to do the job, but it also takes a special skill set to make a team truly successful.
In this post, we cover
- What is team management?
- Ineffective compared to effective team management
- What makes a high-performance team?
- Effective team management skills
- How to develop effective team management skills
- Effective team strategies
We are going to give you a clear-cut guide that can assist you in becoming the manager your team deserves. Be sure to keep an open mind. You might think you are the best manager, but everyone has room to improve.
What is Team Management?
Before we get into the thick of this concept, we need to cover the basics. For ease, we define team management as “the act of using managerial tactics to meet business goals and improve performance.” From forming the team to establishing collective goals, team management is in all of it. How each of those steps is handled determines the response of the team, which just goes to show how important these practices are.
The place where team management is really visible is in the periphery of the official office business, folded into each interaction. It’s in the tone of the conversations and the way goals are established. Every aspect of a manager’s dealings is laced with “team management” because that is what they are doing—even if they don’t know it.
Ineffective vs. Effective Team Management
So, what makes team management effective? The best way to explain is by showing you what it’s not.
When you think of a high-performance team, you think of sleek workflows, a relaxed culture, and regular communication. Flip all those attributes on their heads, and you’ll find some very ineffective team management. Some other examples include
- Bottlenecks
- Poor Communication
- Aggressive Discipline
- Blame
Almost every aspect of your team (especially the ones you don’t like) can be sourced back to management. That might be hard to hear—especially if management is reading this, but it’s the truth. We aren’t here to make you feel warm and fluffy.
If your culture is aggressive and competitive, that’s because that’s what management encourages. There are managers pitting team members against each other. They’re comparing performance and guilting ones who don’t compete. These managers might even be basing reviews on how competitive they are. And let’s be clear, there should be a standard of performance and achievement, but making people double and triple that standard for fear of losing their jobs is a bit much.
This type of management could easily lead to high turnover because people never feel like they are giving enough.
Another example of ineffective management we need to discuss further is blame. If management doesn’t take accountability for their mistakes, why in the world would you expect your team to? People will do as management does. No matter what you take from this piece, take that.
What Makes A High-Performance Team?
The moment you see a high-performance team, you know it. We aren’t talking about those who have high output. No, it’s more specific than that. They work as a cohesive unit, respect each other and their various skills, and they know where they are headed.
That’s why we believe there are five ways to make your team stand a cut above the rest.
1. There is a clear, shared vision.
Ask anyone, “What are you working toward?” Every high-performing team member will have different versions of the same answer. Management never places them on a track to blindly navigate their way forward. Instead, they sit everyone down and show them the goal. When team members have questions, each one is worked through and discussed in as much detail as possible.
The vision is then broken down into pieces to the point where each team member can see their specific spot in it.
Overall, a “vision” is supposed to be inspirational, clarify the reasons behind different strategies and decisions, and be as specific as possible. It might even be considered ambitious.
2. Everyone understands what they are here to do.
Effective team management is true to its name when each person knows exactly what they are here to do. That seems simple, right? It’s actually far more complicated than you think. Most team members have a vague idea of what it is they are responsible for. They might be able to list off tasks that are theirs, but can they explain why they are here?
Few can.
In high-performing teams, teams know why they are here, and they could list Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). There is no confusion about what “a good job” means for them.
3. Transparency is apparent in everything—especially when it comes to action.
While there are few instances where “need to know” applies—it’s rare in high-performance teams. Besides those rare events, people communicate openly. They report daily actions; any team member can understand why their colleague did that today.
The “why” is collectively understood because nothing is hidden. Everyone understands the other’s workloads, and there is collaboration wherever possible. A team member can peak their head into another’s office and say, “I see you are working on ________. I had a hand with that years ago, and it was rough. Do you need any help?”
Additionally, there is moral support smeared all over the place. No one is trying to push anyone down. If anything, people are constantly being lifted and helped up.
4. Hold one-on-one relationships and meetings.
When overseeing a team, it’s important to know each member of that team. Management should have a clear understanding of each person they manage. These relationships are supported by one-on-one meetings where people are free to discuss what they enjoy, what they don’t, what is going well, what’s going wrong, and anything else they feel so inclined to discuss.
The point is not to give team members special complaint sessions but rather to give management a real shot at understanding their people. It also allows people to understand management.
5. There is mutual trust and respect.
High-performance teams don’t have room for poor delegation. Management of these teams fully expects their people to do their jobs. In fact, they trust them to do their jobs.
Respect and trust flow freely within high-performance teams. Delegation is regular and complete. And when hard times come, management is there to support them—just as they do in easy times.
Effective Team Management Skills You Need
So, we’ve talked a lot about what a good team looks like, what it doesn’t look like, and other aspects of effective team management. Now, let’s talk about the team management skills we think you need to be truly successful.
Clear, Effective Communication
When you’re in a management position, you find yourself explaining things a lot. It’s easily the largest and most overlooked part of your job. So, it makes sense that you should be pretty good at explaining. Not to mention breaking down complicated topics into easier, bite-sized pieces that people can digest.
This one applies to both written and verbal communication. You really do need both.
Emotional Intelligence
The landscape of a management position consists of relationships, relationships, and more relationships. There are your relationships and those of the people around you. They all affect the job. So, it’s crucial for a manager to be able to navigate the complexities of all these connections and associations.
Organization
Just as there are a million relationships to navigate, there are also a million details. Keeping it all straight will improve your experience and your teams.
Ability To Delegate
Delegation is the act of handing off a task for someone else to complete. They may do it for you or the team, but it’s not done by you either way. When someone has the ability to delegate, they can hand a task off to someone else, and that’s that. They don’t peek over their team’s shoulder every few minutes and check their work. Instead, they trust their people to do their jobs and get back to whatever needs their intention.
Openness
In those tense moments, when a team member asks you a vulnerable question, a good leader will be honest. If there is an issue, the manager (with effective team management skills) will tactfully outline that issue. They won’t be unnecessarily harsh or cruel. If anything, they will try hard not to be either of those things.
This skill is often found in people who lack an ego. Of course, they have dignity and a belief in themselves and the rest of that stuff, but they don’t make judgments or comments based on what their pride thinks.
Problem-Solving
Another name for this team management skill is “willingness to try.” So often, people think that if they don’t come up with the most creative and outside-the-box solutions, they are lacking. That’s not true. Problem-solving is usually sourced somewhere within courage, analysis, and willingness.
All that is to say, you don’t need a degree in rocket science to have this skill down. You just need to be more willing to try.
Decision Making
Along with a willingness to solve problems, you also have to be willing to make the wrong call. Decision-making skills in the moment look like a quick analysis and a call to action, but that whole situation is soaked by the fact that it could be wrong. The best leaders not only try to make the best decision in every situation, but they also face up to it when that call is wrong.
How To Develop Effective Team Management Skills & Strategies
If you think you are a terrible manager, we have good news for you. Studies suggest that anyone who thinks that they are bad at their job is far more likely to be good at it. On the other hand, those who think that they are great in their role of manager or leader are probably quite bad at it.
For example, researchers watched high schoolers take the same test and found that those who thought they did well tended to answer fewer questions. They were also more likely to guess than take the time to evaluate the questions and try.
The kids who thought they did poorly did much better than they thought. First, they answered more questions. Second, they took the time to read through the questions they were unsure of and gave it their best effort.
The same idea applies to adults—specifically managers.
Where To Start, Developing Effective Team Management Skills
So, we recommend you start by taking stock of your current skills. Don’t overinflate your abilities. Honestly assess each of the skills we discussed and decide where you stand. Ask your team how well you handle each skill to get the most accurate reading on your status as a leader.
Then, choose a handful to work on. We recommend a max of three at a time. Rome wasn’t built in a day. You will get much more gently making progress (like the turtle) than thinking you can change your whole technique in a day (like the hare).
Once you’ve decided what to work on improving, set realistic goals. Put a note by your office phone to remind yourself to give more feedback and less criticism, or you could remind yourself to “be less mean.” Even if it’s minimal, some progress is better than creating a lofty goal, not reaching it, feeling dejected, and giving up.
While you are on this journey, do not dismiss the relevance of getting your team’s feedback. The only people whose opinion of you as a leader matters are those you lead. Practice the skills you are looking to improve and ask your team how you did.
Lastly, a great help for leaders is professional development courses. Not only are there hundreds of resources online now, but there might be courses offered by your company to improve team management skills. If you expect your team to be willing to learn, you have to be willing, too.
11 Tips For Building Effective Team Management Skills
- Prevent burnout by setting positive boundaries that support your team’s work-life balance
- Provide flexibility wherever possible (you don’t need to be a pushover, but you could be more helpful)
- Encourage balance in people’s lives by having it for yourself
- Establish your relationship with each team member
- Base relationships on trust and loyalty—meaning you give just as much as you get
- View each team member’s perspective as valuable
- Tune into the unspoken feelings of each team member
- Encourage everyone to share information (and lead by example)
- Delegate problem-solving tasks as often as possible
- Have and communicate a clear picture of what you hope to accomplish
- Encourage listening and brainstorming
Traps To Avoid For Effective Team Management
- Do not think that you know better just because you are a manager
- Consult your team as often as possible
- Consider every solution offered to you
- Do not surprise superiors—it’s best to communicate issues could be coming ahead of time
- Do not act as if you have authority makes you better, smarter, faster, or more capable than your team
Be The Leader Your Team Deserves
Your team is what you make of it. If you don’t give them the tools they need to function properly, they won’t. If you hold them to standards that you can’t even meet yourself, you’ll fail.
No matter how deep you are into your team management journey, you can make a better team right now. The way to do that is to lead by example. Every single trait that you want your team to have more of will bloom if you are the catalyst.
