Distinguishing Characteristics of Robust Teams:
In the digital age, team leaders are facing a unique challenge: managing dispersed teams with flexible schedules, extended geographies, and a mix of in-person and remote workers. To effectively boost performance and resilience in these hybrid teams, implementing strategies focusing on asynchronous collaboration, building caring relationships, and collective responsibility for well-being can be highly beneficial.
One such strategy is the implementation of asynchronous collaboration. Encouraging team members to contribute ideas at their convenience through asynchronous brainstorming challenges allows for more thoughtful input and prevents dominant voices from overshadowing others. Digital tools can be used to facilitate and organize these challenges, ensuring that everyone has a chance to participate and be heard. Cross-functional projects and role shadowing are other methods that help build understanding and synergy among team members, enhancing workflow efficiency.
Building caring relationships is another crucial aspect of boosting team performance. Team-based onboarding sessions foster early relationship-building and ensure that new hires understand the importance of synergy from their first day. Regular virtual check-ins maintain connections and help team members feel supported and valued. Rotating culture champions can drive engagement by organizing activities, recognizing achievements, and ensuring the team stays connected despite physical distance.
Collective responsibility for well-being is essential in best-performing teams. Managers should prioritize mental well-being by checking in regularly and normalizing mental health discussions. Giving employees autonomy and trusting them to own their work boosts engagement and makes work feel more rewarding. Career development support in the form of mentorship, advancement opportunities, or skill-building programs helps employees see a clear path forward and transforms daily tasks into stepping stones toward long-term goals.
Additional strategies include implementing fair and transparent performance reviews to avoid proximity bias, celebrating achievements with personalized rewards or digital badges, and training teams on how to resolve conflicts professionally in a virtual setting.
By adopting these strategies, hybrid teams can enhance performance, build strong relationships, and foster collective responsibility for well-being. Offering support to team members with low energy levels is an important practice in building collective resilience. The energy check-in helps identify commonalities and understand individual experiences, setting a tone of trust within the team. Asynchronous meetings allow team members more time to think and lead to better decision making.
In conclusion, the strategies outlined above can help managers build a more resilient team, contributing to the team's performance and survival in times of uncertainty. The book "3 Practices That Set Resilient Teams Apart" by Keith Ferrazzi and CeCe Morken, published in HBR 2022/03, discusses resilience as a critical need for teams to survive and deliver results in times of uncertainty, with Apple's performance being attributed to resilient teams. Adopting simple practices such as the energy check-in can help managers build a more resilient team.
- Remote work, when managed effectively, can be a part of a team member's lifestyle, allowing them to contribute ideas at their convenience through asynchronous brainstorming.
- In the realm of fashion-and-beauty or food-and-drink, for instance, personalized rewards or digital badges can be used to celebrate achievements within the team.
- Home-and-garden can also benefit from these strategies, as offering support to team members with low energy levels helps build collective resilience and fosters a positive emotional environment.
- For those interested in education-and-self-development or personal-growth, skill-building programs and mentorship opportunities can help employees see a clear path forward, leading to increased engagement and commitment.
- While managing pets might not directly relate to these strategies, the principle of building strong relationships still applies, as regular virtual check-ins help maintain connections and ensure team members feel supported and valued.
- For those who enjoy travel or driving cars, adopting these strategies can allow teams to work together closely even when physically distant, enhancing relationship-building and overall team performance.
