Your team plays a huge role in the success of your business. If you aren’t encouraging productivity and communication, your business isn’t ever going to reach its full potential.
So what can you do about it?
Encouraging employee empowerment through team-building is a big step in the right direction because it encourages healthy communication, friendship, and a good work ethic throughout your company.
Today, we’re going to give you some ideas for team building in a way that will boost productivity and empower your team to learn, grow and communicate together.
Ready to get started? Let’s roll.
Why Does Employee Empowerment Matter?
Team bonding, efficiency, and communication are just a few things that employee empowerment can do for you. However, it can also be hugely beneficial in giving each of your team members autonomy and control in their environment, which can lead to greater success as a company. This also results in greater loyalty and job satisfaction.
Employees who feel empowered will work to make the community strong, efficient and fun. They’re also prone to work harder, smarter and be overall more motivated and productive. Why? Because they know their work is contributing to a strong company mission and its values, and driving results through teamwork.
Leadership Training
Definitely not the first thing people think of when they’re exploring the idea of “team-building”, but leadership training is a big part of empowering your employees to move up in their careers and it gives you the opportunity to delegate and grow your company with confidence.
In addition, coaching and speaking opportunities with grow your employee’s level of confidence and sharpen their skills so that they can do a better job of managing their own priorities on the job.
Organize Team-Building Events
Help your employees develop skills in the workplace, foster meaningful relationships and improve collaboration through team-building events. This can also be a wonderful way to stimulate a deep well of creativity if your employees are feeling a little dry on ideas.
Team events can include hitting up your local bowling alley or enjoying a scavenger hunt in the office, complete with a potluck lunch.
Whatever it is, spending time away from the office or at least away from your desk can be beneficial on a multitude of levels for you and your employees.
Start The Day Well
Starting your workday well plays a huge role in the success of your company and your employees. Whether it’s a few brain teasers, some stretching or a cup of coffee and a chat about what the day looks like, starting your day well sets a good pace for the rest of the day as well as the week as a whole.
Employee Empowerment Isn’t Necessarily Easy
Sometimes it can be a shock for us to realize that empowerment sometimes means stepping away and giving our employees a little freedom. If there’s one thing that will drive employees nuts, it’s micro-managing. Believe it or not, if you give your employees a little freedom, it cultivates trust and will lead to more efficiency and all-around better work.
So what are some ways you can empower your employees and cultivate trust in the workplace?
- Your Expectations Should Always Be Clear
What do you expect from your employees? And do they know what’s expected of them? Setting clear expectations avoids confusion and promotes efficiency. You’ll also know that if something doesn’t get done, there needs to be a good reason because they would know what you expect.
- Promote Autonomy Over Jobs
This one is easy. When you delegate, don’t tell your employees exactly the way you want them to go about doing something. Let them embrace the way that works the best for them. If it gets done in a reasonable amount of time, does it matter what path they take? Nope. And it’s much better for the company as a whole if you focus on the things that are most important for you and leave your employees to do the tasks best suited to them.
- Embrace Learning
Whether on or off the job, promoting the expanse of knowledge for your employees is always a great idea. This doesn’t mean you have to pay for your employees to fly to every conference, seminar, and class in the world, but offering to compensate for books, online classes, and tools is a great step you can take to embrace knowledge on the job.
Stop Avoiding the Small Talk and Banter
I know at times it can seem counter-productive, however, joking around with your employees and asking about their lives can be a wonderful way to create an accepting and understanding atmosphere for your employees. It promotes emotional safety and job satisfaction, which in turn will promote team bonding and efficiency.
So stop avoiding or even ending that playful, breakroom banter and join in on the fun. Rest assured, both your brand and your employees with benefit from it. And you will, too!
Employee empowerment isn’t one of the easiest things to put into place when it comes to your business. However, the benefits of better communication, increased efficiency, emotional safety, and leadership training will carry your company far.
