Developing high-performance teams: Key strategies for excellence

A cohesive team is what makes organizations successful. Problem-solving is expanded when team members work together and team cohesion can help build company culture and even improve job satisfaction. Because of the central role of teams in achieving organizational goals, it’s critical that managers know how to use effective team-building strategies to encourage high performance.

High-performance teams stand out in a few key ways: They have a shared sense of goals and objectives within the team and with the overall organization, team roles are well defined, team members are strong collaborators and the team communication is open and clear.

The teams within an organization are an extension of that organization’s culture. High-performance teams can’t develop in isolation from the environment in which they work. To create strong teams, leaders need to foster a culture that not only serves the organization's mission but values the traits that make for a successful team.

The members of a successful team:¹

• Use open communication
• Have diverse skill sets
• Welcome new ideas and diverse perspectives
• Establish shared objectives
• Use an established decision-making process
• Celebrate successes of each team member
• Encourage continued learning and professional growth

Effective team building strategies often overlap with methods for building a positive company culture and improving employee satisfaction. So, while it's important for individual employees to work on things like communication and collaboration, management should also keep those traits in mind as they craft a team building strategy for the overall success of the entire organization.

While on a strong team a culture of inclusivity helps team members feel safe to be themselves and share their unique perspectives, it can also help promote collaboration across the organization as a whole. Inclusivity and diversity are also believed to facilitate problem solving and help companies develop innovative solutions.

Open communication is a trademark of a high-performing team. But communication and transparency are also proven strategies for building trust between leadership and employees. Relatedly, clearly structured goals and defining team roles are important for the smooth functioning of projects of any size. Defined roles ensure that work is evenly distributed, avoids duplicate efforts and can help employees feel empowered to make an impact on the bottom line.

Team building shouldn't just be left up to the members of a team. Successful managers implement strategies that help support and develop high-performance teams across a business.

A team is only as strong as its weakest team member. Recruitment, hiring and onboarding should be a part of every manager's team building strategy. Hiring managers can search for certain experiences or traits on resumes and use interviews to assess whether a new hire shares a commitment to team performance. Once a hiring decision has been made, well-planned and organized onboarding helps introduce new hires to certain team dynamics, decision-making processes, and objectives.

The best teams are led by example. Leaders who are self-aware, competent, and good listeners can make team members feel supported and model skills that contribute to problem-solving on an individual level. A good leader remains accountable, isn’t afraid to delegate and works to bring the best out of their employees.¹

Organizations must strive for continuing excellence. Part of supporting that work is investing in personal and professional growth opportunities for teams. Consider supporting employees’ attendance at regular courses and workshops to learn about new technology, industry trends and new ways to work collaboratively. Another keen team building strategy is to foster the next generation of leaders. Develop an in-house mentoring program in which employees can learn about the path to leadership and start practicing team building strategies of their own.

A high-performance team is a collective, so effective team-building strategies have to help members learn to collaborate. Consider these specific elements to foster collaboration.

High-performing teams work best with open and honest communication. While a less-than-optimal team might jump right into a new project, a high-performing team might start the process by talking.² Such teams discuss how the project will unfold so they know how to work together.

Regular team meetings are a time to check in, and participants should always feel comfortable expressing any concerns to other members of the team. Supporting one another with regular feedback can help keep everyone on track.

The most sophisticated high-performance teams need the right technology to work well together. Check in with your teams to ensure they’re fully trained with your project management software and communication apps. Typically, these can be used by different teams throughout your organization, so there’s the capacity for collaboration between teams.

Working relationships are like other relationships between people: Conflict is inevitable. The best teams see conflict as an opportunity and a basis for more productive discussions.

The ability to listen to other team members is critical, as is the ability to find a resolution by seeing the argument from the other person’s perspective. Learning how to return to the team’s core objective can help the entire team find the best path forward.

Team cohesion is another ongoing process that helps members build trust. As team members get to know one another as people with unique attributes and personalities, they can develop a greater sense of trust. Team-building activities help expand this intrapersonal knowledge beyond on-the-job skills.

Simply working together can help enhance a team's strengths. Consider facilitating a range of team-building activities to include those that can happen every day or just on special occasions. Team retreats might be helpful when the organization is undergoing a shift or to celebrate a project being completed. Group challenges to raise money for charity help bring team members together for a common cause, help develop culture around service and philanthropy, as well as giving employees an opportunity for success unrelated to their work. Additionally, social events like sports teams or picnics can also contribute to team-building.

Knowing what’s working on a high-performance team is critical as the process goes along; giving leaders a chance to step in and make changes as early as possible. It’s also important to reflect on what team-building strategies work well so leaders can repeat them.

There are different ways to measure how well a team is doing at all stages. For example, you can keep track of productivity and quality of work. You can also measure cohesiveness by soliciting feedback from different members in confidential one-on-one meetings.

High-performance teams are critical to an organization’s success. Leaders can support their teams’ ongoing success by encouraging regular feedback, including constructive criticism and praise. Quarterly meetings with individual team members and monthly employee surveys can help foster two-way communication about how things are going.

Rewards are another important team-building strategy and retaining high-performance teams. Organizations should recognize achievements like certificates or degrees earned and celebrate those achievements. This can help keep morale high so team members stay committed to meeting the organization’s goals.