Your team is the most important ingredient to your success. When you lead an empowered, motivated team, they will exceed your expectations. However, when left unchecked, there are many reasons why your team can fall short of expectations.
Here are 3 reasons your team may not be performing at their best — and what to do about it.
1. You don’t have system for checks & balances
Here’s the thing. We want leaders to delegate work and get out of the weeds of their business. But, you can’t remove yourself from the daily operations without a form of accountability for the rest of the team.
There are two common solutions. The first is to hire an integrator, project manager or director of operations. This person’s sole responsibility is to crack the whip and push your vision across the finish line.
If you aren’t seeing the performance you expect from the team, you can go straight to the integrator. That way, you don’t have to be “punisher.” That’s their job!
The second solution is to implement a system like EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System). EOS simplifies your quarterly goals for individuals and organizations. These goals, or rocks, are reviewed weekly. The goals are either “done” or “not done.” Anything “not done” goes on an Issues List for discussion.
This is an objective form of checks and balances that allows you to see productivity from a 10,000-foot-view.
2. You aren’t holding yourself accountable either
As much as you are out of daily operations, you aren’t “above” your own standards and expectations. Leaders breed poor performance when their own work breaks protocol.
Why? You give your team permission to break the rules, because you are too. If you punish a team member for something you don’t do yourself, you make yourself a hypocrite, which hurts morale and performance.
It’s lose-lose.
Instead of leading with a “do as I say, not as I do,” approach, create standards that are realistic for everyone in the organization — including yourself. That way, your team will know that everyone is held to the same standard.
3. Your timelines are too long
Research shows that work expands to the amount of time allotted to complete it. Have you ever heard the saying, “If you wait until the last minute to do something, it only takes a minute?” There’s a reason that people who procrastinate manage to complete work on-time. They’ve shrunk their deadline and forced themselves to perform.
The longer your team has to complete assignments, the more likely they are to push-off their work to be done. It’s quite common to implement a two-week “sprint” to drive an outcome across the finish line.
Remove competing priorities and invite your team to focus on one objective for the next two weeks. You will be amazed at how much can be accomplished.
Please note, “sprints” are not synonymous with “burnout.” We don’t want your team crumbling under pressure for unrealistic deadlines.
That’s why we encourage you to clarify the priority, so other work can take a backseat, while you guys crush a shared goal!
If you are experiencing any of these challenges, it’s time to take a step back and evaluate your team. The first thing that we recommend is implementing an accountability system through the help of an integrator or EOS. Second, make sure you’re holding yourself accountable to these standards, as well! You need to demonstrate what you expect! Finally, set ambitious timelines with clear expectations to help drive results and raise accountability.
Do you want to learn more about how an Executive Assistant can help your team close loops and crush deadlines? Schedule a FREE strategy call, today!
