There are many steps involved in creating a successful financial team. After you’ve collaborated with a specialist recruitment company like Rebus Recruitment to find your ideal candidates, you still need to make sure that you’re creating an environment where your employees can thrive.
A dynamic, supportive and collaborative workplace ensures that your staff feel appreciated and happy with their careers. Engaged team members are less likely to leave your company for an alternative position, and they’re more likely to go above and beyond to achieve business targets.
If your employees aren’t achieving their real potential, the problem may lie with your company’s team culture (or lack thereof). Here are the 5 most common mistakes around team building and how to avoid them.
Lacking Clear Vision
Without having clear goals for your business or steps and structures in place for how your team can achieve those goals, your company isn’t very likely to succeed. However, to build a successful financial team, you have to clearly and consistently communicate those goals to every member of your team. Creating and maintaining a strong employer brand that encompasses your company’s values and management principles is essential for communicating these goals to your prospective and current employees.
Everyone should understand what the long-term objectives are on your company’s roadmap for success. Great financial leaders define their vision carefully so that others can know what they are striving to achieve. When formulating or fine-tuning your vision, it’s also essential to ask for and consider ideas from those around you. Working together, your team can navigate the complexities of the business, establish a direction and set priorities.
Not Giving Employees a Voice
Once you know what your goals are and what the team can deliver, ensure that you establish a culture of collaboration. The more accessible you are, the more comfortable your team members will be in coming to you with critical concerns that need your attention. By using an inclusive approach to problem-solving, you can build trust and allow people to feel like they can take calculated risks, often resulting in more creative, innovative solutions as well as more engagement and job satisfaction.
Communication is a crucial part of any thriving workplace environment. However, successful communication isn’t just about being able to explain long-term goals and short-term objectives and tasks to employees. Financial leaders also need to listen to their team members.
High-performing employees in the finance sector want to know that their contributions and ideas are recognised and valued. If your employees don’t feel like they’re making a difference, their motivation will suffer. Make sure that everyone has an opportunity to voice their ideas in your team meetings, and that every suggestion is given the respect it deserves.
Inadequate Training
When filling the gaps in their team, many financial managers will search for candidates who can excel in a role without any additional training. However, it’s worth remembering that your employees will have personal and professional goals that they want to accomplish, as well. Offering development plans is one of the ways that you can show your staff that you’re invested in their future.
As the finance sector continues to become more competitive, attracting and retaining top talent can be increasingly difficult. However, professional development and career advancement opportunities will attract more high-performing candidates to your team by showing them that there’s room to grow in your organisation, and because you’re investing in their continued development, they’re much more likely to stay with your company.
Giving Criticism Without Praise
To succeed in financial management, it’s essential to develop a decisive strategy for approaching delicate conversations in the workplace. While it’s never easy having difficult conversations at work, being afraid to deal with specific issues can lead to a pattern of avoidance and problematic manager-team relationships.
Constructive criticism is a great way to help financial employees grow. With feedback from business leaders, people know where they need to work on their skills and improve their learning strategies.
However, it’s essential to balance criticism with praise as often as possible. While it’s essential to offer constructive feedback when necessary, it’s equally important to recognise and praise your employees’ achievements and successes.
Unrealistic Expectations
Once you’ve recruited the right people for your financial team with the support of a specialist recruitment company, it’s natural to have high expectations of them. However, it’s crucial not to place too much pressure on any single member of staff. For example, your new accountant won’t succeed without an induction plan, no matter how qualified or experienced they might be.
Ensure that line managers are delegating tasks responsibly by considering the strengths and weaknesses of each individual on your team. While challenging your employees is a great way to develop their skills, over-challenging them can lead to unnecessary stress and a lack of motivation, which ultimately leads to a turnover.
Having an open-door policy for anyone who feels too stressed at work is a great way to reduce the risk of employees burning out because they have too much on their plate. One way to keep great employees is by letting them know that they can come to you if they feel overwhelmed by their workload.
About Rebus Financial Recruitment
Rebus Financial Recruitment provides a specialist and focused recruitment service to its customers, which historically range from a wide variety of organisations including SME’s to large PLCs.
We strive to offer both the client and candidate a seamless recruitment experience. Using our expertise, we get to the heart of employer and employee needs; and, in doing so, we match the two perfectly. To find out more, get in contact with one of our team today, or you can call us on 01282 930930.
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