Q&A: What's the secret to happy and productive teams?
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Q&A: What's the secret to happy and productive teams?
Selena Cass
8 April 2024
9 min read
Selena Cass
8 April 2024
9 min read
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How can leaders today create a can-do culture across their teams?
What can leaders do to keep their teams motivated and happy?
What are your favourite tools for staying organised?
How does giving people a choice improve productivity?
Dive into the future of work with Upscale's Marta Afonso and monday.com's Katherine Heisler as they share insights on boosting productivity and happiness at work.
With the rise of hybrid workforces, widespread adoption of artificial intelligence, and an ever-increasing focus on wellbeing, the workplace continues to transform rapidly before our eyes. In response, leaders are seeking new ways to engage and motivate teams to boost productivity and stay competitive. The question is, how exactly do they do that?
Fresh from a thought-provoking panel discussion at The Adaptavist Group's Expert Hour, we caught up with Marta Afonso, Brand, Commercial, and Communications Marketing Lead at Upscale and Katherine Heisler, Director of North America Channel at monday.com to discuss leadership in changing times. Our discussion covered a lot of ground, including how to create happy, productive teams, the importance of leading by example, and their favourite tools for staying organised. Let’s dive in!
How can leaders today create a can-do culture across their teams?
Marta
As a leader, it's important to remember that everyone brings something different to the table, and it's your job to bring out the best in them. That means taking the time to discover what motivates them and what they enjoy doing most. That's how you achieve success. You can't expect the best out of someone if you don't take the time to get to know them.
As a leader, it's important to remember that everyone brings something different to the table, and it's your job to bring out the best in them. That means taking the time to discover what motivates them and what they enjoy doing most. That's how you achieve success. You can't expect the best out of someone if you don't take the time to get to know them.
To be an effective leader in today's world, there are a few things you need to focus on:
- The first is to reject micromanagement and all it stands for. Watching someone's movements puts unnecessary pressure on them and lowers their productivity.
- Empowerment is essential. Trust people to do the job you hired them to do, give them the resources and support they need and be there to clear any obstacles when needed.
- Give people space and time to experiment and try new things. For example, at Upscale, we recently held an innovation week to spark creativity.
- Lastly, make sure everyone knows what they are working towards and how they fit into the bigger picture.
Katherine
If you don't champion your people, you can't achieve your goals. It's that simple.
If you don't champion your people, you can't achieve your goals. It's that simple.
To push initiatives forward, you have to focus on empowering and building up your people. That starts with doing the small things, like:
- Encouraging everyone's voice to be heard in meetings.
- Making sure people leading initiatives have the opportunity to speak with senior leaders.
- Giving people a platform, a path forward, and the exposure they deserve.
Those are the small things that really separate leaders that people want to stay with from those who might be visionary and interesting but don't necessarily give people what they need to be successful.
Keeping that in mind, one of the most important characteristics I've admired in leaders I've worked for is leading by example. When you set the right tone and example and are present for your work and your people, the results and outcome will always be better.
Having a united mission is also really important. People need to feel connected to something bigger than themselves.
The best part of working in a team is that you're making something bigger together. I find that drives the most motivational behaviours within teams. Ultimately, without meaning and purpose in your work, what's the point of autonomy?
What can leaders do to keep their teams motivated and happy?
Marta
Again, empowerment is key. People blossom when they feel their efforts are worthwhile. We all need a purpose to get up in the morning! But, rather than focusing on trying to keep everyone on the team happy, it's better to work on creating an environment that makes that possible. Here are some ways I try to do that:
Again, empowerment is key. People blossom when they feel their efforts are worthwhile. We all need a purpose to get up in the morning! But, rather than focusing on trying to keep everyone on the team happy, it's better to work on creating an environment that makes that possible. Here are some ways I try to do that:
- Set clear expectations so everyone knows what's expected of them and who to turn to for help.
- Provide a safety net and help each other - making everyone feel like they are in it together is crucial.
- Allow people to fail, but encourage them to pick themselves up and try again. People grow the most in these moments.
Katherine
Trust is crucial to supporting your people.
Trust is crucial to supporting your people.
Of course, some believe that trust must be earned. But I believe in trusting people up front and giving them the benefit of the doubt that they are smart, capable, and passionate about their work. They should be trusted to do it the way they see fit.
I want people to have the trust to run with initiatives, and then I check in on 1-1s to see how they are doing, and I can offer any support and guidance needed. I have two check-in points for every 1-1 I have:
- what small thing did you accomplish last week?
- what small thing are you going to do next week to move things forward?
That's it.
Giving people the freedom to run with things and checking in with support builds happiness and productivity and brings the balance they need. Don't get me wrong, it's a hard thing to do as a leader because your natural inclination can be to try and control things. It's something I've had to work on as I've evolved as a people leader, but I know 100% it's the best way to motivate people.
What are your favourite tools for staying organised?
Marta
Personally, I love tools like Slack and monday.com, which I use daily to help me plan, delegate, track progress, and collaborate with my team. They really help to keep me focused and on track. Plus, I can avoid constantly asking my team 'what's happening' and 'where are we with this and that', which might make them feel pressured. So that's good for everyone, right?!
Personally, I love tools like Slack and monday.com, which I use daily to help me plan, delegate, track progress, and collaborate with my team. They really help to keep me focused and on track. Plus, I can avoid constantly asking my team 'what's happening' and 'where are we with this and that', which might make them feel pressured. So that's good for everyone, right?!
It might seem obvious, but the best apps deliver what they promise. Apps should always enhance and complement what you do, not get in the way. It's that simple.
Katherine
I have to say it because it's true but I use monday.com to plan my whole life now. I've even planned buying a house using it. I've shared monday lists with my husband. Everything I organise with my team is on monday. Even if I didn't work for monday, I truly believe I would use this technology because it's simple, it works for me, and it keeps me and my team organised. I genuinely love it.
I have to say it because it's true but I use monday.com to plan my whole life now. I've even planned buying a house using it. I've shared monday lists with my husband. Everything I organise with my team is on monday. Even if I didn't work for monday, I truly believe I would use this technology because it's simple, it works for me, and it keeps me and my team organised. I genuinely love it.
I feel very lucky to get to work for a technology company that I actually feel very passionate about and get to use every day.
How does giving people a choice over how they work improve productivity?
Marta
I really believe that choice = working at your best.
I really believe that choice = working at your best.
It all comes down to empowerment and autonomy, doesn't it? People naturally become more engaged and productive when they can choose how and where they work. It's just common sense, really.
For example, we all enjoy unlimited holiday at The Adaptavist Group. Having the flexibility to choose when to take time off is invaluable to me and the rest of the team. And I imagine we probably don't even take more days off than employees at other companies. But it's the freedom to choose that makes all the difference. Life can be unpredictable, so this helps us gain some control over what we need to do to get our work done and balance our lives.
I've seen what happens when people feel trapped by company policies - anxiety and stress levels rise, and performance decreases. It's a vicious cycle where no one wins.
Katherine
I have a team of people who work extremely hard, we are all dedicated to the same mission, but burnout is very real, so again, this is where leading by example becomes very important.
I have a team of people who work extremely hard, we are all dedicated to the same mission, but burnout is very real, so again, this is where leading by example becomes very important.
That means setting the tone in taking your vacation time, not Slacking your people before or after working hours, and creating those boundaries that can be adopted and emulated by your team to prevent burnout.
It’s about saying to people I want to give you all the room to work how you want to work, but there have to be boundaries you protect. One of the things we actually tried in our team is to say to people ‘If you answer this email while on vacation you owe us a dollar.’ It might seem a bit extreme and that you are taking people’s choice to work away from them, but as a leader you always need to focus on what's best for people. Taking time to recharge is important for everyone, and setting clear boundaries can help.
Check out The Adaptavist Group's Expert Hour - Harnessing productivity and embracing the future of work
to learn more about how leaders can help teams succeed in today’s constantly evolving work landscape.
Written by
Selena Cass
Content Marketing Consultant
As a senior content marketing consultant at Upscale, Selena thrives in the ever-changing world of technology. With over 20 years of experience, she has worked across diverse sectors and specialises in crafting engaging content that captures attention, showcases expertise, and drives business growth.
Upscale