Managing Team Performance

“Close to half of U.S. employees start their day with an unclear definition of what they’re expected to achieve.” – Gallup.com 

At its core, managing team performance is about setting expectations and measuring performance outcomes concerning these expectations. However, managing and maximizing team performance across distance is challenging; you cannot physically see your team. Some leaders who are new to remote environments tend to revert to traditional physical cues (i.e., visibility at the computer screen) to evaluate employee performance.  

While many advanced tools are available to track and monitor employee work remotely, virtual performance management works best when it is founded on trusting your team to complete the job, and aligning metrics tied explicitly to output and work product.  

Therefore, just as in the traditional workplace, hybrid performance management involves developing expectations and creating measurement frameworks to evaluate work outcomes against these expectations (including built-in check-ins, feedback sessions, and recognition of achievements and incentives).  

In her book, Who Works Where [and Who Cares?]: A Manager’s Guide to the New World of Work, Kyra Cavanaugh outlines six areas to consider in managing for results in a hybrid environment. If managers aren’t taking explicit, consistent action in each of these areas, performance breakdowns may occur in a new world of work

Articulate team values and behaviors. Team members need to understand what values should guide principles in their work individually and collectively.  

Clarify ownership and autonomy. In hybrid work environments, employees could have less clarity around the boundaries of their roles. Mapping roles and responsibilities becomes even more critical when team members work from multiple locations. Build transparency around everyone’s position on the team and state your expectations around how far their responsibilities extend. 

Set goals and objectives. Help your team articulate goals in a variety of domains. In addition to work goals, this may include professional development, work/life goals, and more. Set measurable goals for everyone, especially knowledge workers without immediate deadlines, so that you can evaluate their work. According to Gallup.com, a collaborative approach to goal setting can help to increase intrinsic motivation and accountability. 

Prioritize ongoing performance conversations. Managers should prioritize ongoing performance conversations. During these frequent conversations, managers should emphasize what success looks like—giving employees a well-defined target for excellence. Managers should also periodically assess the relevance of the goals and adjust them if priorities have shifted.  

Implement systems to track performance. To ensure greater awareness of what others are doing in the office, you need processes that provide enough structure so that you (and other team members) don’t wonder what team members are doing if you can’t see them working. Systems can compensate for the lack of face time.  

Measure results. Set measurable goals that are easily and frequently tracked. Ensure that everyone, no matter their role, has measurable goals, milestones, and deadlines. 

Communicate expectations and hold people accountable. Communicate and model your values and behavioral expectations to your team. Hold team members responsible for meeting these expectations. Encourage team members to hold each other accountable as well—build in monitoring systems to facilitate accountability. 

Managing and measuring performance is the collective responsibility of employees and managers. While many behaviors and actions are the same, each one has a unique role. 

Learning Opportunities

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