How Do We Build and Maintain a World-Class Team?

Recruitment and Selection

• We need to hire right people as per our requirement with right attitude (Hire for attitude and train for skills)
• Build a community using social media-Why wait until we are actively hiring to attract potential candidates? We can Use social media to attract a base of talent that we can hire when required.

Learning and Development

• By following a rigorous recruitment and selection strategy, we will get highly qualified candidates in the door. We have to create an equally dynamic work environment that fosters continuous learning and development, otherwise highly talented staff members will eventually leave.
• We need to Develop talent- People value learning and development opportunities more than salary. We need to give opportunity to the team members for the same by building and implementing a right training and development policy.

Ongoing Communication

• We need to build a open culture where people love to work, where employees can communicate easily.
• We need to express our vision- People want to work for a higher cause or a company with purpose. We need to share our vision and goals with the team to create the sense of belongingness.
• We need to curate our team continuously and make it clear that passengers are not welcome.

Reward and Recognition

• We need to recognize and reward the good work from time to time.
• Regular performance reviews etc.

There can be two scenarios:

First – Where we have to build the team from scratch.

Second – We have an existing team.

To start with we need to assess the following:

1. Where are our STRENGTHS?
2. Where are our GAPS / Weaknesses?
3. To build a World Class Workforce, what must we START, STOP, and CONTINUE doing?
4. When will we commit to doing these things?

In addition to thinking about various element necessary for building a world-class team, like having a clear vision, mission, strategy, roles, responsibilities, accountability and rewards, we also need to think about following elements, which if left unattended, can destroy even the most vital and visionary of companies.

• We need to eliminate the unwritten rules of conformity, and unspoken fears that inhibit direct communication, creativity, innovation and forward movement.
• In the absence of direct, forthright communications, the underlying tensions of a conflict-avoidance business culture escalate. Even worse, they become an acceptable part of daily life.
• Nothing disrupts the flow and effectiveness of business more than fragmented, disconnected team members. Teams gain the competitive advantage by remaining connected.
• Gratitude. Teams thrive in the presence of acknowledgment and appreciation for a job well done.
• Confidence. Teams grow confident, and develop a winning attitude when they know they’ll be rewarded for being in the right conversations and reaching higher ground together.

To build an effective team, we need to believe that our team members can work independently as well as interdependently and then encourage the team spirit by ensuring clear decision making, Clear definition of goals and responsibilities, and sustaining high level of performance in our team by providing timely rewards and recognition to the team members for their efforts.