The Role of Team Leaders and Managers in Managing Team Behaviour
“Team leaders should always seek to resolve performance or disciplinary issues in the workplace.”
The new code of practice to became law on 6th April 2009
A team leader’s ability to manage the contribution of all team members is crucial to the success of any group. This means having a code of conduct to guide behaviour.
If this is followed it will discourage team leaders from behaving inappropriately. If they take their eye off this code, they will get tunnel vision focusing on the person and not the issue.
Avoid getting the red card and follow these ten guidelines:
Our Code:
1. Creating the Environment with Clear Roles and Rules:
What motivates people d is very often concerned with maintaining clear expectations.
2. Reacting to Standards and Monitoring Work:
Team members need to understand working standards along with the management process.
3. Exploring Problems and Revising Opinions:
Identifying and exploring problems is a crucial skill of any team leader and maintains the quality of any service or product.
4. Reaching Out and Collaborating:
To collaborate effectively may require you to give up your own opinions even when you know it is something that has worked in the past. This often involves understanding the role that other people play in a team and what their strengths and weaknesses are.
Resolving issues involves reaching an agreement and re-distributing work effectively: this provides both work satisfaction and independence. It frees you up as well and encourages delegation of responsibility.
6. Recognition:
Effective team behaviour will not continue unless it is recognised and rewarded. This is one of the fundamentals of human life.
7. Performance Review:
Real teamwork can only happen if people can reflect on what has happened, learn from the past, agree on what is important and try to coordinate their efforts in the future. This involves us learning and improving as well as our colleague.
8. Follow Up and Drive:
People need to know that what has been said and that what has been agreed will happen.
Effective teams are often characterised by tensions. However awkward this tension might seem, it is an opportunity to improve things. The discipline procedure is there to help this process: it is evident in most sports.
10. Record Keeping:
Keeping records is an important discipline and it backs up everything you say and do.
Sometimes these records are needed to show to a third party.
Fairness and transparency are promoted by developing and using consistent rules and procedures for handling performance, talent, disciplinary and grievance situations. These should be set down in writing with the team, be specific and clear.
Team members, where appropriate, or with their representatives should be involved in the development of this code. It is also important to help colleagues to understand what the rules and procedures are and how they are to be used.
Whenever a problem is being explored it is important to deal with issues fairly.
There are a number of elements to this:
- Team leaders should raise and deal with issues promptly and should not unreasonably delay meetings, decisions or confirmation of those decisions.
- Team leaders should act consistently.
Team leaders should carry out any necessary investigations, to establish the facts of the case
- Team leaders should:
- Inform employees about the nature of the problem
- Give them an opportunity to put their case in response
- Give careful consideration before any decisions are made.
- Inform employees about the nature of the problem
Role Of Senior Managers:
The role of senior managers is crucial and they need to take responsibility and ownership of behaviour management: senior managers must ensure that:
- The process of performance management is described and communicated
- Performance management arrangements are adequately resourced
- Team members are involved in decisions that affect the development of a code of conduct
- Areas of risks are monitored
- Managers and leaders are given feedback on how they manage performance
- Competent advice is sought from outside professionals
- Recruitment and induction standards for introducing new staff have been carefully thought out and spot any early evidence of disruptive behaviour.
- Setting up a separate team chaired by a senior manager can make sure key issues are addressed and guard against time and effort being wasted on trivial incidents.
- Providing training in dealing with challenging situations can promote an understanding of the knowledge of the key issues.
Final Thoughts in Managing Team Behaviour:
Team leaders should aim to manage team behaviour by introducing systems and practices to ensure that areas of risk are dealt with sensibly, responsibly and proportionately.
Leadership is more effective if it is visible.
Managers can reinforce behaviour standards by being seen to be demonstrating good practice and providing a role model.
Supporting work that involves managing challenging behaviour, can improve participation and commitment.
A full version of the code can be found on the ACAS website:
http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=2114
Previous page: 360 Feedback for Teaam Leaders
Next page: Distant Memories Of Work