3 reasons why teams fail to work together (2/3)
Updated: Oct 23, 2019
"Team Player", "Teamwork Skills", "Work in collaboration with others" ... all are examples of ways we highlight one of the essential skills needed by anyone looking to fulfill his / her career or hope to be promoted at work. However, we still fail to work in teams, and we still struggle to show that we have this skill. So, what are the reasons for failing to work as a team? (check the 1st part of this blog)
2. No clear reward
Again, you may’ve set a clear reward system if the task assigned to the team is accomplished on time, but we usually fail to set a system that rewards team interaction and collaboration. Some managers want to see the task done, without putting lots of emphasis on the way it was done, and this can be an acceptable—or even appraised—approach when assessing individual performance (although the rule #1 in my book is that it is all about how you achieve your goals, not just what you achieve). However, assessing team collaborative performance is a totally different thing; you need to reward not only what was achieved, but also how it was achieved. Was there a proper collaboration between team members? Did the members understand how they are supporting each other? Were there moments when one or more of the team members compromised for the sake of the whole team? And how did the other team members meet that compromise? These are some questions that leadership needs to find answers for before rewarding the team for the success they achieved.
W2DO?
Set an objective reward system that balances between the recognizing the task achieved and appreciating the cooperation and collaboration of the team during the execution of this task. Reward individuals for their extraordinary performance, and also reward the team for the success they achieved. Get your reward system to balance between the individual performance related to the task in hand and the individual collaborative performance to support the team. Utilize failures and mistakes as opportunities for learning that the whole team should use to move ahead, this will encourage the team to stand together in the face of failures instead of pointing fingers to each other.
"It is literally true that you can succeed best and quickest by helping others to succeed." – Napolean Hill