For business teams to be successful, they must be set up well and motivated to work together toward a common goal. This article highlights several strategies for getting them to do just that.

Include Different Strengths

The best business teams include team members whose different strengths complement each other. When assembling a team, take a look at what a project needs and make sure that different members have skills that will help fill those needs. Skillset redundancy is not the end of the world, but a team with varied skills will be able to approach problems from more angles. To borrow a sports example, you wouldn’t field a football team with 11 quarterbacks, so why do the same in business? 

Communication

Communication is also vital to make business teams hum. As one Entrepreneur.com contributor put it, “communication can make or break your company.” On the team level, this means encouraging communication both through instruction and by giving teams the tools they need to effectively talk to each other. For instance, if some team members work remotely, ensure they have a way to regularly check in. Online chats are one option for this, as are regular conference calls.  

Make Sure the Team Knows Their Purpose

Managers should also make sure business teams know their purpose and why they are together. When evaluating a team, ask yourself:

• Does this team have a clear mission and purpose? 
• Does the team understand how their goals help the company? 
• Does each team member understand their role within the team? 
• Do team members understand why other team members are there?  

Additionally, managers should regularly check in with their teams. This can be an opportunity to provide encouragement, solicit feedback on how the process is going, and work on any problems that have arisen.

For more tips on the business world, take a look at Elevation Financial’s other blog posts.