Implementing changes in the sales department. Part 7/12. Stage V – Identification of motivators and demotivators in teamwork.

The team’s work efficiency is influenced by many factors that can strengthen or weaken employees’ attitudes. At the same time, one should not be limited to motivation theories and the tools created on their basis. The managerial task is to eliminate negative factors that reduce employee motivation. From a strategic point of view, i.e. the goal of strengthening the positive attitudes of employees, it is necessary to quickly implement changes.

Common factors that have a negative impact on employee attitudes can be:

1. Disordered pay grid (too wide pay gap in similar positions).
2. Unclear organizational structure (no division of tasks and responsibilities) and thus chaos and frequent conflicts.
3. Unaesthetic appearance of the rooms constituting the workplace.
4. Lack of appropriate work tools (too few devices, frequent failures).
5. Wrong location of the workplace.
6. Task overload due to staff shortages and / or poor work organization.
7. Lack of bonus system for achieved goals and above average results.

The fastest possible action to implement is to improve social working conditions. Symptoms of poor social conditions can be (examples):

• Damaged walls,
• Old furniture,
• Frequent failure of printers,
• Dirty armchairs at desks,
• Poor distribution of the work space, which does not emphasize the managerial functions of some people and introduces confusion for clients,
• Difficult working conditions during the summer – no air conditioning of the rooms,
• Lack of a coffee maker and fridge in the kitchen for storing meals.

Few managers pay no attention to this area of work, but from the point of view of the quality of work and team motivation it is crucial.

Implementing changes in the sales department. Part 6/12. Stage IV – Defining the team roles of individual employees.

This stage of team potential analysis is an activity that should be combined with broadly understood managerial intuition. This is associated with a certain vision of team building, and in particular the design of appropriate relationships in the team that will create the right conditions for the group to achieve better results at work. In short, the point is that relationships in a team be a positive motivation factor.

Team roles can be determined based on the following tools:

• Observation of work,
• Individual interview with employees,
• Interviews with direct supervisor and close associates.

As a result of this analysis, which can take up to several months, the roles of individual team members will be determined. The classification proposed by Meredith Belbin is best used to classify these roles. Not all roles proposed by M. Belbin will suit every team. Some roles will also be dysfunctional from the point of view of further cooperation opportunities and, as a result, will affect personnel decisions.

The biggest dysfunction are team roles consisting in non-objective criticism of proposed changes and expressing disapproval in the team forum. The effect of such behavior is an unfavorable internal atmosphere, increasing distrust and dissatisfaction. Changing these attitudes, based on contesting everything, despite many attempts and tools used, may prove impossible.

At this stage, the most important thing is to identify the core of the team, giving prospects for further development and building an efficient sales department. Personnel dysfunctions arising from the attitudes of individual employees towards colleagues and superiors, as well as towards clients should also be determined. As a result, the manager will obtain a clear picture of the team and a vision of its development from the interpersonal side in internal and, above all, external relations – cooperation with clients.