We often say that a team is more than the sum of its parts. And why is that? Because when we manage to create synergy between the people who make up a group of beings, the result forms a team. That is, a group of individuals who work with the same objective, leveraging efforts, generating shared learning and common good practices. In general, we all conceptually share the importance of achieving solid work teams, and the idea that without effective delegation by the owners and leaders of the organizations, the growth of the companies would be stagnant; But why is achieving this so difficult in practice?
For more than 14 years we have been dedicated to advising companies on their growth and development in Argentina and recently also focusing on Argentine companies established in Miami, among other places. And we all agree that to scale and professionalize any company it is essential to implement tools and mechanisms.
well oiled, even more so when the direction is done from a distance.
In any case, it is very common to encounter the feeling of SME owners that “no one does things the way I do them within the organization” or “it is easier for me to do the tasks directly than to teach someone else.” Overcoming this individualistic trait is a great challenge. Without a doubt, this truncates the possibility of achieving a mechanism that feeds back good results.
Of course, this need is accentuated when it comes to entrepreneurs who monitor their projects from a distance. In this sense, the importance of an effective delegation of tasks and responsibilities in solid and reliable work teams becomes clear. For this, it is essential to have a team of people trained to fulfill their functions. Delegating does not mean disengaging or disengaging, it consists of managing the businessman's time more effectively, being able to allocate it to strategic functions and entrusting operational tasks to the appropriate collaborators.
For delegation to be successful, it is essential to have clear processes and monitoring tools that reflect representative, measurable and actionable parameters, and that allow control by objectives, and not by tasks. It is common to find entrepreneurs who, when asked “what is your sales objective?”, respond “sell as much as possible.” Given this type of response, in my mind I imagine a marathon runner starting from the starting point, without having a specific arrival point, running “as much as possible”; How difficult that situation would be! The same happens within organizations. Without clear objectives it becomes very difficult to achieve effective delegation.
Along with a clear definition of the objectives, it is essential to be able to easily and efficiently monitor the progress of the different sectors of the company, through appropriate management control boards and KPIs (Key Performance Indicators). These dashboards allow you to measure and visualize key areas, evaluate situations and make quick and effective decisions in line with defined objectives.
The role of the entrepreneur requires a constant rethinking of the way the business is carried out, maintaining efficient organizations and motivated teams, prepared to face a constantly changing environment. “Remote” leadership brings with it some challenges, but it has already been demonstrated that not being in the same geographic space is not an impediment to achieving committed teams that promote innovation in organizations. It is important that the leader manages to generate a sense of belonging, and involve employees in the general objective of the company. Teamwork requires leadership to guide its operation, and it is important that members have their space to express their ideas and make their contributions to the overall project.
Efficiently leading work teams remotely is undoubtedly a challenge that requires courage and trust, but as Peter Drucker said “wherever you see a successful business, someone once made a brave decision.”
By Sandra Felsenstein, director and founder of the consultant for SMEs Dinkka.
