10 Ways to Promote Teamwork

Good teamwork helps to build morale in the workplace, which makes workers more productive and ultimately improves profits. For organizations that have excellent teamwork, problem-solving is easier – since people with different skills and knowledge will work together to produce a creative solution.

If you want your employees to work together and produce great results, here are some tips to improve teamwork within your organization.

1) Focus on the big picture

Explain the long-range plans of the company and reinforce them regularly. People often become so focused on today's problems and routine duties that they lose sight of the big picture. When some members of the team concentrate on putting out fires, others can dedicate more time to reviewing processes to eliminate future problems.

2) Define roles

Outline the responsibilities of everyone on the team. This is crucial to the team's success. Understanding each other's duties and deadlines helps people work collaboratively. Encourage the team to define the division of labor themselves. They'll take on more responsibility if they are in control and someone may even offer a previously untapped talent.

3) Set goals

Team members need to develop individual and group goals. Urge them to set achievable and measurable short-term goals, as well as long term ones. With team-driven goals and a team-developed code of ethics, the group will begin to self-manage. Peer pressure and individual pride will help curb absenteeism, lateness and poor performance.

4) Share information

The rumor mill is a drain on productivity and morale. Earn your team's respect and trust with openess and honesty. During times of change, reveal as much as you can and promise to update them as soon as you can.

5) Establish trust

Be trustworthy and dependable. Honor your word. If you're the boss and you promise a day off with pay if the sales team meets their target, follow through on it. If you're a team member and offer to obtain information for a colleague, make it a priority. Treat all members of the team consistently and fairly and don't play favorites.

6) Listen

Be open to the team's ideas, presented in a formal suggestion program or in a brainstorming session. Thoroughly consider all suggestions and respond to the individual or entire team, whichever is more appropriate. Many companies spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on consultants without first asking employees for their suggestions on productivity improvements, service enhancements or new product lines.

7) Provide encouragement

Challenge each team member to participate and contribute. Urge them to take additional training if necessary and to step outside their comfort zones to develop their own unique talents. Change people's responsibilities often. Acknowledge each individual's strengths and offer positive reinforcement.

8) Praise the team

Celebrate achievements together. Reward the team, not an individual. Every group will have a star that excels at everything. Recognize this privately and through the performance review process but to foster teamwork, eliminate any opportunity for professional jealousy. Always speak positively about your team. Showcase their talent and recognize their dedication, efforts and successes publicly.

9) Be enthusiastic

Enthusiasm is contagious. Be positive, upbeat and hopeful. Always expect great things from your team and they'll do their best not to disappoint you. Focus on what's going right even if, at times, everything seems to be going wrong.

10) Delegate

Explain what needs to be done and how to do it, then let go. Better yet, describe the problem or the desired end result and let the team develop the action plan together. Trust the individuals and the team as a whole to complete their assigned tasks correctly and on time. If you've set a project review meeting for next Tuesday, resist the temptation to ask for an update today. Trust the team to meet the deadline.

Teamwork isn’t something that we can forcefully impose upon our workers. Instead, good teamwork will naturally occur when there is a healthy workplace culture, where employees are treated as individuals and open communication is celebrated.

Put these tips to the test and you’ll see improved teamwork, boosted morale, and better cooperation. This will lead to increased productivity from employees, increasing the overall success of your company.

Lean Quote: Enhance Learning by Doing

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"You don't learn to walk by following rules. You learn by doing, and by falling over." — Richard Branson

One way to enhance learning is by doing. If you want to learn how to drive, you have to drive. Humans are natural learners. They learn from everything they do. When they watch television, they learn about the day's events. When they take a trip, they learn about how to get where they are going and what it is like to be there. This constant learning also takes place as one works.

Learning by doing, also known as experiential learning, happens when you use hands-on learning to engage in an ongoing cycle of action and reflection, deepening your understanding of concepts and mastering practical skills. As you take part in meaningful activities—instead of simply watching them—and then later evaluating what you have learned, learning is far more meaningful, memorable, and long-lasting. Leaders/coaches assist in this process by facilitating appropriate experiences through which you can learn, and by leading discussions that reflect on those experiences.

If you do something often enough, you get better at it -- simple and obvious. When people really care about what they are doing, they may even learn how to do their jobs better than anyone had hoped. They themselves wonder how to improve their own performance. They innovate.

Since mistakes are often quite jarring to someone who cares about what they are doing, people naturally work hard to avoid them. No one likes to fail. It is basic to human nature to try to do better and this means attempting to explain one's failures well enough so that they can be remedied. This self-correcting behavior can only take place when one has been made aware of one's mistakes and when one cares enough to improve. If an employee understands and believes that an error has been made, he will work hard to correct it, and will want to be trained to do better, if proper rewards are in place for a job well done.

Human beings can definitely learn by hearing, reading, watching, seeing, and analyzing…but when it comes to getting results you simply cannot learn better than to learn by DOING. The best way to learn about continuous improvement is to simply try to make things better and learn from our mistakes.

Lean Leader’s Role, A Shift in Mindset

Lean thinking is fundamentally transforming the way organizations operate. The Lean principles of continuous improvement, respect for people, and a relentless focus on delivering customer value are making teams and organizations rethink the practices that might have guided them for decades. A new, transformative approach to working requires a transformation in leadership, as well. For Lean to be truly effective, it needs effective Lean management — to champion Lean principles, offer guidance, and ensure that Lean is being used to optimize the entire organizational system for value delivery.

Practicing Lean management principles requires a shift in mindset: from that of a supervisor, to that of a teacher and coach. Lean leaders must lead gently, by example, ensuring that Lean principles are being applied with the right goal in mind: To sustainably maximize the delivery of value to the customer.

The lean leader is more of a teacher than a manager. If you are determined to make the methodology work in your organization, you need to encourage your team to continuously improve both their hard and soft skills.

In the same way that no two Lean transformations are exactly the same, no two applications of Lean management principles is exactly the same. Lean management is not a set of defined methods, tools, or practices. It would be more accurately defined as a management philosophy, a long-term approach that systematically seeks to improve processes and products through incremental changes.

Effectively practicing Lean management, then, requires leaders to play a fundamentally different role. The role of a Lean leader is that of a coach. Coaches align their teams around a common goal — a why that should guide every decision, big to small. They arm their teams with the tools for success, and encourage them to make smart decisions that will allow for sustainable, competitive growth. When it’s game time, they provide guidance and leadership as needed — but mostly, they rely on the skills, knowledge, and experience of their team to do what is necessary to achieve the team goal.

To make the lean leadership model work, you have to put heavy emphasis on culture. Among the most important elements of which must be trust and transparency. Whether you are in a formal leadership role, or not, be sure to lead by example and live by what you preach.

As a guiding figure, you need to recognize that the team, which is directly working on your product or service can provide some of the best ideas for improvement. Be sure to encourage each person to share any ideas they might have.

Lean leadership is necessary for making the most of the Lean methodology. It is more of a coaching role than of a managing one. The primary function of such a person is to raise new leaders and help their team embrace a culture of continuous improvement. A true lean leader is value-driven and puts the needs of the customer in the first place.

Lean Starts with Long-Term Thinking

Lean isn’t just something you do, it’s something you become. The quest to become Lean is never-ending simply because there are always new ways to become even more Lean, even more streamlined, even more efficient. Beyond that…Lean isn’t easy. There are great benefits to be derived from organizations that take even just the first step towards focused improvement, but it will require dedication and investment of time and money.

There is no lean “roadmap” or cookbook that tells you exactly how to apply Lean – it will be different for every situation and organization – but the most successful Lean implementations will apply key principles, if not incorporate them into most major business decisions. 

“Base your management decisions on a long-term philosophy, even at the expense of short-term financial goals.”

This principle is perhaps the hardest one to apply, as it will generally come with a giant culture/mindset change. It’s also the hardest one to approach. Most companies and organizations don’t have a long-term philosophy because they are simply trying to survive in the current moment.

A long-term philosophy acts as a guiding light for your organization and culture and, with strict adherence and a deep respect of the philosophy, can drive the company focus indefinitely. If based on deep, meaningful values, your company’s long-term philosophy cannot be easily undone and will serve as the compass for all major company decisions, projects and goals. And, if lived and practiced by your leaders, it can shape employee behavior and increase motivation and productivity. We all crave doing work that matters and are constantly in search of why. Why do we do what we do? Why does it matter? Why should we care? Taking the time to determine your company’s long-term philosophy is the first step in providing that sense of purpose and answering those whys for your employees and customers.

Lean Quote: Be a Visionary Leader

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"A leader is one who sees more than others see, who sees farther than others see, and who sees before others see." — Leroy Eimes

Effective leaders are known for being “visionaries”. They are comfortable exploring the unknown, thinking of what the future will become rather than being content with things they see now or be troubled about things in the past.

Visionary leaders are the builders of a new dawn, working with imagination, insight, and boldness. They present a challenge that calls forth the best in people and brings them together around a shared sense of purpose. They work with the power of intentionality and alignment with a higher purpose. Their eyes are on the horizon, not just on the near at hand. 

The best visionary leaders move energy to a higher level by offering a clear vision of what is possible. They inspire people to be better than they already are and help them identify with what Lincoln called “the angels of their better nature.”  This was the power of Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech. The creative power of lighted, inspired words can sound a certain inner note that people recognize and respond to.  This then creates dramatic social change.

Visionary leaders have a knack for inspiring others to action in order to create a better future and solve problems in new ways. Their leadership style creates excitement, positive momentum and longevity in an organization. People enjoy working for visionary leaders who truly want them to reach their full potential and find meaning in their work.

Cultivate your characteristics of being a visionary leader. It will help you to become an excellent leader and it will also inspire your team to work towards success.

Remembering Fallen Heros

Memorial Day is more than just a day off from work or school, an excellent occasion for a backyard barbeque, parade or a chance to travel. Those things do speak to the holiday’s true spirit. But above all else, Memorial Day honors Americans who have died in service to their country. This holiday is not only for somber reflection, however. We instead choose to celebrate by enjoying the many freedoms that American servicemen and women have perished protecting.

As opposed to Veterans Day, which honors living veterans, Memorial Day is a time to remember those who have died while in military service. The holiday originally started as Decoration Day, where the graves of soldiers were decorated with flowers and flags. At the first ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, 5,000 people participated in decorating the graves of fallen soldiers from the Civil War. It wasn’t until after World War I, when the holiday changed from recognizing Civil War soldiers to honoring all dead military. In 1971, Congress declared the last Monday in May Memorial Day, a national holiday.

Memorial Day is a day of reflection and remembrance. It is a day to remember all of our Fallen Heroes from all of the wars. It is a day to think about the families that will forever grieve for their lost loved one. It is a day to be thankful to those who have served and made the ultimate sacrifice. They fought and died to win the freedom and democracy that we Americans cherish so dearly. They also fought and died to bring that same freedom and democracy to the people of other countries as well.

In the words of Thomas Sherlock, Arlington National Cemetery Historian, “the most important thing parents can tell their children is that we, as Americans, are able to enjoy the freedoms we do because there have been men and women willing to sacrifice their lives so that we can be free.  We should all stop and remember this on Memorial Day.”

 The true meaning is to remember and honor veterans of all wars and peacetime service who paid the ultimate price to keep America free. They will long be remembered in our hearts.

“The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender, or submission.” John Fitzgerald Kennedy


Take a moment this Memorial Day to remember all those men and women who have so bravely and honorably served this country. The courage and sacrifice of all who died in military service will not be forgotten.

Lean Quote: Learning Styles

On Fridays I will post a Lean related Quote. Throughout our lifetimes many people touch our lives and leave us with words of wisdom. These can both be a source of new learning and also a point to pause and reflect upon lessons we have learned. Within Lean active learning is an important aspect on this journey because without learning we can not improve.

"I hear, I know. I see, I remember. I do, I understand." — Confucius

Scientists and psychologists have developed a number of different models to understand the different ways that people learn best. And this quote says different methods of learning have different effectivenesses.

“I hear and I know" - something you just hear someone say is informing but unlikely to stick in your brain.

“I see and I remember" - if you see something explained visually, in a chart or diagram for example, it will stick a bit better.

"I do and I understand" - if you actually go through something yourself and write it out again, or do the experiment, or use the equipment, you will not only remember it, but you will understand the theory behind it too.

Studies show that varying your learning methods will improve your retention and recall of information and enhance your learning experience.

If you are an auditory learner, you learn by hearing and listening. You understand and remember things you have heard. You store information by the way it sounds, and you have an easier time understanding spoken instructions than written ones. You often learn by reading out loud because you have to hear it or speak it in order to know it.

If you are a visual learner, you learn by reading or seeing pictures. You understand and remember things by sight. You can picture what you are learning in your head, and you learn best by using methods that are primarily visual. You like to see what you are learning.

If you are a tactile learner, you learn by touching and doing. You understand and remember things through physical movement. You are a "hands-on" learner who prefers to touch, move, build, or draw what you learn, and you tend to learn better when some type of physical activity is involved. You need to be active and take frequent breaks, you often speak with your hands and with gestures, and you may have difficulty sitting still.

The key to subject mastery is teaching it to others. If you're able to accurately and correctly teach a subject to others, you'll have a very good mastery of the concepts, and superior retention and recall.

The effectiveness of any learning method will also be influenced by your own unique learning style. Some retain and recall information best through visual learning, while others are auditory  learners. To maximize the effectiveness of your understanding discover your learning style.