Successfully enmeshing several different personalities can be a challenge.

Often, a few members must work to pull the weight of those who are underperforming, which can lead to conflict and resentment.

While there are a multitude of reasons that workplace teams can struggle, here are some ideas to help strengthen team performance:

• Embrace the idea that cultivating high performance teams in the workplace is hard work
• Extend professional development efforts in your organization beyond individual skills development
• Define behaviors critical for team success and openly discuss and debate those behaviors with any new team you are forming
• Encourage teams to examine primary contributors to project or group failure
• Challenge teams to define what success looks like in their own terms
• Make a habit out of choosing team leaders right for the situation, not based solely on seniority
• Provide a coach for critical projects
• Recognize that teams cycle through phases; leadership and coaching may be needed along the way
• Get the executives involved

Great teams don’t happen by accident. They are products of very deliberate work to form the environment for success. Teach, coach and support your teams for success.

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