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Team Development & Retention
by Melissa Hamilton

Following on from our Client Care Program we now take a look at Team Development & Retention. This is an area that often gets left till last, however, is one of the most important aspects in your business. Your team are the heart and soul of your business - you need to train, develop & nurture them.

Are your team fully trained? Do you have a training & development plan for your people? Training & development programmes assist in the retention of team members. To feel that there is a contribution being made to their careers is a powerful value-add over any competitors. The average career person wants to progress, they want to be shown what skills, knowledge and attributes are required for the next position & they want to work with their employer to develop these. Don’t forget to ask staff around the office about what skills would help them do their jobs more efficiently.

Are job descriptions provided to team members in your business? Job descriptions ensure each member is aware of what they are responsible for. They create clear activity lines and eliminate finger pointing. Team members can plan and prioritise their own day and also utilise training to develop any skills required for their role. By utilising job descriptions the team leader can monitor the team to ensure they are working together to reach the end goal.

Do your team members know when they are doing a good job? Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) provide a benchmark for the performance of certain tasks within the business. The attainment of the KPI means the team member is doing a good job, however, to exceed the KPI is exceeding the expectation of the business. These KPI’s mean that a team member can monitor their own performance too. KPI’s can then be monitored on a weekly and/or monthly basis by management to ensure the team is tracking toward business goals.

Do you offer incentives and rewards for exceptional performance? How do you recognise success? Rewards/incentives can offer a team a great deal of positive reinforcement. You need to ask yourself what goal can the team and/or individual control and this is what you need to reward them for. Ensure it is related to the goals and their role. A recognition program can create a healthy competition among peers, together with peer recognition programmes.

Finally, communication goes a long way. The team need to be able to discuss all aspects of the business. They need to know and acknowledge goals so they can work together to achieve them.

Until the next edition, be good to your staff members, and if you have any questions please contact us on hayleyandrew@blayneypotentialplus.com