To effectively manage a team, you must create clear expectations of what success looks like. By setting and communicating clear expectations, you can reduce employee frustration and increase productivity. When your employees know how to succeed, they do!
Provide Defined Roles for Each Member of Your Team
As a leader, you are responsible for making sure that the members of your team understand their roles. This should be communicated clearly in writing when they are first hired, as well as verbally throughout their employment.
Your job is to provide the structure that your team members need so they can function properly within their roles. Having a clear job description that outlines what someone will be doing every day, every week, and every month is a great way to manage expectations from the beginning. If there appears to be any overlap between two positions, be sure to clearly communicate which person is responsible for which task to avoid confusion.
You don’t have to micro-manage to provide proper structure for your team. By clearly defining each role and setting expectations for what needs to be accomplished, you allow your team to solve challenges and increase productivity. According to this Quickbase blog, “When people have guidelines within which to operate, they are actually more empowered to act, take initiative, and innovate.” Set the boundaries, and then allow your team to rise to the challenges set before them.
Provide Training on How to Do Their Job Successfully
Training is a key component to success in any position. Great training focuses on best practices for every area of your business. You can’t expect your employees to execute the tasks you have set for them if you haven’t equipped them to do it. Training should be a continuing endeavor throughout their employment, not simply a one-time assignment when they are first hired.
We recommend creating your own training library using your own documented processes, training videos, and best practices. This can be as simple as a Google Doc or PDF you keep updated with current training for your team. One great tool for making screenshot video is techsmith.com. They have a free download called Jing that will allow you to make screenshots under 5 minutes. Snagit is another tool they offer which allows you to create longer videos.
The training program should give specific instructions for how to handle critical tasks while also allowing enough room for creative thinking and problem solving. About Money states, “When designing a continuing education program, the desired outcome should be a blending of both technical and personal enhancement. This type of training program will allow the staff the opportunity to develop solid management skills, coupled with a better understanding of their position and function, and how that fits into the relationship of the organization.”
Long Term Success Requires Clear, Specific, and Measurable Goals for Both the Organization and the Individual
Once you create your system, identify how you are going to measure your success. For example, if you turn over event planning to a new employee, how are you going to measure that person’s success? This can involve identifying key performance indicators for your business and your employees’ success. Consider how you will measure your employees’ success and make sure they know their goals from the start.
Having automated processes in place can help to ensure that goals are being consistently communicated and problems regularly addressed to help your team stay on track. If you are unsure of how to implement these processes in your business, you can take our free automation assessment to see where your leadership skills can improve. We can help get you on the right track and set your employees up for long term success.