6 Keys to Transform Your Employees into a Winning Team

6 Keys to Transform Your Employees into a Winning Team
By ActionCOACH David Beam

As a business coach, I often get asked by business owners how they can get their employees to work together, quit blaming each other for problems, and take more ownership for their job.

My response is often a bit abrasive. I ask the owner if he or she meets regularly one-on-one with their employees, if they blame their employees for problems, and if they truly take full ownership and accountability for what is going on in the business. It is interesting that the employees are a reflection of the owner.

In a single word, the first key to a winning team is leadership. A strong leader is one that demonstrates integrity and competence. He or she is someone that people trust. Strong leaders also have developed the communication skills to enroll and inspire others to understand and embrace their vision.

Do you have a clear vision for your business? The second key for a winning team is to have a common goal. To win the game as a team, it is essential for everyone to share a clearly defined target, and it is the responsibility of the leader to effectively communicate that goal to the team.

The third key for winning is to know the rules of the game. Can you imagine trying to win a game if you didn’t know the rules? Often employees lack motivation and productivity because the expectations are unclear. Do your employees know the company core values? Have you invested time in defining core values and communicating the company culture to every team member?

A fourth key for producing a winning team is to support risk taking. For people to maximize their potential, they need to try new things and even make mistakes! The only people who don’t make mistakes are those who never try anything new. Winning teams will always be willing to stretch their limits. As long as you have defined the rules of the game, the team should be encouraged to innovate within those defined boundaries.

A fifth key to a winning team is to have a written action plan. Great ideas, an inspiring vision, and even a happy work place don’t automatically produce results. Results come from taking action. Each team member needs to know daily who is supposed to do what by when.

Finally, the sixth key to a winning team is 100% involvement and inclusion. Each member must know that they are accepted by the team and each member must also choose to participate 100%. Those who are not fully engaged pull down the team’s performance. 100% participation creates powerful team synergy.

So here is a review of the 6 keys: 1) Strong Leadership 2) Common Goal 3) Rules of the Game 4) Support Risk Taking 5) Action Plan 6) 100% Involvement and Inclusion. Get these keys in place and go out there and win the game!