Leading people in a team or managerial environment is not always easy. One thing that can make it easier though is identifying in what ways their employees tend to function at their best. Different people require different types of work environments to function at their best. Some employees perform best when they are given an assignment and then left alone until the assignment’s completion. Other employees work best in groups or teams where they can bounce their ideas off of their peers. Still other employees may prefer to work individually, only receiving criticism from the manager or team leader himself. The better job a manager does at identifying what type of work structure an employee works best within and the better that department, team, or business will run.
When a manager identifies that one of the people on their team is better at working on projects alone, there are a number of factors they need to put in place to ensure that this employee has the best chance to function at a high level. These factors include reinforcing with that employee that as long as the work they turn out is of high quality, then they will be allowed to work under the conditions that they prefer. These loner type of employees also need other people on the team that work in the same way, this provides a sense of community and that they are not the only one in the boat. While this style of working is acceptable, and in some cases preferred, it also needs to be made perfectly clear to this type of employee that they at some point will be expected to improve on how they interact with their fellow employees.
It isn’t enough to fill a team with employees that work well in groups, a successful manager needs to make sure that those employees possess the kind of traits it takes to work together at a high level. When a manager builds this type of team or sub-group to a team and one of the members takes on an unwelcomed leadership role within the group, they are risking the well being of their team on possible conflict and negative feelings that lurk under the surface of the other team members. A group that is meant to work together as part of a larger team should be built as equals so that each member knows that their production and ideas are just as valid and valued as everyone else in the group.
Employees that work well but need constant reassurance from the team leader or manager can be both a benefit and a liability to the overall operation of the group. While the work they produce may be valuable, if they are too needy and distract the manager or team leader constantly from his or her responsibility to the bigger picture, then they can also be a negative draw on the energy of the team. These types of employees need to be encourage, reassured, nurtured, but also forced to grow in how they operate as an employee. Building and shaping these type of employees into fully functioning independent team members ensures that the make-up of the overall team is stronger and more reliable.
One of the hardest parts of a manager or team leader’s job is to identify what type of employees they have and how to get the best amount of quality work out of them. One of the most detrimental actions a manager can make is to take one type of employee and force them to work in a system that does not cater to their needs and traits. These employees will be much more productive when they are allowed to operate within their comfort zones. There is a fine line though between catering to an employee’s working style and inhibiting a group’s performance because of one needy team member. While teams can be built to function in a way that is best for all of the team members, the team members also need to know that the company or management cannot afford for their individual style of work to distract from the goals of the company itself.
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