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One of the most important steps you can take as a leader is to facilitate collaboration within your team. Here are 5 steps you can take to improve team communication, reduce conflict, build trust, improve relationships, and create a more positive work environment.
1. Provide opportunities for teamwork. Poor communication and interaction is one of the most common problems on any team. This is problematic because no team can function effectively without strong communication and positive interaction. One way to address this problem is through team building activities that build trust and improve team performance. Team building has six purposes:
* Helps teams clarify their purpose and goals.
* Allows teams to develop strategies and operating principles.
* Improve team communication and interaction.
* Improve team processes such as problem solving, decision making and conflict resolution.
* Improve team leadership and leader skills.
* Improves productivity and overall team effectiveness.
two. Communicate with all team members openly and honestly. One of the most important qualities of any leader is authenticity, which refers to being open, honest and direct. It also has to do with being comfortable with who you are as a human being. Being a genuine leader means that you are always honest with your team members and actively work to create an open environment where the free exchange of ideas can take place. By doing this, your team will build confidence and respond to you more positively in both good and bad situations.
3. Involve team members in problem solving and decision making. Team member participation provides three benefits. First, it helps them take responsibility for problem solving. By participating in the problem-solving process, members are actively involved in generating solutions and making decisions about how to implement those solutions. This increases the probability that the team will accept the final decision. Second, it brings more comprehensive information and creativity to the problem-solving process. Rather than one or two people making decisions, team problem solving brings a diverse variety of ideas and data to the table, increasing the likelihood that a successful solution can be identified. Ultimately, team members will have a greater opportunity to learn and develop if they are active participants in the problem-solving and decision-making process.
Four. Create a safe environment where team members can discuss issues and concerns. Generally, staff will function most effectively in environments where they feel they can express themselves, offer unbiased opinions, and engage in constructive dialogue on employment issues. It is up to the team leader to ensure that this type of collaborative environment is created and maintained. You can do this by participating in the following activities:
* Provide structured and ongoing opportunities for members to discuss their issues and concerns. For example, you can have a monthly meeting in which participants identify problems and discuss possible solutions.
* Encourage members to offer suggestions and ideas on an ongoing basis, and then use those ideas. You can systematize this process with a suggestion system that allows members to offer ideas and reward them for the suggestions that are implemented.
5. Challenge any non-collaborative behavior. Another step you can take to create supportive environments is to address any non-collaborative behavior. Each team will have people who “misbehave” at one point or another. Sometimes this is relatively minor, while at other times it can be a serious problem. In either case, you will need to discuss the behavior with the offending party to ensure that it does not continue. Non-collaborative behaviors can include:
* Continually interrupt members during a meeting.
* Yelling at teammates.
* Speak badly of others (for example, speaking behind someone’s back).
* Do not engage in behaviors that support other members.
* Insubordinate with the team leader.
* Failing to complete work assignments in a timely and professional manner.
* Complain about the decisions that have been made.
* Criticize, find fault and gossip.
* Use inappropriate humor or make risque comments.