Jess Coles – Significantly Improving Team Performance Achievements
Team performance Improvement
As the leader of a team, you succeed or fail based on the performance of your team. Here are a couple of examples where I have lead teams of different sizes, in different companies, with different starting points, with different team members and got to same place with all of them – a high performing happy motivated team, generating levels of profit and cash which was very significant for the business.
Look at any business, you have 20% of the team delivering 80% of the profits (generally speaking). These teams can be from any function – sales, marketing, operations or finance. Find a top team and you find a top leader.
Transformed a team of 17 from the worst in the business to the best
I took over this team of 17. I had visited the team a few times before starting and the office was like a morgue. It wasn’t much different on my first day. Very little talking. Everyone with their head down getting own with their own work.
They simply were not a team. It was obvious.
Teamwork requires talking, co-ordination, collaboration, joint problem solving, supporting each other and more.
Even worst, the team’s output was very transactional & admin focused. There were no insights, not value add, no improvement actions, no projects, no initiative … it was bad.
They were one of the worst teams in the business.
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12 months later, this team had just won the company’s “Best Team” prize. The whole floor was filled with talking, of banter, of collaboration, of problems solving. They were a team and the results showed. The energy and “pace” of the team had transformed.
£12 million in extra cash in the bank account. HSBC risk score from ~83 down to ~27. Profit had almost quadrupled. £4m historical underbilling identified. Industry leading low level of invoice queries (per BDO), + a lot more … in short, an impressive list of team achievements in a relatively short space of time.
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One of the most important facts – most of the original team members were still with the team.
I was awarded the top appraisal grade, given another two teams to manage (now looking after 35 staff), and given a significant pay rise and bonus. This level of achievement gains you (as a leader) a huge amount of influence, respect, authority, impact and personal satisfaction.
Transformed a team of 12 staff
I took over a team that had almost caused a £25m in sales family business to fail (the owners had to put in more money). The team were dejected, quiet, lacking in confidence, fearful, not sure what to do, sitting apart from the rest of the company, working with a rubbish system that hindered the business, not supported by the business leaders and more.
The previous leader had led with fear, bullying and putdowns. A horrible place for any team member and very damaging for the team overall.
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Within 12 months, the group had become a team. There was a positive energy about them. They were confident, clear about their roles, working closely with the rest of the business. They had a new system, new processes, a new approach.
We had moved the team into the main building. There was collaboration (within the team and with the wider business). The problems that had caused the business to almost fail were history. They had become respected within the business, often receiving public praise from leaders.
Another measure of success, the team had work to increase cash, which now stood at over £3m (with steady profits). The team carried on going from strength to strength.
Transformed a Team of 8 Staff
A business owner of an IT company with ~£15m in sales asked me to take over a team he had lost confidence in. The previous leader had been removed because of the team’s poor performance.
The team members were understandably, very nervous, scared, downbeat and lacking confidence and direction. They were easily the worst team in the business in terms of performance.
I had to gain their trust quickly, reassure them, understand their capabilities and potential, assess how they were operating and the tools they were using.
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Within 6 months, the team was much happier, had regained the trust of the owner and was fast becoming a valuable team to have in the business. The team had new direction, clear goals and responsibilities, new tools and systems, a lot more energy and their performance had jumped up. The team started beating targets. Leaders and managers in other teams started paying more attention. The jokes and putdowns stopped. The team was contributing to profitability rather than being seen as a necessary cost.
Again, most of the original team remained.
Transformed a team of 5 staff
A business owner of a products business with around £2m in sales asked me to turnaround an underperforming team in his business.
The business’s requirements of the team had outgrown the skills of the team’s leader. The manager didn’t know how to respond to the challenges of growth, how to navigate the growing politics in the business, how to get investment into his team, how to negotiate realistic expectations and ensure other teams were delivering what was needed for his team to be successful.
Some indicators that the team was in real trouble:
- The financial records were 6 months behind, which meant unknown and unpaid tax bills and rising scrutiny from HMRC
- Customer owned record amounts of money to the business (not because sales were growing)
- The team was being pulled from pillar to post by the rest of the business.
- Team members were unhappy and looking for other jobs outside of the business.
I had to change the teams fortunes quickly.
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Within 4 months, the financial records were up to date, the tax bills had been paid and HMRC were happier. The amounts customers owed has dropped considerably and the business had a lot more cash in its bank accounts.
More importantly, the team had clear direction, felt safe and protected, and the rest of the business had clear communication about what would be done when and what could not be done. The team was happier, a lot more productive and focused on hitting team targets and their future with the business. The rest of the business stopped using the team as a scapegoat. The business owner had started investing in systems and tools for the team, which would further increase their performance.
Increasing Team Performance Is A Framework Of Actions
You have to work with what is in front of you and the opportunities available to you as a team leader. Getting the most from the team you have is a very clear indicator of management skill and value creation. Hiring “better” replacement staff increases team potential but not necessarily team performance.
Significantly increasing team performance needs a framework of proven practical actions starting with building increasing levels of trust and setting clear goals and expectations. On these important foundations, you can build teamwork, accountability, ownership, great standards and through all these great team results.
The actions, decisions and behaviours of the leader of a team determines the value their team creates. Get all these right, and tailored to your specific team members, and you can increase team performance by several multiples.
The difference between the top 5% of leaders and average leaders is 800% in value creation. This gap is so big because of the leverage effect that leaders can create. Leaders deliver most of their value through their team.
To increase the performance of your team and to increase the team’s performance faster, book in a meeting with me to discuss the actions you should be taking to drive team performance. The quicker your team’s performance increases, the quicker you are likely to be promoted and increase your influence, your impact, your status, your confidence and more.