Top 17 Team Management Skills to Stay Top on Your Job

Top 17 Team Management Skills to Stay Top on Your Job

This post provides exhaustive information on team management skills and qualities to develop to be highly effective leading a team.

Team management is a good aspect of management meant to help bring out the best from employees in the workplace.

It is important for the employer as well as the employee. The development of employees in the organization leads to direct growth of the business.

Team management sees to the welfare of each employee of the organization.

Team managers are put in positions in different departments of the organization to serve as leaders of the various departments.

What is Team Management?

Team management is the organization, drilling, and development of employees in a workplace.

Team management is any form of management that is geared towards getting the best out of a team.

Application of team management is best known in the area of project management and research developments, as well as scientific researches.

Here are valuable team management skills and qualities to have to be highly successful as a manager of a team:

1. Effective Communication

Managing a team is not a possible feat to achieve in the absence of effective communication in the team. Effective communication is a livewire of every team.

In the workplace, for a manager to flow with the members of his/her team, effective communication lines should be established to enable the easy dissemination of information within and around the team.

Effective communication is a great skill to be possessed by every team manager who wants to succeed.

The absence of effective communication is an invitation to failure in the achievement of a team’s goals.

For a team without effective communication, there will be absence of trust, confidence, and sense of belonging.

So, to effectively lead a team, a manager must be able to effectively communicate with his team.

2. Team Motivation

Challenges, ups and downs, disappointments, and discouragements are all part of the things that militate against the growth of a team in the workplace.

This is to be noted by the manager. This is not a prophecy of doom but helps prepare the mind of the team manager on what to do when these things set in.

One of the biggest challenges a team manager faces is the prospect of working with a discouraged team. This is a hard nut to crack.

The next big question is how do I get the team motivated again after a major setback?

The answer is simple: motivation. Motivation is what gets the team up again.

The role of motivation in team building or management cannot be underestimated.

However, for a manager to be able to motivate his/her team, he/she has to stay motivated to help the team get motivated also.

The worst scenario the team can face is the prospect of working with a discouraged team manager.

3. Proper Vision

To lead a team demands that the manager of the team has proper vision both for him OR herself and the team as a whole.

What is the future of a team without a proper vision? What do they stand to achieve?

How can a team channel their energy to work without the foresight of what they stand to achieve in the long run.

Realistic vision by the manager bought by team members is already a source of motivation on its own.

It is not possible to be motivated in a team lacking vision. This can be counterproductive.

The vision of the team is the reason every member will see a reason to give in their best.

A team manager must have his/her personal vision for the team before dealing with the general vision of the team.

The team needs a manager with a vision. The vision keeps the manager motivated at all times and that can help him/her keep the team motivated too. Failure to be motivated is an invitation to laziness in the team.

4. Employee Development

The happiness and joy of a team manager lies in the general development of his/her team.

Team development is an offshoot of individual development of all members of the team.

Development of each member of a team is what brings about more quality in work output.

One of the duties of a team manager is to develop each member of the team. This can come through periodic training, seminars, or workshop.

Also, healthy competitions can be held within the team to help bring out the best in the individual members of the team. This competition should be healthy and neutral to avoid murmurings and loss of interest.

One way a manager can know that his/her team is developing is when the team can do well enough even in his/her short absence. This is one way to measure his/her impact on the team.

If a team manager’s short absence can cause a collateral damage to the team, then the team is not developing well.

As a manager, strive to get this under control.

5. Strategic Thinking

Thinking strategically allows a manager to dissect and reduce problems into small sections and proffer solution to the problems either as a whole or in segment.

Thinking strategically must be inherent in a team leader as this can be a way of escape from mountainous problems.

A leader must be tactical in leading a team. A perfect example is a soccer/football team.

The manager of a soccer team makes his/her strategies based on the quality of players at his/her disposal and the quality of the opponents. The essence of this strategy is to achieve maximum results.

Strategic thinking is one way a team manager can bring out the best in his/her team.

He/she thinks of the best way to use every team member to achieve the general team objective. In doing this, he/she uses each member according to their strength, and sometimes also guides the team members not to be addicted to just one pattern of carrying out their daily activities in the workplace.

6. Problem Solving Skills

As earlier stated, problems are bound to arise in the course of the achievement of a team’s goals.

This is not purely avoidable in many cases. So the role of the team manager is to train his team to either solve the problems or adapt to them if they are not solvable problems.

This starts with the manager. The reason you are a manager is not just to be a leader by office, but you are also tasked with the duty of bringing solutions on the table to tackle problems facing your team in any way.

Problem solving skills is a crucial element that should be inherent in a team manager.

Managers are meant to also inculcate problem solving skills in the team members. This is because, no matter how intelligent a manager might be, he/she may not be able to handle every problem that emanates in the organization.

He/she might need advice from his/her team. So he/she creates in them the ability to proffer solutions even without his/her contribution.

7. Willingness to Learn

Being a leader is not a sign of perfection. It simply shows that you have acquired enough skills and knowledge to lead a team.

However, an ever improving manager sees the need to learn more to be more effective in his/her job.

A team manager must be willing to learn from the mistakes of the past, demands of today and also the predictions of tomorrow.

A leader cannot grow above his/her knowledge base. It is safe to say that whenever one stops learning, he/she starts dying.

The most effective and useful knowledge you can have as a team manager is the conscious knowledge you acquire.

It is true that knowledge can be acquired unconsciously but the knowledge required to lead a team must be born out of willingness to improve the team.

A manager who does not see the need to learn will definitely be a torn in the flesh of the team.

To learn as a manager demands open mindedness and humility too. Never harbor the assumption that you know all.

If you do, you end up ruining your job as well as the team long term goals.

8. Fairness

Leading a team effectively demands fairness all round. This can be equated to equity.

In any state of leadership, once unfairness enters the fold, there is bound to be mutiny and wrong judgments, which will only cripple the team.

As a leader, be fair in your judgment, assertions, and other matters that concern the team.

Fairness earns you more respect as a leader and helps to uphold your integrity.

A manager that wants to have a good relationship with his/her team must be fair in handling the team’s affairs.

Judge by the laid down rules but don’t be harsh if you need to discipline a member of the team that has erred.

To be fair as a team manager, learn not to work with sentiments and favoritism.

Don’t give the team the impression that you like some people more than others.

This is very poisonous to the team and can affect the relationship of majority of the team.

When your team is divided, achieving its goals becomes nearly impossible. Be fair!

9. Discipline Management

Discipline is part of team management. Human beings want to enjoy unlimited freedom, life without stress and work without supervision. This is true everywhere.

Nobody wants to be ordered around and nobody wants to be followed about in their job.

However, for the team to grow, discipline is important.

A manager him or herself must be disciplined in him/herself before sitting on the throne of judgment to discipline members of the team.

A leader must lead by example particularly in the workplace. A manager must sort out the issue of discipline within him/herself before disciplining the misbehavior and misconduct of team members.

To discipline a team ember when there’s misconduct queries can be issued and replies must well be analyzed to determine the next line of action.

It is wrong for a manager to mete out punishment without proper hearing from the offender.

Also, the manager must issue out discipline based on standing rules and not by personal inclination.

10. Trustworthiness

Trust is not given by default but earned through years of unquestionable conduct and character.

For a team manager, the trust of the members is important in their loyalty to you.

If your team does not trust you as a manager, then leading them becomes an uphill task.

Try to build your trust base before any other thing because the future of your job can be determined by it.

To build trust in a team, the manager must learn to stand by what he/she says and not easily shift grounds mainly for personal reasons.

The manager must be a man/woman of his/her words and not easily influenced by the opinion of others.

He/she must consider the success of the team above personal gains. That is how trust is earned in a team.

Nothing kills the image of a team manager more than trust issues. When your team members have enough reason to doubt you, then they will read wrong meanings into your actions.

It is not their fault but yours as the team manager. If you want to enjoy your leadership, don’t give the team reasons to doubt you, else they won’t be able to work with you again.

11. Proper Delegation

Delegation of duties is also a part of team management. This is because a leader cannot do everything no matter how skillful they are or how strong they think they are.

A good team manager delegates duties properly to help the team grow their confidence.

Delegation can go wrong if the delegates are not equal to the task. That is why it is important for a team manager to know the individual strengths and weaknesses of the members of the team.

When you know the strengths of your team members, it will help you delegate duties to them rightly.

When you carry out delegation, you are simply telling your team that you believe in their abilities. And this means a lot to them and can be the best motivation you can give them.

When you delegate, you help your team build confidence and also give them platform to showcase their skills.

12. Innovate and Inspire

Ideas rule the world but innovations are evidences of ideas. For a team manager, to be able to lead a team demands that you bring new innovations into your leadership skills.

This entails being unpredictable in your leadership pattern. Don’t be stereotyped in your team leadership.

Constant innovations from you as a team manager will inspire your team members to follow in your footsteps, especially if these innovations have brought about positive changes in the fortunes of the team.

Every team member deserves to have an innovative manager for the sake of their inspiration.

When a team manager is not innovative in their style of leadership, then there is nothing to inspire the team to do better.

Remember they are watching you and are looking up to you for inspiration. Don’t disappoint their expectations. This can be disastrous for the team.

13. Good Organization

Organizational ability is a well-known managerial skill expected from a team manager.

Don’t assume that human beings know what to do always and will do what is expected of them.

As a team leader or manager, be influential enough to make your team do the right thing at the right time.

A good manager is tasked with the responsibility of organizing the daily activities and actions of his/her team.

He/she tells the team members what to do, and shows them how it is done, and watches them do it without must hassle.

He/she oversees the smooth coordination of activities in the workplace and corrects anomalies in the process.

A disorganized team is liable to waste resources, time, and energy meant for productive projects.

To salvage a situation like this, a team manager is needed to organize the team and give the team a sense of purpose, and guide their attention and behavior towards achieving more noble goals.

14. Time Management

Time management is important in team management. Time is everything and some say time is money.

Either way you look at it, one of the managerial skills needed by a manager to succeed with his/her team is the time management skill.

Mismanagement of time can cause serious delay in the achievement of team goals and aspirations in the long run.

A team manager should be able to organize activities in the workplace and allot time for every event in the team.

It is the business of the team manager to also imbibe it in the mind of the team.

The manager must know the value of time and understand that a minute wasted on any irrelevant activity in the workplace is a loss to the team.

Effective planning is one way to manage time in the team. During planning, the manager decides with the team how best to manage time in order to carry out projects in the workplace and deliver at the stipulated time.

Ideas generated can be used to this effect to manage time in the organization.

15. Respect for Others

Being a team leader is not a platform to show off. If there’s one thing that can easily give rise to mutiny in the team, it is lack of respect from the team manager.

As much as they are under you, also see them as your colleagues in your team. Remember, you alone cannot do the work.

Respecting each member of the team’s cultural heritage, religion, personal interest, and opinion can only breed love from them towards you.

And when they love you, they give you their maximum support in all you ask them to do.

When you disrespect the members of the team, you gain their opposition and make the job more difficult for you.

Swallow your ego as a team manager and don’t give your team the impression that you can do without them.

That is a fatal error some managers make in their leadership. As much as you can fire and dismiss a member of a team, remember also that it is difficult to find someone to fill that vacancy.

This is not all about the certificate, but the years of experience gathered by the worker may not be found easily with a new member.

16. Approachability

A manager that wants to be an effective leader must be approachable by his/her team.

Make the team feel free to approach you and discuss even their personal problems with you.

Until you are approachable by your team members, don’t assume that they trust your leadership abilities.

In the personal life of your members there might arise issues that may affect their commitment to a project in the organization.

Part of your job as a team manager is to make yourself available to them and know how best you can help them get out the mess they found themselves.

If you are not approachable by them, then you stand no chance of being that ideal manager you may want to be to them.

As a manager, always try to wear a good smile and let your body language not be repulsive to people.

You might be a good man at heart, but if your body language is repulsive then your team will not find it easy to work with you.

When you are approachable as a team manager, you will definitely know what your team thinks about you.

17. Confidence

Confidence is one hallmark of a good team manager. Confidence helps you give out an aura of positivity within your team.

Confidence makes you give the team an impression of a better tomorrow in the place of work.

When a manager exhibits confidence, it is contacted by the team. This is a good way to grow a team.

To be confident is not to be excited about what you are not sure of. That is foolishness.

Confidence comes in when you are sure of the outcome of what the team is working for.

Though there may be reasons to doubt, but a confident team manager can expel those fears and instill calmness in the minds of his/her team members.

One factor that improves the confidence of a manager is adequate preparation. When you are not prepared for the task of the day as a manager, your confidence is bound to drop.

Increasing your level of preparation is a sure way of keeping your confidence sky high.

Team Management Skills for Resume

If you are seeking a team manager job or one that requires skills and qualities to effectively manage a team, you will need to develop the ones shared above and use them in making your resume.

You can highlight the team management skills and qualities presented above in making the core competence or skills section of your resume.

This can help your resume to have a great impact on the recruiter to see you as well qualified and competent for the position.

Conclusion

Managing a team is far beyond barking out orders. It is a conscious effort to positively influence the minds of the members of a team to make deliberate efforts to pursue the team’s goals.

To be able to lead a team at the workplace or anywhere for that matter effectively, it is helpful to develop the skills and qualities shared on this page.