Getting your team connect could be the key to unlocking performance

9 min readDec 15, 2021

You get up, you get ready, and head to the job. You keep your head down, work hard, stop for lunch, and then close out the day. Afterwards you head home, make some dinner, relax, and then head to bed. Then you get up and do it all again. Now to some people that may sound very normal. However, if you take a closer look at the routine above you will notice it is missing something: people.

Whether the person in question is a project manager in an office or a foreman at the worksite, chances are their role will involve other people. And the research shows, that is probably for the best. All human beings have an inherent need for relationships, and to belong to a group. This is just as true at work as it is at home. If employees are disconnected or isolated as they go about their work, it can be a predictor of several negative outcomes.

One study investigated the connection between how connected employees were at work with their temperament and found that the weaker their sense of belonging both at home and at work, the higher their demonstrated stress, anxiety and depression levels at work.[1] And this is not simply boosting your team’s mood. Instead, relationships and a sense of belonging are a vital component of a healthy culture that have a measurable impact on your team and organization. BetterUp conducted research on belonging at work across a variety of industries in the U.S. and found a direct connection between employees’ sense of connection and the bottom line. Here are just a few highlights of team’s where there was a high sense of connection:

56% increase in job performance — your people work harder.
50% drop in turnover intention — your people are less likely to leave
75% reduction in sick days — your people are more consistent.
167% more likely to recommend your company — your people are more proud of their work.

To put these numbers in perspective, if you have 100 employees, your annual savings would be more than $520,000. [2] While most companies would like to take advantage of the improvements workplace connections can bring, the numbers indicate they are missing the mark. Across the U.S. 40% of workers say they feel actively isolated at work, and organizational commitment and engagement are in decline [2].Companies are spending money to improve diversity and inclusion training (to the tune of $8 billion each year) but the money isn’t really moving the needle. [3] So what can leaders do to help their teams get connected and thrive?

The building blocks of connection

Every company faces unique challenges when it comes to keeping their team connected and engaged. You may have a group of office employees who are relatively isolated from your team working on construction sites. Or maybe your service team works independently from your sales team. Whatever the case, there are several foundational building blocks that you can work into your organization, without which healthy, thriving, and connected teams are not possible.

Trust

Trust is foundational for your work teams. Your teams on the ground must trust each other to complete components of the work, and need to rely on leadership to maintain projects, acquire new jobs, and direct the company goals. Just how important is trust? A study compared low trust work environments to those with high trust, and found that high trust companies have:

74% less stress
106% more energy at work
76% more engagement
40% less burnout [4]

Leadership needs to drive trust. Here are a few tips to manage your teams in a way that builds trust over time.

Recognize

Maybe it’s something as simple as making sure that the drywall is hung correctly. Or maybe its the installation of a difficult circuit. When one of your employees does something right, build a culture where that is recognized.

Challenge

Give your teams the opportunity to prove themselves. Demonstrate trust by assigning difficult (but not impossible tasks). This will introduce situations where they need to communicate and rely on each other, building trust as they progress towards goals.

Share

Leaders usually have good reasons that they make their decisions — the problem is often a lack of clarity between top leadership’s goals and strategies and how that information is communicated down the management chain. Build a culture of openness and communication that makes sure nothing is left in the shadows where it could breed mistrust.

Respect

Think of someone you truly respect, and then think of someone you do not. If the person you lack respect for brought you an idea for a new way to execute on the job site, you would probably have more reservations than you would if the person you respect presented the idea. Mutual respect opens the door for healthy connections at work as team members will value each other’s opinions and be more collaborative. If you need an additional reason to begin driving respect within your work culture, a Gallup study of over 350,000 employees found that respect was the number one behavior that could increase employee engagement, and that 72% of those surveyed found it “very important’’ that all levels of employees were treated with respect. [5] If your team is lacking respect for each other or leadership, here are some tips to get started:

Watch Your Mouth

The words you choose throughout your organization matter. Criticism is vital if it is constructive, but too much and you could demoralize your team. Humor is powerful to create joy, but sarcasm or humor at someone’s expense can quickly turn humor into a destructive force. Be quick to praise your team, and make sure that when you provide criticism you do it in an appropriate, private setting.

Zero Tolerance Policy

Far too often, the best intentions to create a respectful environment can be sabotaged by unaddressed harassment or bullying. Far too often, we dismiss negative employee actions and words as “just guys being guys” or tough love. We recently covered how a culture of harassment turned a major software developer into a train wreck. Make sure your team knows your organization has no tolerance for any form of abuse. Make your policy clear on employee’s rights and that you have communicated a clear procedure so that your employees can come to you if they feel they have been disrespected. If you can confirm the harassment occurred, take swift, severe action.

Practically that easy

Building a culture that fosters trust and respect is the foundation, but the reality is that every team is unique, and the relationships that drive connection and belonging in each organization will be unique as well. The individuals and their needs will vary from organization to organization, and even from team to team within one company. As a result, leadership will need to start thinking critically about their culture and how to help their teams connect and thrive. To give you an idea of the process, and what practical steps leaders can take to begin fostering connections and belonging, let’s take a look at a hypothetical construction company: Charlie’s Contracting.

The Company and the Problem

Charlie’s Contracting is a 50 employee company that specializes in residential projects. As margins within the construction industry have tightened, the owner Charles, is looking for a way to help his company become more profitable and stand out from the competition. He does some analysis of the company using a financial tools and a cultural vitality index, and gains a few key insights:

the office staff and the worksite crews rarely interact and when they do, there are often miscommunications
Workers have a low average tenure and turnover is high
Projects are often over budget and running behind schedule
Exit interviews indicate that people who are leaving the organization felt isolated from management and the organization as a whole

Charles hypothesis is that there is a substantial disconnect between the planning side of the organization and the people on the job site executing. He (brilliantly) read this article and knows that when people operate in isolation, they are less motivated, less efficient and less loyal. To tighten up his margins, Charles wants to decrease his turnover costs, and maximize the output of his teams to get projects on budget, and on time. So what steps should be taken at Charlie’s Contracting?

Regular Touchpoints

In order for your team to feel connected, you will need to connect with them. It sounds a little silly but the truth is, one of the best things leadership can do is establish frequent moments that allow them to connect with their team. These moments will allow for communication of organizational objectives, and help team members connect to management as well as the direction of the organization. This applies to the top leadership and middle managers alike. One important distinction to make is between task related touchpoints, and non-task touchpoints. As the name implies, task related touchpoints are focused on work tasks or performance while non-task touchpoints could be on anything from life updates to the performance of a local sports team. Both types of touchpoints are important in a healthy culture.

Leadership should also bear in mind that as your employees are unique, situational leadership will be required. Here are a couple common situations and a few tips on how to mix up your touchpoint strategy in response.

New employees

Increase the frequency of your touchpoints to set new employees on the right track. Focus on discussion of how their role is aligning with the company goals, how they feel they are fitting in, and provide constructive feedback on performance.

Employees meeting and exceeding

Check-ins with your team members who are meeting or exceeding performance standards can be a vital tool for understanding what is driving their performance, as well as get input on their goals and desires to continue to develop and grow.

Underperformers

Underperformers will also need more frequent touchpoints than other employees as leadership can try to coach them into higher performance, understand what is limiting their performance, and set goals for improvement. You can adjust once they are back on the right track.

Unique Scenarios

There will be times when a unique touchpoint is required. Maybe a project is going poorly, maybe a team member will have a family emergency impacting performance. Strong leaders will recognize when they need to step in and make sure they connect with their team and keep them in the fold.

Addressing the silos

Charlie’s Contracting focuses on establishing more touchpoints between managers and their teams across the organization in order to keep team members aligned, engaged and connected. However, one of the other problems leadership identified was the silos between their project planning staff and the work crews. Our blog post next week will focus in depth on eliminating organizational silos, but here are some steps Charlie’s could take to start getting their teams connected:

Cross-Functional Activities

One of the best ways for different groups to understand each other’s perspective is to create opportunities for them to collaborate and experience the other function. It will teach them perspective, communication and give them an appreciation for the challenges the other departments face going about their tasks. Maybe the project planners at Charlie’s could do an on site planning exercise with the construction crews, and get a taste for common tasks like laying concrete or hanging drywall. Get creative!

Centralized Communication

Silos are often a product of miscommunication. Take advantage of technology and communication software options to make sure that the different departments in your organization can be on the same page. Set up procedures for common project types. If everyone knows where to go to find the information they need, and have more frequent touchpoints with the other departments, there will be less miscommunication, less frustration, and more connection.

Take Action and Monitor Progress

As an organization takes steps to address the issues that are holding them back from connection and a healthy relational culture, they should monitor the impact of those steps over time. There is rarely a quick fix, but a culture built on trust and respect will have a profound impact over time. As organizations grow they will uncover new challenges, but a connected company can face them as a team. If you have any questions about connection or relationships in the workplace, or any other dimensions of a healthy culture, we would love to connect and learn more about you and your organization. Just click here to connect!

References:

Cockshaw, W. (2014). Depression and Belongingness in General and Workplace Contexts: A Cross-Lagged Longitudinal Investigation. Queensland University of Technology. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from http://eprints.qut.edu.au/72061/2/72061.pdf
Johnson, W., al., D. K. et, & Daimler, M. (2021, August 27). The value of belonging at work. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://hbr.org/2019/12/the-value-of-belonging-at-work
Kirkland, R. (2019, November 21). Focusing on what works for workplace diversity. McKinsey & Company. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/gender-equality/focusing-on-what-works-for-workplace-diversity
Saelinger, D. (2021, August 31). The Neuroscience of Trust. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://hbr.org/2017/01/the-neuroscience-of-trust
How and why to demonstrate respect in the workplace. Syndeo. (2018). Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://syndeohro.com/demonstrate-respect-workplace/