Teamwork makes the dream work – 10 Ways to Improve Teamwork With Your Employees

What’s better than one person? Two people. What’s better than two people? Three people. And so on and so forth, right? The more people working towards the same goal, the greater success that team will experience, right? When you’re running a business or trying to accomplish something as a group, this concept of teamwork definitely applies and here are 10 ways to improve teamwork with your employees!

1) Embrace diversity

Create a culture that embraces diversity. Let your employees know that there are many types of personalities and styles, but they all bring value to the company’s goals. Help your team members play off each other’s strengths and turn an individual into a stronger employee. A diverse team will develop strategies faster because they represent various perspectives and view their world in different ways, resulting in more innovative ideas, strong solutions, and effective leadership. Establishing a culture of openness with your employees will improve teamwork and improve employee satisfaction as well as injecting more fun into the office!

2) Ask team members what they need

A lot of leaders make a habit of asking team members how they can improve—be it at an annual performance review or just as a part of a daily check-in. However, one question you don’t often ask is, What can I do better? When you start asking yourself what your employees think of you and your management style, it encourages you to be more self-aware and sets up both parties for success. After all, if there’s something that needs fixing, both parties have a vested interest in making things run smoothly.

3) Encourage positive feedback

One of the simplest ways to inject more fun into your office is by encouraging positive feedback. Many people on a team don’t feel comfortable enough to voice their concerns or offer compliments, so you should do everything you can as a manager to promote these good vibes. While some companies have tried using Compliment Friday and other similar ideas, it’s important that your positivity flows from Monday through Friday. Regularly sharing small wins with employees will help keep them engaged in their jobs and will encourage them continue coming up with new ideas. It also helps dispel any doubts they may have about working together on projects.

4) Hold regular team meetings

To improve employee satisfaction and inject more fun into your office, try holding regular team meetings. It’s a great way for everyone to come together and share ideas, discuss projects, vote on new rules, and feel like they have a say in their day-to-day schedule. If you have employees spread out over several floors or across multiple cities, use video conferencing software like Skype or Google Hangouts so that there is no geographical limit on participation. Try something casual like weekly lunches or monthly video game nights. If you decide on an ongoing activity that’s in line with company culture (like regular lunch meetings), then even employees who miss one meeting can still get up to speed with all of their co-workers who attended later gatherings.

5) Celebrate successes

People like feeling appreciated and rewarded for their hard work. When your team has a success, try planning a celebration (bonus points if it’s something you can do outside of work). It might sound like a small gesture, but it could have big benefits: improved employee satisfaction and inject more fun into your office. According to Gallup, more than three-quarters of engaged employees say they take part in at least one engagement activity each week.

6) Create trust with transparency

Inject More Fun Into The Office. To improve teamwork, companies must first eliminate organizational roadblocks and encourage transparency. Studies show that most people don’t trust their leaders, managers, or company itself. Creating open communication platforms is an easy way to get things started on a more positive note. Employees should be able to communicate with management easily and quickly. As much as we’d like for it not to be true, employees are always watching how you run your business, including what apps you use or what procedures you have in place.

7) Let go of your ego

Injecting more fun into an office environment means accepting that your employees may not take things as seriously as you do, and perhaps they don’t always see eye-to-eye with you. That doesn’t mean they aren’t working hard or are any less dedicated. Fun can often lead to new ideas, which can make for a productive team in its own right, even if it doesn’t always produce stellar results when it comes time for meetings or presentations. The key is keeping everything in perspective and realizing that everyone sees things differently; just because something isn’t your cup of tea doesn’t mean it’s wrong.

8) Don’t micromanage!

From day one, let your employees know that you trust them. If you micromanage, employees will get frustrated and might not perform as well as they would otherwise. Allow them to have ownership over their tasks and projects; when they have more invested in something, they’ll care more about its success (and yours). Inject some fun into your office: When people enjoy going to work, it shows not only in what they do but also in how much effort they’re willing to put into it.

9) Put systems in place

It may sound a little silly, but nothing says fun at work more than systems that are well-thought out and easy to navigate. Often times, small things make all of the difference when it comes to injecting fun into your office environment, it could be as simple as implementing an online calendar so everyone can coordinate their busy schedules or putting in place a quick and easy file-sharing system. You don’t have to make any grand changes; instead, try some smaller tweaks like these suggestions and see how they go.

10) Keep things light

There’s nothing wrong with injecting a little fun into an office. People who are engaged at work tend to be more productive and innovative, leading to increased success for teams. Have team building exercises and bring music or games into your office on a regular basis. Invest in plants for your workplace and make sure employees can go out for lunch together so they can bond over something other than how horrible their last meeting was. If you don’t have enough space in your office, try arranging it differently so that people get fresh air by stepping outside every once in a while.

Final Thought

To inject more fun into your office, you’ll need to play some simple but significant games with your team. Below are just a few examples of how you can add more fun into your workplace and improve teamwork at the same time. If you have suggestions of your own, feel free to comment below! The best part is that everyone will love these games (except maybe mailman Joe). We’ve already provided links where possible, so be sure to check them out! It’s time for us all to get along. The whole world can benefit from more teamwork, after all. So let’s go show them how it’s done!