When managing a team of employees for the first time there are often a lot of challenges that come with the role. If you have not been a manager before it might feel like a whole new ballgame to be responsible for not only your work but others too.
Today we want to talk specifically about the best ways to keep your team on track and organised with their work each day. Whether you are in the office or working from home there are plenty of ways to stay productive and organised this month.
Clean desks
One of the best habits you should instil into yourself and you workers is that a clean desk equals a clean mind. Ensure if you are working in the office that the last 5 minutes of the day are tidying desks ready for the next day. This might seem like a small menial take however it will make a difference to your workers when they come to work the next day and can simply get going.
Allow flexibility
One of the most important things you should be doing as a modern manager is understanding the importance of flexibility for many of your workers. Some workers are happy working any shift pattern and don’t have commitments at home; but others may prefer to start early in the morning or later on in the morning depending on their circumstances. As a good boss, you can allow your team members to agree hours and working patterns with you and work when is best for them. The reason this is important for organisation is because when an employee is able to work at hours suited to them they will come to work and be much more productive.
Have a morning catchup
It is very important as a manager to stay in touch with your team even when you aren’t in the office. It is incredibly important for you to have catchup sessions often with your team to keep them focussed on goals and keep you all on the same page with your work. Have a catchup not only to set goals for the week ahead but also to see where people are at in their tasks and how they are doing mentally with their workload. This is a good way to get everyone on the same page and set your week up for success.
Utilise project management tools
Simple project management tools such as Slack or Basecamp are essential for you if you are trying to work in a team on a project. A tool such as this will allow you to create a dashboard where all of the information about a project lives, and you will be able to instant message your colleagues, add documents and media, and create to do lists and attach people to each task. Doing this is something incredibly important and it will make a massive difference to you as a team.
Use a scheduling app
If you are working as a team leader for the first time, one great thing for you to try is employee scheduling made easy. Scheduling work hours and ensuring the wash flow of employees in your business is important and this again goes back to flexibility. Be sure that you choose the right hours for each employee and it will ensure the smooth running of your business and keep everyone organised and in tip top shape when they are in the office working with you.
Be transparent
It is incredibly important as a manager that you are transparent with your team and you want to let them in on decisions. Employees want to feel valued and they also want to be able to enjoy good communication in the office. It is important as a manager for you to utilise the minds of your workers for issues or projects and get them involved in decisions. If you have better communication in the office and employees see you as approachable – they will come to you with problems and you will be able to ensure that every worker in your office is organised and happy.
Set deadlines
It is a great idea as a manager to set deadlines for tasks to ensure that your employees stay on track. It is all too easy to get caught up or distracted at work and often an employee needs direction if they are to succeed and work efficiently. Set deadlines for your employees and make sure that they always stick to them!
