A happy, productive and motivated team ensures you have happy, satisfied and loyal clients. So why is it that we often miss the mark in creating and keeping a high performing team?

Here are 4 areas pivotal to building a High Performance Team:

1. Motivation and Engagement
2. Clarity in Roles & Responsibilities
3. Continuous Internal Training
4. Organisational Fit

Motivation & Engagement

How much time do you spend doing tasks you love doing? If the answer is often or mostly, then chances are you are motivated and engaged in your work. That is a key indicator to your efficiency, productivity and overall motivation in your role. On the other hand, what if you spend most of your time at work doing tasks you don’t like, or even despise? Motivation will be non-existent and the chances of you staying in that role for a long period of time would be low.

In every role there will be tasks that you dislike completing or don’t really care for and that’s ok. No role is ‘perfect’ and affords you only tasks you love. Even a passionate Advertising Agency Director who spends majority of their day immersed in creative marketing campaigns has to tally their books -- a task they dislike and are exceptionally bad at. It’s about finding a balance and having an abundance of activities that you thrive on, because the rest will become insignificant.

It’s not only important to have tasks that you enjoy completing in your role, you must also ensure you are playing to your strengths.

Too often managers focus on improving an employee’s weakness, an area to improve on. But in reality it takes so much more energy to develop an area of weakness and the improvement is often limited.

Choosing to capitalise on staff member’s strengths is a surefire way to not only keep them motivated and engaged, but get the most out of them, increasing their efficiency and contribution to the business.

Clarity in Roles & Responsibilities

Without clear roles, responsibilities and therefore goals, you will have no purpose. Without purpose, you may find yourself unmotivated and seemingly useless in your role.

Most of us need a purpose to come to work, a reason to get out of bed. And for most, that needs to be more than coming to work to complete a pile of "tasks." People want to feel connected, to understand how by completing these tasks they are contributing to the team’s goals and the business as a whole.

Continuous Internal Training

Whether it’s on boarding, upskilling or just general professional development, training should not cease, regardless of someone’s experience. Every step should be taken to ensure staff are fully across all aspects of their agreed role so they can complete tasks efficiently and without unnecessary stress.

Employees at all levels require training -- particularly in the internal processes. So, don’t just focus on your junior team, senior staff needs guidance too.

Organisational Fit

Culture, culture, culture. It’s a constant talking point in the modern work environment, and rightly so.

Imagine working for a company that harmed animals in the process of making its product, and you were an animal activist? It would be hard to give all of yourself to this organisation, your energy, time and skills especially if you don’t believe in its values. Organisational culture is so many things.

First and foremost the companies value system, but culture is so much more than just the businesses values. It’s the businesses entire essence. Does the organisation’s voice speak to you? Do you have similar personalities? Is the office space a place you want to be? If you fit the organisation and the organisation fits you, your chances for high performance are higher.

What if you have the wrong team?

Chances are if you feel someone "doesn’t fit" or isn’t performing, they probably feel it too. Although performance managing someone or possibly letting them go can be the most challenging role of a manager, you may be doing your business an injustice keeping someone who is not performing.

Most organisations have staff members that ‘don’t fit’ either their job or the organisation. The number one reason for this is because these key areas of motivation and organisational fit were not included as part of the hiring process.

Although someone may be capable of completing a role in your organisation, it is important to find out if they want to. Because having a team of people who are motivated, engaged and want to work -- will in the end, produce your High Performing Team.