Leaders: The Key to Building High-Performing Teams

What does it take to build a strong team? This question is more important now than ever: recent Gallup research shows that employee engagement will decline significantly in 2023. And with this lower engagement comes lower levels of performance, as 50% of employees would “quietly quit” in 2023.

Given this worrying decline in engagement and a workplace culture where managers are increasingly expected to do more with less and where the market for talent remains tight, companies cannot afford to waste a minute or a single dollar to waste more on poor performance.

This puts a lot of pressure on managers to find and assemble high-performing teams (this isn't just HR's job when it comes to hiring). All leaders need to understand what their role is, how employee recognition fits into the picture, and how to find the right path to create a group that is stronger than the sum of its parts.

How to define a high performance team

What comes to mind when you think of a high performance team? One that exceeds ALL of its goals? Are strong teams the ones that raise the bar higher and higher every year? Or is it the "other team" you're thinking of... the team full of overachievers and know-it-alls?

We can all agree that high employee performance is not a sign of perfection, but rather a mix of healthy attitudes and actions.

SHRM explains that a “high-performing work team” is a group of goal-oriented individuals with specialized expertise and complementary skills who collaborate, innovate, and consistently produce outstanding results. And the Harvard Business Review notes that trust is an essential component of high-performance teams - not just between leaders and their subordinates, but also between colleagues.

These definitions provide some clues that describe a shared vision and mindset. High performance puts the group over the individual, right? But how do you ensure that everyone feels included, challenged and recognized? This can be a difficult question for managers, executives and corporate culture enthusiasts - especially in the age of hybrid and decentralized forms of work where not all employees are in one place all the time.

The key to high-performing teams lies with the managers

To build a high-performing team, you must start with the team's leaders. No one else has as much direct influence on the engagement and performance of individual employees. But managers are overworked and underqualified, especially due to the sudden change to new working models.

In fact, 70% of managers in this Gallup survey said they received no formal training on leading a hybrid team. And a McKinsey study found that managers spend less than a third of their time on talent and people management, even though it is one of the areas where they add the most value to their companies.

It's clear: Companies need to help managers free themselves from administrative tasks so they can train, coach and develop their employees into high-performing teams. Managers should be trained and empowered to help all their employees thrive, build connections with the company and each other, and do the work they love. And of course, they should recognize and reward their employees for their hard work - and also encourage recognition from other employees.

Why employee recognition is important

Employee recognition remains one of the most important factors in employee motivation, but is overlooked by many companies. A study by the Brandon Hall Group found that a strong culture of recognition makes employees 79% more likely to give their employer brand a good review. In addition, employee retention is up to three times higher under these conditions.

Much of the decline in engagement found by Gallup is due to employees feeling less connected to their company's purpose and less likely to care about them as a person than they did in 2020 . Employee recognition can help bridge these gaps by connecting daily work to a larger purpose and making employees feel both valued and recognized.

‍Good managers share the credit and look for ways to make team members shine. High-performing teams spend a lot of time dreaming big and obsessing over every detail. What happens when personal and team goals are achieved and recognition is not received? Think about how you can inspire each team member by combining individual and team goals in a visible format. This way the team can celebrate and encourage each other to achieve their key performance indicators.

Remember that it can be unnatural for any employee to be their own cheerleader. Team leaders should encourage employees to easily claim their work and the space that suits their personality. Finding positive opportunities to promote good performance and collaboration helps build a culture that gives everyone the chance to participate and thrive.

What high-performing teams want

If you ask managers what they think motivates high employee performance, many conversations turn to compensation. But that's actually not the most important factor for employees - recognition, relationships and role clarity are more important for most people.

SHRM describes the following requirements for high-performing teams:

• A deep sense of purpose and commitment to team members and the mission
• Relatively more ambitious performance goals than average teams
• Mutual accountability and a clear understanding of members' responsibilities to the team and individual obligations
• A diverse range of expertise that complements the skills of other team members
• Interdependence and trust between members

The Harvard Business Review reported on a joint study by Ignite80 and Front that found that members of high-performing teams reported feeling more appreciated at work - both from their colleagues (72% more) and from their managers (79th percentile). % more).

And Gallup found that a manager who has one meaningful conversation per week with each team member fosters relationships with high-performing employees more than any other activity. Additionally, employees who didn't receive meaningful feedback from their managers in the last week were the least likely to know what was expected of them at work - and that's the biggest driver of dissatisfaction.

Good benefits, competitive compensation and a healthy company culture are all factors that help attract and retain top talent and high performers, but they are not everything.

Make sure your team also creates a framework for regular discussions with the manager, feedback, employee recognition and personal development. This helps build trust with each employee and creates a roadmap for success and progress.

Ways to recognize high-performing employees

No matter the size of your company, there are ways to scale and prioritize employee recognition. Consider some ideas for how managers can communicate good performance in both micro and macro groups. Maybe you have a section where you praise your employees, or a team survey where you name a name for completing a project. Morning meetings with your department are also a good opportunity to express praise and recognition for good work. Pay attention to the qualities of effective recognition!

In addition to words of affirmation, companies are finding more and more effective and scalable ways to reward their teams. Have you ever thought about introducing a recognition program to motivate your employees? Many of the top-rated employers see great benefits in implementing solutions and processes for high-performing teams. Greater employee engagement, better collaboration and well-organized feedback loops are just some of the improvements that can have a big impact!

The conclusion

If you're looking for ways to engage your employees and build high-performing teams, you'll want to collect more data from your employees about what matters most to them and how you want them to respond to it. Based on this, you can make informed decisions about the steps and solutions to implement an employee recognition plan that will help maintain your company's high performance.

Great teams are not born - they are created by thoughtful and compassionate leaders. Combating the current epidemic of dissatisfaction and quiet dismissal is a tall order, but with the right recognition and engagement strategy, you can do it and reap the rewards.

Unlock the potential of your team with strategic employee recognition and engagement. Build a culture of excellence and achieve success with IceHrm.