{"id":26437,"date":"2021-02-14T20:18:32","date_gmt":"2021-02-15T00:18:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=26437"},"modified":"2021-02-14T23:43:00","modified_gmt":"2021-02-15T03:43:00","slug":"how-to-improve-team-productivity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-improve-team-productivity\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Improve Team Productivity: The Best Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Do you want to know how to improve <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/build-an-effective-team\/\">team productivity<\/a>? What steps can you take as a manager to make your team more productive?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Many managers want to know how to improve team productivity. There are certain steps you can take that will improve productivity and make your team work more efficiently. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Read more about how to improve team productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>How to Improve Team Productivity<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To improve the output of your team, choose the management style that will best foster their high performance. The deciding factor in this decision is <strong>task-relevant maturity (TRM)\u2014how educated, experienced, and mentally ready an employee is to do a <\/strong><strong><em>particular <\/em><\/strong><strong>task in particular circumstances.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>For example, one Intel sales manager was very successful in the field environment\u2014he had high TRM\u2014and Intel promoted him to a plant environment. However, his TRM in this new environment was low\u2014he didn\u2019t know how to do any of the plant-related tasks.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Here\u2019s how you should manage employees with the following TRM levels for how to improve team productivity:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Low:<\/strong> Provide structure and strong guidance on operational values. Give your team detailed directions about exactly what needs to be done, how, and when.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Medium: <\/strong>Provide some structure and guidance but expect the team to provide some of it themselves. Instead of managing prescriptively, exchange ideas and communicate. (Note: This mode is the most difficult for most managers because hitting a balance is more challenging than meeting an extreme.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>High: <\/strong>Provide minimal structure\u2014the team will provide the bulk of it themselves. Don\u2019t involve yourself with the team\u2019s work; just make sure objectives are clear. High TRM is advantageous because:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>The managing style is less time-consuming.<\/li><li>The manager can be confident about delegating because she knows her subordinates can handle the task.<\/li><li>When teams are managing themselves, motivation usually comes from self-actualization, which is the only need in Maslow\u2019s hierarchy of needs that can never be satisfied and thus provides a permanent source of motivation. (We\u2019ll discuss Maslow\u2019s hierarchy of needs and motivation further in Chapter 2.)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Always monitor your team, no matter what the TRM level is. <\/strong>If the TRM changes, adjust your management style, up <em>or <\/em>down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>None of these <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/kinds-of-managers\/\">management styles<\/a> are better or worse than others.<\/strong> Many managers feel the prescriptiveness of low-TRM management isn\u2019t nice or sophisticated, but your goal isn\u2019t to be these things\u2014it\u2019s to be effective and learn how to improve team productivity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Friendships With Subordinates<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Whether you foster friendships with subordinates is up to you. <strong>It\u2019s easier to care about and communicate with someone you\u2019re friends with but harder to revert to a formal relationship if necessary because ordering a friend around can be awkward.<\/strong> Additionally, close personal relationships don\u2019t necessarily result in communicating management relationships.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Grove has seen friendship with subordinates work and he\u2019s also seen discipline end friendships. To figure out if you can handle it,<strong> imagine that you\u2019re giving a critical performance review to an existing friend. If the thought makes you uncomfortable, don\u2019t become friends with your subordinates.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Do you want to know how to improve team productivity? What steps can you take as a manager to make your team more productive? Many managers want to know how to improve team productivity. There are certain steps you can take that will improve productivity and make your team work more efficiently. Read more about how to improve team productivity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":14964,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45,14,30],"tags":[205],"class_list":["post-26437","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","category-management","category-work","tag-high-output-management","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.3 (Yoast SEO v24.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to Improve Team Productivity: The Best Tips - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Do you want to know how to improve team productivity? 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