6 Steps to Encourage a High-Performance Workforce

Let’s face it, we humans are very demanding – we want so much for our businesses and strive to be ahead of our competitors in every aspect; performance is just one of those factors that want to be ahead of! The only problem is that finding the right balance between being encouraging and being that horrible boss figure everyone hates, is quite a tough balance to strike.

Dealing with human error, bad moods and even unforeseen absence is already hard in itself. It’s far different from optimising an algorithm or finding ways to keep your content marketing fresh – human emotions sometimes come without warning so your job as an employer, manager or boss is to be ahead of the game with initiative to keep your workforce at their highest performance levels possible.

How do I build a high-performing team?

Building an environment where your employees streamline productivity, boost your revenue, encourage company growth and work in the interest of the team are some of the many benefits your company can experience. A top-of-the-line workforce is what you need to stay ahead of your competitors, retaining your top performers and helping the ones struggling to get motivated at work.

This 6-step solution will help you to motivate the champions and encourage the slow movers to pick up their pace in the office:

1. Reduce conflict for high-performance success

There’s always going to be conflict at work, some people might have woken up on the wrong side of the bed and brought their problems to work with them. Others might be tired of the shortcomings of their employees; there’s usually a justifiable answer. Finding ways to deal with conflict will stop small issues from turning into catastrophic disasters.

Top Tip: speak to your team members, get to know what they like and dislike about their workplace. Allow for honesty and privacy so problems do not get out of hand. Learning of an issue between colleagues at an early stage will help your business thrive and keep your employees happy.

2. Build performance in the workplace with employee development

Employee growth is essential in the workplace. If an employee feels stagnant in their position, team or the company in general; there’s a good chance you’ll lose them sometime soon. And it’s usually the good ones that will jump ship, not the struggling employees.

Think of it this way, if your company was just about breaking even; wouldn’t you look for new and exciting challenges to introduce to your business? Of course you would, and employees who don’t feel challenged will do the same with your competitors as their ideal candidate. Give your team a chance to grow, make them feel powerful.

3. Maximise communication for high-performance levels

As with every relationship in life, communication is the route to success. Your employees need to feel as though they can communicate with you in every given situation, no matter how uncomfortable. Learning how to deal with your staff is a skill that many employees in managerial roles lack. Identifying your weaknesses as a leader will only make your team stronger.

Top tip: if face-to-face communication makes you feel uncomfortable, use modern technology to help smooth the way. Use secure online chats to keep in touch with all your staff. Create group chats, contact troubled staff personally and encourage them to find pride in their work. Let them know how important they are.

4. Set realistic goals for your team to perform efficiently

Setting unrealistic goals will leave your workforce feeling drained, annoyed and at times even cheated. It’s understandable to have busy periods where pitching in a little extra is expected, but a day-in-day-out hussle is not a good work model.

Setting KPIs will give your staff a goal that they’re willing to achieve for the company’s benefit. Enticing them with a reward scheme of sorts will give them the further encouragement to give the tasks all they’ve got.

5. Know your employees, really know them

You know Kevin, who’s been with the company for 7 or so years? Yeah, that Kevin, well it’s his birthday next week and he’s looking for a day off with his kids. Before he asks, why not give him the day off and surprise him with a little office event the day before.

He’ll probably really appreciate it and come back fired up to catch up with lost work, mostly because he’ll be proud to work for a company that values his hard work and recognises his social needs. It’s a small gesture; one that in truth will bring joy to the entire office – managerial staff included.

6. Be a leader that leads: focus on high-performance too

Aren’t you tired of watching your General Manager strut around the office as though she’s got nothing better to do? Working a 9-5 job and busting your chops to see that others are waltzing around without a care in the world is frustrating – but this is a picture that is painted so often in SMEs and medium sized businesses.

A leader is supposed to get down and dirty with the rest of the team, they’re supposed to look out for their staff and lend a helping hand when their plate’s aren’t so full. Getting yourself to the top of the success ladder is a great feat, you probably really deserve it – but that doesn’t mean you can’t do the grunt work sometimes too.

High performance is fuelled by fairness, equality and standards that every individual in your company can adhere to. In order to encourage a high-performance workforce, you need to equip your team with skills that generate confidence and incentives that establish respect, self-worth and discipline. The rest will follow.