Written by: Liam Collins
When business owners organize a business interview, they usually write down a list of points that need to be covered during the conversation. One of the points that’s often included in that set of questions is teamwork. While this is an important aspect of the business organization, teamwork doesn’t only mean putting people in teams and waiting for a miracle.
On the contrary, teamwork requires a lot of engagement from business owners and managers. In the next few paragraphs, you can read more about boosting the productivity of your SMB via teamwork.
Make a clear structure
Every member of every team deserves to be treated with respect and care. The more time you invest in your employees, the more energy you can expect from them.
That being said, it’s also important to make a clear structure of your teams.
All your employees need to know what their team does at every single moment. Due to the lack of experience, SMB-owners tend to switch projects between teams while they’re in progress. This is something that won’t contribute to a clear structure.
What you should do instead is hold a meeting with team leaders when you’re about to start working on a new project. At this point, encourage the team leaders to express their ideas regarding the project and let them estimate the powers and weaknesses of their particular teams.
On the other hand, your employees should always know who to turn to if they have any issues whatsoever with their tasks.
By establishing a straightforward structure, you’ll ensure that each and every cog in your SMB-mechanism works fine on its own.
Use the right project management tool(s)
In this day and age, software tools can make a difference in terms of productivity.
While you can’t imagine running a small business without email and VoIP tools, now you can also make great use of project management tools.
What’s practical about these solutions is that they enable business owners, team leaders, and employees to communicate about their project in one single place.
Most of the mainstream project management tools out there offer free versions, as well as paid packages. That way, you can choose the option that suits your business needs, as well as your budget. As your business keeps growing, you can also upgrade the version you’re using.
What’s more, SMB-owners should think about adopting some cutting-edge project management strategies. For instance, adopting Scrum from day one will make your business more competitive in the future.
Not only that the agile environment will ensure higher efficiency but you won’t have to waste your time correcting some bad organizational habits.
Create a supportive environment
Employees often name the lack of support and clear productive goals the main issues at work.
In large companies, the lack of support isn’t something that should take workers by surprise. Just like any other massive system, a big business venture is more likely to leave some smaller things under the radar.
However, small business owners have a special opportunity to create a supportive environment with their employees.
First and foremost, it’s recommended to run an open-door policy. This means that both your employees and team members should know that they can ask for your help whenever they need it.
What’s more, the employees and the team leaders need to have a transparent and honest relationship, as well. Since team leaders should express more support and understanding for their workers, SMB-owners have the obligation to keep them motivated. Be it financial bonuses or some special conditions, team leaders are the backbone of every business that keeps the tissue together.
Finally, the supportivein-house ambiance can be applied to your clients, as well. From customer support to interventions upon client’s requests at milestones (that’s why Scrum), being supportive toward a client always pays off in the end.
Encourage online promotion
The power of online channels is enormous, which is why you should encourage your workers to promote your business on the Web.
As explained by the Web Houston design professionals, business owners should pay attention both to their visual identity and their SEO status.
As for the latter, you’ll need to work with a digital agency to optimize your website for better rankings.
Still, there are things that your employees can do to make you more visible on the Web. What’s more, these tasks will strengthen their teamwork skills.
For starters, one team should be in charge of taking photos and posting them to social media. These can be pictures of your products or screenshots of your services. Also, leisure images taken in the office or during team building can come in handy in promoting your business. That way, your employ
ees can have some great fun preparing materials that will build your brand on the Web.
Since SMB-owners often don’t have large budgets, they should use the in-house manpower as much as possible. This is something that should be taken into consideration while hiring.
For instance, if there’s a candidate who can both write blog posts and edit images for social media, it’s reasonable to hire that person. This logic applies to other aspects of promotion and business in general.
The more resources you have in the office, the less money you’ll have to spend on these services.
What’s more, your employees will be able to learn from one another and work together on these tasks.
Conclusion
No (business)person is an island and we all need support to put our ideas to practice. Therefore, business owners should support their staff members to function as cohesive teams. This is achieved more easily if your business is organized in a clear and simple way.
What’s more, using modern project management tools and organizational strategies will add to the teamwork.
Encouraging your employees to educate one another and take part in additional business activities will strengthen the power of your teams.
As a result, you’ll boost productivity in different parts of your business and ensure steady growth in the market.
About the Author:
Liam Collins is a tech pundit and Web enthusiast working at TuiSpace.com. He spends most of his time reading and writing about the current affairs in the world of information technology. When he isn’t working, he likes going for long bike rides and walks in nature.
