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Overcoming Lean Team Burnout

by Talent Plus

October 27, 2020BlogEngagementDevelopment

Organizations today are working with incredibly lean teams, often asking individuals to do three jobs instead of one. Employees and leaders alike are experiencing burnout. But they don’t have to be. 

  1. Are you asking team members what they are willing to take on or considering talents when placing responsibilities?  
  1. Are you giving leaders the tools to coach and develop their teams?  
  1. Are you recognizing the work your team is putting in?  

With leaner teams, it is more important than ever to consider what practices must be in place to avoid burnout and ensure your team is high performing and sustainable.

Planview conducted a survey of over 3,000 individuals to see what practices they found to be most impactful to their success:

  • Have an Executive Champion: have a team leader that can provide clarity, communication, consistent practice and implement tools.  
  • Leverage ‘Power Tools’: less people, less support, more responsibilities for your existing team. Take the time to research tools and technology that are cost effective but can dramatically help your team. 
  • Laser Focused on Flow: streamline processes when possible and ensure each member clearly understands their role in the overall project or process.  
  • Metric Obsessed: by tracking metrics, teams can quickly spot what is going well and what speed bumps need to be smoothed out. Don’t just dribble up and down the court, put the practices in place to ensure you are scoring baskets.  
  • Consider Talents and Strengths: consider who does what well and who has the talents to take on extra responsibilities. By making targeted efforts and changes you can recognize what individuals do well and delegate more responsibilities.  

How do you consider the talents and strengths of a team quickly?  

Our partners leverage our talent assessments to help them accurately identify what individuals do best, whether they are a natural leader, detail oriented, a big picture thinker, a ‘work-a-like-it,’ et cetera. By understanding these unique talents, leaders can place additional responsibilities on those who will do it best. Leaders can then leverage our Talent Card ®, a tool that recognizes and engages individuals’ top talents, to hold performance conversations. This recognition is an easy way to increase engagement, and when done with a personal touch, it can have a lasting impact.  

What tools do leaders need to coach and develop their team?  

Don’t worry if not all your leaders are natural coaches. We will do the heavy lifting. In addition to our talent assessments, leaders will receive customized coaching and development recommendations for each of their team members. These recommendations can help them individualize their approach for each person. Additionally, our consultants are here to provide coaching opportunities:  

  • Collaborative Coaching: Collaborative Coaching facilitates this investment by helping a leader and his or her direct report understand one another’s most significant leadership talents, synergies and challenges, as well as agree upon ways in which they can best collaborate to create a more effective partnership. 
  • Feedback Session: This feedback will provide developmental guidance and a deep understanding of the interview findings, including their top talents, areas for further growth and developmental needs. 
  • Executive Coaching: This is a one-on-one customizable coaching model to help leaders develop their talents and skills by using a positive, strengths-based focus. Research proves leaders experience more success and are more effective when operating within their natural talents.