The Importance of Teamwork in Small Business Success

There are few phrases as true as, “you’re only as strong as your weakest link,” when it comes to running a small business. When you’re working in small groups, everyone feels it when one person isn’t pulling their share of the load. As a small business owner, it is in your best interest, and your responsibility, to create a team that works productivity together.

Often times, one individual could mean the difference between success and failure for a company. How often have you decided not to return to a business because you received terrible service from an employee? In order to survive and maintain a sustainable business model, you need returning customers, because they lead to positive brand images and lower marketing costs. Another important factor to keep in mind is the effect a bad team member has on internal productivity. In a small team, you all rely closely on the work each person does. When one individual is taking twice as long to complete their work or only putting in half the effort, quality and efficiency take a major hit and unnecessary stress is placed on the other team members. Situations like these should be avoided at all cost when running a business.

Here are some important ways you can create a stronger team:

Run background checks on potential candidates

Avoid making bad hires from the start. Many red flags can be discovered through a background check, such as falsified resumes and a negative employment history.

Train all employees on the responsibilities of their team members

This ensures that the business runs smoothly even with an absence and also makes employees more comfortable with taking needed personal time off.

Seek feedback during review periods

The best way to find weak spots in your business is to talk directly with the employees. This is an easy way to find problems ranging from other employees to process inefficiencies.

Open up lines of communication

Keep your employees engaged with what’s going on in the business. When everyone is on the same page in terms of strategy and company decisions, it’s much easier to make changes and move your business forward.

Also keep in mind the kind of team you want for your small business. The workforce today is extremely dynamic. The simple choices of part-time or full-time work from nine to five have greatly expanded to include options such as schedule flexibility, time sharing, remote work, temporary work and even contingent work. If you want to build a team consisting of multiple types of workers and schedules, strategic workforce planning becomes extremely important, because the nature of communication and management of each of these roles vary. For example, a contingent worker is not the same as an employee, so therefore should not be managed as directly in completing projects as an employee would be.

Despite the differences, these various styles of work can co-exist very effectively; in many cases even more so than traditional employment roles. In order for any team to work however, you need the right strategy, the right communication, and most importantly, the right people.

Finally, consider that a positive atmosphere is conducive to teamwork and a happy work environment. Many times employees of a small business tend to be isolated in their stand-alone business location. If appropriate, rather than a stand-alone location with 2 or 3 offices, you should consider a coworking or shared office space environment that would not only reduce operational costs (rent, utilities, internet, telephones, etc.), but allow your small team to be part of a larger community.

Come see us at Office Evolution Columbus where we help dozens of entrepreneurs like you find office solutions to fit their needs. Our plans are all inclusive and fully equipped starting on your first day. With executive style offices, and several virtual office solutions, our facilities are designed to support your needs. Office Evolution Columbus focuses on the needs of your business, so you can target success.

Contact us today to set up a tour at our Dublin or Easton Town Center, Ohio locations.