Do you have any leadership or management tips for team building?

[newleader]

I'm about to start a new job where I'll have a big team. I'm fairly confident about things, I've managed people before way back when, but it's been a while.

Are there any tips you'd share, like methods or training tools or videos or books?

I know the obvious ones (I hope) like don't be a total arsehole, don't micromanage, talk to people, etc.

But I also know that the team is demoralised and fragmented after a bad leadership experience. I want to help them bond, feel more confident, and feel genuinely happy and successful in their careers.

Essentially I really want to do a good job in this role and make their lives a bit better - and while I know I'm a good mentor because many people have told me so, I haven't done THIS before, the big team building bit.

Does anyone want to share any advice?

Or things to avoid if you've had a new boss who tried to do this?? Or even anything you'd like to critique about my approach here?

Deffo don't micromanage but be visible/approchable. I used to manage a help desk team and would go down in the morning say hello and check everything was OK. Busy periods I'd get stuck in and help. Make sure you thank staff and let them know they're appreciated. Every now and then I'd take a load of biccies to the office. Listen to them and take their concerns seriously and take time to explain the rationale behind decisions.

Read Dan Pink's book 'drive: the surprising truth about what motivates people', there's also a really good Ted talk.

Another great leadership book us David Marquet 'Turn the ship around'.

Depends a bit on the sector and on whether it knowledge work or manual work, but both those books are really good.

Thank you! I will go look for those books right now.

And thanks for the tip - we're most WFH but I wonder if I can make sure the office is kept biscuited-up when people do go in...

@Crinkle77

Deffo don't micromanage but be visible/approchable. I used to manage a help desk team and would go down in the morning say hello and check everything was OK. Busy periods I'd get stuck in and help. Make sure you thank staff and let them know they're appreciated. Every now and then I'd take a load of biccies to the office. Listen to them and take their concerns seriously and take time to explain the rationale behind decisions.

I agree with this. Not a manager myself but the best managers that I've had have always showed they cared, asked what they could do to help when the going got tough and mucked in to help in times of pressure. Also lead by example- my last manager was an idiot and really took the piss with so many things, whilst sucking up to the senior management team that I just lost any respect for him. I'm sure you will, in no way be like that.

Thanks @Babyroobs!

Yes, I have a million examples of people I don't want to be and have had many lousy managers too. But I don't have many role models of people I could be. I really want to do right by the team and be the best manager possible for them.

Recognise and respect their experience and knowledge. Don't assume that they're incompetent/simple souls/are at the limits of their ability.

Before introducing changes, ask them for their opinions on whether the proposed changes would affect their work. For example, a new and shiny software package - great - except if you ask the person who actually does the nuts and bolts of the task, you might find out that the package renders their work impossible because it doesn't integrate with what they currently use or collect the data that they need.

Listen to vents about things that went wrong. Partly because they feel better being listened to, but also because it gives other pointers on how to improve things. That time where something went wrong, maybe what actually happened was that the shit manager laughed them off when they tried to bring their attention to the issue and then bawled them out in front of the entire office when it went tits up. A throwaway comment about 'she cornered me in the staff kitchen afterwards and told me that I'm not paid to think, much less question her authority' or 'X reported this and the next thing we knew, they'd been put onto the shit job instead' or 'they asked when they would get their break and was told 'oh, no, nobody's ever asked for a break before, we're too busy', gives you information about the culture as it was experienced by the staff, not the management.

Don't make Before You a banned subject. 'That was then, this is now' is a way of shutting down discussion, but 'which is why we want to improve things by...' brings them to the present and future without effectively telling them to shut up and stop moaning.

Recognise the stress that they had been under. Listen to the stress. Validate their feelings and both ask and make suggestions for improvements for them as well as for the organisation. Find out if any of them have additional skills or interests that could be developed rather then expecting them to stay in whatever box they've been put in. That person who 'wasn't paid to think/get back to the filing and stop being distracted' might have a real aptitude for something else.

Have they even had job descriptions, roles updated, appraisals that aren't 'you're crap/we don't need you to be able to do that so we aren't including it/this is why you will never get a pay rise'? Do they know what the actual structures are supposed to be? Do they have the legally required access to the grievance procedure, the employee handbook, a dress code updated at least once since 1984? Is the whistleblowing policy accessible to them and fit for purpose? What other things have slipped out of control under previous managers?

As you are meeting a new team you are going to lead, definitely “Turn this Ship Around” as mentioned up thread.

I have a daily “stand up” of 30 mins on Teams (sort of scrum) where we can talk about work challenges for the day or just social stuff. Has kept us all in touch and bonded. Make sure you book regular one to ones and stick to them. Everyone is owed a chance to talk. Cancelling is not an option. Don’t go in with an agenda. Use “what’s on your mind” as an opener. I very much subscribe to servant leadership and it has reaped rewards as I have such commitment and loyalty from my fabulous team.

@WingBingo

As you are meeting a new team you are going to lead, definitely “Turn this Ship Around” as mentioned up thread.

Oh Christ, no.

The Op is not Captain Bligh.

If we have to endure maritime analogies, what they need is more of a Shackleton. 'I can see it's all pretty shit, lads, and we've had to eat the Huskies, but we're going to get out of this together'.

Don't try to force 'team building' on them, it will be better if it's allowed to develop naturally. I praise and thank publicly and privately a lot. Have a team chat where people can ask questions of each other (especially useful when wfh), say morning on there and thank them when you finish for the day. The teams i lead really respond to little things like that.

@MeOldBamboo

I have a daily “stand up” of 30 mins on Teams (sort of scrum) where we can talk about work challenges for the day or just social stuff. Has kept us all in touch and bonded. Make sure you book regular one to ones and stick to them. Everyone is owed a chance to talk. Cancelling is not an option. Don’t go in with an agenda. Use “what’s on your mind” as an opener. I very much subscribe to servant leadership and it has reaped rewards as I have such commitment and loyalty from my fabulous team.

Don't do this from day one. A tortuous compulsory 30 minute meeting every morning will not be appreciated by a team that is demoralised and fragmented.

As a team member, I appreciate regular 121s and appraisals. Reviews objectives and discussions about new 'stretch' objectives.
I like my particular skills and interests to be acknowledged.
Occasional thanks and recognition of effort during periods of stress.
My best managers have got to know me personally, with appropriate boundaries.
I've felt able to ask them for advice, to use them as a sounding board while I mull over an issue and to support me when I tackle something t outside of my comfort zone.

I'm new to management myself, but I'm trying to develop these skills while also allowing my juniors to thrive, safe in the knowledge I'll be on their side if things start going awry.

I've just left a team of 40 where people were very demoralised. Our manager was, in large part, to blame because she:

• Wasn't visible. She never checked in with each of us on an individual basis and would go months at a time without putting a team meeting in the diary. We felt disconnected.
• Engineered significant changes within the team and how we were going to operate without communicating it to us. We felt like change was being done to us and we were always on the back foot.
• Came across as 'cold' on all calls and at all team meetings. She never opened with a brief chat about the weekend, or the weather, or her pets, or her upcoming holiday etc. She didnt make a fuss of team members who were getting married, having a baby, celebrating 25 years service etc. It was always straight down the line 'business', without a glimmer of humanity!

I get that an unfortunate choice of manager may well have demoralised the team but can we be sure that it is not bonded? One of the easiest ways for s team to hind is in solidarity with each other against a common enemy.

You may be coming into leafing a team where everyone has each others backs. Not a bad thing but just that more difficult to break into.

The advice I was given was 'don't be a dick'. At first I wasn't sure how helpful it was but looking back it encapsulated then culture. All good really. Good luck

Your team will only be as good as the cracks that need repairing - you need to listen to your team, what are the biggest issues, what could make your day easier, where do you need help, lose the blame culture and use everything as a learning curve. Make sure you understand the issue and accept people usually do thing honestly without intent and mistakes happen, the team is stronger from learning from mistakes.

Read up on Amy Edmonson and creating psychological safety in teams.

Also the Kings Fund and compassionate leadership = effective teams.

I agree with the poster that said no to 30 minute meetings everyday. When we were wfh during the pandemic we had a weekly online coffee break which worked quite well. Also don't use the phrase 'turn this ship around'. It implies the staff have been doing a bad job in the past. Also appraisals, I was told a long time ago that nothing should come up in an appraisal that is a surprise. If there are issues deal with them at the time. Don't save them up for the appraisal.