Top Tips to Setting Your Team Up for Success in 2021!

Happy New Year and welcome to 2021!

Every year, without fail, as everyone returns from their holidays or the regular shut down period, and the workplace starts to look a little more like normal, everyone, including management, can sometimes suffer from a little bit of 'return to work itis'. This year however, we're expected to see this trend more than ever.

After the year that was 2020, and the continued uncertainty about the future, coupled with the 'new normal' of hybrid work arrangements and the inevitable change fatigue that many were experiencing as 2020 came to an end, the return to work 'funk' that many find themselves in during January will be heightened even more.

The first thing many staff do when returning from leave is start planning their next holiday! This isn't always a bad thing, it gives them something to look forward to and then let's them focus on work between now and then. But now well let's be real, no one can realistically plan anything with any sense of certainty.

So how can you make sure those grand plans and challenging goals you've set for the business will be met and achieved in the year ahead?

In my mind, the best way to get everyone back on track and focused on the year ahead is by dragging them out of their normal day to day mindset and excite them with some leadership, direction, challenges and opportunity.

Here are my top tips for setting your team, and ultimately your business, up for a super start to a successful new year:

1) Communicate with them: without your communication and leadership your team ultimately lack direction. This time of year is an ideal opportunity to communicate with the team, whether you have 1 employee or 1000 employees and share with them the plans for the year ahead, the achievements and milestones you are wanting each individual, team, department or division to make and the obstacles they may face in getting there.

This could include communicating about how you plan to deal with any uncertainty or changes you have had to make and how you plan to manage, deal with and work through all of this. 

2) Engage them in your vision: We all know that when your people are not engaged in the bigger picture and your overall vision, they are typically less inclined to do what it takes to achieve this goal. Engaging them in your vision means more than just communicating it to them. You really need to get their 'buy in' so they are committed to achieving the vision and passionate about getting there.

There are many ways to do this, but ultimately it's about making sure you have the right people in place, with common values and a passion about what they do, combined with an interest in seeing the business pursue this bigger picture vision.

3) Challenge them: Individuals love to be challenged, in one way or another. For some people it's about challenging goals and targets, for others it's about precision work and accuracy. Knowing your team well, at an individual level, really helps to make this possible. With challenges many individuals love to see rewards, but this doesn't always have to be financially driven, don't be afraid to think outside the square.

4) Give them opportunity: No matter what generation your people are associated with, they all want opportunity. Opportunity to progress, opportunity to learn, opportunity to gain benefits, opportunity to prove themselves, or purely opportunity to do a better job.

The sense of achieving and doing something that they are driven towards can be one of the greatest motivators, so knowing what your people want to achieve, and providing them with the opportunity to do this can be critical to overall success for both them individually and the organisation as a whole.

5) Listen to what they want and where possible show them you are acting on it: Listening is one of the most critical elements of communication, yet often it's the one that is hardest for some to do. Listen to what your people want from their work, and where possible demonstrate that you have heard what they have to say, and are taking action towards helping them achieve this. It doesn't have to be the end solution that they see, but rather that you have heard, listened and started taking steps towards making this happen is often just what they need to keep the motivation to move forward.

Of course these are all things that you should be doing on a regular basis with your team to keep them engaged and as part of your overall retention strategy, but as we move into a new year it's always a great idea to look at these concepts with a fresh approach and renewed commitment to seeing these through.

 

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