Choosing Business Goals

How To Encourage Your Employees To Better Work Together

15 May 2019 by Wade Wheeler

These days, more than ever before, it is important for employees to work together as a team in order to get projects done well and in a timely manner. Yet, with the advent of technology like smartphones, many employees can seem drawn to working alone, rather than collaborating. How can you encourage your employees to better work together? Here are a few strategies to try.

1. Invest in team workforce software and training to use it.

There are programs, such as Scrum, that help organize tasks, track deadlines, and allow employees to see one another's progress on projects they are collaborating on. Consider investing in one of these workforce software platforms for your company. Then, enroll your employees in a training program during which they will all learn to use the platform well. Using such a program will ensure everyone tracks their deadlines and progress in the same place. If employee #1 is going to be late completing a certain project, employee #2 will know about it since employee #1 can update that in the system. People will spend less time waiting for steps to be completed and wondering whether deadlines will be met.

2. Clarify each employee's role.

Sometimes, work may not get done because one employee assumes it's employee #1's responsibility, but employee #1 assumes it is employee #2's responsibility. You can thwart issues like this and encourage better collaboration by clarifying each employee's role. Don't just tell Joe he is assigned to graphics and Kathy she is assigned to writing copy. Clarify who is responsible for the captions — Joe or Kathy. Also, tell your employees to come to you if they are not sure who is supposed to handle a certain task.

3. Organize non-work team-building events.

People tend to work better together if they feel like they know each other personally. So organize some non-work, team-building events for your employees. This could be something small like an ice cream party in the office for a half hour after work on Thursdays, or it could be something more extensive like a weekend retreat to the mountains. As employees form friendships, they will feel more comfortable asking each other questions and relying on one another.

As a manager or business owner, getting everyone to work together well can be one of the biggest challenges you face. Start by implementing the tips above, and you should see an improvement in teamwork. 

Get in touch with a company like ZenAgile for more information.

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