There is no doubt that the strength of an organization stems from the people who work as a team to contribute to its growth. The concept of Team Spirit as a formula for success has been understood since the dawn of history. When it comes to the growth of organizations, it is crucial for all members to work together like a well-oiled machine. Working in cooperation with colleagues to accomplish tasks can produce impeccable results. And to achieve that, corporations must ensure to create a strong sense of Team Spirit amongst employees.
Team spirit, to put it simply, is the feeling of mutual respect, trust, pride, and loyalty amongst members of a team, inspiring them to do well for the organization. Brilliant teams are, however, not something that happen by chance. It is the responsibility of managers to find the right people, constantly encourage them, appreciate their efforts, and help them realize the difference they make.
Importance of Team Spirit
Builds Mutual Trust- Mutual trust and respect are the bedrock of great relationships in the workplace. Encouraging team members to openly communicate with each other, bond, and take ownership, can help them form a mutual understanding based on trust and develop a deep respect for coworkers.
Improves Team Performance- It is important to ensure that all the team members feel a sense of belonging to the team. When every member feels connected to teammates and understands her/ his specific tasks, they work well together and produce collective results. To put it more plainly, high employee morale has a positive impact on the quality and quantity of work done.
Promotes Workplace Synergy- A shared set of goals, cooperation, and encouragement help foster workplace synergy. With this, employees are encouraged to take collective responsibility for delivering results, which gives them a greater sense of achievement and helps inspire others to perform better. When employees understand their responsibilities and collectively work to produce better outcomes, they are driven to contribute more to the prosperity of their organizations.
Boosts Creativity- Collaboration on projects and brainstorming sessions with colleagues help inspire employee creativity and allows for more out-of-the-box ideas. This process works best when team members enjoy working together in a healthy work environment.
Here are a Few Ways to Promote Team Spirit within the Organization
Team Spirit often requires modelling at an executive level. It is important for leaders to set an example for employees by showing commitment to work well as team bonding, regardless of their position within the organizational setup. Let us look at some of the ways to foster teamwork.
1. Virtual Connects- It is important for leaders to stay connected with employees even as they work from home. It is a good idea to host virtual events to celebrate employee victories, milestones, birthdays, work anniversaries, etc., as a team and maintain employee engagement.
2. Take Breaks Together- Coffee and lunch breaks in the office are always great occasions for employees to connect with colleagues, but in the new work from home model, we have all been working in isolation, with occasional interactions with a handful of people from the workplace. To bridge this gap, companies can organize virtual breaks where employees and team members join in virtually to share a cup of coffee or meals together.
3. Learning Something New Together- Besides coming together to celebrate and have fun together, team members can also come together to build and enhance their skills together online. There are several educational resources that team members can sign up for, providing them remote online learning sessions. As leaders, you can encourage employees to take up workshops, courses, etc., and learn new skill sets with their teams, some even unrelated to their work.
4. Relevant Employee Benefits- Fostering team working and collaboration can be facilitated through extending the right benefits to employees. Meal allowances for employees to enjoy meals together remotely, gadget allowances for collaboration, communication benefits for employees to have the right connectivity wherever they are, rewards and recognition for delivering on Team Spirit as well as new-age benefits like Wellness and Learning & Development can help ensure employees have the right tools and benefits to facilitate teamwork. These can also help set the right environment for employees to collaborate as it signals the distance organizations are willing to go to foster team spirit.
One of the goals of promoting Team Spirit is to establish a culture of collaboration within the organization. A collaborative culture helps fuel employee innovation by bringing out the best in them. When they feel like they are part of the team, they are more involved, energized, and productive. Regular and deliberate collaboration among team members not only helps tap into the full potential of employees but also contributes to a better employee experience.
