Know Thy Team – Improving Remote Leadership

Something I have picked up over the last few weeks is that there are organisations that have Managers/Team Leaders who have now been leading teams for almost six months having never met the individuals (within the team) in person that whole time.

It’s a unique experience for the leader and also for the team.

The implications of COVID19 has meant that most organisations were directed to move to a remote working environment (working from home) in mid-March and this has remained in place since.

This has created a situation whereby new leaders are unable to observe how their team interact with each other, how they work across an office, what each individual’s daily rhythm might be and because of some of these factors, it has made it more difficult to tailor their leadership approach to the needs of the individual.

It can be challenging for a leader to effectively manage another when they have limited insight and real connection to the individuals personality ‘quirks’ and overall unique needs. In addition, not having a real true understanding of how they work as a team and having limited feel for the “team culture” further restricts the capability of a leader to lead efficiently. It can be a very confusing time and see the leader placing energy on areas that don't align to the true objectives of their role.

Something many people aren’t aware of is that you can actually utilise some of the solutions that the Davidson PXP team offer to overcome this problem.

Whether it is a new leader coming into the team or a new starter joining the team, it is a great idea and process to integrate the new person into the team and to build awareness and understanding of those within it.

 Lately we have been working with a number of clients to improve team performance and “how a team is functioning” through our Team Styles solution.

The process is quick and painless. We have individuals of the team and the leader complete various assessments online to gain some insights into their individual styles and preferences. From there, we bring the team together and work through the results as a collective and what the results mean at a practical level. The program and process can be as extensive or as simple as the budget requires whilst also ensuring the objectives and outcomes for the program are achieved.

The team workshop process allows for the team to get a greater understanding of the natural preferences that they each have and how they might work in with each other moving forward. It really brings to the forefront the ability to leverage individual strengths and support in areas where people aren’t as naturally strong.

Think about it for a moment, if you allocate creative work to someone that isn’t creative but rather is process driven, are you going to get a great outcome? You might... but it is going to take a lot of effort and discomfort for the non-creative to focus on this type of work. The alternative is to allocate the work to someone that is naturally more creative (based on the assessments) and leave them to do their thing.

As you can see from the above example, not only can a leader allocate work to where the greatest outcome is likely to be achieved but the leader can play to the individual’s strengths rather than placing an employee into a situation of severe discomfort and stress.

We have seen this process achieve great outcomes for individuals, teams and leaders with enhanced productivity, quality of work, job satisfaction and wellbeing all being markers that the program has been a success. It's a small investment for large returns and ongoing dividends.

 If this sounds like something that could help your team now or you have a new starter coming on board soon, get in touch with me via [email protected] and we can discuss how a program like this can be delivered in the coming weeks.

 Cameron Norton

National Solutions Lead - Davidson PXP

A forward thinking talent leader that empowers individuals and organisations to achieve their potential through people, experience and performance solutions

Mobile - 0400 913 843 / Email - [email protected]