What Team Leads Should Be Doing to Connect With Their Teams

Unfortunately, when it comes to fostering mutually beneficial connections with their team members, most department heads are at a loss. While it is common for business leaders to make the mistake of distancing themselves from the other workers as an act of professionalism, it actually works against the company's bottom line, leading to decreases in morale, more costly mistakes and utter chaos in the workplace. Here are a few ways that team leads can strengthen their bond with their workers without compromising their authority.

​Open Communication

Whether they are at home or their jobs, people love to hear and be heard. When there is an open line of communication to discuss matters that affect the workplace in its entirety, employees will naturally trust and respect their team leader. Some of the best ways to get others to engage in effective communication are by way of both personal and group meetings, company events, emails, feedback requests and Gemba walks. Gemba walks provide opportunities for open communication and can help team leads have a better understanding of what challenges their teams are facing.

​Team Building Activities

Team building activities don't have to directly relate to work tasks. Instead, they are usually interactive games that allow each worker to express his or her independent thought patterns and skills as the team works together to crack a code or achieve a group victory. Not only do these activities work to build internal connections, but they also allow leaders to gain awareness about the strengths and personalities of every involved.

​Shared Power

Leaving some decisions up to the team is not a way of diminishing authority. The truth is that employees love to have a say when it comes to matters that affect them. This simple gesture reinforces the idea of appreciation and value for the thought processes of others, reminding them that they are an integral part of a team and that the workplace is not a dictatorship. Instead of always devising each plan from beginning to end, try to communicate the end goal of the task, and allow the team to iron out the details.

​Team leadership requires a lot of work outside of delegating day-to-day tasks. An effective leader realizes that he or she is only as good as the rest of his or her team and uses this fact as a motivational blueprint to both fuel the workplace and become a greater asset as well.

Read more great tips in this post: How to Thrive During and After a Crisis: 5 Small Business Strategies