Maximize Productivity: The Top 5 Steps for Managing Team Workflows

In today’s competitive business environment, reliable team workflows have become the minimum standard for success. However, without workflow management, teams can quickly become bogged down by inefficient processes and a lack of direction. By establishing clear guidelines and procedures for how tasks are to be completed, teams can work together more effectively and ensure that projects are completed on time.

What Is a Team Workflow?

Team workflow is a critical part of any organization and refers to how tasks are divided up among team members so that each one can be done efficiently. Each task should adhere to guidelines laid out by management; these include procedures for assigning responsibilities and following through on projects.

A well-managed workflow can foster team productivity by helping the members of a group work more efficiently, communicate clearly and coordinate their activities.

5 Steps for Managing Team Workflows

Here are 5 steps for managing team workflows:

1. Define and Document Your Workflows

Defining and documenting your team workflows is like putting together a recipe for a delicious cake. First, you gather all the ingredients, aka the tasks and processes that make up your team’s workflows. This could include everything from client onboarding and project planning to development and testing, as well as any other tasks that are specific to your team or organization.

Once you’ve got all your ingredients, it’s time to combine them and create clear documentation for each workflow, detailing the steps that need to be taken to complete each task, as well as any relevant deadlines, dependencies, and other key information.

Just like a recipe, it’s also important to ensure that all team members have access to this documentation, so they can refer to it as needed. This can be accomplished by making the documentation available on a shared drive or team collaboration platform, or by distributing hard copies to each team member.

By providing team members with easy access to the documentation, you can help them to stay on track and ensure that they have all of the information they need to complete their work efficiently.

And just like a recipe, it’s also essential to review and update the documentation regularly. As your team and organization evolve, your workflows will also change, so it’s essential to keep your documentation up-to-date to ensure that it remains accurate and relevant. This can be done through regular meetings or reviews, where team members can provide feedback on the current workflows, suggest improvements, and make any necessary updates.

2. Assign Roles and Responsibilities

Distributing responsibilities and delegating tasks are critical elements of an efficient team workflow. When assigning roles and responsibilities, you should determine who is responsible for each task in the workflow. You can accomplish this through a process of identifying the key tasks and processes that make up your team’s workflows—and assigning those who are best suited to each task.

It’s common for different people to fill different roles on a project. For example, one person might be responsible for managing and coordinating the entire project, while another focuses solely on coding or testing aspects.

Once roles and responsibilities have been assigned, it’s important to ensure that each team member understands the specific tasks associated with their role (this is especially true in large organizations).

It’s essential to provide each team member with a detailed job description that outlines their specific tasks and responsibilities. Additionally, if any additional training or resources are needed for them to complete these tasks effectively, then they should be provided.

It’s crucial to orient team members to how their roles and responsibilities relate to the overall workflow. It’s important to provide team members with a clear overview of the entire workflow and how each task and process is connected. By understanding how their specific roles and responsibilities fit into the overall objective, team members can better recognize how they contribute.

It’s important to regularly review and update roles and responsibilities. As the organization’s or team’s work changes, it is important to make sure that roles remain accurate. It also may be a good time to reassign tasks or responsibilities better suited for other people on the team.

3. Set Deadlines and Goals

Setting deadlines and goals is a crucial part of team workflow. It helps to ensure that tasks are completed in a timely manner and that the team is working towards a common goal.

When setting deadlines and goals, it’s important to establish clear timeframes for each task in the workflow. This can be done by identifying the key tasks and processes that make up your team’s workflows, then figuring out how long each one typically takes—and adding some buffer space onto that number, so you don’t run into any unexpected delays. B

y setting clear deadlines, team members have a clear understanding of when their work is expected to be completed, and they can plan their time accordingly.

It’s also important to set achievable goals for the team to work towards. These goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). By setting SMART goals, teams can work together to achieve a common objective, and it can help to keep the team motivated and focused. Setting goals and tracking progress are effective ways to measure team performance, allowing for reflection on how well everyone is doing.

Here, using a performance management tool can streamline the process, providing valuable insights and fostering continuous improvement. It provides self-assessment and manager assessment, allowing individuals to reflect on their performance, achievements, and growth. This approach helps identify strengths and areas for development, ensuring that team members continue to grow and contribute effectively to the organization.

It’s important to regularly review and update deadlines and goals. As the team works together, its composition can change drastically—and this often affects a deadline or goal’s relevance. It also provides an opportunity to reassess which tasks are most important; if it turns out that none of these have been completed by their original due date, then perhaps one can make room for some other form of organization (like checklists).

4. Use a Project Management Tool

Using project management tools is a great way to improve team workflow. These tools can help teams to manage their workflow more effectively by providing them with a centralized location to manage tasks, communicate with team members, and track progress. When it comes to choosing a project management tool, it’s important to find one that works for your team.

Some popular options include Spike, Asana, Trello, and Basecamp. Each of these tools has its own unique features and capabilities, so you need to do your research to find one that best suits the needs of your team.

Once you’ve selected a project management tool, use it to track progress and assign tasks. Monitor deadlines as well to ensure your team is on schedule.For example, you can use Spike to create a shared list for each project, assign tasks to team members, set deadlines, and track progress. Additionally, you can use Spike to communicate with team members, share files, and keep everyone on the same page.

Having a team communication app that is integrated with the project management tool is a great way to improve workflow. It allows team members to communicate and collaborate on tasks in real-time. This can help to reduce confusion and increase productivity, as team members can ask questions and get feedback on their work as they complete it.

Using project management tools is a great way to improve team workflow. By choosing a collaboration tool that works for your team and using it to track progress, assign tasks—and monitor deadlines—you can help them work more efficiently. In addition, a project management tool that is integrated with a team communication app can help to improve workflow and increase productivity.

It’s so critical for companies to get this right that if they don’t, John Chambers, Executive Chairman of Cisco Systems, said 40% of businesses could be gone by 2025.

“At least 40% of all businesses will die in the next 10 years… if they don’t figure out how to change their entire company to accommodate new technologies”   – John Chambers, Executive Chairman, Cisco Systems

5. Communicate Effectively

To improve workflow, communication is key. Clear expectations and goals make it easier for people to work together towards a common goal.

One of the most important things to ensure is that all team members are aware of their tasks and deadlines. To make sure work is getting done, provide team members with a detailed list of tasks and deadlines and make sure it’s easily available. In addition, it is crucial to give your team members whatever help they need to do their jobs well.

Regular check-ins and team meetings can help to keep everyone on track. This allows team members to ask questions, provide updates on their progress, and get feedback. Team meetings enhance information sharing and allows teams to assess progress and make plans for the future. They also provide an opportunity to keep key stakeholders informed of developments in your team’s work.

To communicate effectively with external stakeholders, you should provide regular updates on the team’s progress and address any concerns they might have. You may also want them involved in decision-making when appropriate. By keeping external stakeholders informed, you can help ensure that they are satisfied with the team’s work and that projects are completed on time.

Team workflow use case:

“Spike Groups improved workflow between our teams and across our clients, since they now had a collaborative workspace that didn’t require logins. All that project history, and all needed files in one place.”
Read more about Max Shcherbakov, the co-founder and CEO of Hooligans, that uses Spike as a unified collaboration tool.

Summary

In summary, managing workflows is essential for maximizing team productivity and achieving success in today’s competitive business environment. Managing workflows consists of clearly defining and documenting processes, setting deadlines for each stage, assigning roles to team members according to those responsibilities, and using project-management tools. By following these steps, teams can work together more efficiently, communicate clearly and ensure that projects are completed on time.